GD freezing/black screen WIndows 11.

[JunglePredator]

Having a problem with GD freezing/just loading to a black screen that never ends.

However I'm not on the Steam version (was forced onto GOG edition by crate customer service being unable to read English) but hoping you guys can help anyways.

There's a 'solution' on the crate forums saying it has to be started with the GOG shortcut but of course that does nothing.

Also tried: Turning off UPNP, new profile (in the my 'games' folder), completely re-installing the game, setting Windows 8 compatibility mode, using dgvoodoo, disabling deferred rendering, disabling and enabling network access.

On Windows 11, fairly fresh install.

[JunglePredator]

Автор сообщения: Zantai

That's just the installer's version that GOG creates. Either installer will install the game with both the x86 and x64 executables. We don't have separate builds of the game.

Someone should tell gog so they stop mislabeling things.

Based on the 2 exes (root & x64 dir):
X64 exe crashes and starts crash reporter, root exe just stays on the black screen. (Not this run but previously let it sit for about an hour.) Both show the black screen on start & windows taskman marks both as not responding as soon as they launch.
Compared to 1.1.9.8, which starts and is ready to load the saved game in about 30 seconds.

[Grinnerz]

For my part I was originally using just the "Play Grim Dawn" option. I just tried the x64 version and the same thing happened.
I then tried the x86 and it was somehow worse. Instead of going to a black screen the game completely froze. I had to restart my pc because GD covered everything so I couldn't use taskmanager to shut the game down.

[JunglePredator]

Автор сообщения: Grinnerz

For my part I was originally using just the "Play Grim Dawn" option. I just tried the x64 version and the same thing happened.
I then tried the x86 and it was somehow worse. Instead of going to a black screen the game completely froze. I had to restart my pc because GD covered everything so I couldn't use taskmanager to shut the game down.

Based on my poking... have taskman open and always on top.
The game might be completely unresponsive but you should still be able to kill the task without having to restart.

Edit: I said that poorly... I mean have it open and always on top before you start the game. GD shouldn't minimise or cover it.

[Grinnerz]

Автор сообщения: JunglePredator

Based on my poking... have taskman open and always on top.
The game might be completely unresponsive but you should still be able to kill the task without having to restart.

Edit: I said that poorly... I mean have it open and always on top before you start the game. GD shouldn't minimise or cover it.

It doesn't really matter if the game won't run for more than a few minutes. I don't really think that a big portion of the screen being covered would help much with playing though.
I guess I'll just wait and hope another patch fixes whatever this is.

[The_Mess]

/twitch

I loath threads like these, because it's usually all the sins of the hell desk in one bloody place. And if disabling UPNP hasn't worked, and reinstalling the game hasn't worked either, then that's logically a sign there's something else up.

Also doesn't help Grinnerz hasn't described symptoms on their end fully either.

Anyhow, this could be down to 2 things from my experiences with troubleshooting Grim Dawn. Which no one else has brought up sadly...

1. - File or hard drive corruption may have occurred and you need to uninstall the redists and the game and run Check Disk with /r and /f flags, or you will loose data otherwise, as windows doesn't recognise bad sectors and flag them as off limits until Check Disk is run. Which results in reinstalling stuff to a bad sector otherwise... And yes, that means running it on both C:\ and the drive Grim Dawn's installed on. One way to reduce the time to run this though is to reinstall GD on a known good disk or re-partition the hard drives involved.
   
   
2. - You have an older Nvidia GPU and the ye olde Nvidia 3D clock instability has reared it's ugly f*cking head yet again, I think the 1000 series was the last ones to have this issue that's been present since the 200 series. But given Nvidia's f*ck-whittery over the years, I would not be surprised if it's still a lingering problem in new GPUs. Anyhow Standard operating procedure is to underclock the GPU by 100hz, used to be you could just overvolt it slightly, but Nvidia removed that as a f*cking option. And yes, it is the only cure and no it wont gimp your performance ffs.
   
   
3. - Now, if neither of those work, then it's Super-Happy-Tech-Support-Hell time, where I ask you do something and hopefully worst case scenario were my advice built on years of trouble shooting is ignored because "I totes know betters!".

