8.0 (590967) CTD random crashes and missing missions

[jyorski]

I've got all the DLC and have a couple hundred hours' gameplay going back to 2022. In the last month or so, I'm getting random CTD's as well as missions disappearing from my list of accepted missions when I start a saved game. So, the missions were all there when I saved the game, but when I come back the next day or whenever, all missions are gone. I'm playing the Hired Gun start and I've got a high-end machine with all the latest drivers, BIOS updates, no mods, etc. And I've got all the files needed(vulkaninfo, dxdiag, .dmp) but I don't see any way to attach them or upload them. I don't use any online fileshare. Any assistance is appreciated because I'll have to quit this game if I can't fix these issues and it's a pretty fun game when it works right. I saw no solution on here that addresses these issues.

[CBJ]

We can't help you without the information requested at the top of the forum. The sticky thread explains that you can copy and paste text content from your DXDiag and vulkaninfo into multiple posts if they're too big to fit into one. There is really no reason not to use a public file-sharing service, though, as there is no personal information in these files.

[jyorski]

CBJ,
Well, the reason is I've never needed to use an online filesharing service, but here's the link to one I just set up. It's got the vulkaninfo, .dmp, DXdiag and my last saved game files. Hopefully you can access it:

https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fo/8rzefesk ... 1xl0z&dl=0

Thanks,
-Joe

[CBJ]

That's perfect, thanks. The crashdump you've uploaded isn't very revealing, but it's not in a location that could reasonably be expected to crash under normal circumstances. If you have any more crashdumps then please add them, as they may help narrow things down.

You say "no mods", but does that mean your game was never modified, or that you've just disabled mods? The latter does not remove mods' effects, and in the case of certain mods doesn't even remove the mod itself properly, so please confirm which it is.

With the info from that one crashdump, this could well be a memory issue. That could mean faulty memory, or it could be a result of the known issue with Intel 13th/14th generation CPUs. You say you've done a BIOS update, but it's a progressive fault and can result in CPU damage if it goes on too long before being worked around with a BIOS update. Another possibility is power supply instability, which is particularly relevant with higher-end hardware. As mentioned above, more crashdumps could help confirm whether hardware issues are more or less likely.

[jyorski]

Yep, never used any mods. I’m running the vanilla game with all official DLC. I’ve seen the CPU discussion but I’ve run Intel’s diagnostic on it and everything passed with no issues. And that wouldn’t explain the missions just disappearing in any case, I wouldn’t think.

On the power supply, I have no idea but it’s a Corsair machine, higher end and no other programs are having issues. I’m at work but will send more crash dumps as soon as I get home. Thanks for the speedy reply.
-Joe

[Alan Phipps]

You have many different sound devices and drivers running at the same time and some drivers from 2017. I would disable any you don't use in Control Panel, Device Manager, Sound/Audio Devices (right-click on a device in the listing for a disable/enable pop-up). It might help.

[jyorski]

That's perfect, thanks. The crashdump you've uploaded isn't very revealing, but it's not in a location that could reasonably be expected to crash under normal circumstances. If you have any more crashdumps then please add them, as they may help narrow things down.

You say "no mods", but does that mean your game was never modified, or that you've just disabled mods? The latter does not remove mods' effects, and in the case of certain mods doesn't even remove the mod itself properly, so please confirm which it is.

With the info from that one crashdump, this could well be a memory issue. That could mean faulty memory, or it could be a result of the known issue with Intel 13th/14th generation CPUs. You say you've done a BIOS update, but it's a progressive fault and can result in CPU damage if it goes on too long before being worked around with a BIOS update. Another possibility is power supply instability, which is particularly relevant with higher-end hardware. As mentioned above, more crashdumps could help confirm whether hardware issues are more or less likely.

Okay, I just uploaded another 16 or so .dmp files. All the sound drivers mentioned by Alan are up to date. I have Win 11 set to auto update but I check pretty regularly anyway and all sound, video motherboard, etc. drivers are current. I've seen the missing accepted missions issue in multiple other posts on here and on Steam's boards. What would cause that? I'm just docked at my space station in Heretic's End and they're all there, then I save the game and go to bed. When I came back to it the next day, ALL missions are gone from the missions tab and it's like I'm starting over.
-Joe

[CBJ]

Most of your crashdumps are crashes in your NVidia graphics drivers, not the game itself. The rest seem to be in code related to missions, which might correspond to your report of missing missions. It seems unlikely that the two are related, but the good news is that this makes it less like that it's the Intel CPU problem.

For the crashes, you need to look at uninstalling and reinstalling your graphics drivers, and checking that your graphics card is working within its limits (i.e. no overclocking). A power supply that's struggling could also be a possibility.

With regard to the missions, it sounds like your game installation might be corrupt in some way. Start by performing a full file verification using the Steam client. It's possible that any corruption might persist within a savegame, so try starting a new game as well as loading an existing one to make sure.

[jyorski]

Most of your crashdumps are crashes in your NVidia graphics drivers, not the game itself. The rest seem to be in code related to missions, which might correspond to your report of missing missions. It seems unlikely that the two are related, but the good news is that this makes it less like that it's the Intel CPU problem.

For the crashes, you need to look at uninstalling and reinstalling your graphics drivers, and checking that your graphics card is working within its limits (i.e. no overclocking). A power supply that's struggling could also be a possibility.

With regard to the missions, it sounds like your game installation might be corrupt in some way. Start by performing a full file verification using the Steam client. It's possible that any corruption might persist within a savegame, so try starting a new game as well as loading an existing one to make sure.

Welp, I checked game files and all were fine, no issues. I checked NVIDIA drivers and I had the latest version, but uninstalled and reinstalled fresh anyway. I ran two diagnostic programs on the power supply, and nothing was found. The one thing I did different is let the game select my graphics settings instead of turning them all up to the max, which my rig SHOULD be able to handle. But I started a fresh game and have about 13 hours in it with no issues at all, no crashes or disappearing missions. So, either a bad video driver install, bad video settings or some other mystery issue appears to be the problem and hopefully I don't see it again. I'm reeeeeally hoping it's not just a later-game thing that I'm just going to run into again. Thanks for your help!
-Joe

[CBJ]

Glad to hear it's sorted, and thanks for letting us know. It's not something we've really seen happen to other people, so hopefully it's resolved permanently.