The latest patch update for The First Descendant has triggered a wave of crashes, frustrating players as reported and prompting a search for solutions. Issues range from crashes during shader loading to random crashes during gameplay, affecting users with various hardware configurations, including AMD and NVIDIA GPUs.
Common Crash Issues and Workarounds
- Shader Loading Crashes: The most prevalent problem occurs when players press the “Start Game” button, causing the game to crash during shader preparation (typically between 30-50% completion).
Community-driven workarounds have emerged:
- Adjusting graphics settings: Setting all options to “Ultra” and disabling additional options at the start screen.
- Ensuring graphics drivers are up-to-date. – resolved the issue for some players
- Setting in-game graphics to “Automatic” (for AMD users).
- Editing the Engine.ini file to adjust shader pipeline settings (for advanced users).
To edit the Engine.ini file – A Steam user shared:
- Navigate to C:\Users\YourUserFolder\AppData\Local\M1\Saved\Config\Windows
- Open Engine.ini
- Add the following lines at the bottom of the file:
[SystemSettings]
r.ShaderPipelines=1
r.ShaderPipelineCache.Enabled=0
r.D3D.ForceDXC=1
Additional Workarounds
- Delayed Start: Waiting 30 seconds to 1 minute at the menu before pressing Enter to start the game.
- Lowering Graphics Settings: Reducing specific settings, such as setting shaders to “Low” or overall graphics settings to “Low.”
Important Notes:
- These workarounds may not work for everyone, and results may vary depending on individual system configurations.
- Some players may still experience issues despite trying multiple solutions.
- The development team is likely aware of these issues and working on a more permanent fix.
A potential fix has been identified by a player using an AMD setup, who reported that switching their in-game graphics settings to “Automatic” successfully resolved the crashing issue. This discovery may offer a viable solution for others experiencing similar problems.
In the meantime, players can try these community-suggested workarounds and stay tuned for official updates from the game’s developers.
