There are several differences between the two Rainbow Six Titles – Extraction and Siege, but the key difference is one is PvE while the other is PvP. If you have played Siege, a lot of the game elements will be similar partly due to the two games sharing the same engine and 18 operators. All of this and much more comes to PC via the Epic Games Store and Ubisoft Connect. Sadly, Rainbow Six Extraction is not available on Steam at launch. One of the day-one issues reported by users with the game may be the Rainbow Six Extraction crashing on startup on PC, not launching, or won’t start. If you have run into any of these issues, we may be able to help.
Updates at added at the bottom of the post.
Fix Rainbow Six Extraction Crashing to Desktop, Not Launching, or Won’t Start
Before you proceed with the fixes, ensure that your system meets the requirement to play the game. If not, that may be the reason the Rainbow Six Extraction is crashing on your computer. In that case, returning the game or upgrading the system is the only fix. But, if your system meets the requirements to play, here are the things you can do to fix the issue.
Disable Integrated GPU
Users who have two GPUs on their computer may run into an issue that’s preventing the game from launching. You may get the error – no compatible driver found. If you are getting this error, the game may be using the integrated GPU instead of the dedicated. You need to disable the integrated GPU. Follow the steps in the link to fix the error.
Run Rainbow Six Extraction after Clean Boot
Often a third-party application may be the reason the game is crashing for you. In a clean boot environment, you disable all third-party applications and only run the Windows apps. Do note though, you need to follow the instructions exactly as instructed or you may run into issues such as being locked out of your PC. A clean boot environment also frees up resources so you can run the game better. Here is what you need to do to fix Rainbow Six Extraction crashing to desktop, not launching, or won’t start issues.
- Press Windows Key + R and type msconfig, hit Enter
- Go to the Services tab
- Check Hide all Microsoft services (very imp step)
- Now, click Disable all
- Go to the Startup tab and click on Open Task Manager
- Disable one task at a time and restart the system.
Now, try to launch the game and check if the crashing or won’t launch problems are still there. If yes, then follow the rest of the solutions.
Update Drivers and Windows
New games are designed to run on the latest build of software. Running an outdated video driver software or the OS may be the cause of the crash. Even if it’s not the reason behind the Extraction crashing you should still keep all the driver software updated including the audio drivers. For Nvidia drivers, there is a new Game Ready Driver with day-one support for Extraction. If you are an AMD user, you should also check for the latest driver. Besides the GPU driver, also ensure that the OS and the audio driver are up to date.
Sometimes it also helps to clean install the GPU driver. When performing the update, choose to perform a clean install.
Verify on Epic Games Store
More often than not something can go wrong while installing the game like a missing or corrupted file that can cause the game to crash. While the Epic Games Store verifies the files once it’s downloaded, it may fail sometimes. In such a case, manual verification may be in order. The Epic Games Store Verify feature checks a game for corruption or missing files and downloads those files. Here is how to perform the fix.
- Launch the Epic Games Store
- Go to Library and click on the three dots below Rainbow Six Extraction
- Select Verify
- Wait for the process to complete.
Roll Back the Driver
While the latest driver is supposed to provide the best support for the game, sometimes things can go wrong with the driver and there may be a bug that’s preventing a specific game from launching. Rolling back to the previous driver may fix the issue. You can roll back by uninstalling the current driver and installing the old one or use the Windows feature to roll back driver. Here are the steps you can follow to roll back the driver.
- Press the Windows Key + X and choose Display Adapters
- Right-click on the Display Adapter and choose Properties
- Go to the Driver tab and click on Roll Back Driver
If the option is greyed out for you, it’s too late and you can’t rollback. You will have to download and install the older version manually.
Also, while updating the driver, don’t rely on the Device Manger to search for the best driver. It will always fail to suggest the latest driver and say your current one is the best.
Disable Overclocking to Fix Rainbow Six Extraction Crashing
Overclocking is great! It provides the computer the necessary boost to run applications with better performance, but it also makes the GPU or CPU unstable when the stress is more, which in turn can crash the game. A lot of times, the reason a Rainbow Six Extraction is crashing on startup for you is that you are overclocking the GPU or CPU. Disable the OC and suspend the OC software that you are using and check if that helps the game launch smoothly.
Monitor the CPU Temperature
If your CPU is overheating, which was usually the case with Siege then Rainbow Six Extraction can crash or fail to launch. Both the games use the same engine so it’s likely that overheating of the CPU may be the culprit. Here is a post on how to fix high CPU temp. It is also possible that the problem with high CPU temp is with the game itself and only a patch can fix it, especially when the issue is widespread. So, if the solutions in the link did not help, wait for a patch to arrive.
Disable the Ubisoft Connect Overlay
Sometimes an overlay can cause Rainbow Six Extraction to crash at startup. Regardless of the launcher, you are using, disable its Overlay to fix the problem. Here are the steps to disable the Ubisoft Connect Overlay.
- Launch Ubisoft Connect and Expand the sandwich Menu
- Go to Settings and the General tab
- Uncheck Enable in-game overlay for supported games
Reinstall the Rainbow Six Extraction
Another fix for the Rainbow Six Extraction crashing on startup may be to reinstall the game completely. While repairing the game files fixes the corruption, we have seen in so many games that a reinstall turns out to be the actual fix for the issue, but if your internet speed is not as fast, we do not recommend this fix. Instead, wait a few days when we update this post and the new solutions may be of help.
That’s all we have in this guide, but the article is a work-in-progress and we will improve it in the days that follow after the launch of the game. So, do revisit.
Fix R6 Extraction Crashing on Startup – Update 21 Jan
The crashing problem with R6 Extraction is widespread with a large number of users reporting the issue. Ubisoft is aware of the problems and investigating. Until there is a patch, here are some things you can try that have worked for others.
- Run the game with admin permission.
- Try to change the install location of the game or reisntall the game on another SSD. Also, if the game is not with the OS drive, move it to where the OS and the Steam client is.
While these solutions may help a few, there is some problem with the game that’s preventing such a large number of players from playing. Hope the devs release a patch soon. We will keep an eye on the situation and update the post when new info becomes available.