Why watch dogs crashes on boot. Watch_Dogs not starting? Game slows down? Flies out? Glitchy? Solving the most common problems

Faced a problem and don't know how to start Watch Dogs on PC? Or is it not working for you Watch Dogs on Uplay? You will find the solution in this article. Here you will be provided with a guide to launch Watch Dogs on PC and give answers to many questions: how to fix the APPCRASH error, where to find and download missing files, how to fix hieroglyphs to normal fonts, how to improve performance in Watch Dogs and increase FPS, how to get rid of crashes and blue screen, etc.

Way Watch Dogs turned out to be very thorny for release: numerous revisions and transfers under the pretext of additional polishing - Ubisoft did everything not to lose face and meet the highest expectations of the players who in absentia dubbed this long-term construction "GTA killer". On May 23, the game was leaked to torrent trackers - buggy and with "crooked cracks", which pretty much spoiled the plans of the French publisher. Today Watch Dogs has officially gone on sale, and turned out to be no less buggy than its "pirate" sister. Our traditional article will help you solve numerous problems with the game.
As you know, most of the troubles arise due to the lack of system files necessary for the game, and although the Steam client itself downloads everything necessary after the game is loaded, it will not be superfluous to manually pave the path from the yellow brick for it from launch to the first gameplay frames. But first, make sure that your computer meets the minimum system requirements for the game:
  • OS: Windows Vista SP2 / 7 SP1 / 8 (x64);
  • CPU: Intel Core 2 Quad Q8400 @ 2.66GHz | AMD Phenom II X4 940 @ 3.0 GHz;
  • RAM: 6 GB;
  • Graphic arts: AMD Radeon HD 5770 1 GB | Nvidia GeForce GTX 460 1 GB;
  • HDD: 25 GB;
  • DirectX Version: 11.

Files, drivers and libraries

After that, you need to update the video card drivers NVIDIA GeForce to the latest version. On May 26, just before the release of the game, Nvidia released a special version of drivers that increase its performance:

For owners of graphics adapters AMD Radeon links below: If you have APU graphics or you are not sure, use the utility below: Do not neglect the installation of supporting software, and the game will thank you:

A prerequisite for the successful functioning of any game is the availability of the latest drivers for all devices in the system. Download the utility Driver Updater to easily and quickly download the latest drivers and install them with one click:

  • download Driver Updater and run the program;
  • scan the system (usually it takes no more than five minutes);
  • update outdated drivers with one click.
Helper DLLs:
  • (Download )
  • (Download )
  • (Download )
  • (Download )
Note: If you are using any assembly of Windows XP / Vista / 7 / 8 / 8.1 with various tweaks, then we strongly recommend to demolish this rubbish and install a clean image from Microsoft. Otherwise, you risk getting a whole bunch of errors. If you have completed all of the above and/or received any specific error, we suggest that you familiarize yourself with the options below.

Watch Dogs crashes with APPCRASH error. Decision

A similar error often occurs on systems with AMD video cards. You need to go to the Catalyst Control Center and go to the "Games" tab, and then disable "AMD Radeon Dual Graphics" there. If you have multiple Nvidia cards, try disabling SLI.

While loading Watch Dogs, a blue screen appears and the computer restarts. Decision

To make the blue screen disappear, we recommend updating the drivers to the latest versions (you will find the links above), then do the following: open the system properties by pressing WIN + PAUSE / BREAK or by right-clicking on the “My Computer” icon and selecting “Properties” -> Advanced system settings -> Advanced tab -> in the "Startup and recovery" column, click "Settings" -> uncheck the "Perform automatic restart" option.

Watch Dogs has hieroglyphs instead of fonts. Decision

Exit the game, switch to English in the language bar and start the game again.

Watch Dogs says "Your computer is missing 3dmGameDll.dll" when starting up. Decision

You can download 3dmGameDll.dll. After that, unpack the file and place it in the bin folder, which is located in the root directory with the game installed.

Watch Dogs has an isdone.dll error. Decision

There may be several solutions:

  1. You can download isdone.dll. After that, unzip the file and place it at: C:WindowsSystem32 (or SysWOW64 if you have a 64-bit system), while making a backup copy of the replaced file. Restart your computer.
  2. Press WIN+R (or Start -> Run) and type "cmd". In the window that appears, enter regsvr32 isdone.dll and press ENTER.
  3. If you have any tweak turned on that switches the computer from normal to gaming mode, then you should turn it off.

