Nexon Games’ The First Descendant came out on June 30, 2024 (pre-order early access), while the actual global release took place on July 2, 2024, and the ride has been quite topsy-turvy for the game. Ever since its release, players have faced several issues in the game that have hindered their playing experience. The crashes and glitches have become so frequent with the game that players are, quite naturally, frustrated with the situation. And who wouldn’t be frustrated if they were using the latest PC with high specs, and yet the game crashes saying you’re out of memory? This is, in fact, one of the biggest and most common problems occurring in The First Descendant. If you’re riddled with the out-of-memory error in The First Descendant, keep reading this guide till the end to find out the possible workarounds for the problem.
The First Descendant is the latest third-person looter shooter game from Nexon. As excited as the players were about the game, the final results have been disappointing. The gameplay is, so to speak, fine. However, the performance factor has been quite abysmal in The First Descendant. Especially with the game continuously crashing or throwing the out of memory error, players are finding it really hard to actually play the game. So, how do you fix the out of memory error in The First Descendant? Let’s find out!
The First Descendant Out of Memory Error: How to Fix?
The out of memory error in the game was portrayed really well in a Steam Discussion post by Steam user JRDugal. They explained that despite having a system with 12GB of VRAM, they kept getting the out-of-memory error. In fact, this has been an issue in most Unreal Engine 5 games. Now, as Nvidia claimed, these issues are, most likely, resulting from the end of Intel. In fact, Intel themselves admitted to Tom’s Hardware that they’re continuing their investigation to find out the root cause of the issue. Meanwhile, you can try the following workarounds to see if your problem can be resolved:
Underclock Your CPU
You can try and underclock your CPU and see if it helps you. For this, you have to open the BIOS settings. Restart your PC, and before it boots up, press the relevant key to open your BIOS. This is usually the F2, or Del, or Esc key on your keyboard (depending on your motherboard manufacturer). Once you’re in the BIOS, go to the Advanced tab. It can also be listed as Performance, or Frequency. Now, search and locate an option like CPU Frequency or CPU Clock Speed or Base Clock. Here, you can underclock your CPU. Set the frequency to 53 or lower, and then save your changes. Now, boot up your PC and run the game. See if it works. You can also use the Intel Extreme Tuning Utility for the same.
Set BIOS settings to default
If the issue persists, you can try switching the BIOS settings to default and then checking if the issue persists. Doing so might be all you need to get rid of this issue.
Update BIOS
If necessary, you can try updating your BIOS and check if the issue persists. Since different motherboard manufacturers have different processes of updating the BIOS, you need to check the website of your system manufacturer to see how to download the BIOS update. Once you have the latest version of BIOS installed on your PC, reboot your device. Then, you can run The First Descendant and check if you’re still getting the error. You can also set the Power Limit in your Bios Settings to 180W, as it did the trick for Steam user Sir.Snappy.
Update Your GPU Drivers
Using outdated GPU drivers can sometimes trigger crashes and out-of-memory errors. Updating your graphics drivers is another simple workaround that often proves to be useful in such cases.
- Press the Windows + X keys together to open the Quick Link Menu.
- Go to Device Manager and open Display Adapters.
- Locate your dedicated GPU and right-click on it.
- Select “Update Drivers” and opt for the “Search automatically for drivers” option.
- Once the download is complete, run the game and see if it worked.
Note that you can also download the GPU updates from the official software of your GPU manufacturer, or their official websites.
Use AMD FSR
You can use the AMD FidelityFX Super Resolution tool to limit the in-game FPS and see if that solves the problem. For this, you have to have the AMD Radeon software downloaded and installed on your device. Then, open the app and go to the Gaming tab. Then, open the game profile for The First Descendant. Now, go to Settings and enable FSR from this menu. Now, look for the Frame Rate Target Control option and limit it to 60 FPS. If your device allows for Frame Generation, then turn it on from the Graphics Settings. From the in-game settings, set the FSR mode to Ultra Performance mode.
Increase Paging File Size
Steam user Bill Waggoner™ shared that you can fix the issue by increasing your system’s virtual memory, also known as page size. For this, follow these steps:
- Press the Windows + R keys together to open the Run Command Box.
- Use the ms-settings prompt to open your device’s settings.
- Open System, and go to About.
- Check the Related Links on the bottom right of your screen and click on Advanced system settings.
- Now select Settings under the Performance tab.
- Go to the Advanced tab here as well, and click on Change under Virtual Memory.
- Uncheck the “Automatically manage paging files size for all drives“.
- Now choose a drive and select Custom Size. Make sure you don’t select the drive where your operating system is installed.
- Set the Initial size and Maximum size: Ensure that the initial size is one and a half times and the maximum size is three times of your available memory.
- Note that according to Bill Waggoner™, you can set the maximum size to 40GB and it should work fine. However, you can also use our recommended paging file sizes.
- Click on OK to save your changes and restart your PC. After this, launch the game.
Change the Power Parameters of Your CPU
Steam user Muñaño shared that they were able to fix the issue by adjusting the CPU power parameters as recommended by Intel. You can find the recommended power parameters for your CPU in the image given below. Adjust the settings and run the game. See if the error persists.
Change Windows Power Mode and Resolution
Another player, named Nyacake on Steam shared that switching from the High Performance Power Plan in the Windows Settings to Power Saver, and then changing the resolution to 1440p fixed the issue for them. Although this fix seems a bit unrelated, consider giving it a try.
Set the FPS Limit to the Lowest
Steam user Localmind shared that you can fix this problem if you set the FPS in-game to the lowest. You can adjust the graphics settings to set the in-game FPS to 30, which is practically the lowest setting for The First Descendant. Then, after the game has compiled, and then you can return to your preferred frame rate. You don’t need to tweak the Ray Tracing option for this workaround.
Well, these are the potential workarounds to fix the out-of-memory error in The First Descendant. Now, until Intel provides something official, you have to depend on these fixes only. Once an official fix is released, we’ll update this guide accordingly. Until then, stay tuned to DigiStatement for more such gaming content and guides.
