Problems launching Total War 3 in Windows 11

Warhammer: Total War 3 is the last TW game that received rave reviews in 2022. However, players have been widely discussing Warhammer: Total War 3 launch issues on support forums. Some player reports have indicated that the game gets stuck on the copyright screen, hangs on launch, or just doesn’t start at all.

Players who need to fix Warhammer: Total War 3 not launching after purchasing it might consider requesting a refund. However, there are many ways to fix this game when it won’t start. These potential resolutions could cause Warhammer: Total War 3 not to launch in Windows 11.

1. Set up Warhammer: Total War 3 to start with admin rights

Warhammer: Total War 3 may not start due to insufficient system permissions. Make sure the game is configured to run with administrative rights. You can configure Warhammer: Total War 3 to start with elevated rights by following these steps:

1. To open the File Explorer folder manager app, right-click on Windows 11 Begin button and select the shortcut there.
2. Open the Warhammer: Total War 3 installation folder in File Explorer.
3. Right click on the Warhammer: Total War 3 EXE file (application) to launch the game to select Properties.
4. Click on Compatibility to access the Run this program as administrator option.

5. Select the Run this program as administrator setting to set high rights for the game.
6. Hurry Apply to save the changed setting.
7. Select OKAY to exit the game properties window.

2. Wait 20-30 minutes for the game to start

Some players have reported having to wait up to 20 minutes on the Warhammer: Total War logo screen for the game to start. This may be because the game needs time to configure itself with the PCs system settings. If Warhammer: Total War 3 is stuck on the logo screen after recently installing it, you may need to wait 20-30 minutes for the game to start. If it works, the game will start much faster afterwards.

3. Check Warhammer: Total War 3 Game Files

You may need to repair corrupt or damaged Warhammer: Total War 3 files to run the game. Epic Games and Steam users can choose to run file verification scans for games. Here are the steps to verify Warhammer: Total War 3 files in Epic Games Launcher:

1. Launch Epic Games Launcher and select Library in his window.
2. Click the ellipsis (three dots) button just below Warhammer: Total War 3 to display game options.
3. Select Manage to raise the Check option.

4. Hurry Check to scan the game.

5. Wait for the verification to complete before exiting the Epic Games Launcher.

To verify the game files in Steam, right-click on Warhammer: Total War 3 in the library section of that game client and select Properties. Click on Local files on the window that opens. Then you can select the Verify integrity of game files option from there.

4. Start Warhammer: Total War 3 in windowed mode

Some players have confirmed that starting Warhammer: Total War 3 in windowed mode can resolve launch issues. You can configure Warhammer: Total War 3 to start in windowed mode by entering a command line argument in the Epic Games Launcher and Steam. Here is how you can enter a windowed command line argument for the game in the Epic Games launcher:

1. Bring up your Epic Games client software and click the round user profile button in the top right of its window.
2. Select Settings in the user menu.

3. Click on Warhammer: Total War 3 in the settings to expand its options.
4. Check the box for the Additional command line arguments option.
5. Enter the -windowed -noborder command argument in the text box.

6. Restart Epic Games Launcher and try restarting Warhammer: Total War 3.

You can do the same from Steam Library by right-clicking on Warhammer: Total War3 and selecting the Properties option for the game. Select the General tab in the window that opens. Then type -windowed -noborder in the Launch Options area.

5. Update DirectX Files

Any problem with the DirectX software on your PC can be another cause of Warhammer: Total War 3 crashing when launched. Therefore, it is recommended to run the DirectX End-User Runtime web installer to update the DirectX runtime libraries. You can install missing DirectX components with this installer as follows:

1. Go to the DirectX End-User Runtime web installer download page in a browser.
2. press the To download to get the DirectX End-User Runtime Web Installer package.
3. View your browser To download tab, then click a Show in Folder option for dxwebsetup.exe from there.

4. Run the dxwebsetup.exe package with elevated rights by right-clicking on this file and selecting the Run as administrator option.
5. Click on I accept the agreement and Next in the DirectX Setup Wizard.

6. Uncheck the selection Install Bing Bar check box, then click Next to update DirectX components.

6. Update Visual C++ Redistributable

Specific Visual C++ Redistributable components are required for Warhammer: Total War 3 to work. You may need to install or even repair Visual C++ components to get the game working again.

To do this, download and run the Visual C++ 2015-2022 package as follows:

1. View the Visual C++ Redistributables download page in your browser.
2. Click the X64 download link for the Visual Studio 2015-2022 package. The X86 download link exists for the 32-bit system architecture.

3. Click it Show in Folder option for your browser’s VC_redist.x64 package Downloads tongue.
4. Right-click the VC_redist.x64.exe file to select Execute as administrator.
5. Select either the Install Where Repair option depending on what is available.

6. Wait for the installation progress to finish, then restart Windows.

7. Disable antivirus utilities

Warhammer: Total War 3 may fail to start on your PC because an overly strict antivirus utility is blocking some of its files. If a third-party antivirus tool is installed on your PC, try disabling its shield before starting the game. To disable an antivirus utility, right-click on a system tray icon and select an option from the context menu which temporarily disables its shield protection.

Windows 11’s built-in antivirus utility can also block games and apps. If there is no third-party antivirus software on your PC, temporarily disable Windows Security (if not Microsoft Defender). Our guide on how to disable Microsoft Defender includes full instructions on how to disable this antivirus tool.

8. Windows 11 Clean Boot

To minimize potential program conflict issues, it is recommended that users close unnecessary background applications and services before choosing to start Warhammer: Total War 3. One way to do this is to set up clean startup, which will remove third-party software and services from Windows startup. You can perform a clean boot by adjusting the MSConfig settings like this:

1. Open System Configuration with one of the eight methods included in our guide to opening MSConfig.
2. Uncheck the selection Loads startup components MSConfig option General tongue.

3. Click MSConfig Services tab to select Hide all Microsoft services.

4. Hurry Disable all to deselect all other services listed.
5. Click on Apply to save the boot configuration option as selected.
6. Then select OKAY > To restart to restart.

Once done, check if Warhammer: Total War 3 can now launch. If so, that means a service you disabled during a clean boot is causing the problem. You can now slowly start to re-enable services until the problem reappears, at which point you will know what is causing the problem and can work out ways to fix it.

9. Reinstall Warhammer: Total War 3

Reinstalling Warhammer: Total War 3 is another potential fix for the game not starting, some players have said this may work. As Warhammer: Total War 3 weighs over 100 gigabytes, it will take some time to download and reinstall. This is how you can uninstall and reinstall the game with Epic Games and Steam.

1. Epic Games Launcher

For Epic Games Launcher:

1. Start Epic Games Launcher and click Library in the window of this game client.
2. Click the ellipsis button in Warhammer: Total War 3.
3. Select Uninstall On the menu.

4. Click on the second Uninstall opportunity to confirm.
5. Then click on the Warhammer: Total War 3 game to select the Install option.

2. Steam

If you own the game on Steam:

1. Launch the Steam game software and select its Library tab.
2. Right-click Warhammer: Total War 3 game and select Manage.
3. Hurry Uninstall to delete the game.

4. To reinstall the game, select Warhammer: Total War 3 in Steam and click on its Install option.

Have fun playing Warhammer: Total War 3 again

These potential fixes should cover all potential causes of Warhammer: Total War 3 launch issues. help by selecting Creative Assembly: Total War Series on Sega’s support page.