If you’re encountering this error, start by ensuring that your GPU is capable of supporting Vulkan. Generally, GPUs that were released after 2018 all support the Vulkan API. If you confirm that your GPU supports Vulkan, see if your current PC configuration is capable of meeting the minimum requirements of the game that you’re trying to run. In some cases, the VK_Error_Initialization_Failed error can also occur due to a faulty graphics card driver. in this case, you should be able to fix the issue by reinstalling every GPU driver supply by your graphics card manufacturer. If you’re encountering the issue on a hybrid-GPU laptop or computer, you might see the error due to the fact that your operating system is trying to run the game with the integrated GPU. In this case, either disable the integrated GPU or set the more powerful GPU as the preferred graphics card for the executable that you’re trying to run. In case you’re encountering the issue with an Nvidia GPU, ensure that the Vulkan environment is installed on your computer. If it isn’t installed already, you can install it from the folder where Nvidia stores your latest installed driver. However, this game startup error can also be a direct consequence of some type of system file corruption that cannot be resolved conventionally. In this case, you should be able to resolve the issue by resetting every Windows component via clean install or via a repair install.
Verifying if Vulkan is supported by your GPU
Keep in mind that not every dedicated GPU is build to support the Vulkan API. While every newer dedicated GPU gaming that was released after 2018 should support Vulkan, this is not a set rule. Note: If you have a dedicated GPU (most likely from Intel), there’s a very high chance that Vulkan is not supported. Most Nvidia and AMD GPUs are build to accommodate the Vulkan API. Below you’ll find two separate lists of graphic cards that should work with Vulkan API. If the GPU that you’re encountering the VK_Error_Initialization_Failed error is not on this list, it’s probably because your GPU doesn’t support Vulkan – in this case, the only viable fix that will allow you to run the game is to upgrade to a newer GPU. Here are two separate lists of GPUs that are build to support Vulkan API:
This one is for AMD and this one is for Nvidia
If your GPU is not on this list, Vulkan is not supported – If this scenario is applicable, it’s also the reason why you’re seeing the VKEnumeratePhysicalDevices Failed with Error (VK_Error_Initialization_Failed) fatal error every time you attempt to launch the game. If the investigation you did above has revealed that the GPU that you’re using is built to support the Vulkan API, move to the next section below to check if you meet the minimum requirements for the game you are attempting to play.
Checking if your PC meets the minimum requirement
If you previously verified that the GPU you are using supports Vulkan, it’s time to verify if the game you are attempting to can actually be played on your current PC configuration. If you are tech-savvy and you know your components, you can search online for ‘minimum requirements + Game Title that is triggering the error’ and compare the results with your current configuration. However, there are also some services that will automatically analyze your computer against the minimum recommended specs and determine if your computer is determined to run that game or not. On service of this kind is Can I Run It. Here’s a quick step by step guide on using Can You Run it in order to determine if you’re seeing the VKEnumeratePhysicalDevices Failed with Error (VK_Error_Initialization_Failed) fatal error due to the fact that your system doesn’t meet the minimum requirements: In case the analysis above has confirmed that your computer configuration is strong enough to run the game, but you’re still encountering the VK_Error_Initialization_Failed error, move down to the next potential fix below.
Reinstalling every GPU driver
If you’ve previously confirmed that your PC does meet the minimum requirements of the game that’s triggering the error, it’s likely that the issue is being caused due to a faulty graphics card driver. If this scenario is applicable, you should be able to get the issue resolved by reinstalling the GPU drivers that you’re actively using. Of course, the steps of doing so will be different depending on your GPU manufacturer. In order to accommodate both AMD and Nvidia users, we created two separate guides that will help you uninstall and reinstall your GPU – whether you’re using AMD or Nvidia graphics cards. Follow whichever guide is applicable to your current scenario:
Reinstalling the GPU drivers on Nvidia
Reinstalling the GPU drivers for AMD
Disabling the Integrated GPU or set Dedicated GPU as Preferred
Keep in mind that if you’re encountering this issue on a laptop or PC that has both an integrated and a dedicated GPU, you might end up seeing the VK_Error_Initialization_Failed error due to the fact that your PC ends up using the integrated GPU instead of the dedicated option. If this scenario is applicable, you should be able to fix the issue by disabling the Integrated GPU solution, ensuring that your computer is forced to use the more powerful GPU. In case you’re not exactly sure how to disable the Integrated Graphics card, follow this guide (here). It contains to separate guide that will allow you to do it via Device Manager or directly from your BIOS or UEFI settings. On Windows 10, you can set the preferred GPU from the Settings menu – if possible this operation is preferred since it will not effectively stop the usage of the Integrated GPU. Here is some step by step instructions that will allow you to set the dedicated GPU as the preferred one for the game that is triggering the VK_Error_Initialization_Failed error: In case you’re still encountering the same issue, move down to the next potential fix below.
Ensuring that Vulkan is installed
As some affected users have reported, under certain circumstances, the Vulkan API will not get installed even though the installation package is being stored locally (it’s included with every new driver nowadays). From our investigations, this particular issue seems to be restricted to Nvidia GPUs. Several affected users have confirmed that they were able to fix the issue after navigating to the location of the latest DisplayDriver that the installed and running the VlulkanRT-Installer.exe in order to install the Vulkan environment. Here’s a quick step by step guide that will allow you to do this:
Repair install Windows 10
As it turns out, the VKEnumeratePhysicalDevices Failed with Error (VK_Error_Initialization_Failed) fatal error is often the direct result of some type of system file corruption that cannot be resolved conventionally. Several affected users that were previously encountering the issue at every attempt of launching a game that was using Vulkan (not just Wolfenstein: The New Colossus), have confirmed that the issue was resolved after they performed a repair install. This operation will reset every Windows component (including booting-related data). This is to be preferred instead of a clean install since it won’t make you lose any personal files that might trigger this behavior. However, it is preferred that you take some time to back up your data in advance so that you don’t end up losing any personal files and photos that are being stored on the OS drive.
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