Game crashes leading to 6 hour bans

[creativehavoc]

There are several posts about these issues and I have been replying in those threads with my experience, but I would like to post here again with an offer to do anything I can to help solve this.

The most recent case was in Match: 30893987

It looks like it happens at 24:07. I am trying to download the match to see the exact time, but it is not available. It is after the 20 minute mark based on my soul count graphs, while I was shooting a shrine.

I have tried many things:

• Reinstalling
• Deleting some files and then verifying integrity to re-download files
• Rebooting
• Changing ram speed
• Changed my graphics driver from the "Adrenalin Edition" to the "Pro Edition" to try and introduce some stability
• At one point it seemed to happen when I would have downloads available for other valve games, so I would ensure those were always done before joining
• I look constantly across steam community and these forums for others who have found a solution, but just find frustration
• I look through my event log for anything consistently showing up

The most frustrating part is that I manage to return to the match and while I am allowed to finish, it then bans me for 6 hours. I do not understand why I am being punished for doing everything I can to rejoin the team, and getting back, not abandoning the match.

I want to help solve this, for me and for others. @Yoshi - is there anything I can possibly do to help here? I can't even see a crash log to try and help myself independently. I need someone from your side to work with me or others on this.

Processor Information:​

CPU Vendor: GenuineIntel
CPU Brand: Intel(R) Core(TM) i9-7900X CPU @ 3.30GHz
CPU Family: 0x6
CPU Model: 0x55
CPU Stepping: 0x4
CPU Type: 0x0
Speed: 3312 MHz
20 logical processors
10 physical processors
Hyper-threading: Supported
FCMOV: Supported
SSE2: Supported
SSE3: Supported
SSSE3: Supported
SSE4a: Unsupported
SSE41: Supported
SSE42: Supported
AES: Supported
AVX: Supported
AVX2: Supported
AVX512F: Supported
AVX512PF: Unsupported
AVX512ER: Unsupported
AVX512CD: Supported
AVX512VNNI: Unsupported
SHA: Unsupported
CMPXCHG16B: Supported
LAHF/SAHF: Supported
PrefetchW: Unsupported
BMI1: Supported
BMI2: Supported
F16C: Supported
FMA: Supported

Operating System Version:​

Windows 10 (64 bit)
NTFS: Supported
Crypto Provider Codes: Supported 311 0x0 0x0 0x0

Client Information:​

Version: 1733265492
Browser GPU Acceleration Status: Enabled
Browser Canvas: Enabled
Browser Canvas out-of-process rasterization: Enabled
Browser Direct Rendering Display Compositor: Disabled
Browser Compositing: Enabled
Browser Multiple Raster Threads: Enabled
Browser OpenGL: Enabled
Browser Rasterization: Enabled
Browser Raw Draw: Disabled
Browser Skia Graphite: Disabled
Browser Video Decode: Enabled
Browser Video Encode: Enabled
Browser Vulkan: Disabled
Browser WebGL: Enabled
Browser WebGL2: Enabled
Browser WebGPU: Enabled
Browser WebNN: Disabled

Video Card:​

Driver: AMD Radeon RX 6750 XT
DirectX Driver Name: atidx9loader32.dll
Driver Version: 32.0.12030.9
DirectX Driver Version: 32.0.12030.9
Driver Date: 10 29 2024
Desktop Color Depth: 32 bits per pixel
Monitor Refresh Rate: 60 Hz
DirectX Card: AMD Radeon RX 6750 XT
VendorID: 0x1002
DeviceID: 0x73df
Revision: 0xc0
Number of Monitors: 1
Number of Logical Video Cards: 1
No SLI or Crossfire Detected
Primary Display Resolution: 1360 x 768
Desktop Resolution: 1360 x 768
Primary Display Size: 62.99" x 35.43" (72.24" diag), 160.0cm x 90.0cm (183.5cm diag)
Primary Bus Type Not Detected
Primary VRAM Not Detected
Supported MSAA Modes: 2x 4x 8x

Sound card:​

Audio device: Speakers (Razer BlackShark V2 H

Memory:​

RAM: 32449 Mb

VR Hardware:​

VR Headset: None detected

Miscellaneous:​

UI Language: English
Media Type: Undetermined
Total Hard Disk Space Available: 953228 MB
Largest Free Hard Disk Block: 384365 MB
OS Install Date: Apr 07 2023
Game Controller: None detected

Storage:​

Number of SSDs: 1
SSD sizes: 1000G
Number of HDDs: 0
Number of removable drives: 0

 

[creativehavoc]

Adding some other matches from looking through my post history...
#30488321 - very final push 34:15 or so I am Dynamo and do a kinetic pulse stomp, the screen shot shows me frozen by the he looks like he continues to backup and shoot aimlessly

#30012337 - multiple times, I cannot download replay anymore to see exactly where

#30346363 - not 100% certain because it says "recording not ready" even though it's from a long while, but my forum post around that time says "last minutes of the match"

I will post more if I can piece them together

 

[creativehavoc]

It happened again just now, match #30909941 almost immediately as we went down the line. I even played private bot match first to test if it would crash.

