Video games have come a long way both in terms of visual quality and gameplay mechanics since their early days. Modern games look gorgeous while also implementing complex mechanisms and real-time physics to give players a sense of immersion like never before. 

That said, this also means that gamers need stronger, more powerful PCs to be able to play these games to their full capacity. In this article, we’re talking about Darktide taking way too long to load, its causes and what you can do to fix the problem.

Also read: How to fix darktide error code 2003?

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What causes this error?

Games can take too long to load because of a number of issues. Some of the most common causes include:

• HDD/SSD errors.
• Missing game files.
• PC doesn’t meet the minimum requirements.
• Outdated GPU drivers.

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How to fix this?

Here are seven fixes you can try out. 

Restart your game

One of the easiest ways to fix the problem is to restart the game. Restarting games and programs often resolves temporary bugs that can cause crashes or connectivity issues. Once the game is stopped completely (you can verify this using the Task Manager), relaunch it using the Steam launcher, and it should work just fine. 

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Update your PC 

Another thing you can do is to update your PC. Updating your PC will, in most cases, update your drivers and fix any issues in the process.

Check out this detailed guide to know how to update your PC here

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Disable any background processes

If you’re running way too many background processes, it can leave your PC struggling for resources especially when you don’t have a lot of RAM or CPU available on hand. The more resources your PC uses in an idle state, the more performance issues you’re going to run into.

The best way to go about this is to ensure that you’re shutting down any unnecessary processes, including any in-game overlays like Discord, Nvidia or even the Windows Game Bar if you don’t use it to ensure maximum resource availability for your games. 

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Update your GPU drivers 

Outdated GPU drivers can also cause this issue in particular. While you should update all your drivers, take special care of your display drivers if you run into an error like this. 

Step 1: Right-click Start and select Device Manager from the menu.

Step 2: Under Display Adaptors, find your graphics card’s name, right-click on it and click on Update Drivers.

Step 3: Click on Search automatically for drivers. Windows will then automatically look for and download the latest drivers for your particular GPU.

While this should help resolve the error, in case it doesn’t, click Uninstall device and restart your PC to force Windows to install the required drivers. You can then update them later. Alternatively, you can also remove your GPU and reinsert it if you can.

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Perform a Disk Cleanup

Disk Cleanup is an integral feature of Windows. It can help iron out many issues that may otherwise impact your system’s performance, including repairing any processes causing the error. 

You can refer to this article for more information on Disk Cleanup

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Verify Game Files

Corrupted game files can often lead to issues like this, not just in Darktide but other games. Luckily, Steam has a built-in feature that verifies your game files and reinstalls any files that might be damaged. Follow these steps.

Step 1: Head over to your Steam Library, right-click on Darktide and select Properties.

Step 2: Head over to the Local Files tab.

Step 3: Click on Verify integrity of local files… and let Steam do its thing. 

Now try relaunching the game. 

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Reinstall

If checking the game files didn’t work out, your best bet is to delete the game from Steam and reinstall it from scratch. Ensure to overwrite your game save with the new installation, as corrupt saved files can also cause this issue. 

Also read: How to fix Max Payne 3 error missing Steam-API.dll?