Fix: Overwatch.exe Application Error

Overwatch is a first-person shooter multiplayer game that was developed and published by Blizzard Entertainment. The game was released worldwide in May of 2016. It drew in a total of 10 million players in its open beta and boasts 40 million users after 2 years time. The game was appreciated widely for its accessibility and the diverse appeal of its hero characters.

However, quite recently a lot of reports have been coming in of the game crashing due to an application error. The game crashes while playing and sometimes even during the launch and displays the message “The application was unable to start correctly (0xc0000005). Click OK to close the application“. In this article, we are going to inform you about some of the reasons due to which this error can be triggered and provide you with viable solutions to ensure complete eradication of the problem.

What Causes the Overwatch Application Error?

The cause of the error is not specific and it can be triggered due to a number of reasons some of which are:

Now that you have a basic understanding of the nature of the problem we will move on towards the solutions.

Solution 1: Deleting Game Cache

Games and applications store cache in order to decrease the loading times. However, over time this cache can get corrupted and therefore cause issues with the proper launch of the application. This cache is recreated automatically by the game if deleted, therefore, in this step, we are going to delete the cache in order to ensure that it is not causing the issue. For this:

1. Open the Task Manager by pressing “Ctrl+Shift+Esc”
   

   

2. Click on the “More Details”  button to open up a detailed version of the program
3. In the Processes Tab,  if an “agent.exe” or a “Blizzard Update Client” is running select it and press EndProcess button on the bottom of the program.
   

   

4. Now press Windowskey+R to open up the “Run Prompt“
5. Type “%Programdata%” in it and press Enter.
   

   

6. Delete the “Blizzard Entertainment” folder inside the directory
   

   

7. Restart the Blizzard client, run the game and check to see if the issue is solved.

Solution 2: Verifying Game Files

In some cases, the game crashes due to missing files because it needs all of its files to be present in order to function correctly. In the blizzard client, we can verify the integrity of the game files. If any file is found missing by the client it is automatically replaced. Therefore, in this step we are going to be repairing the game files through the Blizzard client for which:

1. Start the Blizzard Client and click on “Games”
   

   

2. From the right pane click on the overwatch icon
3. Click on the “Options” button on the top left side.
4. Select “Scan and Repair” from the list of choices available.
   

   

5. Click on “Begin Scan” when the message indicates you to.
   

   

6. Depending upon your PC this might take some time, wait for the launcher to finish the process
7. When completed, try to “Run” your game and check to see if the error persists.

Solution 3: Deleting Battle.net tools

Sometimes, the blizzard battle.net files can get outdated, corrupted or go missing thus causing issues with the blizzard client. In this step, we are going to be deleting the battle.net files which will then automatically be downloaded by the blizzard client and therefore, the files will be renewed. For that:

1. Open the Task Manager by holding “Ctrl+Shift+Esc”
   

   

2. Click on the “More Details”  button to open up a detailed variant of the program
3. In the Processes Tab,  if an “agent.exe” or a “Blizzard Update Client” is running select it and press End Process button on the bottom of the application.
   

   

4. Now press the Windows+R key to open up the “Run Prompt”
   

   

5. Type “C:\ProgramData\” In the open field and press “Enter”
   

   

6. Delete the Battle.net folder inside the directory
   

   

7. Run the Blizzard Client and check to see if the problem persists.

Solution 4: Updating Graphics Card Drivers

If the Graphics Card Drivers are outdated it can also cause issues with the game because Overwatch needs the latest version of the graphics drivers in order to function correctly. Therefore, in this step, we are going to update the graphics card drivers to the latest versions.

For Nvidia Users:

1. Click on the Search bar on the left-hand side of the taskbar
   

   

2. Type in Geforce Experience and press enter
3. Click on the first icon to open the application
   

   

4. After signing in, Click on the “Drivers” option on the top left.
5. In that Tab, Click on the “Check for Updates” option on the top right
6. After that, the application will check if new updates are available

   

    

7. If the updates are available a “Download” button will appear
   

   

    

8. Once you click on that the driver will begin to download
9. After the Driver is downloaded the application will give you the option for “Express” or “Custom” installation.
10. Click on the “Express” installation option and the Driver will automatically be installed

After the installation is completed, run the game and check to see if the problem persists.

For AMD Users:

1. Right–Click on the Desktop and select AMD Radeon Settings
   

   

2. In the Settings, click on Updates in the lower right corner
   

   

3. Click on “Check For Updates”
   

   

4. If a new update is available a new option will appear
5. Click on the option and select Update
   

   

6. The AMD installer will start, click on Upgrade when the installer prompts you to
   

7. The installer will now get the package ready, check all the boxes and click on Install
   

8. This will now download the new driver and install it automatically
9. Restart your computer and try to run the game.

Solution 5: Running a Clean Boot

In some cases, it was found that certain services and applications that are launched automatically in the background were interfering with certain elements of the game and causing it to crash. Therefore, in this step, we are going to be rebooting the computer without any background services or applications running.

1. Log in to the computer as an administrator.
2. Click on the Windows Search bar, type in “msconfig” and press Enter
3. Click on “Services” and check the “Hide all Microsoft Services” box
4. Now click on “Disable All” in order to disable all the third party services from running in the background.

   

5. Now right-click the “Task Bar” and select Task Manager
6. Click on the Startup tab and make sure that all the applications are disabled.

   

7. Now Reboot your computer
8. Run the game and check to see if the error persists.

Solution 6: Disabling Anti-Virus

If you have an Antivirus installed on your system it is possible that it might be interfering with important elements of the game and thus preventing them from running correctly. Therefore, it is recommended that you disable the antivirus before trying to run the game and then check to see if the error persists.