Are you worried as Skyrim won’t launch on your Windows 10 PC? Then, put your worries aside and read this article to learn the quick, easy, and effective fixes to solve this issue. 

If you are an ardent fan of action role-playing video games, we do not think Skyrim requires much introduction. It is the fifth main release in The Elder Scrolls series, having a glorious history of 8 years. You need to save the Earth from the World-Eater dragon Alduin who is hell-bent on creating havoc. Set in the location of Skyrim, this game seems a whole lot fascinating. But for some unlucky fellows, Skyrim won’t launch on Windows 10. Are you also one of them? Then, do not panic, and be ready to fight the deadly dragon as we are here with the solutions to this problem.

Well, the issue is quite frustrating, but it is fixable easily with the workarounds shared below.

Fixes for the Skyrim won’t Launch Issue on Windows 10

Below are the fixes that you can implement to get rid of the Skyrim won’t launch problem on Windows 10. Start from the first and keep moving downward till the issue gets resolved.

Fix 1: Deactivate the background programs

Not every background program is necessary for your computer. Many of them often interfere with gaming. Therefore, turn off the unnecessary programs, relaunch the game, and check whether Skyrim launching error is fixed or not.

Fix 2: Try running Steam as administrator

Running Steam with administrative powers has fixed the problems where Skyrim won’t start after the launcher for many players. You can also try this hack by following these steps.

• Right-click on the Steam desktop icon and choose Properties from the popup menu.

  

• Navigate to the Compatibility tab and click on the Run this program as an administrator box.
  

  

   

• Click on Apply and OK to save the changes.

Know More:  Minecraft Won’t Launch on Windows 10

Fix 3: Run Skyrim as administrator

Another effective way to fix the launching problem on Skyrim if it won’t launch is running it as an administrator on Windows 10. Below is how to do it.

• Launch and log in to Steam. 
• Go to the LIBRARY tab and right-click on The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim Special Edition. 
• Select Properties from the available menu.

  

• Go to the LOCAL FILES tab and click on the BROWSE LOCAL FILES option.
• Now, locate and right-click on the executable file of Skyrim.
• Select Run as administrator from the options available in the menu. 

Fix 4: Perform Graphics Drivers Update

Keeping outdated drivers on a computer is among the top ways to deteriorate its performance. A PC with out-of-date drivers is always slow and buggy. And if the graphics driver is not updated, then gaming issues are sure to arise. Skyrim won’t be launching on Windows 10 because of the same reason. Therefore, to fix this issue, you need to update the graphics driver. Below are both manual and automatic ways to do it.

Manual way to update Graphics Drivers

Here’s how you can update the drivers for your graphics card manually.

• Go to the website of your graphics card manufacturer.
• Search for your graphics card.
• Find the appropriate drivers that match your operating system.
• Download the setup file of the graphics card driver.
• Click on the downloaded file and go along with the directions coming up on your screen to install the driver.

Automatic way to update Graphics Drivers (Recommended)

It is quite difficult to update the drivers manually, right? Well, do not worry as there is an easy way to do it. You can do it automatically without any tiring efforts with Bit Driver Updater, i.e., one of the best driver updaters with incredible features. You can go through its review to learn more about this software. Below we share how to use it for updating the graphics drivers.

• Click on the Download Now button to get Bit Driver Updater’s installation file.
  
• Click on the downloaded setup and install the software.
• After the installation is complete, let the software perform a scan on your computer.
• Go to the graphics driver and click on the Update Now button adjacent to it to get the updated driver.

You can also choose to update all drivers automatically at once by selecting the Update All option.

Fix 5: Update your Operating System

Updating Windows is among the top hacks to solve almost all computer problems. It can also fix the problems if Skyrim Special Edition is not launching. You can follow the steps shared below to do it.

• Employ the keyboard shortcut Windows+I to evoke Settings.
• Click on the Update & Security option.
  
• Click on the tab to check for updates.
  
• Download and install the recommended operating system update.
• After completing the process, start the computer again.

Know More: Best Free Driver Updater Software For Windows

Fix 6: Reinstall Skyrim

If Skyrim won’t launch on your Windows 10 computer, reinstalling it is another way to fix it. You can follow the steps given below to do it.

