Assassin's Creed Shadows crashing on PC: Possible causes and fixes explored

Assassin's Creed Shadows is finally here to take us on a journey across feudal Japan as Naoe and Yasuke. This much-awaited RPG is now available on multiple platforms, including PC. However, some players are encountering crashes while playing Ubisoft's new RPG. This issue disrupts the immersive gameplay and frustrates the player. So, it's important to understand the reasons behind this error and how it could be fixed.

Read on to find out the possible reasons behind Assassin's Creed Shadows crashing on your PC, and the fixes you can try to eliminate them.

Possible causes for Assassin’s Creed Shadows crashing on PC

There are several factors responsible for the newly-released Assasin's Creed to crash on your system. However, we have listed some common issues that could be causing this error:

Windows Update conflicts: Some players have reported having issues with their Ubisoft games after updating Windows, especially for Windows 11.
Outdated or corrupt graphics drivers: Running a game with old or corrupted graphics drivers can often lead to performance issues and even crashes.
Background applications consuming resources: Having multiple applications running in the background can stress the system resources like RAM and CPU, leading to the game not getting enough juice to run and crash.
Corrupted game files: Assassin’s Creed Shadows may crash unexpectedly due to corrupted or incomplete game files due to an abrupt installation.
Overclocking instability: Overclocking your GPU or CPU can push hardware beyond its stable limits, which can often cause instability when playing a game.

Potential fixes for Assassin’s Creed Shadows crashing on PC

Playing Assassin's Creed Shadows (Image via Ubisoft/Sportskeeda Gaming)

Now that we have diagnosed some possible causes behind Assassin's Creed Shadows crashing on PC, let’s explore fixes to resolve it:

1) Roll back recent windows updates

If the game is crashing despite having an updated Windows, rolling back to the previous version might fix the problem.

Open Settings and go to Windows Update.
Click on Update History and select Uninstall updates.
Choose the most recent update and remove it.
After rolling back the update, restart your PC and try relaunching the game.

2) Update graphics drivers

Keeping your GPU drivers updated is essential for smooth performance. Here are the steps to update them whether they are NVIDIA, AMD, or Intel GPU.

For NVIDIA users:

Visit the NVIDIA driver page.
Download and install the latest driver for your GPU model.

For AMD users:

Go to the AMD driver page.
Install the newest driver update for your graphics card.

For Intel users:

Check for updates on the Intel Arc drivers page.
Download the newest driver update for your graphics card.

NOTE: Restart your PC after installing the new drivers.

3) Close unnecessary background processes

Running multiple background applications can stress the system, causing the game to crash. So, here is the way to free up some of those resources:

Open Task Manager by pressing Ctrl+Shift+Esc.
In the Processes tab, look for applications consuming high resources.
Right-click on that application and select End Task.

4) Verify and repair game files

Corrupted or missing files can cause Assassin's Creed Shadows to crash. Here are the steps to verify the files and repair them to prevent future game crashes.

Steam

Open Steam and go to your Library.
Right-click on Assassin’s Creed Shadows and select Properties.
Navigate to the Local Files tab and click on Verify Integrity of Game Files.

Ubisoft Connect

Launch Ubisoft Connect and go to the Library.
Select the game and click the three dots next to the Play button.
Select Verify files from the menu that appears.

Epic Game Launcher

Launch the Epic Game Launcher and go to the Library.
Select the game and click the three dots next to the game title.
Select Verify files from the Manage dropdown menu.

Steam, Ubisoft Connect, or Epic Game Launcher will scan for missing or corrupted files and replace them if necessary.

5) Disable overclocking

If you have overclocked your hardware, reverting to default settings may resolve stability issues:

Restart your PC and enter BIOS/UEFI.
Locate the overclocking settings and reset them to default.
Save and exit, then restart your system.

6) Adjust Assassin's Creed Shadows graphics settings

Reducing some graphics settings may help prevent crashes. We have recommended some go-to settings that could prevent your game from crashing.

Disable VSync in the game settings.
Lower graphics settings such as Shadows, Textures, and Volumetric Clouds.
Switching from Fullscreen to Borderless Window or vice versa could prevent crashes.

These fixes might improve the game's stability and allow a smoother gameplay experience. If Assassin's Creed Shadows still crashes, wait for Ubisoft to address it by releasing a new patch.

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Edited by Adarsh J Kumar