Microsoft probes reports of games taking exception to Windows 11's August update

Microsoft is looking into reports of games malfunctioning following the installation of Windows 11's August Patch Tuesday update. The company confirmed the issue on its Release Health page. Affected games may freeze, close unexpectedly, display an EXCEPTION_ACCESS_VIOLATION error, or cause an unexpected device restart. Reports emerged after the release of KB5121003 for Windows 11 24H2 and 25H2, but Microsoft's support page still lists no known problems.

However, Microsoft has separately confirmed that it is investigating the game crash reports. The issue does not affect all titles; Microsoft named ARC Raiders, MARVEL Tōkon: Fighting Souls, and The Finals as examples of games experiencing the problem. Microsoft has not taken responsibility, stating: "We are presently investigating to determine if this is an issue caused by Microsoft."

Users have speculated that the tighter kernel handle validation introduced with the update might have exposed issues in drivers that Windows previously allowed, causing crashes when the code accesses unauthorized areas. While this could enhance security, it may cause problems for software that relied on the previous behavior. Microsoft has not confirmed this theory.

Patch Tuesday in August was significant, addressing 421 Microsoft CVEs, including 236 affecting Windows. Uninstalling the update as a workaround is not recommended. The reports come amid Microsoft's tightening of its treatment of old and incompatible kernel drivers. In March, the company removed trust for kernel drivers that hadn't passed the Windows Hardware Compatibility Program (WHCP), tightening security on the Windows kernel.

Microsoft has also launched its Driver Quality Initiative (DQI) to improve operating system stability. The crashes are still under investigation, and Microsoft has asked affected users for feedback.