When starting Watch Dogs, it says "UplayPatch Failed to start exe! OK". Decision

The error occurs in the pirated version Watch Dogs. The best solution is to buy the game. But if there is no money, but spit in the face of the publisher who released this wonderful product on the PC, oh how you want, then we do the following:
  1. Install the game, then install Uplay and register a new account there.
  2. Launch Uplay and sign in to your new account.
  3. In the folder with the game, find the file "game launcher64.exe". Run the game through it.

Watch Dogs has low performance/low FPS. Decision

Install the latest drivers for your video card. Remember that the game is very demanding on the processor and gluttonous in relation to RAM. If you have a weak or average dual-core processor and / or 4 GB of RAM, then you should not expect 60 frames per second from the game.

Sound disappears / there is a delay in sound and dialogue in Watch Dogs. Decision

Try reinstalling the sound driver (for example, if you have a sound chip from this manufacturer).

Watch Dogs won't launch on Uplay. Decision

Take heart - the Ubisoft service, most likely, cannot cope with the influx of people who want to play Watch Dogs. So for now, the only thing left to do is wait. Try also to run the game in offline mode, but then you will lose achievements and multiplayer.

How to disable mouse acceleration in Watch Dogs? Decision

  1. Open the "GamerProfile.xml" file with Notepad, located at DocumentsMy GamesWatch_Dogs.
  2. Set the Sensitivity parameter to "1".
  3. Set the UseMouseSmooth parameter to "0".
  4. Set the Smoothness parameter to "0".
  5. Save the file.

In the cut-scenes of Watch Dogs, the image is distorted / the screen becomes black. Decision

"It's not a bug, it's a feature!" © Do not worry, these effects are the intention of the developers and will periodically appear in some cut-scenes.

Watch Dogs executable not found. The game won't start. Decision

  • Check your game cache. To do this, find it in your game library, right-click on it and click "Properties", go to the "Local Data" tab and click "Verify Integrity of Cache ...".
  • First, launch the Steam client. Find the Watch_Dogs folder in the Steam root directory (by default located in SteamSteamAppscommon), cut and move it to any other folder and rename it (for example to Watch_Cats). Go to the Steam client and delete Watch Dogs, then exit Steam. Then rename the game folder back to Watch_Dogs and return it to its original location. Go to Steam again, find the game in your library and click "Install" - Steam will start checking and download the missing files for the game.
  • If all else fails, then completely uninstall the game and reinstall it.

Textures disappear (become black) in Watch Dogs. Decision

The game suffers from some flaws. The developers are already working on the first patch, so be patient. Try also installing the latest drivers from Nvidia or AMD (you can find the links above).

Error msvcr80.dll/msvcp80.dll | msvcr90.dll/msvcp90.dll / msvcr100.dll/msvcp100.dll | msvcr110.dll/msvcp110.dll | msvcr120.dll/msvcp120.dll in Watch Dogs. Decision

These errors indicate that you do not have a particular Visual C++ package. You can find links to the installation files at the beginning of the article. Keep in mind that if you have a 64-bit OS, you will need to install both 64-bit and 32-bit versions of Visual C++.

Error d3dx9_25.dll / d3dx9_47.dll / d3dx11_43.dll in Watch Dogs. Decision

Error 0xc000022 in Watch Dogs. Decision

Right-click on the game's shortcut and select "Run as administrator".

Error 0xc0000142 in Watch Dogs. Decision

This error occurs when initialization of the program being run fails. Simply put, something went wrong while installing the program (the most common option), the program was not uninstalled correctly, etc. A complete reinstall might help. Watch Dogs, preferably with antivirus turned off and programs like Radmin and GeForce Experience removed.

If it does not help, then we recommend that you once again refer to the note at the beginning of the article, which says that the vast majority of errors disappear by themselves if the game is installed on a clean and original system from Microsoft, and not on some build of Mega Ultimate SuperZver Ultra Gamer Edition from Vanya from the next entrance. A complete reinstallation of the system and following all the recommendations at the beginning of the article will help to get rid of the error by 100%.

