Cannot start EU4: An Error Has Occurred

[Doctor Wuhan]

Hello, I have no idea why this suddenly started to happen. I've always ran EU4 without an issue. Then I reinstall the game after a few months and get this error message:

https://postimg.cc/xc8LxzRh

I did as prompted and reinstalled my Visual C++ Redistributes and verified my file integrity. Neither of those two solutions worked. I also tried to reinstall and delete any files leftover, such as save games. No luck. Finally I tried to reinstall my .Net Framework, but have not had luck doing that. Apparently it's installed automatically via Windows.

Since I have not encountered a rash of similar issues in my research, I assume that a recent windows update isn't the culprit. I just don't know what could have caused this. Any ideas?

[grotaclas]

This error can have many sources. To narrow it down somewhat, try to start the game from eu4.exe / eu4.app . If that works it is a launcher problem. If it doesn't work it is a game problem. In that case, please tell me how far in the startup process you get(what is the last thing that eu4 displays) and if you get any error message.

[Doctor Wuhan]

Originally posted by grotaclas:

This error can have many sources. To narrow it down somewhat, try to start the game from eu4.exe / eu4.app . If that works it is a launcher problem. If it doesn't work it is a game problem. In that case, please tell me how far in the startup process you get(what is the last thing that eu4 displays) and if you get any error message.

Hmm, I did try that, but ended up with an infinite black loading screen. No artscreen or loading messages. No error message, either.

[andrejgeny]

If I try to start the game on WIn10, since a couple of days an error occures:

German:
Starten des Spiels Fehlgeschlagen. Überprüfe bitte die Integrität deiner Spieldateien. Wenn du Windows verwendest, musst du möglicherweise auch Visual C++ Redistributable und NET. Framework installieren.

Setting breakpad minidump AppID = 236850
SteamInternal_SetMinidumpSteamID: Caching Steam ID: 76561198399508228 [API loaded no]

Has someone got a similar error?

[grotaclas]

Originally posted by Doctor Wuhan:

Hmm, I did try that, but ended up with an infinite black loading screen. No artscreen or loading messages. No error message, either.

This is unusual and I'm not sure what could have caused that. Does it help if you change the display mode to borderless fullscreen in the launcher like in the following screenshot?
https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2708648091
If it doesn't help, do other display modes work better?

If you have any program that messes with your screen and/or overlays something in your game, try to disable them. Programs which are known to be problematic are:

• RivaTuner Statistics Server
  
• RadeonPro
  
• "Surface Format Optimization" in the Radeon Software
  
• "Surface Format Optimization" in the GeForce Experience
  
• maybe the GeForce Experience in general
  
• Nvidia GeForce Overlay
  
• a gaming VPN app called Evolve
  
• MSI Gaming App / MSI Afterburner
  
• Duet
  
• Nahimic
  
• Razer Cortex
  
• D3Dgear

Or maybe it is a problem with the graphic drivers or how eu4 uses them. Do other games work properly? You could try ck2 ( https://store.steampowered.com/app/203770/Crusader_Kings_II/ ) which uses the same engine as eu4 and the base game is free on steam.

[grotaclas]

Originally posted by andrejgeny:

If I try to start the game on WIn10, since a couple of days an error occures:

German:
Starten des Spiels Fehlgeschlagen. Überprüfe bitte die Integrität deiner Spieldateien. Wenn du Windows verwendest, musst du möglicherweise auch Visual C++ Redistributable und NET. Framework installieren.

Setting breakpad minidump AppID = 236850
SteamInternal_SetMinidumpSteamID: Caching Steam ID: 76561198399508228 [API loaded no]

Has someone got a similar error?

That's the same error message which the OP got. What happens if you start eu4.exe directly?

[andrejgeny]

If I start the game from SteamLibrary the screen becomes for a couple of seconds black. After that the pc turns back to desktop without starting the game. Reinstalling of the game has no effect.

[andrejgeny]

Stellaris and Hearts of Iron IV have the same problem.

[grotaclas]

Originally posted by andrejgeny:

If I start the game from SteamLibrary the screen becomes for a couple of seconds black. After that the pc turns back to desktop without starting the game. Reinstalling of the game has no effect.

What do you mean by "SteamLibrary"? What I was asking is what happens if you start eu4.exe from the installation folder which you can access by right clicking on eu4 in the steam library(in the steam client program) and selecting "Manage"->"Browse local files".

