Normally, it doesn’t take long before it disappears and your game is fired up (unless you’re waiting for an update). However, some users report that the issue sequence takes forever, even after running all the required game updates, so it basically turns into an error message. You’ve probably already tried all sorts of hacks to fix this problem, without any luck, but don’t worry! We’re here to help you with some of the most efficient options you can find.

How do I launch a Steam game without launching it?

Many users are wondering how they can launch a Steam game without launching it. Well, if you’re in the same boat, keep in mind that you can’t launch a Steam game without Steam running. However, you don’t need Steam to be open in the foreground, if you simply launch the .exe (or use a shortcut on your desktop) Steam will not launch its window, but will instead run in the background.

What can I do if I get the Steam error: Preparing to launch?

1. Update graphics card, DirectX, and audio drivers

To summarize, you can fix the Steam Preparing to launch loop on Windows 10 by updating your graphics card, audio drivers, DirectX, Steam, and operating system. Your Steam games might not work if those drivers are outdated, missing, or corrupted in some way, resulting in the Preparing to launch loop. As you can see, you can manually update drivers in just a few simple steps. A quicker way is to use a reliable driver updating tool such as DriverFix. It’s lightweight and has an intuitive interface. DriverFix performs a full system scan automatically on startup, finding any outdated, damaged, or missing drivers. All you have to do is select the drivers you’re interested in updating and let DriverFix take care of the rest. Reboot your PC afterward to finalize driver modifications. Then, try to launch your Steam games again. ⇒ Get DriverFix

2. Verify the integrity of game files

3. Update Steam and your OS

4. Reinstall Steam

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5. Change your DNS servers

Some popular examples include Dutch Telecom, Bluewin, and Micronet Broadband. But you can modify your DNS servers as a workaround. You will be able to play Steam games even if you get the Preparing to launch error but nothing happens. In the instructions above, we used the free, public, and secure DNS servers provided by Google Public DNS. You can also try Cloudflare or OpenDNS.

6. Disable your free VPN service

So, if you are currently connected to a secure tunnel created by a VPN, make sure to turn it off. It could be the reason why Steam prepares to launch your game but never does. In this matter, we can’t think of a more trustworthy VPN solution than Private Internet Access. You can use it to secure your network connection while playing on Steam and bypass throttling if your ISP blocks Steam traffic. Moreover, this VPN supports split tunneling. If you’re having any sort of network issues on Steam due to VPN, you can set up split tunneling mode to reroute all network traffic through VPN, except for Steam. As a result, you will be able to navigate the web and download torrents securely, access more content, and unblock Netflix US anywhere else in the world, while playing games on Steam outside of the VPN tunnel.

What other Steam launch errors can I encounter?

Of course, the Steam error: Preparing to launch is not the only one you can face on your Windows OS. Because it is always important to be aware of potential troubles, we’ve prepared a list of the most common Steam launch errors:

Steam games can’t run on Windows 10/11 – In this case, it seems like several games won’t launch on the gaming platform. This can be due to a number of reasons, but mostly it’s related to outdated drivers. Steam won’t launch at all – It is worth mentioning that the solutions presented in the related fixing guide apply to a variety of Steam error messages. In order to discover them all, make sure you navigate to the indicated link.

If that doesn’t work, make sure to verify the integrity of the game files, reinstall Steam, change your DNS servers, disable your free VPN, and use a premium VPN solution that won’t sabotage you.

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