Overwatch Wont Launch? Here’s What to Do

As with any other PC game, Overwatch has had its fair share of issues popping up for players across the spectrum. For instance, the irksome “Your Rendering Device Has Been Lost” error code has riled up a swath of users, among other complications. If you, however, are noticing that your Overwatch wont launch, it’s high time to get into its solution right away. 

Fixed: Overwatch Wont Launch Issue 

In this article, we’ll be jotting down a number of fixes to help you get back to playing in no time. Be sure to follow each of the listed solutions to maximize efficiency. Without any further ado then, let’s jump right in. 

• A word to the wise: if you’re experiencing Overwatch Crashing on Startup, the issue is of a different nature.  

Restart Your PC

We’re going to start off with something quite simple here. Oftentimes, all that requires to fix a specific issue is nothing more than a mere reboot. Your PC might have been overloaded with programs that have eaten away all your RAM, rendering the system to become faulty. To freshen up the components of Windows, restart your computer. 

If that doesn’t do the trick for your Overwatch won’t launch issue, continue reading for other plausible fixes. 

Delete a Specific Application Extension

One of the best fixes of the issue at hand revolves around deleting a specific application extension. This file is somehow preventing Overwatch from launching properly. To get started, type the following in your Windows Search menu. 

1. msvcp140.dll
2. Once done, you’ll notice an option for opening the file location. Click on it to continue.

   

3. After that, your “File Explorer” window will pop up, taking you directly to the location of said application extension. Here, you’ll double-click on the file, and click on “Delete.” Doing so will simply rid the extension from your Windows PC.

   

There’s a strong likelihood that your copy of the game will now launch perfectly. If the issue still hasn’t been resolved for you, keep on reading for more solutions to try. 

Run Overwatch in Compatibility Mode

Another fix that has had many people restoring their Overwatch to normalcy is running it in compatibility mode. Not sure how to do that? The following steps are going to walk you through the process. 

1. The first step is to double-click on your Overwatch game icon. As a whole bunch of options is revealed, click on “Open file location” to continue. 
2. Doing that will take you to the location of all files related to Overwatch in your “File Explorer.” There, you’ll find a file called “Overwatch Launcher.” Double-click on this file again, and select “Properties” to move forward.
3. Once done, a small-scale window will pop up. You’ll have to click on the “Compatibility” tab on this newly launched window to continue. 
4. Lastly, under “Compatibility Mode,” check the box that says, “Run this program in compatibility mode for,” and keep the option fixed for “Windows 7.” 
5. You’re almost done now. All that’s left is to click on “Apply” and then finally select “OK.” 

Now that you’ve gone through enabling the compatibility mode, it’s time to launch Overwatch and see if it launches after this or is still being stubborn. If the case resembles the latter, let’s move on to another method. 

Uninstall the Razer Synapse Software

Razer Synapse is a software dedicated to enhancing your experience for all Razor peripherals. It’s not necessary, but power users looking to get the best out of their hefty purchases tilt towards this program, and that’s no special news.

However, it’s been reported by several players that a faulty configuration of the Razer Synapse software is behind the Overwatch wont launch issue. If you have a Razer mouse or a keyboard and are frequently using this program to get your key binds sorted, you might just have set yourself up for a solution.

Simply uninstall Razer Synapse from your Windows 10 PC by going into the device’s “Settings.” The rest of the process is pretty much clockwork, as you already understand from your experience. 

Uninstalling Razer Synapse has worked for a comprehensive array of players in fixing the Overwatch wont launch problem, and here’s hoping that it has worked for you as well. If not, we’ve plenty of other fixes yet to go. 

Uninstall D3DGear

If you’ve ticked off everything on your to-do list for getting Overwatch to launch and nothing has worked so far, evaluate whether you have D3DGear installed on your PC. For some people, this video recording/live streaming software has been preventing the game to start up. 

This necessitates you to remove the program from your PC and try launching Overwatch afterward. If you don’t have D3DGear to begin with or removing it didn’t work, check out the next solution. 

Run the Battle.net Repair Tool 

The Battle.net desktop app is Blizzard Entertainment‘s game launcher that lets you enjoy all the titles developed by the American company. It’s a feature-rich program that not only runs games but also lets you repair them in any case of an occurring problem.  

Battle.net has coined this functionality as the “Repair Tool.” Its core purpose is to fix damaged files and fetch missing ones as well. The following steps should get you started with running Battle.net’s Repair Tool.

1. Launch the Battle.net application on your PC.

   

2. Click on the “Options” icon next to Overwatch to reveal more. After that, you’ll see the button for “Scan and Repair.” Click on it to begin the process. 
3. Right after that, another window will pop up asking you for verification. Click on “Begin Scan” to move forward. 
4. Simply wait until the process concludes. Once done, launch Overwatch again. 
5. That should be enough to get your Overwatch booming again. If the issue still persists, continue to the next fix. 

Update Your Drivers

An outdated driver can never bode well for a PC where you intend to play games like Overwatch. On the plus side, this issue is more common than you think. Even new PCs can sometimes ship with outdated graphics drivers, so getting them up to speed isn’t that a notorious affair. 

First off, you need to check who’s the manufacturer of your driver and what version of it you’re currently working with. To do that, follow the steps given below. 

1. 1) Press the “Windows” and “R” keys together to bring up the minuscule “Run” window. Once done, type in “DxDiag” and click on “OK.” This will launch the DirectX Diagnostic Tool.

   

2. 2) When the DirectX Diagnostic Tool launches, the next step is to click on the “Graphics” tab right away. This will take you to the area where your driver’s manufacturer and name will be stated.

   

3. If you’ve got an AMD driver like the one shown in the screenshot above, head over to the official AMD Drivers Support webpage to find the latest version for your specific driver. 
4. On the other hand, NVIDIA has its own dedicated webpage as well for helping you find the latest version of your installed driver.
5. After you’ve updated your driver to the latest version, try launching Overwatch now to see if it works. 

Disable Antivirus Software Momentarily

Antivirus software make us breathe a little easier when wandering about the vast stretches of the internet. They enable us to download arbitrary stuff on our PCs with a reinforced sense of security in mind. However, these peacekeepers could be the one thing preventing Overwatch from launching as well, by treating it as a security threat.  

Try disabling or uninstalling whatever antivirus you have installed on your PC and launch Overwatch to see if it works now. 

Conclusion

Playing games on PC is half the fun, the other is troubleshooting issues whenever things go wrong. We’ve compiled a host of solutions that are known to work for all those running into the Overwatch wont launch issue. Do try out everything listed in the article to maximize your chances of fixing the problem. 

If you finally manage to sort Overwatch straight, comment down below to let others know what worked for you. As always, good luck out there!