Fix: State of Decay 2 Crash on Startup

State of Decay 2 is an open world zombie survival game which is developed by Undead Labs. It is one of the few games which are published by Microsoft Studios itself. It was launched after the success of its predecessor State of Decay.

Ever since its release on 22^nd May 2018, the game has been a victim of many bugs and instabilities. One of these scenarios is when the game crashes almost immediately upon startup and doesn’t allow the user to play (or launch) the game whatsoever. After going through various scenarios and feedback from the users, we have put together a short guide for you to fix the problem.

What causes State of Decay 2 to Crash on Startup?

Since the game is in its initial stages, there are a lot of different conflicts and uncertainties. Since each computer system is different in terms of hardware and software configuration, each case is different. We have listed some of the common errors responsible for crashing the game. Take a look.

Before you jump into the solutions, make sure that you are logged in as an administrator on your computer. Also, make sure that you have your Microsoft account credentials at hand.

Solution 1: Reinstalling Language Pack

Language packs not only dictate the language set on your computer but also provide support for some games who use the API. Since this game is published by Microsoft studio, it uses the inbuilt language packs of Windows 10. It seems there is a bug where these language packs are not interacting with the game properly and causing crashes. We can try reinstalling them (or installing a new one) and see if this fixes the issue.

1. Press Windows + S, type “language” in the dialogue box and open the Language settings.
2. Once in language settings, click on Add a language.
3. Now since we already have English (US), we can try installing another version of English and see if does trick. You can select English from other countries such as Australia etc.

4. After installing the new language pack, select it and restart your computer. It may take some time to install all the dependencies. Launch State of Decay 2 and see if the issue is fixed.

Solution 2: Disabling Antivirus Software

Antivirus software always keeps a lookout and check on applications which consume your processing power and other resources. There are several cases where the antivirus software flags a game as a potential threat even though there isn’t anything wrong with it.

So you if the above solution doesn’t work, try disabling your Antivirus software. You can check out our article on How to turn your Antivirus off. After disabling your Antivirus, restart your computer and try launching State of Decay 2 again. If disabling the Antivirus doesn’t work, you can try uninstalling it and see if it does the trick for you.

Solution 3: Disabling GameBar

GameBar is a module developed by Microsoft which allows users to record or capture the screen without having to alt-tab to the software. It provides hotkeys and is very efficient for capturing moments very fast.

Since this feature is present within the game, it sometimes clashes with its main process. We can try disabling it and see if it does the trick in solving the crashes upon startup.

1. Press Windows + I, type “Gamebar” in the dialogue box and open the result ‘GameBar shortcuts’.

   

2. Now make sure that the entire module is turned off. Save changes and exit.

3. Restart your computer for the changes to take place and check if the problem at hand got solved.

Solution 4: Updating Graphic drivers, DirectX, and Windows

Graphics drivers are the main interface between the hardware and software. It provides modes of communications between both and also passes on the commands. Graphics drivers get outdated every once in a while. The games (like State of Decay 2) always optimize themselves to run with the latest graphics drivers. Same goes for DirectX. We will try updating both and see it works out.

1. Press Windows + R, type “devmgmt.msc” in the dialogue box and press Enter.
2. Once in the device manager, expand the category of Display adapters. Select your graphics hardware, right-click it and select Update driver.

3. Select the first option Search automatically for updated driver software. You can also install the drivers manually using the second option after downloading them from the manufacturer’s website.

DirectX is updated through Windows update. There were several cases where users were reluctant to install the latest version of Windows on their computers. If this is the case, we press that you install the latest updates available immediately. Since Microsoft Studios publish this game, they keep both Windows and the game in-sync.

1. Press Windows + S, type “Windows update” and open the relevant settings.
2. Select the option Check for updates from the next Windows. Now Windows will start searching for available updates on your computer and install them accordingly.

3. Restart your computer and check if the issue is resolved.

Solution 5: Reinstalling the game

If all the above methods don’t work, you can go ahead and reinstall the entire game package. State of Decay 2 can get corrupt or miss its operating files like all other games out there. We can uninstall the game through Microsoft Store and download it again. Make sure that you have your Microsoft credentials at hand.

1. Press Windows + S, type “store” in the dialogue box and open Microsoft Store.
2. Now click on the three-dots present at the top-right side of the screen and select My Library.

3. Click on the tab installed from the left navigation pane, select State of Decay 2 and uninstall it.
4. Restart your computer properly before launching store again and downloading the game.