[andrejgeny]

"SteamLibrary" is a Windows folder in wich the game is installed.

Today I tried it again. By double click on eu4.exe nothing happens. By right click I may chose the option to run the file and to run the file as admin. In both cases I just get back to desktop.

Black screen appears if I try to run the game by using the EU4-launcher. Im sorry about this confusion.

[andrejgeny]

Have installed and tried to run Crusader Kings 2. Does also not run. The only Paradox game which can still be started is Cities: Skylines. Any ideas?

[grotaclas]

Originally posted by andrejgeny:

"SteamLibrary" is a Windows folder in wich the game is installed.

Today I tried it again. By double click on eu4.exe nothing happens. By right click I may chose the option to run the file and to run the file as admin. In both cases I just get back to desktop.

Black screen appears if I try to run the game by using the EU4-launcher. Im sorry about this confusion.

Does it help if you use other display modes like I suggested in this comment? If that doesn't help, do you have any of the programs which I mentioned in that comment?

It could also be that you have an antivirus or ransomware protection software that prevents eu4 from writing its files. In that case you have to add eu4 (and possibly the launcher) to the exception list of your software

• If you have Windows Defender(also called Microsoft Defender), add the launcher and eu4 to the Ransomware "Apps Allowed Through" list(here[docs.microsoft.com] are instructions for that).
  
• If you have bitdefender, add the launcher and eu4 to the list of ransomware exceptions and "give it access" to "protected files".
  
• If you have avast, you have to add the launcher and eu4 to the allowed list in the ransomware shield

Cloud syncing services like Microsoft OneDrive could also cause problems. If you have something like this you could try to exclude the "Documents\Paradox Interactive\Europa Universalis IV" folder from it.

Originally posted by andrejgeny:

The only Paradox game which can still be started is Cities: Skylines. Any ideas?

Cities Skylines doesn't use the Clausewitz game engine like the other games which you mentioned. The only thing which it has in common with eu4 is the launcher, but we already know that the launcher is not the problem, because then launching from eu4.exe should work.

[andrejgeny]

The change of the display modes does nothing. All protection software including MS Defender was deactivated for a test without effect on running the game. The Steam folder are not in OneDrive included. Deactivating of OneDrive has also no effect. Non of listed programms are installed.

Both games EU4 and Stellaris has functioned for a long period of time. The installed protection software was never a problem for this games. Only known change on the pc system was the removing of one of both displays.

[grotaclas]

Originally posted by andrejgeny:

The change of the display modes does nothing. All protection software including MS Defender was deactivated for a test without effect on running the game. The Steam folder are not in OneDrive included. Deactivating of OneDrive has also no effect. Non of listed programms are installed.

Both games EU4 and Stellaris has functioned for a long period of time. The installed protection software was never a problem for this games. Only known change on the pc system was the removing of one of both displays.

The steam folder is usually not the problem. The problem is "Documents/Paradox Interactive/Europa Universalis IV" which contains configurations, logs, saves and so on and eu4 tries to write log files very early during the startup. Does it help if you rename/move the whole "Paradox Interactive" folder in Documents and then start eu4.exe so that the game can recreate it? This resets the configuration which might help if eu4 tries to use the non-existing screen. And it also helps if there is still some protection software which prevents the current version of eu4 from overwriting files in "Documents/Paradox Interactive/Europa Universalis IV", because it thinks they belong to an older version of eu4.

[andrejgeny]

I already completely deleted the content of "\Documents\Paradox Interactive". By trying to run the game some folder have been recreated by the game. But I see no influence on functioning of the game. The game just do not start neither by using a launcher nor by double click on eu4.exe or rightclick and run as admin.

[grotaclas]

Originally posted by andrejgeny:

I already completely deleted the content of "\Documents\Paradox Interactive". By trying to run the game some folder have been recreated by the game. But I see no influence on functioning of the game. The game just do not start neither by using a launcher nor by double click on eu4.exe or rightclick and run as admin.

Can you post the error.log and system.log from "Documents\Paradox Interactive\Europa Universalis IV\logs"? Maybe there is an hint there.

You can also try to ask the official tech support in the tech support forum[forum.paradoxplaza.com] or on the paradox support website.