Interestingly, this is the first time where after a crash I see a flag on my account. Every other time I have no flags, just the 6 hour ban. It says I have "one win left in low priority matchmaking"

Never mind, now it's a 24 hour ban... I will need to stop playing before this turns into a perm ban... please help me.

 

[creativehavoc]

To be clear, I understand this is an Alpha, pre-release game, so I don't feel owed anything, but I would really like to keep playing this, and I assume you also would like to not have it crash non-stop for some configurations.

I am also confused why I can't even do a private bot match while in the ban. That is the only way I can try to see if any changes I make _might_ have a difference.

If there is any way to reset my ban counter, that would help give some buffer to the whole thing. If it wasn't for how long it takes to recover from the crash (it will NOT relaunch when it crashes, not until multiple reboots or sometimes a full reinstall) I could get back within the 5 minutes.

 

[gamadar]

I can't even see a crash log to try and help myself independently. I need someone from your side to work with me or others on this.

I would check the steam content logs as when I checked my own I was able to find the log of crashes due to corruption. Mine is in "C:\Program Files (x86)\Steam\logs\content_log.txt"

The error you are probably looking for is probably like this "[2024-09-14 21:39:40] AppID 1422450 state changed : Fully Installed,Files Corrupt,App Running,Updated Disabled by app," (For me App 1442450 is deadlock, but I'm not sure if this id is the same for all users or just my account).

One thing I'd be curious of that I noticed when trying to do my own investigation yesterday(link), everytime I hit the corruption issue, there was a Deadlock update that day(there seem to be more of them than correlate with official patch updates). My theory is something with the updater is corrupting the file, and we only hit the corruption issue when we encounter the corrupt asset.

I don't know if it's helpful, but the workaround I'm trying at the moment is:

- Verify game files before I start.
- Queue up into a bot match and run through most of the map (I basically just run up lane, go through mid, then run to the enemy base).
- I also disabled the Steam Shader cache. I noticed some of the updates the day of a crash were related to the shader cache and I wonder if saying pak01.vpk being corrupt is a red herring.

 

[creativehavoc]

Thanks for the log tip. I guess the reason it is stuck at 0 when validating is that the client restricts you getting the verification or update for a 5-6 minutes. That ensures you get the "abandon" before you get back in to the match.

[2024-12-23 18:29:24] Start validating appID 1422450
[2024-12-23 18:29:24] AppID 1422450 scheduler update : Priority First, not played for 10 seconds, update disabled for 246 seconds
[2024-12-23 18:29:24] AppID 1422450 scheduler update : updates disabled by app; blocking attempt Priority First

After that time passes it allows me to verify my files and fix the problem. I guess all the reboots and stuff is just me chasing my tail until the timer runs out.

I get the same appID fyi

[2024-12-23 18:29:01] AppID 1422450 state changed : Fully Installed,Files Corrupt,App Running,Updated Disabled by app,
[2024-12-23 18:29:15] AppID 1422450 no longer tracking PID 9528, exit code 1
[2024-12-23 18:29:15] AppID 1422450 state changed : Fully Installed,Files Corrupt,Updated Disabled by app,
[2024-12-23 18:29:15] Remove 1422450 from running list

In this last case, I did essentially what you suggested other than disabling the cache. I have had these issues since before they instituted the cache so I don't think that would be it for me. I played the entire game against the bots and then it crashed instantly once playing with my friend in a real match.

 

[gamadar]

Thanks for the log tip. I guess the reason it is stuck at 0 when validating is that the client restricts you getting the verification or update for a 5-6 minutes. That ensures you get the "abandon" before you get back in to the match.


After that time passes it allows me to verify my files and fix the problem. I guess all the reboots and stuff is just me chasing my tail until the timer runs out.

I get the same appID fyi



In this last case, I did essentially what you suggested other than disabling the cache. I have had these issues since before they instituted the cache so I don't think that would be it for me. I played the entire game against the bots and then it crashed instantly once playing with my friend in a real match.

I was digging around this morning and one idea I have to get around this 5-6 minute lock is to edit the App Manifest in steam as I believe this is what steam checks to determine the state(i think probably `appmanifest_1422450.acf` inside your steamapps folder). There's a setting in there for "StateFlags":



I think this corresponds to these values over here(https://github.com/lutris/lutris/blob/master/docs/steam.rst) (included at bottom). Maybe try and open this file up next time this happens and change the flag? I'd maybe try setting 4 (`StateFullyInstalled`) and then force a validation as steam should think that the app is in it's normal state then when it tries to validate it will hopefully pick up on the corrupt file... Note - I'd probably force close steam before editing this file.


