Crash to desktop on NVIDIA RTX 3000/4000 series GPUs while using Vulkan API

[Dick Winters]

Issue:

When using NVIDIA Game Ready Driver 516.94 (dated August 9, 2022) or newer on NVIDIA RTX 3000 series or 4000 series video cards, Ghost Recon Breakpoint crashes to desktop within seconds of loading a saved game using the Vulkan API.

Temporary workaround (only applies to RTX 3xxx users running Windows 10 or Windows 11):

• Uninstall video card drivers, either manually via Windows Device Manager, or using a third-party utility like Display Driver Uninstaller (DDU).
  
  
• Install NVIDIA GeForce Game Ready Driver 516.59 (dated June 28, 2022), available here[www.nvidia.com].

The game will no longer crash moments after loading a saved game while using the Vulkan API.

If using this temporary solution, you will undoubtedly have issues in other, newer software titles that require more recent display driver versions to function properly. Some games may refuse to launch entirely until you've updated your video card drivers. It is not a good solution, but it is one that exists.

This workaround is not suitable for any users of NVIDIA 4000 series GPUs because the issue has persisted longer than the processors have existed. There is no known display driver that will allow the game to run with the Vulkan API on 4000 series processors after loading a saved game. Curiously, the game will run normally with Vulkan API on 4000 series cards if it is the first time the game has been launched. After changing any graphics settings that necessitate a restart or saving/quitting, the game will crash to desktop without fail.

Comments:

NVIDIA previously had listed this issue in their bug tracker as:
"Ghost Recon Breakpoint when using Vulkan API the game may crash when launched, loading a save game or while playing. Launch issue original bug track ID for reference 3856900"

The most recent mention of this from NVIDIA is in the 527.37 driver notes (dated December 1, 2022). Shortly after this update, the issue was closed in the bug tracker and NVIDIA's final comment is that it is an application issue that needs to be handled by the developers, not a fault of the display drivers. This is further corroborated by the fact that the NVIDIA driver profile for Ghost Recon Breakpoint has remained unchanged since driver version 460.79 (dated December 9, 2020).

Ubisoft, please. You're the only ones with the tools to properly debug your own software. The last known NVIDIA display driver that works properly with the Vulkan interface in Ghost Recon Breakpoint is 262 days old as of today. I implore you to open the Vulkan SDK, track down the call/response error(s), and rid your poor customer service employees' unnecessary burden of making people jump through entirely unrelated troubleshooting hoops.

Thank you.

[Ubi_TheBerry]

Originally posted by ♥♥♥♥ Winters:

Issue:

When using NVIDIA Game Ready Driver 516.94 (dated August 9, 2022) or newer on NVIDIA RTX 3000 series or 4000 series video cards, Ghost Recon Breakpoint crashes to desktop within seconds of loading a saved game using the Vulkan API.

Temporary workaround (only applies to RTX 3xxx users running Windows 10 or Windows 11):

• Uninstall video card drivers, either manually via Windows Device Manager, or using a third-party utility like Display Driver Uninstaller (DDU).
  
  
• Install NVIDIA GeForce Game Ready Driver 516.59 (dated June 28, 2022), available here[www.nvidia.com].

The game will no longer crash moments after loading a saved game while using the Vulkan API.

If using this temporary solution, you will undoubtedly have issues in other, newer software titles that require more recent display driver versions to function properly. Some games may refuse to launch entirely until you've updated your video card drivers. It is not a good solution, but it is one that exists.

This workaround is not suitable for any users of NVIDIA 4000 series GPUs because the issue has persisted longer than the processors have existed. There is no known display driver that will allow the game to run with the Vulkan API on 4000 series processors after loading a saved game. Curiously, the game will run normally with Vulkan API on 4000 series cards if it is the first time the game has been launched. After changing any graphics settings that necessitate a restart or saving/quitting, the game will crash to desktop without fail.

Comments:

NVIDIA previously had listed this issue in their bug tracker as:
"Ghost Recon Breakpoint when using Vulkan API the game may crash when launched, loading a save game or while playing. Launch issue original bug track ID for reference 3856900"

The most recent mention of this from NVIDIA is in the 527.37 driver notes (dated December 1, 2022). Shortly after this update, the issue was closed in the bug tracker and NVIDIA's final comment is that it is an application issue that needs to be handled by the developers, not a fault of the display drivers. This is further corroborated by the fact that the NVIDIA driver profile for Ghost Recon Breakpoint has remained unchanged since driver version 460.79 (dated December 9, 2020).

