DragonSword: Awakening Start-up Crash After Graphics Changes — Workaround

Official Notice — July 24, 2026

Hound13 posted a Steam news notice on July 24, 2026 at 11:27 KST acknowledging that changing certain graphics options can cause the game to crash on startup. The issue affects players who adjusted settings before exiting the game cleanly, then tried to relaunch. An official patch is in progress — until it deploys, the team recommends the workaround below.

Symptoms

• Game fails to launch and returns to desktop shortly after the splash screen
• Settings menu previously showed a custom value (resolution, DLSS/FSR mode, frame cap, V-Sync, or similar)
• No error code shown — the process simply terminates

If your game launched normally before changing settings, this is the most likely cause. Apply the workaround before opening a Steam support ticket.

Workaround: Delete GameUserSettings.ini

1. Close DragonSword: Awakening completely (including the Steam overlay).
2. In your Steam Library, right-click DragonSword : Awakening.
3. Select Properties → Installed Files → Browse.
4. Navigate to DS → Saved → Config → Windows.
5. Delete the file named GameUserSettings.ini.
6. Restart the game. It will rebuild the file with default graphics settings.

After the Workaround

The game will boot with the default graphics preset. You can re-apply your preferred resolution, frame cap, and upscale options one at a time — save after each change and relaunch to confirm the title still starts. Avoid applying multiple settings simultaneously until the official patch ships, which makes it easier to identify the option that triggered the crash.

Save data, progression, currency, and unlocks are stored separately from GameUserSettings.ini, so deleting the file does not affect gameplay progress.

Related Issues

This crash is separate from the Patch 1.0.1 DLC ownership fix. It also does not change the missing-store-items notice (Black-Dyed Vestment and Exploration Squad Griffon) or the pre-launch build progression reset. Track every active issue on our Launch Known Issues page.

Return to Patch 1.0.1 or browse the Launch Bugs guide for additional fixes.