100% crash rate on launch with fresh install

[Liverslices]

Issue Type (Required):

Crash - on Launch

Issue Description (Required):

Indefinite hang on first launch of a clean install, then all subsequent launches result instantly in a crash.

Clean install of Darktide, all mods purged and AppData\Roaming\Fatshark cleared.

First launch goes through normal questions about hardware and raytracing and AppData is created. Task Manager shows the launcher still running, but the game will never launch. After killing the task and relaunching, crashes begin immediately after clicking Start in the launcher. Each new crash results in a new .dmp file.

[PC] Do You Use Mods? (Optional):

Yes, and I’ve tried disabling them

Reproduction Rate (Required):

Constant (100%)

Platform (Required):

PC - Steam

[PC] Crash Report (Optional):

GUID: e16c1ed2-5d34-4008-9717-dec8cae66b28
Log File:
Info Type:

---

Upload Supporting Evidence (Optional):

[PC] Upload Console Log & darktide_launcher.log (Optional):

crash_dump-2026-06-30-19.48.21.dmp (118 KB)crash_dump-2026-06-30-19.40.12.dmp (118 KB)darktide_launcher.log (36.5 KB)

[Liverslices]

Seeing that in other threads that its being recommended to DDU, I have preemptively tried this and after a full AMD driver reinstall nothing has changed.

[FatsharkLev]

@Liverslices just to check, which AMD driver version are you using?

As recent driver versions 26.6.2 and 26.6.4 are unstable and resulting in crashes. The last known stable driver version is 26.6.1 which we recommend rolling back to.

KNOWN ISSUE: "DXGI_ERROR_DRIVER_INTERNAL_ERROR" on AMD Driver Version 26.6.2 & 26.6.4

It has been observed that the AMD driver versions 26.6.2 and 26.6.4 are resulting in players experiencing a DXGI_ERROR_DRIVER_INTERNAL_ERROR error on launch. In the meantime, we recommend rolling back to the last known stable version 26.6.1. This should immediately resolve the issue. Thank you for your patience as we look in to this.

[Liverslices]

@FatsharkLev Was running 26.6.4 when I first posted, but after rolling back to 26.6.1 I still have the same issue. During this roll back I did also run the AMD cleanup utility.

GUID: 0c8c16f2-314d-49e5-90ce-207c9df6531e

Log File:
Info Type:

---

[FatsharkLev]

Thanks for the update @Liverslices

Hmm, it’s tricky as no console log is being generated still.

It’s a shot in the dark, but can you try changing your adapter_index, to do so:

1. Press the Windows key + R
2. Enter %appdata% within the search input and select ‘OK’
3. Navigate to AppData\Roaming\Fatshark\Darktide
4. Open your user_settings.config file
5. Find the setting named adapter_index
6. Change this setting value to adapter_index = 1
   (If the adapter_index value is already set to 1, please try changing this to 0 instead)
7. Save your user_settings.config file
8. Launch Darktide as usual

Please let me know how this goes!

[Liverslices]

@FatsharkLev No change, unfortunately. Was set to 0 so I changed it to 1 and got the same result.

GUID: 7f124471-4a33-4282-b527-29f532907eca

Log File:
Info Type:

---

[FatsharkLev]

@Liverslices hm okay perhaps the drivers are not the culprit here then. Unfortunately, without a console log generated we have little to go on.

Shot in the dark, but could any Anti-Virus software perhaps be quarantining files or blocking Darktide in some way? Adding appropriate exceptions for Darktide may help.

Otherwise, performing a ‘Selective Startup’ to rule out any external program conflicts could be good to check too:

1. Press the Windows key
2. Type ‘msconfig’ and select ‘System Configuration’
3. On the ‘General’ tab, select ‘Selective Startup’
4. Deselect ‘Load startup Items’
5. Reboot your PC

[Liverslices]

@FatsharkLev I use windows defender, no 3rd party antivirus. Adding an exclusion to the entire local folder did not change anything:

Disabling startup items also made no difference.