Error 0xc000007b in Watch Dogs. Decision

As in the case of the previous error, the most effective option would be to reinstall your system, but first try to (re)install all the software from the Files, Drivers and Libraries section above.

Watch Dogs crashes. Throws to desktop

So, dear friends, surely many have already encountered a problem when Watch Dogs simply crashes (in other words, the desktop appears).

Usually the problem of crashes goes hand in hand with problems of launch, so sometimes the points of advice are very similar.

Watch Dogs crashes to desktop

1. Update video card drivers. New games always require the latest video drivers. Otherwise, a lot of problems may arise with the game, including not only graphic ones.

2. Check the integrity of the game files on Steam or where you have it installed. Very often there is a problem that the user does not have the most updated components of the game, and the distribution kit of the game has already been re-uploaded and is available for download.

3. The cause of crashes may be DirectX. Try updating this software to troubleshoot.

4. Reduce the graphics settings in the game - very often the cause of crashes is the hardware insufficiency for the game.

5. Turn off all programs before starting to avoid software conflicts with the game.

6. If you have a pirated copy of the game, then your solution may be to install another crack for the game.

7. To avoid problems with Watch Dogs saves and this cause of crashes, run the game as a system administrator.

As you understand, there is no universal cure for crashes in Watch Dogs, so we offer you only the most frequent crash solutions and most likely they will not suit 100% of the number of players who have experienced Watch Dogs crashes. We really hope that this material helped you get rid of crashes in Watch Dogs and you are now doing well with the performance of the game.


Not a single game at the moment is without problems and errors at the launch stage. This is due to the fact that in the world there are a large number of the most diverse assemblies of both OS and PC, and it is impossible to predict in advance where a conflict will arise. Today we will talk about the problems arising from these conflicts.

Watch Dogs won't start?
To run the game, you need a 64-bit OS and at least Windows Vista SP 2
1) Check that the game meets the system requirements, and also run the game not on the built-in video card, but on ati / nvidia
2) Update or reinstall the drivers for the video card. There are failures in the driver. Find out how to update drivers in this question
3) Update DirectX - http://tesgm.ru/load/44-1-0-523 , Microsoft Visual C++ - http://tesgm.ru/load/44-1-0-524 and you need to install the x86 version Even if you have a 64 bit system.
4)Run the game as administrator or in compatibility mode
5) Turn off the antivirus for the duration of the launch
6)Check that there are no Russian characters in the path to the game. Not all games understand Russian letters and therefore cannot get the path to the game's resources, hence the problems.
7)Check the integrity of the game cache in steam - https://support.steampowered.com/kb_article.php?ref=2037-QEUH-3335&l=russian It is possible that some files were downloaded incorrectly when loading, then you will have to download them, for this and integrity check is used.
8) And finally, if you have a pirate, then try changing the crack / repack, and also use only original Windows builds from MSDN. Unofficial builds may have compatibility issues.

Watch Dogs is crashing?
1) Reinstall the drivers for the video card
2) Turn off all additional software, such as players, various clients, browsers, etc., for the duration of the launch.
3)Run the game as administrator or in compatibility mode
4) Reduce the sound quality in the system
5) Verify the integrity of the game cache.
6) Enable DEP for the game exe file
7) If you have overclocked the video card, it is recommended to restore the settings to the state before overclocking. Overclocking heats up the card more, and overheating causes the system to send a signal to close applications that load the video card.
8) Read point 8 above

Watch Dogs black screen?
1) Update or reinstall your graphics card drivers.
2) Update Microsoft Visual C++
3) Run the game in a window, and if the game starts, put it in full screen mode by pressing ctrl + enter (however, it does not work with all games). Windowed mode can also be enabled in the game settings files or by setting the -w option in the launch options, but this also does not work in all games.
4)Run the game as administrator or in compatibility mode. And if this does not help you, try running the game simultaneously with compatibility mode and in windowed mode.
5) Disable the 2nd video card if any
6) Switch from integrated graphics to Ati/Nvidia if playing on a laptop. How - read above!
7) Uncheck Read only from all game files. Right click on the game folder and select properties.

Watch Dogs slows down, sags FPS! How to increase fps in the game?
If you periodically experience friezes, then the game has a funny bug: start the game, load the save and when friezes appear, pause the game, then minimize it by pressing Alt + Tab, and return to the game again. Friezes will disappear.