---

App State Values for Reference:

AppState​

StateInvalid 0
StateUninstalled 1
StateUpdateRequired 2
StateFullyInstalled 4
StateEncrypted 8
StateLocked 16
StateFilesMissing 32
StateAppRunning 64
StateFilesCorrupt 128
StateUpdateRunning 256
StateUpdatePaused 512
StateUpdateStarted 1024
StateUninstalling 2048
StateBackupRunning 4096
StateReconfiguring 65536
StateValidating 131072
StateAddingFiles 262144
StatePreallocating 524288
StateDownloading 1048576
StateStaging 2097152
StateCommitting 4194304
StateUpdateStopping 8388608

 

[creativehavoc]

OK, at the very least I will check that file to see what state it is in... I am curious if it will be 128.

I tried checking for any possible driver and firmware issues again and the only thing that came back was a security update for my BIOS, which I applied but don't anticipate fixing anything.

While my ram is clocked well below what some people are suggesting to limit it to, I could always try to undervolt my GPU also, which comes from the 20 or so reddit threads either on amdhelp or deadlockthegame subreddits.

I have also manually ran trim after uninstalling the game and will re-install it, hopefully it will find a new home on the SSD somewhere, but the extended smart check didn't find any issues so that shouldn't matter either...

 

[creativehavoc]

I forgot to mention, but with all my hardware being sort of "old" relatively speaking.... drivers other than the graphics card are pretty stable, so I don't know how much is on my components' firmware or drivers.

 

[gamadar]

I've a little bit skeptical of the hardware theory given most people don't seem to have this issue on other games.

 

[creativehavoc]

When you say skeptical, do you mean you don't think it is resolvable by hardware (drivers, firmware or otherwise)?

The main reason I am chasing that direction is it's the only thing in my control and while it feels like a game bug (or just an optimization that has yet to be made for certain configurations) I just want to find a way to keep playing

My partner and I play most games together and she has never crashed, she's on a lenovo legion laptop with newer gen gear and an nvidea card. It just seemed like a lot of the people with the vpk crash have AMD graphics cards.

On the side, one of the biggest frustrations with this is I will keep playing when people leave till the bitter end, even when getting stomped. I hate people who leave out of frustration, or even because someone else left and they feel the match is unwinnable... there's still lots to learn from playing down. The fact that my unavoidable leaves with all this effort to get back in time to keep the match flowing is now leading to a 24 hour ban (and whatever comes next) hurts.

I just want to help fix this and keep playing.

 

[Chatbrun13]

Hey ! The exact same situation happened to me 10min ago, got a VPK crash out on nowhere. I got 135Hours in this game and got this crash 4 times. I also have AMD hardware, GPU and CPU. Both pretty new (7900 XTX and 7800X3D).

The things is, I also got 24h ban even tho I could go back in the game 6minutes later (impossible to launch the game right after the crash, I need to resart, launch a different game and pray). I finish the game (as unpleasant as it was because of the souls gap). I didn't quit this game and apart from the 4 crashes, I NEVER rage quit or anything, never. But still got a 24h ban, for 4 crashes on 135h.

Not very happy about it tbh...

 

[creativehavoc]

So it might be weird to say I am happy it crashed, but I have only been playing in private bot matches to avoid getting banned again, and it wasn't crashing. I started to wonder if it was only when it was in the other match types, but it finally happened again.

@gamadar , the state in the state was "4" when i opened the file after the crash. I thought, why not delete that file to see if it is enough to get the app to redownload/verify without waiting the 6 minutes.

1. I deleted the bin folder to get ready for reverify
2. I closed steam
3. I renamed the manifest to .bak
4. I reopened steam and it said "install" so I clicked that - nothing happened except maybe it went to download
5. i tried to verify the files, and it said 1900 something verified really quickly
6. Went back to try and download the game again, nothing would happen
7. Went to view > downloads and saw deadlock there. Tried to initiate the download to no avail. Tried to drag it up higher in priority to no avail.
8. Looked in the content log and it was just full of the issue where I cannot download because the app is forcing a wait.

Something different here, it was the first time I ever had a full crash, without it being a corrupt vpk and it looked like this instead...