Lastly - the other things you can try, is deleting options.txt or you can grab the previous version of the game via "the usual means", although I think GOG now offers that as an option. No idea though, I use steam for everything these days.

[Chrille]

I have tried both versions x86 and x64 but no difference. A small stutter and then black screen. I hear sound and see the cursor. I have also tried reinstalling the game bot not helping. Edit: It also happening at random times.

[Zantai]

Автор сообщения: JunglePredator

Автор сообщения: Zantai

That's just the installer's version that GOG creates. Either installer will install the game with both the x86 and x64 executables. We don't have separate builds of the game.

Someone should tell gog so they stop mislabeling things.

Based on the 2 exes (root & x64 dir):
X64 exe crashes and starts crash reporter, root exe just stays on the black screen. (Not this run but previously let it sit for about an hour.) Both show the black screen on start & windows taskman marks both as not responding as soon as they launch.
Compared to 1.1.9.8, which starts and is ready to load the saved game in about 30 seconds.

It's just the difference in their installers. Since their installers are executables, they have an x64 version and a 32-bit version. Confusing in the sense that Grim Dawn can be launched in those two modes as well, but it's not specific to our game.

When you launched the game with both versions, did you use a shortcut or try to run the exe directly?

[JunglePredator]

Автор сообщения: Zantai

Автор сообщения: JunglePredator

Someone should tell gog so they stop mislabeling things.

Based on the 2 exes (root & x64 dir):
X64 exe crashes and starts crash reporter, root exe just stays on the black screen. (Not this run but previously let it sit for about an hour.) Both show the black screen on start & windows taskman marks both as not responding as soon as they launch.
Compared to 1.1.9.8, which starts and is ready to load the saved game in about 30 seconds.

It's just the difference in their installers. Since their installers are executables, they have an x64 version and a 32-bit version. Confusing in the sense that Grim Dawn can be launched in those two modes as well, but it's not specific to our game.

When you launched the game with both versions, did you use a shortcut or try to run the exe directly?

Well, because there's a 'solution' on the crate forums about it only running with the link file gog provides... I ran that once just to be nice.

All following times via double clicking in explorer & just now, just to be thorough, I launched it from command line with a clear path environ to the same result.

[JunglePredator]

Автор сообщения: Zantai

Автор сообщения: JunglePredator

Someone should tell gog so they stop mislabeling things.

Based on the 2 exes (root & x64 dir):
X64 exe crashes and starts crash reporter, root exe just stays on the black screen. (Not this run but previously let it sit for about an hour.) Both show the black screen on start & windows taskman marks both as not responding as soon as they launch.
Compared to 1.1.9.8, which starts and is ready to load the saved game in about 30 seconds.

It's just the difference in their installers. Since their installers are executables, they have an x64 version and a 32-bit version. Confusing in the sense that Grim Dawn can be launched in those two modes as well, but it's not specific to our game.

When you launched the game with both versions, did you use a shortcut or try to run the exe directly?

For fun here's a list of all the md5s of my installed copy for GOG v1.2.0.3 Hotfix 3 (69499). Just to be sure. This is the latest version they have posted.
https://pastebin.com/th0gW00L Expires in 1 week

[gNuff!~©~gNom3™]

Автор сообщения: JunglePredator

Well, because there's a 'solution' on the crate forums about it only running with the link file gog provides... I ran that once just to be nice.

that's because you can't run the 64exe direct, never could, so game not running there is then totally normal behavior

anyway, what i'm curious about, since i can't really seem to decipher it as people seem to post their own issues that seem different; is it blackscreen on startup or mid play or launching from main menu?
because there are (potential) difference causes and solutions to when/where blackscreen occurs
*i have both steam and gog versions btw

[JunglePredator]

Автор сообщения: gNuff!~©~gNom3™

Автор сообщения: JunglePredator

Well, because there's a 'solution' on the crate forums about it only running with the link file gog provides... I ran that once just to be nice.

that's because you can't run the 64exe direct, never could, so game not running there is then totally normal behavior

anyway, what i'm curious about, since i can't really seem to decipher it as people seem to post their own issues that seem different; is it blackscreen on startup or mid play or launching from main menu?
because there are (potential) difference causes and solutions to when/where blackscreen occurs
*i have both steam and gog versions btw

That... makes no sense.
It's a 1 KB shortcut that Windows makes... but your statement appears to be true. :'''-O

It appears to be something with how Crate created the exe however.