Wait for the patch that fixes freezes on PC. The developers announced its development. It will be released within a month after the release of the game.

For now, you can try:
1) Open the control panel of your video card and reset the settings for the default 3d application.
2) Update your video card drivers to the latest version. If the beta version of the drivers is newer than the stable one, install it - this does not mean that the drivers are dangerous, it means that in this driver assembly the files are adjusted to the latest released games. How to update drivers, you can find out in this question
3) After the update, turn off all additional software that you do not need during the game: players, browsers, antivirus, etc.
4) Lower the settings in the game to a minimum.
5) Increase the priority of the game process in the task manager to High
6)Launch the game using programs that free up memory Game Prelauncher - http://tesgm.ru/load/44-1-0-542 or Gamebooster - http://tesgm.ru/load/44-1-0-541
7) Turn on Vertical Sync in the game settings (Vsync) and if the situation does not improve, then turn it off. This option can both increase the number of frames and reduce.
8)Use 64bit OS to play new games comfortably.

Correcting the config file helps someone: Documents / My Games / Watch Dogs /
Open GamerProfile.xml and find DeferredFxQuality="console". Replace "console" with "PC"
Also update your graphics driver.

Watch Dogs not saving?
1.Make sure there are no Russian characters on the way to the game.
2.Make sure that there are no Russian characters in the name of your OS account.
3.Try running the game as an administrator.
4.Wait for the patch, maybe it will fix the bug with guards.
5. Change the crack / repack, this may be the problem.
6.Try reinstalling the game by disabling the antivirus.

How to get rid of graphic artifacts in the game Watch Dogs?
1. You may be running the game on the built-in video card. Switch the system to work with the Ati/Nvidia graphics card.
2.Update your video card drivers.
3. If you have the latest drivers, then try reinstalling them again.
4.Delete the configuration files of the game. The game will re-create them the next time you launch them!
5. If you have overclocked the video card, return it to its pre-overclocked state.
6.Check that the video card is not overheating and that the cooling system in the System Unit is working correctly.
7. If the temperature of the video card in the loaded mode is more than 70 degrees, add another cooler or clean the video card, replace the thermal paste.
8. Clean the entire computer from dust and check the video card / RAM connectors, etc.
9. If artifacts appear in any game, or at least in several, then bring it to repair or change it under warranty. Graphic artifacts are one of the first signs of a video card malfunction or its imminent death.
10. The problem can be solved by increasing the graphics in the game, but this can lead to a decrease in FPS.

What to do if there is no sound in the game Watch Dogs?
1. Update DirectX http://www.microsoft.com/en-us/download/details.aspx?id=35
2. Restart your computer
3.Check the sound settings in the system and the sound settings for the exe-file of the game.
4. Turn off additional software (skype, players) and check that the computer's playback device is not used in exclusive mode.
5.Check the cache. Reinstall sound drivers.
6. Change the crack

If Watch_Dogs crashes, Watch_Dogs will not start, Watch_Dogs not installing, there are no controls in Watch_Dogs, no sound in game, errors happen in Watch_Dogs – we offer you the most common ways to solve these problems.

First, check if your PC meets the minimum system requirements:

  • OS: Windows Vista SP2 (64 bit) / Windows 7 SP1 (64 bit) / Windows 8 (64 bit)
  • Processor: Intel Core 2 Quad Q8400 2.66 GHz / AMD Phenom II X4 940 3.0 GHz
  • Memory: 6 GB
  • Video: 1024 MB VRAM, DirectX 11 support - Nvidia Geforce GTX 460 or AMD Radeon HD 5770
  • HDD: 25 GB free space

Be sure to update your video card drivers and other software

Before remembering the worst words and expressing them towards the developers, do not forget to go to the official website of the manufacturer of your video card and download the latest drivers. Often, specially optimized drivers are prepared for the release of games. You can also try installing a later version of the drivers if the problem is not solved by installing the current version.

It is important to remember that you should download only the final versions of video cards - try not to use beta versions, as they may have a large number of bugs not found and not fixed.

Do not forget that games often require the latest version of DirectX to be installed, which can always be downloaded from the official Microsoft website.

