Me personally, I like save points over automatic saves. With automatic saves you might want to stop playing but you can't because you are in the middle of doing something important and you don't know when the next autosave will come but you can't stop because if you do you'll have to start back at your last save.
What about the rest of you?
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Depends on the game but for the most part I prefer points over self saving or auto save. It allows for better design around those and a better experience in the game, knowing where you will return if you die or some such. But, as I said, depends on the game. I wouldn't want a 2D Megaman with Save Points or self saving. Same with most 2D games really.