How to Fix ERR GFX D3D INIT in GTA 5

When it comes to an open-world action-adventure multiplayer video game, you can opt for Grand Theft Auto V (GTA 5) by Rockstar Games that has been launched back in 2013. Though the title has been loved by millions of players and critics across the globe as a complete package except for the GTA V Online edition, it seems that some unfortunate players are facing the ERR GFX D3D INIT in GTA 5 while trying to launch the game on the Windows PC.

Well, if you’re one of the victims, you can follow this troubleshooting guide to fix it. According to multiple reports online, the specific “Failed initialization. Please reboot and restart the game. Try reinstalling the game if this persists.” error message quite frequently while launching the game. To be precise, this kind of error may appear on the PC due to a couple of possible reasons for sure. We’ve mentioned all the expected reasons below in brief.

How to Fix ERR GFX D3D INIT in GTA 5

Mostly issues with the installed game files, overclocked GPU, issues with DirectX, outdated graphics driver, conflicts with the overlay applications, corrupted DLL files on the system, and more. As you’re now aware of the possible reasons behind such an error, you should follow all the workarounds one by one until the problem gets fixed for you. So, without wasting any more time, let’s jump into it.

1. Update Graphics Driver

First of all, we’ll recommend you to check out the graphics driver update on your PC because an outdated GPU driver version can become buggy or incompatible with the new system update as well as the new game update. To do so:

• Right-click on the Start Menu to open up the Quick Access Menu.
• Click on Device Manager from the list.
• Now, double-click on the Display adapters category to expand the list.

• Then right-click on the dedicated graphics card name.
• Select Update driver > Choose Search automatically for drivers.
• If there is an update available, it’ll automatically download and install the latest version.
• Once done, make sure to reboot your computer to change the effects.

Alternatively, you can manually download the latest version of the graphics driver and install it directly from the official website respective to your graphics card manufacturer. Whatever graphics card you use, jump to the link below as per the manufacturer.

• Nvidia GPU
• AMD GPU
• Intel GPU

2. Verify and Repair Game Files

The second thing you can do is try to verify and repair the installed GTA V game files properly via the respective game launcher. It will ensure that there is no issue with the installed GTA V game files on the system. Sometimes missing or corrupted game files can eventually trigger multiple conflicts with the game launching on the Windows computer that can be manually fixed by following the steps below.

For Rockstar Games Launcher:

• Open the Rockstar Games Launcher on your PC.
• Next, make sure to sign in to the account > Go to Settings.
• Select the GTA V game from the list under My installed games on the left pane.
• Click on Verify Integrity under the Verify game file integrity option on the right pane.
• Wait for the process to be completed and a pop-up message will appear that your game is verified and ready to play.
• Launch the GTA V game and check for the error again.

For Epic Games Launcher:

If you’re using the Epic Games Launcher to play GTA V then you can follow the steps below to repair game files.

• Open the Epic Games Launcher on your PC > Go to the Library section.
• Click on the three dots icon next to GTA V > Click on Verify from the drop-down menu.
• It may take some time depending on the size of the game. Once done, reboot the launcher and play the game.

For Steam Client:

If you’re a Steam client user and play GTA V on it then make sure to follow the steps below to verify and repair the game files.

• Open the Steam client > Go to Library.
• Here right-click on the GTA V game from the left pane.
• Make sure to click on Properties from the drop-down menu.
• Next, select the Local Files tab > Click on the Verify integrity of game files… button.
• The Steam launcher will verify the game files now and this process may take several minutes depending on the game file size.
• Once done, reboot the PC to apply changes > Launch the Steam client and play the game now to check for the issue.

Note: One or more game files may fail to verify in this process on Steam but that’s normal. You don’t need to worry about it. The failed files are local configuration files that shouldn’t be replaced as part of this process. You can just skip this message.

3. Disable GPU Overclocking

Well, most PC gamers do want ultra-high performance from the CPU and GPU from the very first day even after having the powerful hardware specifications. In that sense, it’s quite obvious that they prefer CPU or GPU overclocking out of the box or manually via third-party clients. So, if your GPU is also overclocked to its extreme level then make sure to disable it or set a default factory clock speed for optimal performance.

Sometimes an overclocked GPU can eventually start bottlenecking or lagging or crashing the game due to the compatibility and system resources. It’s better to disable the GPU overclocking and check for the issue again. You can also use third-party overclocking tools like MSI Afterburner tool or Zotac Firestorm app to lower the clocking speed.

