Reported issues from the demo
The Steam general forum ran to hundreds of threads during the demo week. The recurring technical ones are:
| Symptom | What is reported | What Saber has said |
|---|---|---|
| Crash on start-up | Multiple threads, including a dedicated "Cant start demo" thread with dozens of replies | Nothing |
| Stuttering | At least one dedicated thread, with a counter-thread reporting good performance | Nothing |
| Windows Smart App Control blocking | One report of the OS blocking the executable | Nothing |
| Launch error | One thread reporting a launch error | Nothing |
| Traversal and clipping glitches | A thread marked solved by the community | Nothing |
⚠️ Unconfirmed. These are player reports on a demo build. The demo is a separate application from the full game, and none of these has been acknowledged or fixed in public.
Questions with no answer yet
Three questions came up repeatedly and have no first-party answer anywhere. This wiki will not guess them:
Denuvo. A forum thread asks whether the game ships with Denuvo, and notes that nobody has mentioned it. There is no statement from Saber and no DRM notice on the Steam page.
Steam pre-load. Players ask whether the full game can be pre-loaded. The Nintendo page mentions pre-load for its own version; Steam pre-load has not been confirmed for PC.
HDR. A thread reports no HDR support in the demo. Nothing official confirms or denies HDR in the launch build.
Things that are not bugs
A few frequently reported "problems" are design choices rather than faults, based on the confirmed feature list: manual saving is how the game works, so dying costs progress by design; the flashlight is a deliberate mechanic tied to R3 on controller; and the game's content is intentionally extreme, which is what the Content Warnings page covers.
What to do on launch day
- Verify your machine against the PC Requirements table first, since most start-up reports trace back to hardware below the published minimum.
- If you hit a crash, check whether Windows Smart App Control or your antivirus is blocking the executable before assuming a game bug.
- Report it in the Steam forum with your hardware listed, because there is no support channel beyond that.
- Check Options and Accessibility for the settings you can change, and Steam Deck if you are on a handheld.
FAQ
Is the game Denuvo-protected?
No first-party answer exists. The Steam page carries no DRM notice, but absence of a notice is not a statement.
Why does it stutter?
Unknown. Reports conflict, with some players reporting good performance on comparable hardware.
Is there a fix for the start-up crash?
Not a confirmed one. Check Smart App Control and antivirus blocks first, then hardware against the published minimum.