Jagged Alliance 3 is a tactical RPG and the latest entry in the franchise. The reception for the game has been good. However, Jagged Alliance 3 PC players report that the game isn’t starting or crashes at launch with the error message “could not start game. please restart”. There are multiple reasons why Jagged Alliance 3 isn’t launching your PC and in this guide, I will list fixes that will help PC players resolve the error.
Jagged Alliance 3 Startup Crash Fixes You Can Try
PC player report that they are experiencing the “could not start game. please restart” error when they launch Jagged Alliance 3. There are multiple reasons why the game isn’t launching or crashing at startup like in-game overlays, especially Epic Store in-game overlays, fullscreen optimizations, and more. The following are the fixes that will help players fix the Jagged Alliance 3 not starting issue.
Disable Epic In-Game Overlay
Jagged Alliance 3 players report that the Epic in-game overlay is causing the “could not start game. please restart” error, even if you have bought the game on Steam. This can be fixed by disabling the overlay. Interestingly, the Epic Store overlay can’t be disabled through the Epic Store client and has to be deleted manually.
Go to Epic Store install folder, if you installed the client without making changes to its install directory, navigate to the following path.
C:\Program Files (x86)\Epic Games\Launcher\Portal\Extras\Overlay\
If you changed the install directory, then locate the Epic Games folder and navigate to the following path.
Epic Games\Launcher\Portal\Extras\Overlay\
Here you’ll find two files “EOSOverlayRenderer-Win64-Shipping.exe” and “EOSOverlayRenderer-Win32-Shipping.exe”. Delete these files or rename them, then launch Jagged Alliance 3, and the “could not start game” error is now fixed.
Delete Epic Games Launcher
If disabling the Epic in-game overlay hasn’t fixed the Jagged Alliance 3 not starting issue then delete the Epic Store client. PC player reports that deleting the Epic Store client fixes the error and the game works without any startup crash. Open Windows Settings > Apps > Installed Apps > scroll down and locate Epic Game Launcher and uninstall it.
Clear Steam Download Cache
Clearing the Steam download cache reportedly also fixed the Jagged Alliance 3 not starting error. Open Steam settings > Downloads > click on “Clear Cache”. After that, restart Steam, launch Jagged Alliance 3, and the game not starting error is now fixed.
Disable In-game Overlays
If disabling or deleting the Epic Store overlay hasn’t fixed the Jagged Alliance 3 not starting error, then the issue is probably other in-game overlays like Steam in-game overlay, GeForce Experience overlay, or Discord overlay. Disable all in-game overlays and the game not starting error will be fixed.
To disable Steam in-game overlay, open Steam > settings > In-game > uncheck “Enable the Steam overlay while in-game.”
To disable the GeForce Experience overlay, open GeForce Experience> click on the Gear icon next to your username > General > turn off the “IN-GAME Overlay” options.
Update GPU Driver
Some PC users report that updating or reinstalling the GPU driver fixed Jagged Alliance 3 not starting error. Ensure that you do a clean installation so that settings from the previous driver install won’t create problems.
Disable Fullscreen Optimizations
Fullscreen optimizations are enabled by default in Windows for every program and it can cause games to crash at launch. Apparently, this is one of the reasons for Jagged Alliance 3 not starting an error. Right-click the game in Steam library > Manage > browse local files. A new Window Explorer window will open with game files > locate the executable and right-click it > properties > Compatibility tab > check “Fullscreen Optimizations” and apply. Launch Jagged Alliance 3 and the game will work without crashing at startup.
That is all for our Jagged Alliance 3 fixes for the game not starting error and crash at startup issue. If you are facing errors and issues with other PC games or your PC, then also see our hub for commonly occurring PC errors and their fixes.