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How to bypass Dark Souls 3's game-breaking PC bug

Helmets and low light prevent crashes, somehow.

Dark Souls 3 has finally launched in english. Hurray! But there's a problem: numerous PC players are finding that the game is crashing upon reaching the game's first bonfire only a few minutes in. Uh oh.

While Bandai Namco has yet to issue an official response on the matter, it seems very likely that a fix is in the works. But in the meantime, players have found a way past this game-breaking bug.

As discovered on the Steam Forums, it seems like wearing a full helmet - i.e. one that conceals your character's entire face and hair - alleviates this glitch. Starting as a Knight class will grant you such a helmet.

Furthermore, changing the Lighting setting to "low" seems to help prevent the bug, but it's not foolproof.

Eurogamer contributor and Dark Souls aficionado Rich Stanton loved Dark Souls 3. He called it "a fabulous game, and a fitting conclusion to the greatest trilogy of modern times," in his Dark Souls 3 review. If you're already playing and are encountering any more traditional problems getting through it, check out our Dark Souls 3 guide.