Hogwarts Legacy won’t launch – A lot of PC users are complaining that Hogwarts Legacy won’t start or launch for them via Steam. This guide will show you how to fix the launch issue.
Fix Hogwarts Legacy Won’t Launch
Hogwarts Legacy is, without a doubt, one of the biggest releases of 2023, and you can easily tell by looking at the overwhelmingly positive reviews from the community and the reviewers. The entire world is talking about this game.
But that doesn’t mean that the game is perfect. Yeah, you can say that it definitely is, on the PS5. But the situation for PC users is completely different. A lot of posts have started popping up on the Steam Discussions page of Hogwarts Legacy. And most of these posts are about the bugs and errors that players are experiencing in the game at the moment. It looks like a lot of players are having difficulties launching Hogwarts Legacy via Steam. I can understand that for some, it could be because of the low-powered hardware in their systems. But even people with really high-end gaming rigs are facing this issue. So this problem has nothing to do with PC hardware.
Now the question is, can this be fixed? Let me tell you what the problem is. You see, it is hard to say specifically what is causing this issue. There are plenty of things that could trigger launch issues. And the reason for the issue might vary from user to user. Still, here are some potential fixes that you can try if Hogwarts Legacy won’t launch for you:
Before you move further into the guide, make sure you take a look at the minimum and recommended requirements of Hogwarts Legacy. And also, download the latest drivers from the websites of your respective GPU vendors.
- Nvidia users can download the latest drivers from here or via GeForce Experience.
- AMD users can download the latest drivers from here.
Update 02/10/2023 – Nvidia has already released a new driver, but that is not for Hogwarts Legacy. On the other hand, AMD has not released anything.
Disable Steam Input for Hogwarts Legacy
The first thing you should do, is disable Steam Input for Hogwarts Legacy. This has worked for a lot of users, and surprisingly enough, Steam Input has caused launch issues for many games in the past. Here is what you need to do:
- Open Steam and go to your Library.
- Right-Click on Hogwarts Legacy, and select Properties.
- Firstly, untick “Enable the Steam Overlay while in-game.”
- Secondly, Click on “Controller”, and set “OVERRIDE FOR HOGWARTS LEGACY” to “Disable Steam Input.”
- Restart Steam, once you’re done.
Check and Repair Corrupted/Missing Hogwarts Legacy Files
Steam users can right-click on Hogwarts Legacy from the Library, click on Properties, and then select “Verify Integrity of Game files” for the Local Files Tab. The process will take some time, so you have to be a bit patient.
Launch Hogwarts Legacy directly using the exe file.
If verifying the files doesn’t end up working for you, here is another thing you can do:
- Go to Steam.
- Click on Hogwarts Legacy, from your Library.
- Look on the right side of the page, and click on the “Gear” or the “Manage” icon from there.
- Select Manage > browse local files.
- You will now find yourself inside the installation folder of Hogwarts Legacy.
- Right-click on .exe file of Hogwarts Legacy, and select “Run as administrator”.
Are you sure that Hogwarts Legacy is not conflicting with the Anti-virus on your System?
In some cases, the exe file of Hogwarts Legacy may be getting silently quarantined by some antivirus software, preventing the game from launching. Therefore, you may need to disable Real-Time Scanning function or Real-Time Protection function of your Anti-virus to play. If you do not want to completely disable the software, then you will have to add the .exe of Hogwarts Legacy and Steam to the Exceptions list of your AV Software.
If you are a Windows Defender user, then here is how to add Hogwarts Legacy on the exceptions list of Windows Defender:
- Go to Windows 11 or Windows 11 settings
- Click on Update & Security
- Select Windows Security from the left sidebar
- Click on Virus & threat protection
- Under Virus & threat protection click on Manage settings
- Scroll down untill you spot “Exclusions”.
- Under Exclusions click on Add or remove exclusions
- Click on Add an exclusion
- Select File
- Select the .exe or executable file of Hogwarts Legacy
- Now select Folder, and select your entire Steam Library
- Restart your PC
Install the latest Microsoft Visual Studio
Also, please try downloading and installing the latest version of Visual C++ redistributable, as there’s a chance it hasn’t been installed correctly. Download and install the x64 version.
Extra Tips
- Please be sure to check you have an active and stable internet connection and that Steam is online.
- Make sure that your Windows 11 or Windows 10 is completely updated. At this time, Hogwarts Legacy runs best on Windows 11/Windows 10 64-bit. 32-bit operating systems are not supported.
- There is a chance that a PC file of yours may have become corrupt. Try using the System File Checker to see if it can fix them.
- You may have a conflict with your audio source or your sound card drivers. If you are using a headset or external speakers, then try unplugging them temporarily.
And finally, if none of the fixes mentioned above work for you, then there is no other choice but to re-install the game completely on a different drive. We are still testing the game. More fixes on the way!
I would suggest that you take a look at the official Steam Discussions Page of Hogwarts Legacy. You will find a lot of players discussing about these exact same issues.
If you think this guide has helped you, then let us know in the comment section below. Also, if you are facing other game problems, try checking out our other guides on Hogwarts Legacy. Who knows, you might end up finding a fix.
That’s all, folks!
Last Updated on February 10, 2023
Shoaib, 30, is a simple guy who loves to play video games, and enjoys new cuisines sporadically. He has been gaming since he was 7 years old, and with an experience of 22 years, under his belt, there is not a single AAA game in this world, that he hasn’t played. Despite being a MBA Graduate he decided to follow his passion. And because of his love for gaming, Frondtech came into existence.