because the next time the game is loaded, it will use your old save data. nothing that happens after you hit the "restart game" button will be saved
OK, so the text is accurate. That's good.
Why not make saving work how it does in most games (including autosave-only games), where starting over doesn't disable save functionality until the game relaunches? The way it is now seems like lost progress waiting to happen.
Or, if this would be much easier, why not put a large warning box up when the player is in this no-save state? SAVING DISABLED / CLOSE AND REOPEN GAME, something like that.
if you want to start over and delete your old save data, there's an option for that. the "restart with save disabled" feature is so you can re-experience earlygame progression without committing to deleting your old save file. if saves were enabled when restarting, it would immediately override your old save
OK, I get it. It's pretty different from the usual pattern of multiple save slots and manual saving (plus optional autosave slot). It's much closer to one-state-at-a-time, with a save slot to pick up where you left off. But normally games never get in a state where saving is impossible, which is what bothers me mainly.
Could I convince you to use one of these systems?:
1) One state, autosave
Autosave always enabled, there is a single restart/wipe save button with confirmation. (The simplest system. No need to mention saving at all except to say that it always happens at 8AM! Never surprising, but replaying destroys progress.)
2) Two states, autosave
At all times, the player is either playing Save A (red) or Save B (blue). Autosave always enabled. There's a button to switch saves, and a button to restart the current save (with confirmation). There's also a display summarizing the progress of the two saves, highlighting the one the player is on. It's possible to replay while preserving progress by switching slots, then restarting. (A flexible and clear system, but maybe over-engineered for a game like this.)
3) One state, manual save plus optional autosave
There's a button to en/disable autosave, a manual save button, and a restart button with confirmation. If the player never disables autosave, it's just like option 1 except you can save mid-day. But by disabling autosave and restarting, the player can play the early game while preserving their late-game save, and they have the option of manually saving the new run if they decide they like it. Doing so would replace the old run with the current run, so it should have a confirmation prompt. (Not my favorite, but I'd prefer it to the current system.)