Palworld not working crashing on Windows: How to Fix

Sadique Hassan•Updated Mar 28, 2024

In this guide, we will show you various methods to fix the issue of Palworld not working/crashing on Windows 11. This action-adventure, survival, and monster-taming offering from Pocket Pair has suddenly taken the gaming industry world by storm and is reigning supreme in the Steam popularity charts, belonging to the same category as the likes of CS Go, PUBG, and Dota 2, among others. However, this is just one side of the coin.

The game has also been marred with controversies, with many calling it a Pokemon rip-off or ‘Pokemon with guns’. Apart from that, there have been a few performance issues with this game as well, with reports regarding Palworld not working/crashing on Windows 11 as well as the infamous UE-Pal Unhandled Exception EXCEPTION_ACCESS_VIOLATION error doing the rounds. If you are also getting bugged by these issues, then this guide will help rectify them.

Fix Palworld not working/crashing on Windows

It is recommended that you try out each of the below-mentioned workarounds and then see which one spells out success. So with that in mind, let’s get started. [We will start with the basic fixes before moving over to the advanced ones].

FIX 1: Check Palworld Server Status

Before you carry out any of the below-listed tweaks, your first course of action should be to verify if the game servers are working well and good or not. You could check the same from the Palworld Server Status. if they are up and running, then proceed ahead with the below workarounds, or else, get in touch with the support team and let them know of this problem at the earliest.

Likewise, you should also keep a tab on their @Palworld_EN Twitter handle and stay tuned for all the latest updates surrounding this issue as well as the ETA for the fix.

FIX 2: Run Palworld as Admin

Some games require administrative-level privileges to function properly. Therefore, let’s run it with elevated permissions and check if it works out in our favor or not.

Right-click on Palworld.exe and select Properties.
Then go to the Compatibility tab and checkmark:
```
Run this program as an administrator
```
Finally, click Apply > OK and check out the results.

FIX 3: Update Palworld

The developers are usually quick to roll out patches that iron out underlying issues. These fixes are mostly released as updates, therefore, it’s recommended that you update the game to the latest available version. Here’s how it could be done:

Launch Steam and head over to your Library on the left side.
Then right-click on Palworld and go to Properties > Updates.
Select Automatic Updates > Always keep this game updated.
Check if it fixes Palworld not working/crashing on Windows 11.

FIX 4: Restart Palworld Processes

If any of the game’s background processes aren’t working along the expected lines, then its repercussions are bound to be faced by the entire game. Therefore, it is recommended that you close and then restart the process, which could be done as follows:

First off, open Task Manager via Ctrl+Shift+Esc.
Select the Palworld.exe process and hit End Task.
Now relaunch Palworld and check out the results.

FIX 5: Disable Steam Overlay

Steam Overlay is an in-game interface that allows you to access various Steam Community features while you are right in the middle of the game. Its benefit is that you don’t have to minimize the game to access the required features as you can directly get hold of them right from the overlay menu itself. However, since it will be concurrently running with the game, it tends to hog additional system resources. So you could consider disabling it, using the instructions given below.

To begin with, launch the Steam application on your PC.
Then click on the Steam menu situated at the top left.
After that, select Settings from the drop-down menu.
Now go to the In-Game menu from the left-hand side.
Uncheck “Enable the Steam Overlay while in-game”.

Likewise, disable the below-listed overlays as well, if you are using any one of them:

Communication Overlay features from Discord
Nvidia GeForce Overlay for Screen Capture and Sharing
Xbox Game Bar
Disable EVGA Precision.
Hardware Monitoring and Capture with Fraps

FIX 6: Update Drivers

While you may have heard this a plethora of times, let’s just reiterate the fact one more time- using old or outdated graphics drivers is known to cause a few performance issues. Therefore, you should consider updating these drivers to the latest build, using the instructions given below:

Use the Windows+X shortcut and select Device Manager from the menu that appears.
Then expand Display Adapter, right-click on your graphics drivers, and select Update Drivers.
After that, click on Search automatically for graphics drivers.
Windows will now search online for the driver and will subsequently download and install them.
Once done, restart your PC and check if it fixes Palworld crashing/not working on Windows 11.

FIX 7: Select Ultimate Performance Mode

By default, Windows runs on the Balanced Mode, which maintains a fine equilibrium between the performance and battery usage. However, in some instances, such as when running a graphics-intensive or heavy process game or application, you might have to give a higher privilege to the performance over the battery.

