Alan Wake 2 is one of the most notable releases of 2023. Fans of the original waited over a decade for the sequel to release and it’s finally here. PC users were skeptical about the PC port of Alan Wake 2 following the reveal of the hefty system requirements. Turns out, the system requirements were a bit exaggerated. However, PC users are experiencing crashes both in-game and at startup. In this Alan Wake 2 guide, I will list fixes that will help PC users fix the crashes.
Alan Wake 2 Crash Fixes You Can Try
Alan Wake 2 is a gorgeous game and such visuals come at the cost of performance. The PC system requirements for the game are the indication for it. However, the PC version of Alan Wake 2 is very scalable, and the medium preset looks and plays really well. Despite that, PC users are experiencing in-game crashes and crashes at startup. There are multiple reasons why Alan Wake 2 is crashing and the following are the fixes that’ll help PC users fix it.
Disable MSI Afterburner And RTSS Overlays
A lot of PC users use MSI Afterburner and RTSS to monitor the game’s performance and how it’s utilizing the PC hardware. Turns out, using the RTSS overlay is causing Alan Wake 2 to crash at startup. Disable MSI Afterburner and RTSS overlay and Alan Wake 2 will launch without crashing.
Check GPU
Your GPU is another reason why Alan Wake 2 is crashing. While the game can run on Nvidia GTX 10 series GPUs, they lack the support for Mesh Shaders that the game requires. If you are using a GTX 10 series GPU to play Alan Wake 2, it’s the reason why the game is crashing.
Update/Reinstall GPU Driver
Your current GPU driver version is another reason why Alan Wake 2 is crashing. Update your GPU driver, or roll back if you are already using the latest driver. Your current GPU driver version could be incompatible with the game and cause it to crash. Ensure you do a clean installation so that settings from the previous driver install won’t interfere with the new one.
Limit Max Frame Rate
Alan Wake 2 is a demanding game and puts GPU and CPU through its paces at higher settings or high FPS. If you are playing Alan Wake 2 at an unlocked FPS, it’s the reason why it’s crashing. Limit the game’s max frame rate to reduce the GPU and CPU load and the game will stop crashing.
I don’t encourage you to use the in-game FPS limiter as it introduces bad frame pacing in some cases. Use the Nvidia Control Panel to limit Alan Wake 2’s max FPS and fix crashes.
- Open the Nvidia Control Panel
- Go to Manage 3D Settings > Program settings
- Select Alan Wake 2 from the list
- Scroll down to Max Frame Rates and enable it
- Set a value for it and apply the changes
- Play Alan Wake 2 and it won’t crash
Note: Unless you are using a Freesync or G.sync display, your Max Frame Limit should be 1/2, 1/3rd, or 1/4th of your monitor’s refresh rate. Otherwise, the game will feel jittery.
Disable In-game Overlays
In-game overlays are useful but can interfere with the game, resulting in crashes. If you are using in-game overlays like Discord overlay or GeForce Experience overlay, it’s the reason why Alan Wake 2 is crashing. Disable all in-game overlays and Lan ake 2 will stop crashing.
To disable Discord overlay, open User settings > Game Overlay > turn off the “Enable In-game overlay” options.
If you have installed GeForce Experience, its overlay is enabled by default. To disable GeForce Experience Overlay, open GeForce Experience> click on the Gear icon next to your username > General > turn off the “IN-GAME Overlay” options.
Enable Debug Mode
A lot of GPUs from third-party AIB partners like Zotac use higher GPU and Memory clocks compared to Nvidia reference models. These higher GPU clocks are the reason why Alan Wake 2 is crashing. Enable the Debug Mode through the Nvidia Control Panel to force the GPU to use Nvidia’s reference clocks to fix the crashes. Open the Nvidia Control Panel > Help > Debug Mode.
Increase Shader Cache Size
The default Shader cache size set by the driver is rarely the reason why games crash and it might be why Alan Wake 2 is crashing. Increase the Shader cache size and it’ll stop crashing.
- Open the Nvidia Control Panel
- Go to Manage 3D Settings > Global Settings
- Scroll down to Shader Cache
- Select 10 GB and apply the changes.
Delete DirectX Shader Cache
A corrupt or damaged DirectX shader cache is another reason why Alan Wake 2 is crashing. Delete the DirectX cache and Windows will create a new one, fixing the Alan Wake 2 crashing issue.
- Open Disk Cleanup utility
- Select C drive
- Check “DirectX shader cache” and press OK
- Play Alan Wake 2 and it won’t crash anymore
Update Windows
Games are updated often and sometimes their requirements for the Windows build change or update. If you haven’t updated your Windows 10 or 11 operating system, it’s the reason why Alan Wake 2 is crashing at startup. Update Windows OS and the game will stop crashing at launch. Open Windows Settings > Windows update > click “Check for updates”.
Also, install the optional updates because usually, games crash due to Windows users not installing them. Open Windows Settings > Windows update > Advanced options > Optional Updates and install all available updates. After that, restart your PC, play Alan Wake 2, and it won’t crash at launch.
Install/Repiar Visual C++ Redistributables
Another reason why Alan Wake 2 is crashing at startup is the corrupt or missing Visual C++ files. Visual C++ Redistributables are necessary to run most programs and video games on Windows. The reason why Alan Wake 2 is not launching or crashing at startup is that you either don’t have the necessary Visual C++ Redistributables files or the files have gone corrupt. Install or repair the Visual C++ Redistributables and Alan Wake 2’s crash at startup issue will be fixed.
- Open the Steam library and type ‘Steamworks’ in the search bar
- Right-click “Steamworks Common Redistributables” > Manage > Browse local files
- A new Explorer window will open
- Go to _CommonRedist\vcredist
- There are folders with names in years starting from 2010
- Open each folder and run the VC_redis, both x64 and x86 versions
- Install or repair Visual C++ Redistributables and restart your PC
- Play Alan Wake 2 and it won’t crash at launch
Disable Fullscreen Optimizations
Fullscreen optimizations are enabled by default in Windows and it’s one of the reasons why Alan Wake 2 is crashing at launch. Disable Fullscreen Optimizations and it’ll stop crashing.
- Click on the three dots under Alan Wake 2 in your Epic Games library
- Click on Manage > click on the folder icon in front of Installation
- A new window will open containing game files
- Right-click the game executable and select Properties
- Go to the Compatibility tab, check “Disable Fullscreen optimizations” and apply the changes
- Play Alan Wake 2 and it won’t crash at startup
Run SFC Scan
Corrupt or missing system files is another reason for Alan Wake 2’s crash at startup or not launching issue. Fortunately, Windows has a built-in tool to scan and download the corrupt or missing Windows system files, fixing the Alan Wake 2’s crashes. Open CMD and run it as an administrator, type sfc /scannow, and press enter. Let the scan complete and it’ll download and replace corrupt or missing Windows system files.
Run The Game In Compatibility Mode
Running Alan Wake 2 in compatibility mode for Windows 7 also fixes the crashes at startup.
- Click on the three dots under Alan Wake 2 in your Epic Games library
- Click on Manage > click on the folder icon in front of Installation
- A new window will open containing game files
- Right-click the executable and select Properties
- Go to the Compatibility tab
- Check “Run this program in compatibility mode for” and select Windows 7 from the drop-down menu
- Play Alan Wake 2 and it won’t crash at launch
That is all for our Alan Wake 2 fixes for in-game crashes and crashes at startup issues. If you are facing errors and issues with other PC games or your PC, then also see our hub for commonly occurring PC errors and their fixes.
