Intel Iris Xe Compatibility Issue with Elden Ring: Nightreign – Game Won’t Launch Properly

[Loka189]

Dear Intel Support Team,

I'm reaching out in frustration and disappointment regarding a serious compatibility issue between Intel Iris Xe graphics and the newly released Elden Ring: Nightreign.

Let me first clarify: this is not a performance complaint. My device has successfully and smoothly run both Elden Ring and its massive DLC Shadow of the Erdtree — both demanding titles that performed consistently well on Intel Iris Xe.

But with Nightreign, the situation is completely different:

The game refuses to launch, crashing to a white screen immediately after starting.

This happens on the latest Intel drivers.


What I've tested so far:

Disabling the GPU under Display Adapter in Device Manager lets the game launch — but at unplayable 5 FPS, clearly relying on software rendering or fallback drivers. So yes, technically the game starts, but it’s not a viable workaround.

I also tried installing older Intel drivers (e.g., version 27.20.xxxx) — and surprisingly, the game does launch. However, it’s riddled with a red-tinted overlay across the entire screen, making it just as unplayable.


Let me be clear:
The game is launching — but only when Iris Xe is bypassed or downgraded — and never in a usable state.

To add even more frustration, this isn’t some indie experiment. Nightreign is tied directly to Elden Ring, the game of the year, and it’s built on the same proprietary FromSoftware engine. So it’s incredibly strange that a system capable of running the main game and DLC can’t even launch the new content.

I understand Intel may not be directly responsible for third-party titles — but I’m asking you to please:

Reproduce the issue internally, and

Investigate a possible fix or driver-level workaround for Iris Xe users.


There’s a community of us facing this. We’re not asking for ultra settings. We just want the game to launch and be playable — like it already was with the previous two titles.

Please help us out.

Sincerely,
Loka189

[Anonymous]

i have same issue and made a post as well , but they will just say its user end problem not meeting the minimum system requirement to run the game  

[AnyMisy01]

I have same issue with iris xe. Hoping for a fix.

[Anonymous]

bro make a post , and keep spamming post for night reign to get their attention , trust me only way we get them to do something

[festivegarb]

i have the same problem

[Anonymous]

bro make a post , and keep spamming post for night reign to get their attention , trust me only way we get them to do something  

[SalesDW]

same problem here, it doesn't make any sense, even if the video card is outside the minimum requirements, if Elden Ring and Shadow of The Erdtree opened, Nightreign should run too

[Anonymous]

Updates intel ??

[DhannielM_Intel]

Hello Loka189, 

Thank you for posting in the community and sharing your concerns with us. I’d like to clarify and set the right expectations regarding this issue. While the previous Elden Ring games worked well with Iris Xe, the new Elden Ring game is causing compatibility issues.

This behavior is not something that can be controlled by the driver. Game developers determine the requirements for their games, including GPU compatibility. As newer games demand more VRAM and GPU power, and as technology evolves, some integrated GPUs (iGPUs) and older GPUs may struggle to keep up with the latest advancements used in games.

Therefore, if GPUs and iGPUs cannot meet the demands of newer games like Elden Ring NightReign, compatibility issues may arise despite multiple graphics driver updates. Nonetheless, I would like to investigate this further to ensure fairness for both sides.

Please answer the following questions:

1. What is the exact model of your laptop?
2. Have you used Display Driver Uninstaller (DDU) to uninstall the graphics driver before installing a new one?
3. If possible, could you share your in-game graphics and display settings?
4. Which graphics drivers have you tested?

Furthermore, to gain a comprehensive understanding of your system, please use the System Support Utility (SSU). This tool will generate a text file compiling all your system information. You can follow the instructions at this link and send the text file here: Help Guide for the Intel® System Support Utility

Best regards,

Dhanniel M.

Intel Customer Support Technician

[RafaelBombinha]

Yes, I agree that normally newer games will be more difficult to run, but in this case this does not apply, Nightreign unlike Elden Ring is not exactly an open world, each map in Nightreign is barely the size of Limgrave, the initial region of Elden Ring, in addition to the game having graphical downgrades and being much more optimized, using youtube you can search and compare on your own, for example, on AMD igpu, Nightreign is running 5-10 fps more than base Elden Ring, processors like 3200g, 5600g and 5700g, all had an increase in fps, and no reduction, Nightreign is clearly lighter. So for example, what prevents an Iris Xe, which ran Elden Ring at 25-30 fps, from running Nightreign which is technically less heavy, and another, even if it ran well, bro the game should at least open, even if it was at 15 fps, the issue here is that the game doesn't even open lol, and it's not even because of the video card, it's just the driver! Anyway, that's just my opinion on it.

[AnyMisy01]

Hi Dhanniel. I believe it's important to consider that nightreign's crashing at startup does not occur when the iris xe gpu is disabled in device manager, where the game is instead using Microsoft Basic Display Adapter, which is certainly worse performing than iris xe, so it doesn't seem to be due to a GPU performance issue. Also, I have heard that the crash doesn't occur when using an older driver (version 27) with iris xe, so it certainly seems to me to be an issue with the driver version rather than the iris xe GPU. Additionally, when looking at event viewer, it shows the crash being due to igd12um64xel.dll, which seems to also point towards the driver. Thank you for looking at this issue. Hopefully you all can find a fix for the issue soon.

[RafaelBombinha]

Absolutely right to remember this, I tested it here on my PC, and with the driver disabled the game opens normally, too bad with an extremely low fps lol

[DxCode]

is it true that downgrading the driver to an older version can solve this problem?

[AnyMisy01]

I've heard it prevents the game from crashing, but the screen is covered in red so that you can't see anything so it is still unplayable. Rin talks about the issue here https://community.intel.com/t5/Graphics/Game-Support-Elden-Ring-Nightreign/td-p/1693616/page/2

[ζㅌyl]

damndhanniel(dolphine noises), do you even work on intel?

[SalesDW]

I hope they fix it

[DhannielM_Intel]

Hello Loka189, 

I wanted to check if you've had a chance to review my previous response. Please share your answers with me so I can investigate further. Additionally, I appreciate your insights on the current issue and will make sure to take note of all your input.

Best regards,

Dhanniel M.

Intel Customer Support Technician

[DhannielM_Intel]

Hello Loka189, 

Since I haven't heard back from you, I will close this inquiry now. If you need further assistance, please submit a new question, as this thread will no longer be monitored.

Best regards,

Dhanniel M.

Intel Customer Support Technician