7 Ways You Can Fix Farming Simulator 22 Not Launching on a Windows PC

Farming Simulator 22 is a popular farm simulation game. However, startup issues for that game aren’t especially uncommon. One FS22 player reported this on Reddit: “Basically, the game (FS22) doesn’t even start now, and that happened two days ago. Anytime I go to start it, it tries to run, and then immediately closes without any warnings or errors.” That kind of startup crash prevents players from playing FS22 on Windows PCs. This is how you can fix Farming Simulator 22 not launching on a Windows 11/10 PC.

Verify the Farming Simulator 22 Files

First, try running a verification scan to check for and repair corrupted FS22 game files. This is a straightforward troubleshooting method you can apply by selecting verification options in Steam or Epic Games. These Epic Games and Steam support pages provide full guidelines for how you can select to verify game files.

The Verify integrity option

Set Farming Simulator 22 to Run With DirectX 11

A widely confirmed way to fix Farming Simulator 22 not launching is to set the game to run with DirectX 11. This involves changing a rendering setting within the game.xml file. You can apply this potential fix by editing the game.xml file like this.

1. Go into File Explorer by clicking its pinned taskbar shortcut.
2. Open the This PC > Documents > My Games > FarmingSimulator2022 folder.
3. Right-click game.xml and select the Open with and Notepad options.
4. Change the <renderer>D3D_12</renderer> setting to <renderer>D3D_11</renderer>.
   
   

   The renderer option

5. Click the File menu option and select Save to set the setting.

Delete the Shader_cache Folder

Deleting the shader_cache folder is another way to fix Farming Simulator 22 that’s worked for many players. These are the steps for deleting the Shader_cache folder.

1. Open the FarmingSimulator2022 folder as covered in steps one and two of the previous resolution.
2. Click the shader_cache folder to select it.
   
   

   The shader_cache folder

3. Select Explorer’s Delete option, on its Home tab or command bar, to erase the shader_cache folder.

Turn Off Controlled Folder Access

Controlled folder access is a security feature that can stop games from accessing folders when turned on. Disabling that feature, if you have it enabled, will ensure it can’t block Farming Simulator 2022 from accessing required folders. So, try turning off controlled folder access by going through the steps on this Microsoft webpage.

The Controlled folder access setting

Alternatively, add Farming Simulator 2022 to the controlled folder access exceptions list if you prefer to keep that feature on. To do that, you’ll need to click Allow an app through controlled folder access below the setting. Click Add an allowed app and select to add the FarmingSimulator2022Game.exe game file to the exceptions list.

Set Farming Simulator 22 to Run as an Administrator

Setting any game to run as an administrator gives it full rights to do or access whatever it needs. Game startup issues can sometimes occur when games don’t have full system rights. So, make sure FS22 has elevated privileges by setting the game to run as an administrator like this.

1. Open the Farming Simulator 2022 installation folder. This folder has a default SteamLibrary > steamapps > common > Farming Simulator 2022 directory path for Steam users.
2. Right-click the FarmingSimulator2022.exe file to select Properties.
3. Click Compatibility to select Run this program as an administrator on that tab.
   
   

   The Run this program as an administrator

4. Select Apply to save the administrator option you’ve selected.
5. Click OK to exit the Compatibility tab and its window.
6. Open the X64 subfolder in the Farming Simulator 22 folder.
7. Repeat steps two to four above for the FarmingSimulator2022Game.exe file in the X64 subfolder.
8. Then try starting the game directly from its installation folder by double-clicking the FarmingSimulator2022Game.exe or FarmingSimulator2022.exe file.

Repair or Install Visual C++ Packages

Some players might need to repair or install Visual C++ runtime libraries to fix Farming Simulator 2022 not launching. This is how you can repair or install required Visual C++ packages.

1. Go to this Microsoft download page in your web browser software.
2. Click the X64 download link for Microsoft Visual Studio 2015-2022.
3. Open the Explorer navigator and bring up the folder containing the downloaded VC_redist.arm64.exe file.
4. Double-click the VC_redist.arm64.exe file and select the I agree checkbox.
   
   

   The Microsoft Visual C++ redistributable download page

5. Select the Install or Repair option available.
   
   

   The Microsoft Visual C++ Install option

6. Click the X86 Visual Studio 2015-22 download link and repeat the previous two steps for the VC_redist.x86.exe file.

Reinstall Farming Simulator 22

Finally, try reinstalling the game if no other potential resolutions fix Farming Simulator 2022 not launching on your PC. Doing this is the best way to fix corrupted game installations and files. You can reinstall Farming Simulator 22 via Steam and Epic Games like this.

Steam

1. Open your Steam app to access the Library tab within that software.
2. Click Farming Simulator 22 in the sidebar with the right mouse button to select Manage.
3. Select Uninstall twice to remove FS22.
   
   

   The Uninstall option in Steam

4. Click the uninstalled FS22 in the Library tab and press its Install button.

Epic Games

1. Open Epic and select its Library tab on the left sidebar.
2. Click Farming Simulator 22’s three-dot menu button and select Uninstall a couple of times.
   
   

   The Uninstall option in Epic Games

3. To reinstall FS22, click the game’s cover image within your Library tab and select Install.

Other Possible Ways to Fix Farming Simulator 22 Not Launching

Don’t give up if the potential solutions above aren’t enough to fix Farming Simulator 22 not launching on your PC. These additional troubleshooting methods are also worth trying:

• Install all available Windows updates for your PC (upgrade the build version if you can).
• Update the graphical driver for your PC’s GPU by downloading it from the NVIDIA/AMD website.
• Set Steam or Epic Games to run in Windows 8 compatibility mode with administrator rights.
• Select to run Farming Simulator 2 with the High performance option via graphics settings.
• Perform the clean boot troubleshooting method, which this Microsoft help guide tells you how to apply.

The potential resolutions above will likely fix Farming Simulator 22 not launching on many players’ PCs. They’re worth trying because many players have kick-started FS22 with those potential fixes. However, you can contact the FS22 help service from this support page if further potential solutions are required.