Watch_Dogs not starting

Many problems with launching games happen due to incorrect installation. Check if there were any errors during the installation, try uninstalling the game and running the installer again, after disabling the antivirus - often the files needed for the game to work are deleted by mistake. It is also important to remember that the path to the folder with the installed game should not contain Cyrillic characters - use only Latin letters and numbers for directory names.

It still does not hurt to check if there is enough space on the HDD for installation. You can try to run the game as Administrator in compatibility mode with different versions of Windows.

Watch_Dogs slows down. Low FPS. Logs. Friezes. hangs up

First - install the latest drivers for the video card, from this FPS in the game can rise significantly. Also check the computer's load in the task manager (opened by pressing CTRL + SHIFT + ESCAPE). If, before starting the game, you see that some process is consuming too many resources, turn off its program or simply end this process from the task manager.

Next, go to the graphics settings in the game. First of all, turn off anti-aliasing and try lowering the settings responsible for post-processing. Many of them consume a lot of resources and disabling them will significantly increase performance without greatly affecting the quality of the picture.

Watch_Dogs crashes to desktop

If Watch_Dogs often crashes to your desktop, try to start solving the problem by lowering the graphics quality. It is possible that your computer simply does not have enough performance and the game cannot work correctly. It is also worth checking for updates - most modern games have a system for automatically installing new patches. Check if this option is disabled in the settings.

Black screen in Watch_Dogs

More often than not, the problem with the black screen is an issue with the GPU. Check if your graphics card meets the minimum requirements and install the latest drivers. Sometimes a black screen is the result of insufficient CPU performance.

If everything is fine with the hardware, and it meets the minimum requirements, try switching to another window (ALT + TAB), and then return to the game window.

Watch_Dogs is not set. Installation stuck

First of all, check if you have enough HDD space for installation. Remember that the installer requires the advertised amount of space plus 1-2 gigabytes of free space on the system drive to run properly. In general, remember the rule - the system drive should always have at least 2 gigabytes of free space for temporary files. Otherwise, both games and programs may not work correctly or refuse to start at all.

Installation problems can also occur due to lack of Internet connection or its unstable operation. Also, do not forget to suspend the antivirus while installing the game - sometimes it interferes with the correct copying of files or deletes them by mistake, considering them viruses.

Saves not working in Watch_Dogs

By analogy with the previous solution, check the availability of free space on the HDD - both on the one where the game is installed and on the system drive. Often save files are stored in a folder of documents, which is located separately from the game itself.

Controls do not work in Watch_Dogs

Sometimes the controls in the game do not work due to the simultaneous connection of several input devices. Try disabling the gamepad, or if for some reason you have two keyboards or mice connected, leave only one pair of devices. If the gamepad does not work for you, then remember that only controllers that are defined as Xbox joysticks officially support games. If your controller is defined differently, try using programs that emulate Xbox joysticks (for example, x360ce).

Sound not working in Watch_Dogs

Check if the sound works in other programs. After that, check if the sound is turned off in the settings of the game itself and if the sound playback device is selected there, to which your speakers or headset are connected. Next, while the game is running, open the mixer and check if the sound is muted there.

If you are using an external sound card, check for new drivers on the manufacturer's website.


GAMES UK PlayStation Access has released a free play video for PlayStation Plus subscribers ahead of time for April 2020. And although the video has already been removed, its contents are instantly ...

The Steam community is now actively discussing all sorts of problems with the game Watch Dogs that occur on PC. Unfortunately, the game is not technically perfect and very often there are such troubles as: problems with launch and sound, lack of a crosshair in the game, a sudden restart of the computer when the game starts, bugs with fonts, the appearance of a "crazy" mouse, etc.

Here are collected in one manual (FAQ) recipes for solving problems with graphics and typical errors in Watch Dogs, which are suggested by Steam users.

Problem

Watch Dogs won't start

Decision

Reinstall the game and verify the cache through Steam. In some cases, the exe file will not load. Let's follow the next steps.

Step one

You need to cut and rename the folder with the game from the folder where you have it (Steamaps / commons) to any place.

step two

Delete the game on Steam (delete content).

Step Three

Return the folder with the game to the original one and rename it back to (Watch_Dogs).

