How to Fix NieR Automata White Screen Error on Windows?

NieR: Automata is an action role-playing game released in 2017 and a sequel to 2010 video game named NieR. It deals with a proxy war between humanity and machines created by Earth’s invaders. The game was a success but many PC users complained about the “White screen of death” where the game’s screen goes white and nothing happens except that the background music keeps playing.

The problem often occurred to AMD Radeon users but it occurs to other people as well. Luckily, other players who faced the problem managed to come up with their methods to resolve the problem so make sure you check them out below!

What Causes the White Screen while Playing NieR: Automata on Windows?

There are a few causes for this problem. Determining the cause which triggered the error in your scenario can be extremely useful as you can easily choose the method which will suit you best. This will save you some time and nerves! Check out the list below:

Solution 1: Update Your Graphics Card Drivers

Having the latest drivers installed on your computer is a must, especially if you are a gamer who enjoys playing the latest games which take the newest drivers for granted. This bug was also infamous both for NVIDIA and AMD users as both companies released patches exclusively for this game. Download the latest drivers by following the instructions below!

1. Open Start menu, type in “Device Manager” afterward, and select it from the list of available search results simply by clicking its name at the top. You can also utilize the Windows Key + R key combo to bring up the Run Type in “devmgmt.msc” in the text box and click OK to run it.

2. To install the video card driver for the card you have inside your computer, expand the Display adapters section, right-click on your graphics card and choose the Uninstall Device.

3. Confirm any pop-up dialog boxes which might ask you to confirm the uninstallation of the current graphics device driver and wait for the process to complete.
4. Look for your graphics card driver on NVIDIA’s or AMD’s Input the required information regarding your card and your operating system and click on Search or Submit.

5. A list of all available drivers should appear. Make sure you scroll down until you reach the latest driver, click on its name and the Download button afterward. Save it to your computer, open it, and follow the instructions on-screen.
6. Check to see if the problem has been resolved and if the white screen still appears while playing NieR: Automata!

Solution 2: Delete the Config File

Since many users like to change settings or download someone else’s configuration file to make the game run better, some of the settings you might have changed may have led to the white screen problem. Simply deleting the config file will cause the game to create another one, which will effectively reset all game-related settings and hopefully, resolve this issue.

1. Navigate to the configuration folder’s location in the File Explorer simply by opening a folder and clicking This PC or My Computer from the left navigation pane or by searching for this entry in the Start menu.

2. Anyway, in This PC or My Computer, double-click to open your Local Disk and navigate to Users >> Your Account’s Name >> Documents >> My Games >> NieR_Automata. Windows 10 users can simply navigate to Documents after opening File Explorer from the right-side navigation menu.
3. Right-click the file called named ‘Graphics.ini’ and choose Delete from the context menu which will appear. Confirm the dialog box which will appear. Repeat the same process for the file named SystemData.dat.

4. Try running the game again to check if the white screen problem still appears in-game!

Solution 3: Disable Graphics Card Performance Timer

There is a period for which your system waits before crashing the graphics card driver. If that time passes with no response from your graphics card, the driver will crash and the game will probably exhibit an error or a graphics issue. Increasing this time or disabling it completely may help you resolve this problem. Still, this can cause instability with other apps and games so make sure you undo these steps if you notice such changes.

1. Since you are going to edit a registry key, we recommend you check out this article we have published for you to safely backup your registry to prevent other problems. Still, nothing wrong will occur if you follow the steps carefully and correctly.
2. Open the Registry Editor window by typing “regedit” in the search bar, the Start menu, or the Run dialog box which can be accessed with the Windows Key + R key combination. Navigate to the following key in your registry by navigating at the left pane:

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\ControlSet002 (sometimes called ControlSet001) \Control\GraphicsDrivers

3. Click on this key and try to locate an entry named TdrDelay. If it’s not there, create a new DWORD (QWORD) Value entry called TdrDelay right-clicking at the right side of the window and choosing New >> DWORD (32-bit) Value or New >> QWORD (64-bit) Value depending on your Windows installation. Right-click on it, and choose the Modify option from the context menu.

4. In the Edit window, under the Value data section change the value to 8 and apply the changes you have made. Make sure the Base is set to Decimal. Confirm any security dialogs which may appear during this process.

   

5. You can now manually restart your computer by clicking Start menu >> Power button >> Restart and check to see if the problem is gone. This will probably resolve the problem immediately.

Solution 4: Disable AA and FXAA, Set VSync to Adaptive

This method is mostly dependent on your setup and it will work for some users while not making a difference for others. Still, changing these settings won’t affect your playing experience greatly and you have nothing to lose by trying the steps presented below!

1. Right-click your desktop at the blank side without icons and select the NVIDIA Control Panel entry from the context menu which will appear. You can also double-click the NVIDIA icon in the system tray if you see it. NVIDIA Control Panel can also be located in the Control Panel by switching to the Large icons view and locating it.

2. Under the 3D settings section at the left navigation pane, click on Manage 3D settings at the left navigation side and navigate to the Program Settings
3. Click on Add and make sure you browse your PC for the executable which is used to launch NieR: Automata. It’s located in the folder where you decided to install the game.

4. Under the Specify the settings for this program section, scroll down until you see the Antialiasing – FXAA Click under the Settings column and switch it to off. Repeat the same for Antialiasing – Gama correction and Antialiasing – Mode!
5. Scroll down to the very bottom until you reach the Vertical sync Click on it and choose Adaptive!

6. Apply the changes you have made and reopen NieR: Automata to see whether the white screen of death still appears!