If Moon Sweepers keeps crashing, start by updating the game through Steam, verifying its files, and checking your graphics settings. Crashes have been reported during startup, while cleaning, after extended gameplay, and when loading existing saves. AMD Radeon users have also encountered repeated driver timeout errors.
DirectX 11 is an important setting to check, particularly for AMD crashes. Recent Windows changes have made DX11 the default to help address GPU stability problems, but crashes can still occur even with DX11 enabled.
Jump To Section:
Fix Moon Sweepers Crashing
AMD Driver Timeout Fix
Random Crashes While Playing
Black Screen and Startup Errors
Save Game Crashes
Linux Crashing and Memory Issues
How to Fix Moon Sweepers Keeps Crashing
Before changing graphics drivers or reinstalling the game, make sure you're running the latest available update. Moon Sweepers Patch 1.0.3 introduced performance improvements, reduced stuttering, and fixes for worlds that previously failed to load.
That update doesn't resolve every crash, but it's the best starting point if you're playing an older build.
- Close Moon Sweepers completely.
- Open Steam and check for any pending game updates.
- Right-click Moon Sweepers in your Steam Library and select Properties.
- Open Installed Files and select Verify integrity of game files.
- Update your graphics driver if a newer stable version is available.
- Launch the game and set your graphics quality to Low for testing.
- Disable Motion Blur and test whether the crashes continue.
Steam will replace missing or damaged installation files during verification. This is particularly useful for startup errors involving game files, but it won't necessarily solve crashes caused by graphics drivers or game bugs.
If the game still crashes, use the sections below based on when the problem occurs.
Moon Sweepers AMD Driver Timeout Fix
AMD Radeon RX 7600 and RX 7600 XT users have reported crashes that freeze the game and display an AMD Driver Timeout message. Some crashes happen within a few minutes, while others occur after 10 to 20 minutes of gameplay.
One of the main settings to check is the graphics API. DX11 has been recommended as a workaround for compatibility problems involving DX12.
How to Force DirectX 11 in Moon Sweepers
- Open your Steam Library.
- Right-click Moon Sweepers and select Properties.
- Stay on the General tab.
- Find the Launch Options field.
- Enter
-force-d3d11. - Close Properties and launch the game again.
On updated Windows builds where DirectX 11 is already the default, this launch option may not change anything. Check that you haven't previously added -force-d3d12, which would force the game to use DirectX 12 instead.
If forcing DX11 doesn't help, remove the launch option before trying other settings.
Other AMD Settings to Try
Changing the game's upscaling option has helped some AMD users temporarily, although results are inconsistent.
Try switching the upscaling setting to Bilinear, then test the game under the same conditions that normally cause it to crash.
Also consider disabling optional Radeon software features, including graphics enhancements or overlays, while testing.
Updating AMD drivers has improved stability for some systems. However, an RX 7600 XT user reported that updating to driver 26.10.1 only helped temporarily before crashes returned.
Don't assume a successful five-minute test means the issue is fixed. If your game normally crashes after 20 minutes, test it for longer before restoring your previous settings.
Moon Sweepers Randomly Crashing While Playing
Crashing isn't limited to AMD hardware. Reports also involve NVIDIA cards, including RTX 3080 and RTX 4070 systems.
Some crashes happen while cleaning outside the station, while others appear after longer sessions involving vehicles, buildings, and automation.
If Moon Sweepers launches normally but crashes during gameplay, try reducing the graphics load first.
- Set graphics quality to Low.
- Turn off Motion Blur.
- Test a different upscaling option if one is enabled.
- Disable nonessential overlays and background recording tools temporarily.
- Monitor GPU and RAM usage through Windows Task Manager.
Lower graphics settings and disabling Motion Blur have reduced crashes for at least one affected setup, but they aren't confirmed fixes for every system.
Pay attention to whether the crash consistently happens during a particular action. For example, crashing when entering the station, selling dust, using the map, or driving far from your base provides more useful troubleshooting information than a crash that happens at random.
What If Moon Sweepers Crashes Every 10 to 30 Minutes?
Check whether your RAM usage continues increasing during gameplay. A steady increase that never settles may indicate a memory-management problem.
You can monitor memory use by opening Task Manager, selecting Processes, and watching Moon Sweepers while you play.