[FatsharkLev]

@Liverslices just curious if you could try using DDU (Display Driver Uninstaller), opposed to the AMD cleanup tool, and then try installing 26.6.1 driver version again?

Just so we can fully rule out this being the culprit.

[Liverslices]

@FatsharkLev That was post #2 of this thread, I have already tried DDU: 100% crash rate on launch with fresh install - #2 by Liverslices

[FatsharkLev]

Ah, righto. I’m admittedly pretty stumped by this

Shots in the dark, next can you try:

• Repairing your .NET Framework

  • Please download .NET Framework 4.7.2 from the Microsoft website linked below. The installer should then prompt you with an option to repair your installation. Be sure to restart your PC afterwards!: Download .NET Framework 4.7.2 | .NET
  • If an error is displayed referencing that a later update is already installed, instead download and run the .NET Framework Repair Tool from the Microsoft website: https://www.microsoft.com/en-GB/download/details.aspx?id=30135

• Reinstalling 2019 C++ Redistributables:

  • Uninstall the Visual C++ 2019 Redistributables
  • Reinstall the Visual C++ 2015, 2017, 2019, and 2022 Redistributables: Latest Supported Visual C++ Redistributable Downloads | Microsoft Learn
    • You may be prompted with an option to repair, as opposed to install. In which case, you may proceed with the option to repair

[Liverslices]

@FatsharkLev Are there any other logs I can collect?

.NET 4.7.2 was already installed, so I used the repair tool. The mid-run diagonstic step didn’t catch anything when I reproduced the issue, and completing the repair and restarting didn’t either.

VS 2015 14.51.36247 was installed, and a repair of it didn’t change anything. A full uninstall and reinstall of VS 15 and then a restart also didn’t fix.

[FatsharkLev]

Hi @Liverslices

You could provide your most recent console log and launcher, and we can check these for comparison.

The only other thing I can think of right now, returning to potential AMD driver conflicts, is that some players have had success with the latest driver version 26.6.4 after disabling FSR. Could you try this and see if there’s any change?

[Liverslices]

@FatsharkLev No change, FSR settings in the launcher and AMD settings have been disabled this whole time and after upgrading back to 26.6.4 I still get the same issue.

[FatsharkLev]

Just a sanity check, one screenshot shows AMD FSR 3.1 > Balanced, if you set all FSR as ‘Off’ does the crash still occur?

Failing this, I am admittedly stumped.

Is anything flagged up if you run the Windows System File Checker?

https://support.fatshark.se/hc/en-us/articles/360039450413--PC-How-to-Run-the-Windows-System-File-Checker

[Liverslices]

@FatsharkLev Sorry, was flipping those settings on and off to try several combos, uploaded the wrong screenshot. The same crash behavior still occurs with all settings off (and also at various worker thread numbers)

[FatsharkLev]

Np! Unfortunately, we’ve exhausted available solutions, and I’m at a bit of a loss.

At this stage, I can only really offer to contact Steam on your behalf and request a refund. I appreciate this isn’t an ideal outcome, but please let me know if it’s something you’d wish to do.

[DornIvanotic]

If you right click the darktide exe not the launcher does it boot

[Liverslices]

Suggestion on discord for scanning system files didn’t help: Use the System File Checker tool to repair missing or corrupted system files | Microsoft Support

@DornIvanotic 's suggestion does something new, launching ..\binaries\Darktide.exe does successfully launch the game, but since it wasn’t through the launcher (?) there is no account signed in. No difference in behavior if launched as admin. @FatsharkLev Is this helpful information?

[FatsharkLev]

Afaik, booting the .exe directly will always result in a sign-in error, as your Steam account won’t be verified.

AMD have since released driver version 26.7.1. We’re still waiting to confirm stability of this version, but it may be worth trying uninstalling your GPU drivers again using a dedicated driver removal tool (e.g. DDU) and to then install the latest driver version.