• Use the keypad shortcut Windows+R to initiate the Run box.
• Type appwiz.cpl and click on OK.
  

  

• Locate and click on The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim Special Edition.
• Click on the Uninstall button.
  
• String along the on-screen instructions to complete the uninstallation.
• After the process is complete, redownload the game from Stream and check whether it launches or it still won’t launch.

Fix 7: Verify the Integrity of Game Files

The game files that are either corrupted or missing are also among the top reasons behind Skyrim not launching on your PC. Thus, below is how to verify the game file integrity.

Fix 8: Update DirectX and Visual Studio C++ 2015 Redistributable

DirectX and Visual Studio C++ Redistributable are also crucial to run games without any glitches. If Skyrim won’t launch on your computer, then you may need to download the updated version of these programs for Windows 10. To update DirectX, you can go through this detailed article.

To download the latest version of Visual Studio C++ 2015 Redistributable, you can follow these steps.

• Open Programs and Features by following the first two steps of Fix no.6.
• Locate x64 and x86 Visual Studio C++ 2015 Redistributable versions.
• Right-click on them one after the other and choose Uninstall to remove them one by one.
• After completing the uninstallation, download the latest version of Visual Studio C++ 2015 Redistributable from Microsoft’s website.
• Double click on the downloaded file and go along with the on-screen instructions to complete the installation.

Fix 9: Check System Files

Corrupt system files can also be a reason for which Skyrim won’t launch on your computer running Windows 10. Therefore, you need to take these steps to check and correct the system files.

• Using the keypad shortcut Windows+X, launch the Quick Access menu.
• Choose Command Prompt (Admin) from the available options.
  
• Input the sfc /scannow command and press Enter. 
• Wait for the verification to complete.
• After the verification completes, restart your PC.

Fix 10: Solve the Game mod Conflicts

Mods are an excellent way to level up the game experience. But sometimes they conflict with the game settings and result in issues because of which Skyrim won’t launch after pressing play. Therefore, you may take the below steps to solve the problem.

• Disable the mods you installed before launching the game. If the game does not launch even after disabling the mod, then move to the next step.
• Keep reenabling the mods one by one till you find the mod because of which the game won’t launch.
• Disable or remove the problem-causing mod.

Above were the fixes for the Skyrim launching issue. If you have any confusion or question, you can go through the next section that addresses the frequently asked queries.

Frequently Asked Questions

Q1. Can my laptop run Skyrim?

Whether Skyrim is playable on your laptop or not is dependent on the system requirements of the game. We share them below.

OS: Windows 7/8.1/10 (64-bit Version)

Graphics card:  NVIDIA GeForce GTX 470 1GB /AMD Radeon HD 7870 2GB

Pixel Shader: 5.0

Vertex Shader: 5.0

Free Disk Space: 12 GB

Dedicated Video RAM: 2 GB

RAM: 8 GB

CPU: Intel Core i5-750/AMD Phenom II X4-945

Q2. Why is Skyrim not launching?

Below are the top reasons for which Skyrim won’t launch on your computer.

• Outdated graphics driver.
• Corrupt game files.
• Corrupt system files.
• Outdated OS.

Q3. How do I fix Skyrim not launching?

You can go through the above guide to learn multiple solutions to the Skyrim launching issues. However, if you want to know only one best fix, then we recommend you update your graphics driver with an outdated driver is among the top causes of this problem. You can use Bit Driver Updater to update it effortlessly.

Q4. How do I avoid Skyrim won’t launch?

Here’re a few tips for you to keep this annoying problem at bay in the future.

• Always keep the graphics driver up to date.
• Ensure the system files are not corrupted. If there are any issues, repair them.
• Access the game with administrative rights.

Skyrim won’t Launch on Windows 10 Fixed

Through this article, we helped you fix the problems when Skyrim won’t launch on Windows 10. Hopefully, the game now works perfectly on your computer. You can launch the game and defeat the World-Eater dragon. But before doing that, do not forget to join our mailing list to get notifications for more interesting and useful posts like this.