Table of Contents
- Overview
- What Prevents Dragon Age: Inquisition From Launching?
- Problem 01: There could be Issues with Administrative Privileges
- Problem 02: Some Third Party Services and Process Running in Background Could be the Culprit
- Problem 03: Optimization Issues with Full-Screen Mode
- Problem 04: There Might be Files that are Corrupted or Missing
- Problem 05: There could be Issues with Windows Compatibility
- Problem 06: There could be Issues with the Installed Version of Direct X and VC Redist
- Fix Dragon Age Inquisition Won’t Launch Problem: 15 Methods
- Method 01: Try to Grant Administrative Privilege
- Method 02: Check if Computer Specifications Comply with Game Requirements
- Method 03: Try to Temporarily Disable Your Antivirus when Playing
- Method 04: Try to Run a Clean Boot and End all Tasks and Services Running in Background
- Method 05: Try using Compatibility Mode when Running Dragon Age Inquisition
- Method 06: Try to Troubleshoot the Game Compatibility Issue
- Method 07: Try to Reinstall both Direct X and VC Redist
- Method 08: Verify the Game Files
- Method 09: Try Checking the Windows Registry for Errors
- Method 10: Try Switching off Full Screen Optimizations
- Method 11: Try Clearing the Cache of the Game
- Method 12: Try Updating the Driver of your Graphics Card
- Method 13: Try Running the Game With a Dedicated Graphics Card
- Method 14: Try Reinstalling the Game
- Method 15: Try to Reinstall Windows 10 and Start from Scratch
- Conclusion
Overview
Dragon Age: Inquisition is one of the most popular games in recent years. It’s been out for a while now and many players still enjoy it on a daily basis with no signs of slowing down anytime soon. With all the time that has passed however, there are some gamers who have found themselves experiencing an error message when trying to launch the game.

For those gamers, this blog post will be helpful because we’ll go over what causes Dragon Age inquisition won’t start error messages and how to fix Dragon Age Inquisition problem.
What Prevents Dragon Age: Inquisition From Launching?

The Dragon Age Inquisition won’t launch error is pretty annoying game experience. I have experienced this before, so naturally my first instinct was to Google the hell out of it and see what solutions other people had found for themselves. Turns out that below are the most common causes of this error:
Problem 01: There could be Issues with Administrative Privileges
There are several games and applications that require certain admin privileges to be granted in order to run and function smoothly.
Dragon Age Inquisition could, at one point or another have this issue if the required administrative privileges were not properly given when first launching it. This wouldn’t work well for gamers because they may experience a game crash as soon as their character begins walking out of Lothering’s gates!
Problem 02: Some Third Party Services and Process Running in Background Could be the Culprit
There are some possibilities that one or more third party services and processes running in the background are the culprits in preventing Dragon Age Inquisition from launching properly. This is because these processes could be using some, if not all, of the resources required by the game to launch properly
Problem 03: Optimization Issues with Full-Screen Mode
Games are launched full screen mode in Windows usually by default. However, there are some reported cased where this fullscreen optimization feature causes some interference with the game’s components, causing the game to launch incorrectly or the game does not launch at all.
Problem 04: There Might be Files that are Corrupted or Missing
To ensure that your game is working properly, it’s important to make sure all the necessary files are present and up-to-date. If any of these essential components go missing or become corrupted, there will be a slew of issues with launching and playing games as intended.
Problem 05: There could be Issues with Windows Compatibility
Windows 10 is a great operating system, but it has its share of bugs, and on several occasion, some games won’t work with Windows 10. In the event that a game is not compatible with your operating system, you will have trouble launching it. Fortunately there’s Compatibility Mode that will help fix any errors for programs which don’t function properly on certain versions of windows
Problem 06: There could be Issues with the Installed Version of Direct X and VC Redist
Direct X is an important component for most PC gamers. With Direct X, any games or software can run directly with the video and audio hardware to give you a more enjoyable experience in-game that would otherwise be lost by not using it.
Moreover, Visual C++ Redistributable (VC Redist) is a necessary component for making apps and programs. It lets you use pre-developed code from others, or install it in one installation package to save time with your own coding efforts!
When you are installing a game program or application, it is important to make sure that the version of Direct x and VC Redist components installed in your system does not conflict with one another. If they do, apps and games like Dragon Age Inquisition may not launch properly.
Fix Dragon Age Inquisition Won’t Launch Problem: 15 Methods
Method 01: Try to Grant Administrative Privilege
If you’re a gamer, then at some point in time or another there’s been an instance where your game required certain system files and components that can only be accessed if the application has administrative privileges.
Most of the times, administrative privileges are granted by default to new programs installed on any computer but every once in a while it won’t happen automatically so here is how we’ll force grant special permissions for Dragon Age Inquisition with administrator access:
Step 1: Locate the Dragon Age Inquisition executable in your computer
Step 2: Right click on the file, then select “Run as Administrator”

