How To Fix Space Marine 2 Start Up Black Screen Error

Uh, not so cool. Here’s a guide on how to fix Space Marine 2 start-up black screen error. 

After a decade of waiting, Warhammer 40,000 finally got its sequel. The highly anticipated third-person shooter from Saber Interactive arrived earlier in Advanced and Early Access. However, some PC players are reporting issues of frustrating black screens upon the launch of Space Marine 2. Here’s a walkthrough on how you can resolve this issue and get back into the exciting action of Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine 2. 

Understanding the Black Screen Issue

The black screen issue prevents players from seeing any contents from the game after its launch. With this, there are several possible reasons for this error to occur in your Space Marine 2. Since it usually occurs at the start-up of the game, it can be caused by the following:

• Corrupted game files
• Outdated graphics drivers
• Hardware compatibility issues
• Conflicts with background programs

Update Your Graphics Drivers

For many game-related issues, the outdated graphics drivers are the frequent root of the problem. Here’s how you can update your drivers:

1. Go to the official website of your graphics card manufacturer (NVIDIA or AMD).
2. Look for the latest driver installer for your specific GPU model, then download it on your device. 
3. Run your downloaded installer and follow the on-screen instructions.
4. Go restart your computer to apply these changes.

If you want a clean installation, you can consider using Display Driver Uninstaller (DDU), which will remove all traces of old drivers before installing the new ones.

Verify Game Files on Steam

Aside from the graphics drivers, corrupted game files can also be the cause of the start-up black screen. Resolving this issue is easy with Steam’s built-in tool to verify and repair your game files. 

1. Launch Steam and go to your Library.
2. Find Space Marine 2, then right-click on it. Continue to select “Properties.” 
3. Go click the tab named “Local Files.”.
4. Select “Verify integrity of game files…”
5. Wait patiently for the process to complete before restarting the game.

Launch the Game in Windowed Mode

You may try changing the game’s display mode to resolve start-up issues. To do so, launch Space Marine 2 in windowed mode. 

For Steam users

1. Open Steam and right-click on Space Marine 2 in the Steam Library. 
2. Choose “Properties.”
3. Once you see the “Launch Options” field, type in “-windowed.” (Note: Be sure to remove the quotes.)

For Epic Games users

1. Open the Epic Games launcher, then go to its settings. 
2. Look for Space Marine 2 in your game list.
3. Then, check the “Additional Command Line Arguments” box.
4. Enter “-windowed” (Note: Be sure to remove the quotes).

Close Conflicting Background Programs

When your device runs a lot of background applications, it can interfere with the start-up of Space Marine 2. Make sure to close some of it, especially those related to other game platforms. 

1. Make sure that Epic Games Launcher is not running when using the Steam version.
2. Close all unnecessary background applications, including the browsers and anti-virus software temporarily.
3. Go restart your PC before launching the game with minimal background processes.

Adjust In-Game Settings

If the game’s settings menu is accessible on your end, try to make some adjustments in the display options. 

1. Lower down your display resolution setting (e.g., from 1920×1080 to 1280×720).
2. Make a switch in the display mode by choosing “Borderless Windowed” or “Windowed Borderless.”
3. Proceed to save all the changes, then restart the game.

Limit CPU Cores

There are instances where limiting the number of CPU cores can resolve the start-up issues. Try to make changes in your CPU cores with these steps: 

1. Launch Space Marine 2 and open your Task Manager (Ctrl + Shift + Esc).
2. Find the “SpaceMarine.exe” process in the Details tab. 
3. Right-click on it, then select “Set affinity.”
4. Go uncheck all except for two CPU cores. For example, you may leave only the CPUs 0 and 1 checked. 

Reinstall the Game and Related Software

If you’ve tried all these methods and still encounter the black screen issue, a clean reinstallation of the game may be needed.

1. Go uninstall Space Marine 2 from your device system.
2. Start to reinstall the game. If possible, download it on an SSD for faster load times.
3. Also, reinstall the Easy Anti-Cheat. Since the existing versions from other games can cause problems with the installation of Space Marine 2.

Conclusion

Before doing all of these steps, make sure first that the black screen is a start-up issue. The Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine 2 may take long to load on its first launch, even for high-end systems. This is due to the need of the game to install drivers, shaders, and other components that demand time. Give the game an extra time to complete the initial setup process before assuming the game is broken. 

The black screen issue can be frustrating but, it is often resolvable with these listed steps. Be sure to try identifying the possible cause for this issue first before taking action. Updating drivers, verifying game files, adjusting launch settings, or optimizing your system can help overcome this error. If the issue persists, you may reach out to the game’s official support channels or their community forums.