Speaking about the causes, there can be many reasons that can trigger this issue. So we decided to write down all the causes below:-
Corrupted Temporary Data- If you don’t know, Ram stores the game data temporarily, which sometimes gets corrupted and can cause game crashes. Either try restarting the computer or game.Corrupted Graphics Driver- If your graphics driver is corrupted, you will encounter crashes unless you reinstall the graphics driver.Interference from the Antivirus- Third-Party Antivirus or Windows Defender could interfere in the game by blocking essential files. To avoid this, try disabling the antivirus or allowing the game through the firewall.Conflict of Software- Some third-party software or even Microsoft services can interfere with the game, which can cause many problems along with game crashes.Not Having Administrator Permissions- Administrator permissions are very important for an application because it prevents unnecessary interruptions from the third-party software or the antivirus.Corrupted Game files- If the game files are corrupted or damaged, the crashing issue may arise due to the corruption in the game data. To fix this, you must verify the game files to restore the corruption.GPU, Ram, and CPU Overclocking- If you have overclocked some of your hardware devices, like GPU, CPU, and Ram, you may encounter a crashing problem while playing. Although overclocking the hardware increases performance, it may bring some issues if the settings you have set are not compatible with the graphics driver.Outdated Windows- Outdated Windows is also included in causing crashing problems as new cumulative updates launch every month due to improving Windows Security. Therefore, keep your Windows up to date.High Graphics Settings- Incompatible graphic settings can also trigger this issue if the graphics settings are high and cannot be handled by the graphics card. Keep in mind that if your graphics card can handle the game, you don’t need to lower graphics settings.
1. Restart the Computer
First, you should restart your computer. Restarting the computer eliminates the temporary data stored in the Ram and restarts the required services. Restarting the computer may help to fix the crashing issue. Most users don’t take this solution seriously because they don’t have enough knowledge about what restarting the computer does.
2. Put -d3d11, -dx11 or -dx12 in the launch options
If restarting the computer does not fix the crashing issue, try adding some launch commands that will help render three dimension graphics with the help of Direct3D, a part of DirectX, which is a collection of Application programming interfaces (API) used to render graphics components. To fix the crashing problem, put -d3d11, -dx11, and -dx12 one by one and check if the issue persists.
3. Remove Game Configurations Files
If the issue is still there, you can try to delete the configuration data, which stores user configuration like Graphics settings, login credentials, and sensitivity settings along with the graphics cache. Removing the configuration file will fix the issue if it arises due to incompatible settings. Follow the steps to remove the game configuration:-
4. Verify the Game files
Game files can easily get corrupted due to interference from the antivirus or for some other reasons. Corruption of the game files could also cause frequent crashes. To fix this, either verify the game files or reinstall the game. However, we recommend verifying the integrity of game files because there is no difference between reinstallation and verification, as verifying the game files restores and replaces the corrupted files.
5. Run the Stray As An Administrator
If you haven’t tried to run the game with administrator privileges, give it a try before proceeding. Running a program with the administrator mode helps eliminate the interference from the applications along with preventing interceptions.
6. Close Overlay Apps
If you use overlays applications such as discord and steam, then kindly close it as it can cause crashing issues by utilizing most of your Ram usage.
7. Uninstall Overclock Application
GPU, CPU, or even Ram overclocking can run you into crashing problems. Although overclock improves the gaming experience alongside overall performance. Still, it is not recommended to set the overclock settings unless you have enough knowledge about your graphics card and MSI Afterburner. If you don’t want to revert overclock settings, read this full guide on overclocking.
8. Clean installation of the Graphics Driver
Your graphics driver would be corrupted, or your driver might have downloaded from a third-party source like Driver Boaster, etc. The solution to fix the crashing issue is to clean the installation of the graphics driver. The graphics driver comes with a verified sign that proves to the applications and games that they are safe to utilize as they are downloaded from the official source.
8.1 Uninstall Graphics Driver
To uninstall the graphics driver, we have an application called DDU, which stands for Display Driver Uninstaller, usually used to uninstall the driver entirely from the computer. Although you can also uninstall the driver via device manager, some files may be left over that might cause a conflict between drivers. Therefore, we prefer DDU over the device manager.
8.2 Install Graphics Driver
9. Allow Stary.exe file to Antivirus
Allowing applications through firewall aids when the antivirus interferes with the game files while launching. Usually, Windows Defender or even third-party antivirus can prevent you from playing by blocking essential data required to launch the game. Below are the steps to allow stray.exe in firewall settings. If the solution does not fix this issue, try disabling the Windows firewall.
10. Perform Clean boot
Clean boot is a technique to find the clear-cut cause. It starts Windows with the required drivers and services. Moreover, it disables the startup application. Sometimes, third-party drivers, software, and Microsoft services create problems by interfering in the running games and applications. For that reason, we use a clean boot technique to find the clear-cut cause.
11. Update Windows
Microsoft releases cumulative updates for their operating system to improve Windows security and user experience. However, Windows updates also offer their users to update their device drivers without users to do anything. If you are missing any driver or update, you may encounter a crashing issue. Therefore, keep your Windows up to date. Below are the steps to update Windows:-
12. Lower Graphics settings
If you can play the game for some time, then try to lower the graphics settings. If your graphics card cannot handle the settings you applied, we recommend you reduce some settings as it may aid in fixing the crashing issue.
13. Transfer a Game into SSD or Different Drive
If neither of the methods worked, then the issue is most probably due to corrupted files. Either try reinstalling the game to a different hard drive or transfer the game manually by copy-pasting. you can follow the steps written below:-
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