There are several factors that can cause Hearthstone to crash on your PC. It can be caused by a software glitch caused by an outdated video card driver, corrupted game file, or compatibility issues, just to name a few. To fix this, you will need to perform a series of troubleshooting steps.
Hearthstone is a free to play online card game created by Blizzard entertainment. It is a fast paced strategy game where you get to summon creatures and spells with the aim of making sure our opponent drops down to zero life. First released in 2014, it is available on several platforms such as Windows, macOS, iOS, and Android.
How do I stop my game from crashing randomly?
One of the issues that you might experience when playing Hearthstone game on your PC is when it crashes. Sometimes you will get crash errors but most of the time the game will just stop working. This can be a frustrating experience especially if it happens in the middle of a match.
Here’s what you need to do to fix tis problem.
Solution 1: Check if your PC meets the necessary hardware requirements to play the game
In order to have the best possible gaming experience when playing this title your computer should meet at least the minimum hardware requirements to run the game.
The good thing about Hearthstone is that it can run on an old computer with a Pentium dual core processor .
Minimum system requirements
Operating System: Windows 7 / Windows 8 / Windows 10
Processor: Intel Pentium D or AMD Athlon 64 X2
Video: NVIDIA GeForce 8600 GT or ATI Radeon HD 2600XT or better
Memory: 3 GB RAM
Storage: 3 GB available HD space
Internet: Broadband Internet connection
Input: Keyboard and mouse, or touchscreen
Resolution: 1024 x 768 minimum display resolution
Recommended system requirements
Operating System: Windows 10 64-bit
Processor: Intel Core 2 Duo (2.2 GHz) or AMD Athlon 64 X2 (2.6 GHz) or better
Video: NVIDIA GeForce 240 GT or ATI Radeon HD 4850 or better
Memory: 4 GB RAM
Storage: 3 GB available HD space
Internet: Broadband Internet connection
Input: Keyboard and mouse, or touchscreen
Resolution: 1024 x 768 minimum display resolution
Once your system meets these requirements the game should run without any issues.
Solution 2: Check for updates for your graphics card driver
One of the common causes of a game crashing is outdated drivers. It’s therefore a good idea to check if new drivers are available as this will usually have performance benefits and bug fixes.
Time needed: 5 hours.
Updating graphics driver
- Right click on the Start button.
This can be found at the lower left side of the screen.
- Click on Device Manager‘
This allows you to manage your PC devices.
- Click the arrow before Display adapters.
This will show you the graphics card you are using.
- Right click on the selected graphics card then choose Update driver.
Your computer will search for the latest updates available.
- Select Search automatically for drivers.
Your computer will search for the latest drivers available and install it.
You can also update your graphics drivers using the Nvidia GeForce Experience app if you have an Nvidia card or the Radeon Software if you are using a Radeon card.
If your computer has both an integrated graphics card and a discrete graphics card then it’s best to run the game on the discrete graphics card. To make sure of this you can disable switchable graphics from BIOS. This will force any software running on your computer to use the more powerful graphics card.
Once the drivers have been updated try to check if the Hearthstone crashing issue still occurs.
Solution 3: Run Hearthstone as an administrator
In order to avoid any Hearthstone performance issues you need to make sure that the game has administrative privileges. This will allow the game to have the necessary permissions to use certain Windows components it needs to run properly.
Run game as administrator
Right click on the Hearthstone application from the Hearthstone folder.
Select Properties.
Click on the Compatibility tab.
Make sure to place a check mark on the Run this program as an administrator box.
Click on Apply then Ok.
Try checking if the Hearthstone crashing issue still occurs.
Solution 4: Disable any deck tracking software
If you have installed any deck trackers installed on your computer then it’s highly recommended that you uninstall this as this will interfere with the game client and usually causes it to crash.
Solution 5: Update Microsoft Windows
Make sure your PC is running on the latest Windows updates. These updates will usually have improvements, security patches, and bug fixes that will usually fix the freezing issue or random crashes you are experiencing with the game.
If new updates are available then you should download and install them.
Check for Windows updates
Right click the Start button.
Click Settings.
Click Windows Update found on the bottom left side of the new window that appears.
Click Check for updates.
If new updates are found then click on the Install now button.
After the updates have been installed restart your computer then check if the game still crashes.
Solution 6: Run the repair tool
If the Hearthstone game files are corrupted then this could cause the crashing issue that you are experiencing. You need to use the repair tool found on the Blizzard Battle net app to repair damaged game files.
Open the Battle.net desktop app.
Click the Hearthstone icon found on top of the app.
Click the the cogwheel next to the Play button and select Scan and Repair.
Click Begin Scan.
Wait for the repair to finish.
Once the repair has completed try checking if the problem persists.
Solution 7: Free up system resources
If you have a lot of apps running on your PC such as your browser or word processor while you are playing the game then this could be what’s causing the problem. You need to make sure that your PC system resources such as RAM and CPU will be allocated to the game.
To quit all other running applications here’s what you need to to.
Right click on the Start button then click on Task Manager.
Make sure to click on More details found at the bottom left part of the window if it appears.
Click on the Processes tab.
Right click on the apps running and select End task. Do this for all apps except Hearthstone.
Try checking if the Hearthstone crashes issue still occurs.
Solution 8: Reinstall the game
If after performing all of the troubleshooting steps listed above the crashing issue still occurs then you should consider uninstalling then installing the game.
Uninstall
Open the Battle.net desktop app.
Click the Hearthstone icon found on top of the app.
Click the the cogwheel next to the Play button and select uninstall.
Click Yes, Uninstall.
Install
Open the Battle.net desktop app.
Click the Hearthstone icon found on top of the app.
Click Install.
Try to check if the game still crashes.
Feel free to visit our YouTube channel for additional troubleshooting guides on various devices.