Step Four

In Steam, click "install". And after this check of the files, you will download 1.2 gigabytes.

Watch Dogs Season Pass content won't load

Decision

Make sure to activate the game key through a service from Ubisoft called UPlay.

——————————————————————————————————————————

There is no crosshair in Watch Dogs

Decision

Reset your graphic settings if you have adjusted anything in the graphics control panel. Update your graphics driver or just restart the game.

——————————————————————————————————————————

Steam says Watch Dogs isn't out yet

Decision

Restart Steam and check your regional settings.

——————————————————————————————————————————

Computer restarted when starting Watch Dogs

Decision

Update your graphics driver, especially for AMD cards. Try running the game in windowed mode.

——————————————————————————————————————————

Slows down the game / graphics in Watch Dogs

Decision

Someone fixes the config file: Documents / My Games / Watch Dogs / Open GamerProfile.xml and find DeferredFxQuality = "console". Replace "console" with "PC" Also update your graphics driver.

Owners of NVIDIA graphics cards can try to adjust the graphics according to the recommendations of the company. List of video cards and what settings are optimal for them,

——————————————————————————————————————————

Bug with fonts in Watch Dogs

Decision

Set the language bar to English and restart the game, on Windows 8, completely switching Windows to English US helps to remove hieroglyphs in the game.

——————————————————————————————————————————

Watch Dogs crashes on AMD card

Decision

Update DirectX and graphics driver. Check the file cache. Disable vertical sync.

——————————————————————————————————————————

D3DCOMPILER_43.DLL error

Decision

Reinstall DirectX.

——————————————————————————————————————————

Black screen after launching Watch Dogs

Decision

Update your video card drivers. Also update Microsoft Visual C++ and DirectX. Try to run the game in windowed mode, if the game starts, then after starting it, switch it to full screen mode by pressing Ctrl + Enter. Run the game as administrator or in compatibility mode. If you have two video cards, disable the second card for a while.

——————————————————————————————————————————

Watch Dogs crashes with APPCRASH error

Decision

If you are playing with an AMD graphics card. Then you need to disable the AMD Radeon Dual Graphics feature in the Catalyst Control Center, in the games tab.

——————————————————————————————————————————

Watch Dogs error 0xc000007b

Decision

Quite a common mistake for PC games. Try reinstalling DirectX, Microsoft Visual C++ (both x86 and x64 versions), Microsoft .NET Framework, and video card drivers.

——————————————————————————————————————————

3dmGameDll.dll is missing from Watch Dogs

Decision

If the 3dmGameDll.dll file is missing, then download the file on the Internet and drop it into the game folder.

——————————————————————————————————————————

Sound missing in Watch Dogs, audio/dialogue delay

Decision

Install the latest drivers for your sound card, or enable stereo sound in the Windows Control Panel.

——————————————————————————————————————————

Missing or black textures in Watch Dogs

Decision

——————————————————————————————————————————

No activation key on Uplay

Decision

Apparently this is a bug in Steam, obviously it will be fixed soon. For many players, Watch Dogs is displayed in the library, the Deluxe ROW version.

——————————————————————————————————————————

How to turn off the crazy mouse in Watch Dogs?

Decision

Find GamerProfile.xml. The file is located in the Documents / My Games / Watch_Dogs / folder (if not found, use the search by file name). Open it in a text editor and find the following lines and edit:

Set Sensitivity to "1";
UseMouseSmooth set to "0";
Smoothness set to "0";
Save the file and start the game.

——————————————————————————————————————————

Textures disappear in Watch Dogs

Decision

Unfortunately, there is no solution to this problem yet, the developers are aware and are preparing a patch. By the way, most often this problem occurs on AMD video cards.

——————————————————————————————————————————

Error 0xc000022 in Watch Dogs

Decision

Right-click on the game's shortcut and select "Run as administrator".

——————————————————————————————————————————

Error 0xc0000142 in Watch Dogs

Decision

This is an application initialization error, a full reinstall of the game will help. In this case, it is advisable to close all third-party programs and temporarily disable the antivirus.

——————————————————————————————————————————

Disclaimer: GameWay editors are not responsible for the consequences of these tips for solving technical problems with the game for your PC or operating system. By using this guide, you agree that you do so at your own risk.

According to materials:

Related publications