How to Fix Baldur’s Gate 3 NATPunch Error

RPG titles are getting bigger and more popular every year with their overwhelming storyline & gameplay experience. Baldur’s Gate 3 is no exception as this 2023...

Subodh Gupta

Last updated on May 24, 2024

Subodh Gupta

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Subodh loves to write content whether it may be tech-related or other. After writing on tech blog for a year, he becomes passionate about it. He loves playing games and listening to music. Apart from blogging, he is addictive to the gaming PC builds and smartphone leaks.

How to Fix Baldur’s Gate 3 NATPunch Error

It becomes quite frustrating for the affected Baldur’s Gate 3 players in the multiplayer sessions. Talking about the potential reasons, the chances are high that your internet connection is slow or unstable, ongoing game server maintenance, conflicts with the Steam download cache, DNS cache issues, an outdated game patch version, missing game files, lack of the system admin access, firewall blocking issues, network driver issues, etc.

Fortunately, here we’ve provided some workarounds for you that can help in fixing this error. Ensure to follow all troubleshooting steps until the problem has been fixed. So, without further ado, let’s jump into it.

1. Run Baldur’s Gate 3 as an Administrator

You should run your game application on the PC as an administrator access to avoid potential issues with the server connectivity. Having the system admin privilege for the particular application should always be there. Make sure to follow the steps below to do the one-time access.

Go to the installed game directory on the PC.
Right-click on the Baldur’sGate3.exe app.
Go to Properties > Click on the Compatibility tab.

Enable the Run this program as an administrator option.
Click on Apply and select OK to save changes.

2. Check the Internet Connection

The second thing you can do is to check your internet connection manually to see whether the network strength is good enough and whether the internet speed is fast enough. If your internet connection is slow and unstable, you may face issues with server connectivity errors. So, you should try switching to a wireless or wired connection to check for improvement.

Otherwise, you can try switching to a different internet network to check for the same issue. Still, the problem bothers you? Well, you can directly contact your internet service provider (ISP) to get technical assistance on the issue. Sometimes changing the IP address or increasing the internet speed can do the trick.

3. Check the Server Status

Getting the NATPunch error quite often while connecting to Baldur’s Gate 3 multiplayer sessions? You can try checking out the Larian server status to ensure there is no issue with the server connectivity error. Whenever you encounter such an error related to the server connectivity, the chances are high that the game server is having an outage or ongoing maintenance.

Either you can wait for a couple of hours and then try running the game again to check for the issue or you can check out the official @baldursgate3 X handle for further information.

4. Update Baldur’s Gate 3

An outdated game patch version always causes multiple issues with the server connectivity and program launching. It’s better to manually check for the available game updates on your PC by following the steps below.

Open Steam > Go to Library.
Right-click on Baldur’s Gate 3.
Select Properties > Click on Updates.
Now, go to Automatic Updates.
Select Only update this game when I launch it.
It’ll automatically install updates whenever available.

5. Verify the Game Files

Corrupted or missing game files can be a common problem for most of the PC gamers. But Steam offers a built-in feature for scanning and repairing the missing game files quickly without any further involvement. You can check the steps below to do so:

Open the Steam client > Go to Library.
Right-click on Baldur’s Gate 3 in your library.
Go to Settings > Select Properties.
Click on the Local Files tab.
Select Verify integrity of game files.

Wait for the process to complete.
Once done, reboot the PC to apply changes.

6. Clear the Steam Download Cache

Sometimes Steam download cache gets corrupted or clogged too much into the server which eventually causes multiple issues with the game launching and server connectivity. We recommend you try clearing the Steam download cache on your Steam client by following the steps below.

Open the Steam client.
Go to the Steam tab from the top left side.
Click on Settings > Click on the Download tab.

Now, click on the Clear Download Cache button.
Once done, log back into your Steam account and relaunch the game.

7. Update the Network Driver

You should try updating the network adapter driver on the PC to ensure there is no conflict happening with the networking connectivity. Sometimes temporary networking glitches in your internet connection might trouble you a lot.

Press the Win+X keys to open the Quick Link Menu.
Click on Device Manager from the list.
Double-click on Network Adapters.
Right-click on the specific network device.

Select Update driver.
Choose Search automatically for drivers.
If available, it’ll automatically download and install the latest version.
Once done, reboot your system to change the effects.

8. Turn Off Windows Firewall

Another thing you should do is disable the Windows Firewall protection feature manually by following the steps below to avoid potential conflicts with Baldur’s Gate 3 game files and ongoing server connections.

Click on the Start Menu > Search and open Windows Defender Firewall.
Select Turn Windows Defender Firewall ON or OFF.
From the Customize Settings page, select the Turn off Windows Defender Firewall (not recommended) option in all the Public, Domain, and Private Networks.
Click on OK to save changes.
Once done, reboot the PC to apply changes.

9. Flush the DNS Cache

The chances are high that corrupted DNS data on your PC triggers network connectivity or server connectivity errors. It’s recommended to flush the DNS cache data by following the steps below.

Open the Start menu and search for cmd.
Right-click on Command Prompt.
Click on Run as administrator.
If prompted, click on Yes to proceed.
Now, type ipconfig /flushdns in cmd and press Enter.
Once the confirmation message appears, run the game again.

That’s it, guys. We assume this guide was helpful to you. For additional queries, you can comment below.

How to Fix Baldur’s Gate 3 NATPunch Error