Why does my game crash at startup?

Because something in the launch sequence fails, often an initialization bug, a device or OS-specific issue, corrupt saved state loaded at launch, or a missing resource, crashing before the player can play. A startup crash happens during the launch sequence (initializing systems, loading resources and saved state, setting up the scene). Common causes: an initialization bug (a startup step fails), a device or OS-specific issue (launch crashing on particular hardware or OS versions you did not test), corrupt saved state loaded at launch (the game reads saved data on startup, and if it is corrupt, parsing crashes, every launch, a crash loop), and a missing or failed resource. If the crash is consistent (every launch), suspect a persistent cause (corrupt state, a device condition, an init bug). Bugnet captures startup crashes with stack trace, device, OS, and version context, so you see where in the launch sequence it crashes and the conditions, revealing the cause (init bug, device/OS, corrupt state, missing resource), so you can fix it and verify per version that players can launch.

How do I fix a startup crash I can't reproduce?

Use the captured stack trace, device, OS, and version from the affected players to find where startup fails and why, since the crash is on configurations or state you do not have, the captured context reveals it. A startup crash you cannot reproduce happens under conditions you do not have (a different device, OS version, or corrupt state), so local reproduction fails and the captured field context is key. Capture the crash with full context: the stack trace (where in startup it fails, the key clue), the device and OS (whether it clusters on specific hardware or OS versions), the version, and any state context. Read the evidence: the stack trace localizes the failing step, and the device/OS clustering reveals whether it is configuration-specific. If consistent with no device pattern, suspect corrupt loaded state. Bugnet captures startup crashes with full context from the affected players, so a startup crash you cannot reproduce still has the stack trace and conditions revealing where it fails and why, letting you fix it and verify per version that players can launch.

How do I handle corrupt save data that crashes on startup?

Validate saved data on load, handle corruption gracefully (repair, fall back to a backup, or safely reset) instead of crashing, and add recovery so already-affected players can launch. When your game loads saved data at startup and it is corrupt, naively parsing it crashes, and because the corrupt data persists, it crashes every launch, a startup crash loop. Handle it: validate the data's integrity on load before using it, and when corruption is detected, handle it gracefully, repair it if recoverable, fall back to a backup (if you keep them), or safely reset to a default, wrapping the load in error handling so a parse failure degrades rather than crashes. Crucially, ensure your fix handles already-affected players' existing corrupt data (repair/reset it on next launch), freeing them from the loop. Bugnet captures the startup crashes from corrupt data (showing it is a load/parse failure) and tracks per version, so you can confirm corrupt data is the cause, add validation and graceful handling, and verify per version that affected players can now launch (the startup crash loop broken).

Ways to Prevent Startup Crashes

Quick answer: Capture startup crashes with context to find where launch fails, handle corrupt saved state gracefully, support the devices and OS versions players use, and handle initialization failures, startup crashes block players entirely.

A startup crash stops players before they can play, the worst place to crash. Here are the best ways to prevent startup crashes.

Capture Startup Crashes With Context

Prevent startup crashes by capturing them with context, the stack trace (where in launch it fails), device, OS, and version, so you can see at what point startup crashes and under what conditions. Startup crashes happen before much logging runs, so captured context is key.

Bugnet captures crashes from the field with stack trace, device, OS, and version, so even startup crashes are captured with the context to see where launch fails, the basis for preventing them.

Handle Corrupt Saved State Gracefully

Prevent startup crashes by handling corrupt saved state gracefully on load, validate saves and config read at startup, and fall back to a backup or safe default if corrupt, rather than crashing. Corrupt loaded state is a common cause of startup crash loops.

Bugnet captures the startup crashes from corrupt loaded state (showing it is a load/parse failure), so you can identify the issue, add validation and graceful handling, and verify the startup crashes from bad state stopped.

Support the Devices and OS Versions Players Use

Prevent startup crashes by supporting the devices and OS versions players use, since startup crashes are often device- or OS-specific (the launch assuming something a device/OS does not provide). Handle the differences so launch works across configurations.

Bugnet captures startup crashes with device and OS context, so you see which devices and OS versions fail to launch (invisible on your machine) and can support them, then verify the launch crashes stopped on those configurations.

Prevent startup crashes by capturing them with context to find where launch fails, handling corrupt saved state gracefully, supporting the devices and OS versions players use, and handling initialization failures.