Elden Ring Nightreign crashing on startup? Get rid of White and Black screen of doom

FromSoftware has created something on completely different level with Elden Ring. It has drawn in people who would never think about touching Souls games (me included). Yet here we are – ER has already become a classic and its DLC, Shadow of the Erdtree, only reinforced the title’s position on the night sky among other timeless stars. This must have inspired the developers to create night-themed version of Elden Ring focused on cooperation – something that the community has craved for a long, long time. The creation that emerged from the starry night turned out to be Elden Ring Nightreign. This is a dream come true for many, yet the dream has quickly become a nightmare when instead of being greeted in Roundable Hold, many unfortunate fans have been met with black or white screen at launch. This crash on startup is just as heartbreaking as ending the run by being mauled by one of the Nightlords, so let’s try to find a remedy that will let you join your friends on this fast-paced journey.

Potential fixes for black and white screen crashes on launch in Elden Ring Nightreign

While Elden Ring Nightreign might be an ideal production for coop soulslike fans, undeniably it is placed among the worst games that FromSoftware has created. Not only because it betrays the idea of slow paced and careful exploration of the world presented, but also due to issues with performance, matchmaking and reused assets. The fact that it lacks 2-player mode is definitely not helping, yet there are chances that it will be available later on, at least. To add to this dark vision, many fans experience crashes while launching the title and seeing only either black or white screen. What’s causing it and why?

As always, the answer is not simple, as the possible configurations of hardware and software of our PCs are nearly impossible to count. However, there are several major pain points that can lead to the game not opening as it should. To counteract the crash the following methods can be used:

1. Besides the obvious “make sure that all your drivers are up to date”, there is one more ingredient that often poses problems – Easy AntiCheat. While its use was questionable in the original Elden Ring, this time having a person cheating in your team can definitely spoil the fun. That being said, EAC is not known for its stability and flawless work. First thing that you can do is to try repairing it according to the official guide. Alternatively, you may attempt deleting the “EasyAntiCheat_EOS.exe” and “EasyAntiCheat_EOS.sys” files that is located by default in “C:\Program Files (x86)\EasyAntiCheat_EOS” folder and then verify Elden Ring Nightreign’s file integrity via Steam. This should redownload the missing files. The latter part (verifying files) is also recommended by the guide released alongside Patch 1.
2. What can be partially related to anticheat software is Process Lasso – a program that changes the way CPU prioritizes its tasks. While useful in many situations, it can be detected as inappropriate by EAC and prevent the game from starting. Try turning it off. Bear in mind that not only Process Lasso can cause this – any app that changes the default way your computer operates can lead to this issue, so try to think about any similar software that you may have and behaves this way.
3. Since security features require TPM more and more, and it is even required to install Windows 11, some players suggest that enabling it in your computer’s BIOS can help in this specific instance.
4. Another thing that was suggested by the community, who struggles with launching the title, is to run the game directly from install folder by starting “start_protected_game.exe” executable. Of course, doing it with administrative rights has better chance of working, as it can happen that an error with “CreateFile failed with 32” message pops up.
5. Lastly, an interesting solution was found by a Steam Community member, who claims that installing the most recent Microsoft C++ Redistributables alleviated the problem with white screen on start. Make sure to use the official Microsoft webpage when downloading the Redistributables to avoid any possible issues or even malicious software.

Obviously, that’s not all that can be done. The last resort is of course opening a ticket with Bandai Namco support either on EU or NA site. Hopefully, you will be able to hunt for Nightlords in the night veiled land of Limveld. Despite not being on par with other productions of the studio, it is still a solid game, even according to our review, that is worth a try. Good luck!

Elden Ring: Nightreign

May 30, 2025

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• Overview
• Review

• co-op
• exploration
• FromSoftware
• roguelike / roguelite
• bugs / technical problems (games)
• TPP action games
• soulslike