4. Disable Third-Party Overlay Apps

A couple of third-party overlay applications on the system may trigger start triggering multiple issues with the heavy programs or games out of nowhere. Though the overlay apps may come in handy while gaming to chat with friends, take screenshots, record gameplay, and more, sometimes it can affect the game launching as well as gameplay experience a lot. It’s better to temporarily turn off the overlay features from the respective apps to check issues.

Disable Discord Overlay:

• Launch the Discord app > Click on the gear icon at the bottom.
• Select Overlay under App Settings > Turn on the Enable in-game overlay.
• Click on the Games tab > Select GTA V.
• Finally, turn off the Enable in-game overlay toggle.
• Make sure to reboot your PC to apply changes.

Disable Xbox Game Bar:

• Press Windows + I keys to open Windows Settings.
• Click on Gaming > Go to Game Bar > Turn off Record game clips, screenshots, and broadcast using the Game bar option.

Disable Nvidia GeForce Experience Overlay:

• Launch the Nvidia GeForce Experience app > Head over to Settings.
• Click on the General tab > Disable the In-Game Overlay option.
• Finally, restart the PC to apply changes, and launch the game again.

Disable Steam Overlay:

• Open Steam on your Windows.
• Head over to the Settings > Click on the In-Game option.
• Click on the checkbox to disable ‘Enable the Steam Overlay while in-game’.
• Once the checkbox mark is removed, click on OK.

There are some other overlay apps that can cause trouble for you something as MSI Afterburner, Rivatuner, RGB software, etc. You should turn them off as well.

5. Reinstall DirectX

If in case, you’re using an outdated DirectX version on the Windows PC then you can follow the steps below to manually reinstall and update it.

• Head over to the official Microsoft link to download the DirectX End-User Runtime Web Installer on your PC.
• Now, manually install the DirectX installer as usual.
• Once done, restart your computer to apply changes.

Note: Currently, the DirectX 12 version is running widely on most computers if you’re running Windows 10 or Windows 11 OS with the latest build.

6. Change DirectX Value from the directory

The chances are high that somehow the ‘ERR GFX D3D INIT in GTA 5’ error message appears due to an incorrect DirectX value. You should try changing the DirectX value to the correct version as per your graphics driver version. To do that:

Note: If your system is already running the DirectX 12 version then you can skip this method.

• Press the Windows + E shortcut keys to open File Explorer (This PC).
• Open the Documents folder then head over to the Rockstar Games\GTA V directory.
• Now, right-click on the settings.xml file > Select Open with Notepad.
• Press the Ctrl + F shortcut keys to open the Find option > Type dx inside the field to search for it.
• Here you should see the <DX_Version value= > line. If in case, you’re using the DirectX 10 (DX10) version then change the value to 0.
  • For DirectX 10.1, make sure to change the value to 1.
  • For DirectX 11, just change the value to 2.
• Once done, make sure to press the Ctrl + S shortcut keys to Save changes.
• Finally, close the File Explorer window, and restart the PC to apply changes immediately.

7. Remove the Corrupted DLL File

Some affected GTA V players did report that the specific err_gfx_d3d_init error can be occurred due to the buggy or corrupted DLL files on the Custom HLSL compiler. Therefore, you can also try deleting the corrupted DLL files by following the steps below from the GTA V installation directory.

• Open File Explorer (This PC) on the computer > Head over to the C:\Program Files\Rockstar Games\Launcher\GTA 5 directory.
• Here you’ll have to find out the d3dcsx_46.dll and d3dcompiler.dll files > Delete both the DLL files.
• Make sure to locate the _CommonRedist folder in the GTA V directory.
• Then run the DX setup file to reinstall the missing DLL files.
• Once done, you’ll have to restart your PC and launch the GTA 5 game to check if the error is still bothering you or not.
• It’s also worth recommending verifying and repairing the game files once again after performing this method to ensure no required files are missing or corrupted anymore. You can check method 2 for that.

8. Try Changing In-Game DirectX Version

If none of the methods worked for you then make sure to change the in-game DirectX version to 10 or 10.1 something. A couple of GTA V players did mention that they’ve managed to fix the error completely by doing so.

• Launch the GTA 5 game > Navigate to in-game Settings.
• Now, select Graphics from the left pane > Change the DirectX Version to 10 or 10.1 whatever you like.
• Make sure to save the changes and relaunch the GTA V game to check if the ERR GFX D3D INIT in GTA 5 is fixed or not.

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