Ubisoft, please. You're the only ones with the tools to properly debug your own software. The last known NVIDIA display driver that works properly with the Vulkan interface in Ghost Recon Breakpoint is 262 days old as of today. I implore you to open the Vulkan SDK, track down the call/response error(s), and rid your poor customer service employees' unnecessary burden of making people jump through entirely unrelated troubleshooting hoops.

Thank you.

Hello there,

Thank you for reaching out to us with this.

This issue has already been reported to the game team who are currently investigating.

We don't have any further details from the investigation to share at this time, but rest assured we're well aware of this issue impacting players.

When we have more information available, we'll share it here.

Thank you and apologies for the inconvenience caused!

- Ubisoft Support

[Pastreaver]

i can confirm that the Vulkan ver. runs stable on Ubisoft connect. my specs- i7-12700k, 32GB DDR5, RTX 4080, most recent nvidia game drivers, windows 11. ive also played the game via steam, the vulkan ver. crashes within minutes of gameplay. this might be a steam issue maybe, idk.

[Ubi_TheBerry]

Originally posted by Pastreaver:

i can confirm that the Vulkan ver. runs stable on Ubisoft connect. my specs- i7-12700k, 32GB DDR5, RTX 4080, most recent nvidia game drivers, windows 11. ive also played the game via steam, the vulkan ver. crashes within minutes of gameplay. this might be a steam issue maybe, idk.

Thanks for noting your findings Pastreaver!

These have been passed on.

When we have updates, we'll share them here.

Thank you!

- Ubisoft Support

[snickii]

Ubi will do nothing, waiting for month's now with this.
They only answer here but nothing will happen. It's Ubisoft.

[OnlyCrayZ]

Same thing happening in wildlands, tried every workaround, the vulkan version also crashes for me in breakpoint.

Running i9-13900k | RTX 4070ti | 32gb DDR5 ram

[Sir Puschkin]

522.25 is the last stable driver with Vulkan for me.

[76561199205081135]

Hi everyone !

I've taken note of your reports, as well as your feedback, and I'm sorry to hear that the crashes prevent you from enjoying Ghost Recon Breakpoint !

As mentioned previously, the problem has been reported, and an investigation is ongoing.

In order to isolate the Issue, I invite you to let us know the following :

- When the crashes happened, were you in DirectX or Vulkan mode ?

- Model of GPU used

- Driver version

OnlyCrayZ, as you've mentioned encountering crashes in Ghost Recon Wildlands as well, can you let us know if they still happen after checking the steps of our dedicated {LINK REMOVED}PC troubleshooting guide ?

This will help isolate the problem, and determine the best possible solutions.

Feel free to reach out if you'd like to share additional details, or if there's anything else we can help you with !


- Ubisoft Support

[trappist713]

Still crushes after ~ 1 min in the game.
Vulkan mode
RTX 4080
Driver 536.99

[Dick Winters]

Approximately 83.7% of dedicated GPUs in desktop computers across the world are Nvidia GPUs. That probably has a lot to do with why you don't see as many people trying to troubleshoot AMD GPUs. How many people are using AMD cards and, of those people, how many of them are trying to play Ghost Recon Breakpoint? In any event, this thread is not to swoon over one mega corporation or another. Why you would even consider this thread to be the proper place for either of those posts, RMJ, is well beyond my comprehension.

The only two games to give me any issues over the past few years are Ghost Recon Breakpoint and Far Cry 6. Coincidentally, both titles were sponsored by AMD during development. It has been more than five months since this topic was created (for an issue already nearing a year in age) and I think it's safe to say users with Nvidia cards 3xxx and older should continue to use 516.59 if they wish to use the Vulkan API. For anyone using 4xxx or newer cards, it is recommended you use the DirectX 11 API.

trappist713, a friend of mine using a 4090 was able to successfully get Vulkan to work by going into the graphics settings, resetting them to default, and leaving them. Changing even a single option (i.e. from high to ultra) would result in CTD after a short period of time. Try resetting the graphics settings to default and running the Vulkan API. If it still crashes, unfortunately, my only suggestion would be to use DX11.

[FragileAlliance]

The game got a patch. Did they fix the issue affecting Vulkan render? Nope. Still crashing 80% of the time on 4070 Ti with 537.34 drivers, 2-10 seconds after entering the game world. When it works, which is totally random, it might crash after 1-2 hours of gameplay.

I re-installed the game, and drivers, got it to work flawlessly ONCE. Upon a second launch, the issue is back.

Tried using Steam, and Ubisoft Connect (Ubisoft+) versions of the game (as these have different executables?) No luck.

[Manchu Warrior]

Brand new to the game... less than ideal user experience. Make me want to play the game not dislike it due to crashing. :)