Are you tired of dealing with the frustrating issue of Cities Skylines crashing randomly or during startup? Don't worry; you're not alone. Many players of this popular city-building game have encountered this problem, but luckily there are solutions. In this article, we'll provide you with valuable tips and tricks on how to fix the random crashing and crash on startup issue in Cities Skylines. We'll cover everything from checking system requirements and updating drivers to troubleshooting mods and graphics settings. By following these steps, you'll be able to enjoy uninterrupted gameplay and get back to building your dream city in no time.

Use Launch Options

Open up your Steam library. Right-click Cities Skylines and select Properties. In the General tab, utilize these launch options:

-limitfps followed by a value below the maximum FPS you can for some users already prevent crashes. I will set this to 180.
-disablemods will disable any mods you have enabled in-game. This allows you to see if 3rd party mods cause your crashes.
-forced3d9. This launch option will force the directX compatibility

1 launch options.jpg — Cities Skylines properties > General > Launch Options

Close 3rd-Party Applications

Open up your Task Manager by searching for it in your taskbar search. In the Processes tab, ensure to end all of the processes from running, which could show an overlay while in-game, such as Discord, Steam, or your browser. Prevent programs from running that could use up your RAM and VRAM, such as Adobe applications or Shadowplay.

Verify the Integrity of Cities Skylines Files

When this is done and the crash issue persists, your game files might be corrupted. Open up your Steam library. Right-click Cities Skylines and select Properties. On the window, navigate to the Local Files tab and select Verify Integrity of game files. Redownloading and replacing any missing or corrupted game files will take a minute.

Cities Skylines properties > Local Files > Verify Integrity

Allow Cities Skylines to Bypass your Firewall

You should also ensure that your firewall and anti-virus are not blocking parts of the software. Search for Firewall in your taskbar search to open up your Firewall & Network Protection system settings window. On the window, select Allow an app through firewall.

Windows Defender Firewall > Allow an app through Firewall

Select Change settings, and then Allow another app. Select Browse and your file explorer will open up. Navigate to the drive on which you saved the game on, Program files > steam > steamapps > common > Cities, and here select the Cities application and select Open. This will allow you to exclude the application from being blocked by your firewall and will for some users prevent the issue.

Allow apps to communicate through Windows Defender Firewall

Update Graphics Card Driver

Lastly, ensure your graphics driver and operating system is up to date. We suggest using the GeForce Experience application if you’re using an NVIDIA GPU, but you can also use the AMD driver suite. Depending on how frequently you update your GPU, this tweak can make the biggest difference. In the Drivers tab, click on Download, and the application will automatically download and install the latest driver.

Update Operating System

Search for Update to open up your Check for updates system settings window. Click on Check for updates, and after downloading the latest OS update, restart your PC.