If memory consumption keeps increasing before every crash, lowering graphics settings may not completely resolve the issue.
Save regularly while stability problems continue. Manual saves before long vehicle trips or major equipment purchases can help limit lost progress if another crash occurs.
Moon Sweepers Black Screen or Crashing on Startup
If Moon Sweepers opens to a black screen, freezes immediately, or closes before reaching the main menu, start with Steam's file verification.
Next, check whether your graphics drivers and Windows installation are up to date.
If you previously entered custom Steam launch options, remove them temporarily. An outdated or conflicting graphics setting can affect how the game starts.
Moon Sweepers UnityPlayer.dll Crash
Some launch reports mention UnityPlayer.dll alongside high GPU usage and repeated crashes.
If the error says UnityPlayer.dll is missing, verify the game files through Steam rather than downloading an individual DLL from a third-party website.
If UnityPlayer.dll appears as the faulting module in a crash report, the problem isn't necessarily a missing file. It may involve graphics compatibility, damaged game data, or another issue affecting the Unity engine.
Try the DX11 steps above and check the graphics driver before reinstalling the entire game.
Moon Sweepers Requires Steam to Run Error
Another startup problem displays the message "Moon Sweepers requires Steam to run" even when the game was launched directly through Steam.
The error has also appeared in Chinese as "请从steam启动游戏".
Try closing both the game and Steam completely, restarting Steam, and launching Moon Sweepers from your Library.
If the error remains, verify the game files and make sure Steam is connected normally.
Reinstalling hasn't resolved this problem in the documented launch reports, and there is currently no confirmed universal fix for the message.
Moon Sweepers Crashes When Loading a Save
Some Moon Sweepers worlds have failed to load after extensive cleaning or construction. Patch 1.0.3 addressed a problem where heavily developed worlds appeared corrupted despite their save data remaining intact.
The same update also introduced automatic save repair using backups or recent snapshots.
If your game crashes when loading an existing world, update Moon Sweepers before making any changes to your save files.
After updating, restart Steam and attempt to load the world again. If the game's recovery system repairs a save, it should display a notification.
However, newer reports describe saves that still freeze after a gameplay crash, including worlds where players have traveled long distances in cleaning vehicles.
If that happens, avoid deleting the affected save or starting over in the same slot without preserving a backup. Reinstalling the game is also not a guaranteed solution to save-specific crashes.
Steam Cloud support does not guarantee that every previous save version can be restored, so keep a separate backup before attempting advanced troubleshooting.
Moon Sweepers Crashing on Linux
Moon Sweepers is officially listed for Windows, so Linux compatibility can vary depending on your system and compatibility layer.
Linux users have reported memory usage increasing throughout gameplay until the game or Steam crashes.
Changing the upscaling setting to Bilinear has reduced memory problems for some systems, making it one option worth testing.
Another workaround involves editing the game's boot.config file and changing gc-max-time-slice=3 to gc-max-time-slice=0.
However, that modification has also been reported to cause more frequent crashes even when it reduces memory growth. It isn't a verified fix, and editing the game's configuration files can introduce additional problems.
I'd test the available graphics settings before attempting that modification.
Which Moon Sweepers Crash Fix Should You Try?
| Problem | Recommended First Step |
|---|---|
| AMD Driver Timeout | Update the game, check DX11, and test graphics settings. |
| Random crashes during cleaning | Disable Motion Blur and lower graphics quality. |
| Black screen on startup | Verify Steam files and remove custom launch options. |
| UnityPlayer.dll error | Verify game files and check graphics driver compatibility. |
| Requires Steam error | Restart Steam and verify files. No confirmed universal fix. |
| Existing world won't load | Update the game and allow automatic save recovery. |
| Crash after extended gameplay | Monitor RAM usage and reduce graphics load. |
| Linux memory issues | Try Bilinear upscaling before editing configuration files. |
Are Moon Sweepers Crashes Fixed Yet?
Not completely. The October 24 developer update introduced performance optimizations, improved save protection, and fixes for several loading problems.
However, DragDrop Games has acknowledged that crashes and performance problems remain among its ongoing priorities.
If none of the fixes above work, check for another update and report your GPU model, graphics driver version, installed game version, crash message, and the action that triggers the crash.
Those details can help identify whether the issue involves a specific graphics card, an existing save, or a gameplay action that still needs a developer fix.