Method 02: Check if Computer Specifications Comply with Game Requirements
The idea of comparing your PC with the system requirements of a game could be a good way to avoid running into any problems. Some game may not work or launch at all on underpowered machines, and this can be frustrating for customers who want to play it.
You should always research if your PC is up to the task of playing a game. Dragon Age Inquisition has minimum and recommended system requirements which are as follows:
Minimum PC Specs Required:

Recommended PC Specs Required:

Method 03: Try to Temporarily Disable Your Antivirus when Playing
We install antivirus to protect our computer from all sorts of viruses and malwares, but sometimes these programs can mess up by blocking files which are not considered harmful.
For example, an IDP.Generic file is a false positive that may be found on game installations- it’s harmless and shouldn’t cause any problems for most people. But if you’re playing Dragon Age Inquisition and your antivirus has blocked or deleted important game files like this one then it can cause problem when you launch the game
In this regard, you can temporarily disable the antivirus to stop it from deleting important game files and be able to launch a game like Dragon Age Inquisition without any problems. You could also add these game file in your exclusion list so that they won’t get bothered again by your virus protection software
Method 04: Try to Run a Clean Boot and End all Tasks and Services Running in Background
If you’re experiencing issues launching Dragon Age Inquisition, it’s possible that there is a third party service or Windows 10 background processes which could be preventing your application from functioning properly. Below are the steps to take if this sounds like something you’ve been going through.
Step 1: Press Windows + R then enter “msconfig” and press “Ok”.
Step 2: Go to the Services tab then mark the box beside “Hide all Microsoft Services”.

Step 3: Press the “Disable All” button
Step 4: Open your Task Manager then click Startup tab.

Step 5: Disable all the applications that are currently enabled in the startup tab. After that, close the task manager then reboot your PC
Method 05: Try using Compatibility Mode when Running Dragon Age Inquisition
There is a chance that Dragon Age Inquisition won’t launch because it still has some incompatibility issues with Windows 10. This is because Windows 10, the latest OS released by Microsoft and still needs to iron out some bugs and glitches.
Luckily though, there’s a compatibility mode feature on the newest operating system from Microsoft so if you’re struggling or want more information about how this works then follow the steps below!
Step 1: Open its game installation folder and locate the executable (.exe file)
Step 2: Right click on the game executable then select Properties
Step 3: Locate Compatibility tab then check the box beside “Run this program in compatibility mode for”.
Step 4: Select Ok then try to run the game if the Dragon Age Inquisition won’t launch issue is still there.
Method 06: Try to Troubleshoot the Game Compatibility Issue
Just like in Method 05, this is for compatibility issues since there is a possibility that Dragon Age Inquisition is not compatible with Windows 10. But instead, we will try to utilize and run the Compatibility Troubleshooter in the Compatibility tab. See the steps below for the details
Step 1: Open its game installation folder and locate the executable (.exe file)
Step 2: Right click on the game executable then select Properties
Step 3: Proceed to the Compatibility tab then select the “Run compatibility troubleshooter” button then wait for the recommended settings

Step 4: Now, select the option “Try recommended settings”

Step 5: Select “Test the program”