This will force your PC to utilize all the CPU/GPU cores and hence churn out the best results. However, doing so will also result in excessive battery drainage. So if that’s well and good, then let’s create and implement the Ultimate Performance Mode on your PC.

Head over to the Start Menu and launch Command Prompt as an administrator:
Then execute the below command to create the Ultimate Performance Plan:
```
powercfg -duplicatescheme e9a42b02-d5df-448d-aa00-03f14749eb61
```
Now launch Control Panel and go to Hardware and Sound > Power Option.
You should now see the newly created plan there (or under the Show Additional Plans section).
Select it and the plan will be implemented right away. Check if it fixes the Palworld crashing/not working issue in Windows 11.

FIX 8: Validate Game Files

If there was even the slightest network connection issue, then it could lead to one or two games files not being downloaded. It doesn’t matter the size or type of file, even if it was of a few KBs and isn’t present in the game installation directory, then it prevents the game from running normally. Therefore, let’s verify if there’s any missing file or not, and if there is, then let’s address that as well.

Launch Steam and go to the Library section.
Then right-click on Counter Strike 2 and select Properties.
After that, go to the Local Files tab and click on Verify Integrity of Game Files.
Wait for the process to complete.
Now check if it fixes the Palworld crashing/not working issue on Windows 11.

FIX 9: Allow Game Through Firewall

In some instances, Windows Firewall might incorrectly flag the legitimate traffic as a malicious one and hence prevent the exchange of data packets from the servers over to your PC and vice versa. When that happens, it’s along the expected lines that the game will not be able to establish a successful connection with its server and hence wouldn’t function along the expected lines. So to prevent that from happening, you could add the game to Firewall’s whitelist. Herwe’s how:

To begin with, head over to the Start Menu, search Windows Defender Firewall and open it.
Then click on ‘Allow an app or feature through Windows Defender Firewall’ from the left menu bar.
Now scroll through the list of apps and select the one that needs to bypass the firewall check.
Right next to that app are the Private and Public Network Settings. If you want the app to bypass the firewall across both networks, then checkmark both of them. Otherwise, tick mark just the required network across which Firewall should grant access to that app.
Moreover, if you cannot find your app in that list, then click on the Change Settings button situated at the top right.
Then, click on the Allow Another App button situated at the bottom right.
Now click on Browse, navigate to that gane’s EXE file, and select it. Or you could also directly copy-paste the EXE file’s location in the Path field.
Then click on the Add button and the selected app will now be added to the Firewall’s exclusion list. You may now customize it according to your need by check-marking the required Public/Private Network box.
Now click OK to save the changes and restart your PC.
Check if it fixes Palworld crashing/not working on Windows 11.

FIX 10: Disable Full-Screen Optimization

Windows automatically enables full-screen optimizations in order to give you a more fluid, rich, and immersive gaming experience. However, some users have reported that for them, this feature did more harm than good. at least in this case. So consider turning off this feature for the said game and then test out the results

Launch File Explorer via the Windows+E shortcut
Then go to the below location [replace <game_name> accordingly].
```
steam/steamapps/common/<game_name>/Game
```
Then right-click on “Palworld.exe” and select Properties.
After that, go to the Compatibility tab and check Disable Fullscreen Optimization.
Check if it fixes the Palworld crashing/not working issue 0n Windows 11.

FIX 11: Install Pending Windows Update

In some cases, the issue might also be due to your PC running on an older version of the OS. Therefore, it is recommended that you install all the pending updates on your PC so that it is running the latest build. Here’s how it could be done:

Bring up the Settings menu via Windows+I shortcut keys.
Then select Windows Update from the left-hand side.
Now download and install all the pending updates.
Finally, restart your PC and check out the results.

FIX 12: Delete Direct X Shader Cache

If a lot of temporary data gets accumulated over the due course of time, then not only will it slow down the game, but it could well have an adverse impact on the overall functioning of the game. Therefore, it is recommended that you delete these cached data, which could be done as follows:

Open the Settings menu via the Windows+I shortcut.
Then go to System > Storage > Temporary Files.
Now select the DirectX Shader Cache from the list.
Finally, click on Remove Files and check the result.

FIX 13: Force Run in DX 11

You could also consider forcing the game to run in DirectX 11 using the below-listed steps and check if it does any good when it comes to fixing the underlying issue.

