How to fix ARC Raiders crashing on PC

Performance issues in 2025 are a fact of life, especially when a game is crafted using highly demanding tech like the Unreal Engine 5.

ARC Raiders is one such title, but unlike its peers is so well-optimized that I cannot criticize it for anything, except for maybe ghosting and blurry AA, but that’s a small gripe at most. Some players are experiencing a bit of a turbulence, though, having their game crash on them during heated moments or just browsing the menus.

So if you’re one of that bunch, here’s what you could do to fix that.

ARC Raiders PC crashing – Potential fixes and causes

ARC Raiders is a super well-optimized game, but not one that all PCs will be able to handle. Specifically, this title appears to be quite demanding in the CPU and RAM departments, throwing a complete tantrum if it doesn’t have enough resources to use during active engagements.

As such, its crashes tend to be connected to your CPU and RAM, and these are the potential fixes:

• Shut down any and all background programs: Anything that you can turn off, you should, and especially your browser. If you have 16GB of RAM or less, having background processes hog your memory will inevitably cause freezes, stutters, and eventually, crashes. I have noticed a significant improvement in performance and stability by minimizing background apps. You can do so by debloating Windows or leaving only bare necessities in your Task Manager’s startup section.
• Install latest chipset drivers for your CPU: Having the latest and greatest software solutions for any hardware installed could result in marginal and noticeable performance improvements, particularly when it comes to overall system stability.
• Turn down all CPU-related settings: Post-processing effects, shadows, ray-tracing, and particles are super dependent on your CPU, which can cause spikes in CPU usage that lead to freezes and, in some cases, crashes. This is most noticeable in heated shootouts, which are frequent in ARC Raiders, as your PC needs to render dynamic effects in real time. We have a guide for optimal settings on PC, so do make sure you check it out.

The above should result in an overall improved and more stable experience, but you should also try running the game in dedicated full screen to further minimize the amount of resources set aside for background processes.

Unreal Engine 5 games also tend to suffer from GPU-related issues, though these are most commonly associated with the drivers and other software solutions. If you’re experiencing Direct X-related crashes or if your whole PC freezes up when ARC is about to crash, you’re probably witnessing driver failure.

This is what you can do to fix that:

• Use DDU to completely remove GPU drivers from your PC, and then reinstall them: DDU is an open-source program that allows you to wipe your driver slate clean and ensure no trace of your previous GPU driver remains on the machine, ensuring no compatibility issues arise. Then, you can download a fresh driver from your manufacturer’s website, which should come with a set of game-specific improvements that’ll enable ARC Raiders to perform better. All of the above should be done in safe mode, so as to avoid conflicts with other programs.
• Reset all overclocking and tuning you may have done: Unstable overclocks can destroy PC performance, causing graphical glitches, artifacts, freezing, and complete PC crashes. A good, healthy, and balanced OC can improve performance, but overdoing it tends to do the opposite. Simply reset your GPU settings to default and play with its out-of-the-box performances, at least until you can deduce that they’re not causing the crashes.
• Reinstall Windows if drivers keep bricking: Sometimes your drivers can get conflicted with other software on your PC, causing friction and issues in performance. Identifying the specific program can be tedious at times, so reinstalling Windows completely and then debloating it is the way to go. Be sure to back-up any potential important data you have beforehand.

If the above doesn’t help whatsoever, then you might want to reinstall the game, verify game files, try to tweak the settings, or contact ARC Raiders support to see if you can’t work something out. UE5 is a strange engine, but Embark did all it could to make it as optimized and performative as possible, with any issues arising usually related to individuals’ machines than the game itself.