VALORANT stuck on loading screen? Try this

It’s frustrating to get stuck on the loading screen in VALORANT because it’s hard to tell right away if it’s just a slow load or if there’s no chance you’re getting anywhere. But if you’re staring at the screen for several minutes, it’s quite probably the latter.

Getting stuck on the loading screen can be caused by a handful of different reasons, but rather than waste time trying to find the exact problem, start running through some of the potential fixes we have listed.

How to fix VALORANT stuck on loading screen

To fix VALORANT stuck on loading screen, try one of the following actions:

• Restarting the game.
• Running it as an Administrator.
• Updating your graphics card and checking the in-game settings.
• Restarting your network settings.
• Deleting the Manifest_DebugFiles_Win64 file.

Try these solutions in order and see if any of them help you run your game.

Restart VALORANT

When you get stuck on the loading screen in VALORANT, you’ll have no choice but to exit the game. Since you can’t access the normal exiting options, you’ll have to do it manually:

1. Press Alt + F4 on your keyboard to close VALORANT.
2. If that doesn’t work, go to your Task Manager by right-clicking the taskbar or hitting Ctrl-Shift-Escape. Select End Task for VALORANT.
3. Do the same thing on the Task Manager for the Riot client.

Once you’ve fully exited VALORANT and the Riot client, a clean restart should get past the stuck loading screen issue, and you should be able to rejoin the match you were loading earlier.

Run the game as administrator

It’s possible that VALORANT doesn’t have the administrative privileges it needs. Running VALORANT as administrator could be the fix because it means a lower chance of files not loading or loading incorrectly.

1. Right-click the VALORANT shortcut on the desktop and select Properties.
2. Navigate to the “Compatibility” tab and check Run this program as an administrator.
3. Click Apply and OK to save the changes.

Update graphics card, then check and lower graphics settings in-game

Updating your graphics card might be needed if you’re stuck on the loading screen. To update your graphics card:

• Use your graphics card program, such as NVIDIA GeForce Experience.
• Go to Device Manager, select your Display Adapter, and click Update Driver.
• Search for your graphics card model and download the latest driver.

If you’re running VALORANT running on high frames, even in the main lobby, it may have pushed your gaming system to its limits. Make sure your system meets the requirements, then optimize your graphics settings for the best FPS.

Restart network settings

It might be necessary to restart your network settings, even if the latest driver is installed. This is because the settings might not be configured properly. Let’s take a look at how to restart them:

1. Click the Windows icon and look for Command Prompt.
2. Run the application as an admin by right-clicking it and choosing Run as administrator.
3. Choose Yes when prompted by Windows to confirm your action.
4. Input the listed commands in order, pressing Enter after each:
   • ipconfig /flushdns
   • ipconfig /registerdns
   • ipconfig /release
   • ipconfig /renew
   • netsh winsock reset

When you’re done, you’ll need to restart your computer.

Delete Manifest_DebugFiles_Win64 file

Deleting files can always either be a good or bad thing. But Reddit users have found this way to work best. Make sure to keep a copy of all deleted files in a separate folder in case something goes wrong.

1. Go to your C drive in File Explorer and head to the Riot Games folder.
2. Navigate to VALORANT > Live.
3. Delete the Manifest_DebugFiles_Win64 file.
4. Restart your PC and launch VALORANT again.

If all other options are exhausted, you may have to completely re-install VALORANT. If the issues persist even after that, you’ll need to open a support ticket with Riot.