Launch Steam and go to Library from the left side.
Then right-click on Palworld and select Properties.
Now go to the General tab > Set Launch Options.
Type in the below command and hit OK to save it.
```
-force -dx11
```
Check if it fixes the Palworld crashing/not working.

FIX 14: Reinstall GPU Drivers

You might also face this issue if the drivers or their configuration files get corrupted. In such cases, your best bet is to uninstall those drivers and then reinstall their fresh version from scratch. Here’s how it could be done:

Right-click on the Start Menu and select Device Manager.
Then expand the Display Adapter section.
After that, right-click on your graphics drivers and select Uninstall Device.
Once done, download the latest version of the Nvidia drivers from its official site.
Finally, install it and then restart your PC.
Check if it fixes the Palworld crashing/not working issue.

FIX 15: Via Powershell Tweak

Launch PowerShell as an administrator, execute the below two commands, and check if it fixes the Palworld crashing/not working issue on your Windows 11 PC.

dir “$env:systemroot\system32\driverstore\filerepository\*NvCameraEnable.exe” -rec |% {& “$_” off}
dir “$env:programfiles\nvidia corporation\*NvCameraEnable.exe” -rec |% {& “$_” off}

FIX 16: Toggle Hardware GPU Scheduling

Next up, you should consider enabling and then disabling the HAGS/Hardware GPU Scheduling using the below-given instructions and then check out the results. GPU Scheduling allows Windows to offload most graphics-intensive tasks to a dedicated GPU-based scheduling processor (as well as to the VRAM), thereby giving a much-deserved rest to the CPU.

On paper, it should speed up the performance in heavy games and processing tasks. However, its benefit is still debatable by the tech community. On the flip side though, disabling it has infact resolved some streaming-related issues across various platforms. So let’s turn off this feature for the time being and check out the results

Bring up the Settings menu via Windows+I shortcut keys.
Then select System from the left menu bar and go to Display.
After that, click on Graphics > Change Default Graphics Settings.
Now disable the toggle next to “Hardware-Accelerated GPU Scheduling” and restart your PC.
Check if it fixes the Palworld crashing/not working issue on Windows 11.

FIX 17: Restart Device Association Service

Device Association Framework Provider Host is a backend service, also known as dashost.exe, and is responsible for pairing both wired and wireless devices on your Windows PC. However, it is also notoriously infamous for exhausting an exorbitant amount of system resources. Therefore, you should stop it and then let it restart with a fresh instance from scratch. Here’s how:

Head over to the Start menu, search Services, and open it.
Then scroll to Device Association Service, right-click on it, and select Stop.
If the Stop option is greyed out, then launch Command Prompt as an administrator.
Then execute the below command and note down the PID number:
```
sc queryex DeviceAssociationService
```
After that, execute the below command, replacing XXXX with the PID number:
```
taskkill /pid xxxx /f
```
Now unplug your controller and replug it back in (as stopping this service will disable the pairing).
Check if it fixes the Palworld crashing/not working issue on your Windows 11 PC.

FIX 18: For AMD Ryzen PCs

If you have an AMD Ryzen PC, then consider enabling the Anti-Lag feature for this game. This has made a difference of day and night when it comes to minimizing the lag during the gameplay. So proceed with the below instructions and implement this fix right away.

To begin with launch the Radeon Software app on your PC.
Then go to the Games section and click on More Options.
Now click on Add a Game, navigate to Palworld.exe file, and select it.
It will now be added to Radeon Software.
So select it and enable the toggle next to Radeon Anti Lag.
Check if it fixes the Palworld crashing/not working issue.

FIX 19: Reinstall Palworld

If none of the aforementioned methods spelled out success, then your last course of action should be to uninstall and then reinstall the game on your PC. However, if possible, make sure to take a backup beforehand.

Launch Steam and go to your Library from the left-hand side.
Then right-click on Palworld and select Manage > Uninstall.
Now proceed with the on-screen steps to uninstall the game.
Once done, restart Steam, search Palworld, and download it.
Once the game is installed, launch it and check out the results.

That’s it. These were the various methods to fix the Palworld crashing/not working issues. If you have any queries concerning the aforementioned steps, do let us know in the comments. We will get back to you with a solution at the earliest. [Featured Image Credits: Palworld on Steam].

Tags:

Error FixGame