Game crashes and graphics errors
Find the message you see, then follow the guide written for it.
When a game crashes, the first question is what exactly happens. If only the game closes with a message, the cause is usually the game, its files or the graphics driver. If the screen goes black and the driver recovers, the graphics card stopped responding for a moment. If Windows shows a blue screen, the problem is at the driver or hardware level.
Find the closest match below. Each guide is checked against Microsoft's DirectX and driver documentation and lists its steps in the order that usually finds the cause fastest.
What to note before you start
- The exact error message or code, for example DXGI_ERROR_DEVICE_REMOVED or 0xc000007b. A screenshot or phone photo is enough.
- Whether only the game closes, the screen goes black and comes back, or Windows shows a blue screen.
- Your graphics card and driver version: press Win + R, type dxdiag and check the Display tab.
- Whether the problem started after a driver, game or Windows update, or after changing overclock settings.
The game crashes or the display driver resets
The graphics card stopped responding, and Windows reset the driver. Drivers, overclocks, temperatures and power are the usual causes.
DXGI_ERROR_DEVICE_REMOVED
A game or app lost its connection to the graphics card and had to stop. Microsoft lists the situations that cause it: the graphics driver was updated, a laptop switched from its power-saving to its performance GPU,…
GraphicsVIDEO_TDR_FAILURE
Windows tried to recover an unresponsive graphics driver, but the recovery failed.
Graphics card problems
The card reports a failure, shows image errors or does not output a picture. These guides separate driver problems from hardware faults.
CODE-43-GPU
Device Manager shows "Windows has stopped this device because it has reported problems. (Code 43)" for the graphics card. Microsoft explains that one of the device's drivers told Windows that the device failed, and…
GraphicsGPU-ARTIFACTING
Artifacts are image errors drawn by the graphics card: colored dots or snow, stripes, checkerboard patterns, stretched triangles or flickering textures. When they appear only in games or 3D apps, the cause is often…
GraphicsGPU-BLACK-SCREEN
The PC turns on, fans spin and lights come on, but the monitor stays black or says "No signal". The monitor is not receiving a picture, either because the cable or input is wrong, or because the PC never finishes its…
The game does not start
A file the game needs is missing or the wrong version. Microsoft's runtime packages install the correct files; never download single DLL files from DLL websites.
d3dx9_43.dll missing
An older game fails to start because d3dx9_43.dll, xinput1_3.dll or a similar DirectX file is missing. The same applies to xaudio2_7.dll and other d3dx9_*, d3dx10_* or d3dx11_* files.
Apps & runtimeVCRUNTIME140-DLL-MISSING
A program or game will not start and Windows says that VCRUNTIME140.dll, VCRUNTIME140_1.dll or MSVCP140.dll was not found or is missing. These files belong to the Microsoft Visual C++ Redistributable, a free package…
Apps & runtime0xc000007b
A program or game fails to open with "The application was unable to start correctly (0xc000007b)". Microsoft's name for this code is STATUS_INVALID_IMAGE_FORMAT: a file the program loads is either not designed to run…
Apps & runtimeDOTNET-FRAMEWORK-INSTALL-FAIL
An older program asks for .NET Framework 3.5, but installing it fails, often with 0x800F0906, 0x800F081F or 0x800F0907. Version 3.5 is an optional Windows feature whose files are downloaded from Windows Update when…
First steps for any game crash
If your message is not listed yet, these checks fix many game and graphics problems. Do them in order and test after each one.
- Install the current graphics driver from NVIDIA, AMD or Intel using the clean installation option, or roll back if the problem started after a driver update.
- Update the game and verify its files in the launcher (Steam: Properties > Installed Files > Verify integrity of game files).
- Reset GPU overclocks and undervolts, and turn off XMP or EXPO memory profiles for testing.
- Watch the GPU temperature while playing and clean dust from the card and case.
- Turn off overlays and recording tools, and try lower graphics settings.
- Install the latest Visual C++ Redistributable (x64 and x86) and, for older games, the DirectX End-User Runtime from Microsoft.
- Run Windows Update and install the latest chipset driver and BIOS for your PC.
Sources
- Microsoft Learn: DXGI_ERROR codes
- Microsoft Learn: Timeout Detection and Recovery (TDR)
- Microsoft: DirectX End-User Runtime Web Installer
Written and reviewed by Matyáš Rada.