I can launch the v1.1.9.8 executable from the command line thus: ".\x64\Grim Dawn.exe" With the file "Launch Grim Dawn.lnk" deleted just to be safe.
Loads up a bit slower than the x86 that way.... but only just.

Seems to be something to do with the working directory as launching the executable directly does indeed get the black startup screen in GOG v1.1.9.8. Including through the system run new process prompt.

Just before hitting post I tried

Start-Process -FilePath 'C:\Games\GOG Games\Grim Dawn\x64\Grim Dawn.exe' -WorkingDirectory C:\Games\GOG Games\Grim Dawn\

in Powershell from Powershell's default directory (which is usually $home) & that also worked.

[gNuff!~©~gNom3™]

i have no idea what you're trying or why, sry 😅
all i'm saying is that "if you're getting blackscreen trying to launch the x64.exe direct then that's totally normal - and how it's always been"
*why* that is i can't tell you, just that's how the 64 exe always worked, regardless if steam or GoG

so the blackscreen issue need to be separate from that and identified separate from that "stop trying to launch the exe direct if that's what you're doing it's not supposed to work"
if you're launching GD normally, and then getting black screens, as i mentioned there are potential different causes thus solutions; but what matters is *when*/where you're getting the blackscreens
game startup, trying to load char from main menu into game, or randomly mid during play

[Pervy]

Автор сообщения: JunglePredator

Having a problem with GD freezing/just loading to a black screen that never ends.

However I'm not on the Steam version (was forced onto GOG edition by crate customer service being unable to read English) but hoping you guys can help anyways.

There's a 'solution' on the crate forums saying it has to be started with the GOG shortcut but of course that does nothing.

Also tried: Turning off UPNP, new profile (in the my 'games' folder), completely re-installing the game, setting Windows 8 compatibility mode, using dgvoodoo, disabling deferred rendering, disabling and enabling network access.

On Windows 11, fairly fresh install.

As in when you launch the game, it then loads and just goes black?
If yes then click or press any key, and it goes away, atleast if it was this type of case.

I always gets a black screen after the load, and it can last forever, till i click any key.
If its not this, i goot no clue, but when things spawn ingame, the game freezes and when there is too much loot the game also black screens(atleast in MP)

[gNuff!~©~gNom3™]

Автор сообщения: Pyromancer Oswald

As in when you launch the game, it then loads and just goes black?
If yes then click or press any key, and it goes away, atleast if it was this type of case.

I always gets a black screen after the load, and it can last forever, till i click any key.

tbh that doesn't seem "normal" either, even if perhaps not actually preventing the game from running like other black screens
i had one earlier from AV preventing GD fully launching (50sec startup scan), so made me wonder if that's maybe it there too or something similar
- mind you my Avast was/is set to exclude GD exe and entire folder and still somehow decided to get tripped after running it earlier today/after verifying game files with GoG galaxy 😒

[Pervy]

Автор сообщения: gNuff!~©~gNom3™

Автор сообщения: Pyromancer Oswald

As in when you launch the game, it then loads and just goes black?
If yes then click or press any key, and it goes away, atleast if it was this type of case.

I always gets a black screen after the load, and it can last forever, till i click any key.

tbh that doesn't seem "normal" either, even if perhaps not actually preventing the game from running like other black screens :tiwthink:
i had one earlier from AV preventing GD fully launching (50sec startup scan), so made me wonder if that's maybe it there too or something similar
- mind you my Avast was/is set to exclude GD exe and entire folder and still somehow decided to get tripped after running it earlier today/after verifying game files with GoG galaxy 😒

It happend on all my PC's and they had different anti virus. And it does not only happen to me, GF also got this. I think it even happens sometimes when loading into a game, after choosing a charater. But you just press a key, or click the mouse and it goes out of black.

The main black screen i have, is when it just goes black and there is sound, or when it crashs mid game. Mid game seems related to cluther.