Permafrost Crashing on Startup: DX11, DX12 and NVIDIA Fixes
Troubleshoot Permafrost startup and menu crashes with official video settings, the -dx11 launch option, NVIDIA hotfix details and Steam file verification.
Short answer: install the latest Permafrost update and GPU driver first. If you can open Video settings, try the developer's frame-generation and super-resolution changes. If the game crashes before you can reach those settings, try -dx11 in Steam's launch options. Verify the game files if the problem continues, then send the crash details to support.
Checked October 12, 2026, for PC Early Access. These are developer-published workarounds, not guaranteed fixes or hardware benchmark results.
Start with the branch that matches your crash
| What happens | Start here |
|---|---|
| The menu opens and you can reach settings | Try the Video settings sequence below. |
| The game closes before you can change settings | Try the DX11 launch option. |
| You can play, but a particular action crashes the game | Check the recent hotfixes, then record the action for support. |
Before changing settings, note your GPU model, driver version and the point where the game closes. Keep any Unreal error message or crash screenshot; these make a later report more useful than saying only that the game crashes.
Update the game and your GPU driver
The official Known Issues post recommends updating GPU drivers before further crash or performance troubleshooting. Also let Steam finish downloading the game's available updates. The developer's hotfix announcements suggest restarting Steam if an update does not appear.
NVIDIA users should check that they have the post-launch hotfixes. The developer disabled FSR on RTX 20/30 cards and then RTX 40/50 cards to reduce crashes. That is a change to the game's handling of FSR on those GPUs; it does not establish that every NVIDIA crash has the same cause.
If you can open Video settings
In Settings → Video, follow the developer's sequence:
- Disable Multi-Frame-Generation-Type.
- If crashing continues, disable Super Resolution.
- Lower the quality preset.
- Try changing V-Sync.
Note your original values so you can restore them. Retry the action or menu that caused the crash after each change; that comparison helps identify which setting, if any, affects your system. The developer does not specify a universally correct V-Sync value in the instructions checked here.
These steps come from the official Known Issues post and the developer replies in the main-menu crash discussion.
If you cannot reach the menu: try DX11
The developer recommends -dx11 as an alternative when the normal launch keeps crashing.
- Close Permafrost.
- In your Steam Library, right-click Permafrost and open Properties.
- Under General → Launch Options, add:
-dx11
- Start the game again and check whether you can reach the menu and load your world.
Record any existing launch options before editing them. To undo this change, close the game and remove the -dx11 entry you added. If Steam offers a DirectX choice when launching, the developer also points to that selector as an alternative.
DX11 is a troubleshooting option, not a verified FPS upgrade. If it lets you launch but performance is poor, record that result separately from the original DX12 crash. This guide does not provide a measured performance comparison between the two modes.
Still crashing? Verify the Steam files
A developer reply gives the next step: right-click the game in Steam, open Properties → Installed Files, and run the file-integrity verification. Confirm the latest hotfix is installed, then try again.
The October 10 patch addressed crashes involving skipped intro videos, joining a player holding a ranged weapon, held consumables and campfire reloads. The October 11 patch also fixed a workbench-crafting crash. Use our Permafrost patch notes summary to follow updates, and check the official announcements for the newest status.
What to send if none of the steps helps
The developer requests logs and saves through the support file hub. Include your GPU and driver version, the error message, where the crash happens, and which settings you tried. Mention whether both DX11 and DX12 fail, or whether only one does.
For a requirements comparison, see the PC system requirements. For connection or quest problems that occur without closing the game, use the known issues overview.
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