Minecraft, the most popular game of the past decade, sometimes experiences launch issues and other bugs that can be fixed fairly quickly. We explain how to do it.
With its 240 million copies sold, and as many or even more cracked versions in the wild, Minecraft has long since conquered PCs around the world. A legendary status that underlines its extreme popularity. It must be said that the small cubic world has long since established itself in pop culture, becoming an essential part of our daily lives. But, despite its small size (2.54 GB), the creation of Mojang can sometimes be capricious, and difficult to start. If you can’t launch Minecraft, here are some simple solutions to bring your little software back to its senses:
Install and update Java
This advice is only applicable for owners of the Java version of Minecraft. Indeed, there are several versions of the game, the first having been built on Java, Oracle’s technical software. However, Java is essential for the proper functioning of the game. If you do not have Java installed, you will not be able to launch Minecraft on your computer. You can install Java on your computer from this page. Of course, choose the right version of the software according to the computer you have, Mac, or Microsoft. Once Java is installed, try restarting your game. This method also works to keep your version of Java up to date, which is essential when you get the error:
“A JNI error has occurred – please check your installation and try again.”
Run Minecraft as Administrator
This technique is a sleight of hand that can be effective in many situations. Sometimes it happens that when installing a program, the permissions to launch this program do not suit certain security elements of your computer. You must then launch Minecraft as an administrator of your Windows sessions. To do this, nothing could be simpler, close all running instances of Minecraft using the Task Manager (Ctrl+Alt+Del), then right-click on the Minecraft launcher and select “Run as administrator “.
Install and update DirectX
DirectX is kind of the backbone of gaming on Windows computers. This is a software suite necessary for the proper functioning of an astronomical amount of programs. Usually installed together with a third-party game, it may disappear from your computer if formatted completely. However, to launch Minecraft, you will also need DirectX. You can download DirectX directly from this page. Once downloaded, install DirectX and you will be able to launch most of the games of the moment.
Update your graphics card drivers
Almost all video games require your computer’s graphics card to work properly. However, the latter needs up-to-date drivers to work effectively. Although Minecraft is not the most demanding of all games available, it still requires a healthy graphics card to run efficiently. If you are unable to launch the game, or if you notice large drops in framerate while playing (the frames per second in game are very low), you absolutely need to update your graphics card drivers. Handling is different whether your CG is Nvidia or AMD branded.
To know your graphics card, nothing could be simpler, go to your computer’s Task Manager (Ctrl+Alt+Del) then to the Performance tab. You will find the name of your Graphics Card in the GPU 0 tab. Once you know the brand of your Graphics Card, go to one of the two addresses below to update your graphics drivers:
- AMD: go to this page and download the Adrenaline software. Once installed, it will offer you the opportunity to update your drivers.
- Nvidia: go to this page and choose your graphics card from the list provided. You can then install the latest driver and GeForce Experience so you don’t have to repeat the operation later.
Reinstall the game
The most radical solution is sometimes the most effective. If after trying the steps above you are still unable to launch Minecraft, you can always uninstall it and then reinstall it. To reinstall the game, nothing could be simpler:
- Go to the Windows search bar and type %appdata%
- You will then find the “.minecraft” folder, delete it entirely.
- Then go to this page to download the official game launcher.
- Download it and install Minecraft again.