ARC Raiders has made a strong impression in just a couple of days since launch thanks to its Unreal Engine 5 visuals, PvPvE gameplay, and intense co-op raids. Like any multiplayer game launch similar to Battlefield 6’s PC crashes, many Raiders are also facing random crashes, PC freezes, and error messages that cut the action short. This guide explains the reasons for the game’s instability and shows every possible solution to fix ARC Raiders crashes on PC.
ARC Raiders Crashing PC – Possible Causes
ARC Raiders is developed on Unreal Engine 5, a marvel, but also a diva. Most of the time, it’s smooth and cinematic, while other times, it detonates your RAM midway. Game crashes on PC usually happen for one of the following reasons:
- Outdated GPU drivers: The game is heavy on modern rendering technology, so with old graphics drivers installed, the game will struggle.
- DirectX tantrums: UE5 and DirectX 12 sometimes fight like siblings. The error like “Unhandled Exception: EXCEPTION_ACCESS_VIOLATION reading address 0x00007ff65c8f5fe8” happens due to DX12 support.
- CPU & RAM overload: This game is CPU-hungry. When things get hot and your system can’t keep up, the game takes a nosedive.
- Shader compilation: If you see a crash during loading or the first run, the reason might be shader compilation overkill, especially if your PC barely meets the game’s recommended specs.
- Background apps and overlays: Discord overlays, Steam pop-ups, Afterburner, and Chrome tabs create conflicts and consume system resources that should have been used by the game.
- Overclocking: Yes, you squeezed an extra 5% performance last night, but today the overclock might send your CPU into meltdown, so it needs to be disabled.
ARC Raiders Crashes During Tutorial or Loading
Players on Reddit and Steam have reported the game crashing midway through the tutorial or when loading into the first combat zone, though it can usually be fixed by driver updates, DirectX tweaks, and disabling overlays.
Starting with GPU drivers, Nvidia’s latest Game Ready driver or AMD’s Adrenalin update can make a big difference in game performance. ARC Raiders is optimized for modern APIs, and outdated drivers are the fastest way to desktop purgatory.
If the crash still occurs with updated CPU drivers, especially if the error message includes “D3D12Core” or “amdxc64,” DirectX 12 is likely the culprit. In this case, force the game to use DirectX 11, and to do that, open Steam > right-click ARC Raiders > Properties, and under Launch Options, type -dx11. It will drop your FPS a bit, but at least you’ll be able to finish your raid instead of glaring at the loading screen.
When UE5 Throws the EXCEPTION_ACCESS_VIOLATION Error
This issue mostly appears on systems with new GPUs or CPUs from Team Red. The game tries to read from a bad memory address and the desktop. The root cause is probably a messy interaction between ARC Raiders’ DirectX 12 implementation and AMD’s shader handling. Again, switch it to launch the game on the DX11 stable version using the same entry: -dx11.
Further, update your GPU and chipset drivers. AMD users can download the latest versions from the official site, and Intel users can update chipset drivers from Intel’s Driver & Support Assistant.
These are the steps to follow:
- Update GPU and chipset drivers, then restart PC.
- Run with
-dx11. - Keep the game and Windows fully updated (ARC devs are working to release patch fixes for the errors, and soon-to-come updates will resolve them).
Close Background Apps and Services
ARC Raiders eats system resources like it’s running on a toaster’s power budget. If multiple heavy programs like Chrome, Discord, OBS, Spotify, and Steam Chat run when you play, you’re asking your processor to implode.
Keep background tasks down to practically nothing during a session. Close background processes, disable overlays, and if your PC has 16GB of RAM or less, free up every megabyte you can. Even disable Windows startup junk because it can improve the game more than you’d expect. A clean session means fewer random spikes and game crashes.
Disable CPU Overclocking
If your PC throws a tantrum right as a game starts building shaders, the game itself is usually to blame. Shader compilation can cause instant crashes or full system freezes on borderline rigs, particularly if overclocking is enabled or your PC has an old processor. The fix is to disable overclocking and let your hardware breathe. Once shaders are successfully built the first time, performance will stabilize after that.
Reinstall Drivers Properly
Sometimes, your GPU drivers get so tangled up with Windows updates and half-baked autoinstalls that only a clean slate can save you. Use a tool like DDU (Display Driver Uninstaller) in Safe Mode to completely remove the drivers, then reinstall the latest versions from Nvidia or AMD. This will get rid of stubborn registry files, corrupted profiles, and hidden driver clashes that are impossible to track down. After installing the fresh drivers, restart the computer twice.
Reinstall Visual C++ and DirectX
If ARC Raiders won’t launch or you face the “UE-PioneerGame-Breadcrumb” error, it’s probably due to missing or corrupted runtime libraries. Download the latest DirectX End-User Runtime Web Installer and Microsoft Visual C++ Redistributables from Microsoft’s official site. Reinstall both, reboot, and the game should finally stop tripping over its own dependencies. This fix works well for game launch crashes, especially those that happen right after you hit the “Play” button.
Reinstall the Game
If you’ve done everything above and ARC Raiders is still crashing on PC, it’s time to nuke and pave. Reinstall the game properly and add game files to antivirus exceptions because aggressive AV software can sandbox UE5 processes. Launch the fresh install without any overlays or recording software running in the background. You will be surprised how much more stable the game has become when it doesn’t have to fight the whole software ecosystem.
