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Troubleshooting Game Crashes in VALORANT

Troubleshooting Game Crashes

VALORANT is always being updated, whether it's new effects, features, or other admirable add-ons. Those additions usually utilize the latest available software that Graphics Card and Operating System manufacturers have available at the time. While no one appreciates cutting-edge technology like I do, you may experience some notable symptoms if your software is out of date. Some of those issues may include:

  • The game crashes to desktop
  • The screen is black when the game is launched
  • The game closes immediately after launching
  • The game freezes completely without crashing to desktop

Check if Your PC Meets Minimum Requirements

You can do so here.

Why is it Important to Keep Your Video Drivers up to Date?

Video card drivers (software that interfaces with your graphics card) often include vital bug fixes and/or optimizations. Your card is generally shipped with a driver pre-packaged, but this driver is usually out of date by the time it reaches your computer. One of the most important steps you can perform when installing a new video card, or using a new computer, is installing the most up-to-date driver.

The update process will vary depending on the specific video card you have, but many players will find that they likely own a card from one of three major product lines: NVIDIA, AMD or Intel. Since these are the most common types of graphics cards, we will cover the basic update process for each.

How to Identify Your Graphics Card

  • Press [Windows Key] + R (this will open up a "Run" window).
  • Type dxdiag and then hit Enter.
  • Select the Display tab.
  • Note the name and manufacturer of your card in the top left corner of the window.

Most common graphics card manufacturers have a solution that scans your computer and updates drivers automatically. They can be found here:

Updating your DirectX

DirectX is a set of Application Programming Interfaces (APIs) developed by Microsoft. This API allows various applications to interact with hardware on your computer without knowing ahead of time what that hardware is. Many applications use DirectX, however it is most commonly used in running games, because they tend to be hardware intensive.

What Does This Mean for Me?

If you are using an outdated version of DirectX, VALORANT is going to have problems interacting with your hardware (your graphics card, mouse, keyboard, speakers, etc.). This can result in a variety of errors, ranging from driver crashes, keyboard or mouse inputs failing to register, or sound cutting out.

You can click here to update DirectX, well, directly.

Please keep in mind that the highest version of DirectX that you can get depends on your version of Windows, as described in the above Microsoft article.

Make Sure Windows is Fully Updated

Windows updates often address issues within the Operating System and DirectX, which may lead to application crashes. You can find the relevant instructions from Microsoft here.

Make Sure Your Graphics Card Software Isn't Interfering with VALORANT

NVIDIA comes with the NVIDIA Control Panel and AMD comes with the Catalyst Control Center. Both of these programs allow users to set up graphics profiles that can override application settings and sometimes interfere with VALORANT as a result. Resetting the software to default values usually gives control of graphics back to the applications. Here's how to do it:

NVIDIA Control Panel

  • Right-click on your Desktop and select NVIDIA Control Panel.
  • Select Manage 3D Settings.
  • Click on Restore Defaults.

Catalyst Control Center

  • Right-click on your Desktop and select Catalyst Control Center (also called VISION center).
  • Select Preferences.
  • Click on Restore Factory Defaults.

Adjusting Video Settings

VALORANT will automatically detect the best settings for your PC when you first launch the game, but if you’re still having issues, changing some of these settings could prove helpful. Minimizing the video options will reduce the amount of effects on screen and could help you avoid crashing. Playing around with these settings will help you find a sweet spot between performance and quality. As a starting point, try setting each option to its lowest value. You can access them in-game or main menu by pressing ESC and selecting VIDEO, then GRAPHICS QUALITY

  • Multithreaded Rendering: Off
  • Material Quality: Low
  • Texture Quality: Low
  • Detail Quality: Low
  • UI Quality: Low
  • Vignette: Off
  • VSync: Off
  • Anti Aliasing: Off
  • Anisotropic Filtering: 1x
  • Improve Quality: Off
  • Bloom: Off
  • Distortion: Off
  • First Person Shadows: Off

PC Heat and Power

Sometimes, when you’re playing VALORANT, you’ll experience a sudden drop in quality. One moment everything’s going well, and you’re on the way to getting that ace, and yet the next moment you can barely see what’s going on! I would recommend you try the following as potential solves:

  • Check to make sure you’re using high performance power settings for your PC. 
    • Navigate to Control Panel\Hardware and Sound\Power Options.
    • Select the High performance power plan.
  • Check to see if your PC gets hot while playing VALORANT. 
    • On a desktop, you’ll hear your fans spinning very quickly, and you’ll feel the heat coming from your fans.
    • On a laptop, you’ll hear the fans spinning very quickly, and parts of the exterior may feel hot to the touch.
  • If your PC is overheating, take some steps to improve ventilation:
    • Try placing your PC in a cooler area.
    • Ensure proper ventilation is possible around your PC by removing obstructions that might block fan exhaust.
    • Clean out dust that may be blocking ventilation from your PC by using compressed air.
    • Take breaks between games, quitting out of VALORANT completely and giving your PC a chance to cool off.
    • Set a framerate cap in settings to keep your PC from working too hard.
      • ESC -> VIDEO -> LIMIT FPS ALWAYS. Try setting something lower than the average FPS that you get while playing.
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