[2024-12-26 20:12:59] App 1422450 updates disabled for 300 seconds (until Thu Dec 26 20:17:59 2024)
[2024-12-26 20:18:59] App 1422450 updates disabled for 300 seconds (until Thu Dec 26 20:23:59 2024)
[2024-12-26 20:22:14] AppID 1422450 no longer tracking PID 23248, exit code -1073741819
[2024-12-26 20:22:14] AppID 1422450 state changed : Fully Installed,Updated Disabled by app,
[2024-12-26 20:22:14] Remove 1422450 from running list

 

[hubrone]

Hey ! The exact same situation happened to me 10min ago, got a VPK crash out on nowhere. I got 135Hours in this game and got this crash 4 times. I also have AMD hardware, GPU and CPU. Both pretty new (7900 XTX and 7800X3D).

The things is, I also got 24h ban even tho I could go back in the game 6minutes later (impossible to launch the game right after the crash, I need to resart, launch a different game and pray). I finish the game (as unpleasant as it was because of the souls gap). I didn't quit this game and apart from the 4 crashes, I NEVER rage quit or anything, never. But still got a 24h ban, for 4 crashes on 135h.

Not very happy about it tbh...

Same happened here. Crashed, needed a restart, got into game within 5-6minutes from the crash. Game had still marked it as leaver-game and I got a 6 hour ban for it, even though the game got played till finish after I rejoined.

 

[creativehavoc]

I woke my computer up today to try a bot game and this happened as quick as I could click "play"

 

[creativehavoc]

@gamadar Do you also happen to have 32 GB of ram?

 

[gamadar]

@gamadar Do you also happen to have 32 GB of ram?

I have 64GB of ram.

 

[gamadar]

So it might be weird to say I am happy it crashed, but I have only been playing in private bot matches to avoid getting banned again, and it wasn't crashing. I started to wonder if it was only when it was in the other match types, but it finally happened again.

@gamadar , the state in the state was "4" when i opened the file after the crash. I thought, why not delete that file to see if it is enough to get the app to redownload/verify without waiting the 6 minutes.

1. I deleted the bin folder to get ready for reverify
2. I closed steam
3. I renamed the manifest to .bak
4. I reopened steam and it said "install" so I clicked that - nothing happened except maybe it went to download
5. i tried to verify the files, and it said 1900 something verified really quickly
6. Went back to try and download the game again, nothing would happen
7. Went to view > downloads and saw deadlock there. Tried to initiate the download to no avail. Tried to drag it up higher in priority to no avail.
8. Looked in the content log and it was just full of the issue where I cannot download because the app is forcing a wait.

Something different here, it was the first time I ever had a full crash, without it being a corrupt vpk and it looked like this instead...

Hmm, that's a bummer that it was already on 4. I might try to play with some of the different settings here later today to see if it can force an update so anyone who hits this bug can at least quickly get back into a game w/o the ban.

 

[gamadar]

Hey ! The exact same situation happened to me 10min ago, got a VPK crash out on nowhere. I got 135Hours in this game and got this crash 4 times. I also have AMD hardware, GPU and CPU. Both pretty new (7900 XTX and 7800X3D).

The things is, I also got 24h ban even tho I could go back in the game 6minutes later (impossible to launch the game right after the crash, I need to resart, launch a different game and pray). I finish the game (as unpleasant as it was because of the souls gap). I didn't quit this game and apart from the 4 crashes, I NEVER rage quit or anything, never. But still got a 24h ban, for 4 crashes on 135h.

Not very happy about it tbh...

Fwiw, I'm on Nvidia (4090).

 

[gamadar]

When you say skeptical, do you mean you don't think it is resolvable by hardware (drivers, firmware or otherwise)?

The main reason I am chasing that direction is it's the only thing in my control and while it feels like a game bug (or just an optimization that has yet to be made for certain configurations) I just want to find a way to keep playing

My partner and I play most games together and she has never crashed, she's on a lenovo legion laptop with newer gen gear and an nvidea card. It just seemed like a lot of the people with the vpk crash have AMD graphics cards.

On the side, one of the biggest frustrations with this is I will keep playing when people leave till the bitter end, even when getting stomped. I hate people who leave out of frustration, or even because someone else left and they feel the match is unwinnable... there's still lots to learn from playing down. The fact that my unavoidable leaves with all this effort to get back in time to keep the match flowing is now leading to a 24 hour ban (and whatever comes next) hurts.

I just want to help fix this and keep playing.

The reason I say I'm skeptical is for me personally this is the only game where I've encountered anything like this error and for alot of others they seem to be in the same boat. This error also seems to happen w/Counterstrike (another source engine game) which makes me thinks it's something common with the engine.

To me, the plain text reading of the error is that when the game loads an asset for some reason it gets corrupted which to me doesn't seem like it could be a driver issue unless there was memory corruption. (If you haven't run a memory test, then you should just incase).

That being said, you should try to make sure your drivers and what not are up to date to eliminate any other possibility.