Step 6: Next is to save the settings then reboot your PC
Try to run the game and see if this solves the Dragon Age Inquisition won’t launch issue
Method 07: Try to Reinstall both Direct X and VC Redist
Version of Direct X and VC Redist installed in your system may either be corrupted or not compatible with this game, which could explain why Dragon Age Inquisition not launching issue. Fortunately, versions of the two programs compatible to the game can be located in the game installation folder, so all we need to do is to reinstall them both
For VC Redist
Step 1: Proceed to this path: C:\Program Files (x86)\Origin Games\Dragon Age Inquisition\__Installer\vc
Step2: Launch VCRedist.exe to install the correct version of VC Redist
For Direct X
Step 1: Proceed to this path of the installation folder: C:\Program Files (x86)\Origin Games\Dragon Age Inquisition\__Installer\directx\redist
Step2: Launch DXSetup.exe to start the process and install the compatible version.
Method 08: Verify the Game Files
Corrupted or missing game files could also be one of the reasons why Dragon Age Inquisition fails to launch. This is because in order for a game to launch properly, all the required game files should be free from any errors and must be available for access.
There are varieties of reasons why some game files can go missing or get corrupted, so what we need to do is to verify the game files to make sure everything is working properly. To repair game, follow the steps below.
Step 1: Launch the Dragon Age Origins Client and log-in
Step 2: Once inside the dashboard, select “My Game Library” which can be found at the dashboard’s left side
Step 3: The next thing to do is right click Dragon Age Inquisition
Step4: Click Repair game.
The verification process will commence and if ever it identifies missing and corrupted files, it will get re-downloaded and replaced respectively
After that, try to run the game and see if this solves the Dragon Age Inquisition won’t launch issue
Method 09: Try Checking the Windows Registry for Errors
The next method is to check whether the windows registry values of executable files are correct. The reason being is because when the values of executable files in the registry are not correct, it could pose problems with the applications and programs like Dragon Age Inquisition and it will not launch.
Step 1: Press Windows Button + R to launch the run command box
Step 2: Enter Regedit in the field then press Ok
Step 3: Click the “>” on the left side of “HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT”
Step 4: Locate the “.exe” folder then click it to expose the data it contains
Step 5: Locate the exefile in the main viewing window then click on the Default twice.
Step 6: Replace the value in the “Value data” field to “%1%” then press Ok
Step 7: Locate the folder named “exefile” which can be found under HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT
Step 8: Expand the folder then go to exefile > shell > open
Step 9: Double click “Default” then change “Value data” “%1”%” then press ok.
Method 10: Try Switching off Full Screen Optimizations
Windows launch games in full screen by default. This is because of Window’s full screen optimization feature, which runs game in a borderless window. This feature of Windows makes a smoother game play and more enjoyable, however, this can also cause some problems which can interfere with some of the game’s element and prevent games like Dragon Age Inquisition to launch, so we might just disable it as well.
To disable full screen optimizations of Windows, follow the steps below
Step 1: Locate the executable file (.exe) of Dragon Age Inquisition in the game installation folder
Step 2: Right click on the icon then select “Properties”
Step 3: Click the Compatibility tab then check the box beside “Disable full screen optimizations” as well as the box beside “Run this program as an administrator”

Step 4: Click “OK” to apply the changes then restart your computer
Method 11: Try Clearing the Cache of the Game
When you play some game, they may store temporary files related to the game that are stored in a cache folder. These will make it easier for your computer to load them up quickly when you go back and try again! However, these could also cause problems if they get corrupted and prevent the game from launching properly
So to delete these cache files, follow the steps below
Step 1: End all tasks related to the game in the task manager
Step 2: Enter %ProgramData%/Origin in the search box then press enter
Step 3: Next is to delete all files inside this folder except the folder named “Local Content”
Step 4: Enter %AppData% in the windows search box then press enter
Step 5: Locate the folder named “Origin” and delete it as well
Step 6: Restart your computer
Method 12: Try Updating the Driver of your Graphics Card
Graphics cards can sometimes be a culprit when their drivers are not updated. This is because the outdated driver cannot keep up with games as they update, so you should always make sure to check for updates on your graphics card’s software from time to time.
To update your graphics card, follow the steps below
Step 1: Enter “devmgmt.msc” in the Windows search box then press enter.
Step 2: Locate “Display Adaptors” then click “>” to expand.
Step 3: Right click on your graphics card then select update drivers.

Step 4: A dialog box will popup providing you with two options. Choose “Search automatically for updated driver software“

Step 5: Wait for the process to complete then reboot your computer
Method 13: Try Running the Game With a Dedicated Graphics Card
A good graphics card is the key to a great gaming experience. If you’re having problems with your game, it may be because of an inappropriate GPU setting caused by using weaker Intel chipset..
Just so you know, Dragon Age Inquisition is a resource intensive game and requires a lot of graphics processing power, so make sure your GPU is up to par with the game
We have articles that can help you decide which graphics card is best for you so feel free to check these out:
Method 14: Try Reinstalling the Game
If the methods above did not help resolve the Dragon Age Inquisition not launching issue, the next best bet is to reinstall the game. This is a time consuming method so I strongly suggest trying the first 13 methods first
Method 15: Try to Reinstall Windows 10 and Start from Scratch
Again, just like Method 14, this can be the last option should you fix Dragon Age Inquisition. Reinstalling Windows 10 is also a time consuming method and only do this once all the first 14 methods failed to fix your problem.
Conclusion
The Dragon Age inquisition won’t launch error can be caused by a number of issues. If you’ve been experiencing this problem, then we hope our methods on how to fix the error helped! We would love to hear your experience with fixing the issue in the comments below so that others don’t have to go through all these troubleshooting steps themselves. Good luck and happy gaming!
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