Games on Android constantly crash: reasons and solutions

You downloaded a new game, completed the tutorial, started enjoying the gameplay - and suddenly the application suddenly closes. Or worse: the game crashes on the loading screen, preventing you from even starting to play. Is this a familiar situation? Game crashes on Android are one of the most common problems faced by gamers on mobile devices. The reasons may lie both in the hardware limitations of the smartphone and in software failures, and sometimes the developers themselves are to blame for not optimizing the game for specific models.

In this article we will not just list possible reasons, but will give specific instructions how to diagnose and fix the problem - from basic actions (clearing the cache, updating software) to advanced (change of developer settings, firmware rollback). We will pay special attention Redmi, Samsung Galaxy to other popular models, where crashes occur more often due to aggressive optimization of energy consumption. And if you are not confident in your abilities, there is a quick checklist at the end of the article.

1. Insufficient RAM (RAM)

The most obvious reason for crashes is lack of RAM. Modern games (for example, Genshin Impact, Call of Duty: Mobile or PUBG New State) require 3 GB RAM and above. If several background applications are running on your device (messengers, social networks), the system may force close the game to free up resources.

How to check:

• 📱 Open Settings → Device care → Memory (on Samsung) or Settings → Applications → Memory (on clean Android).
• 🔍 See how much memory is currently occupied. If less than 500 MB is free, this is a critical level.
• 🎮 Launch the game and watch the indicators in real time (use applications like Game Booster or DevCheck).

Solutions:

• 🧹 Close all background applications before starting the game (use the "Clear all" button in the multitasking menu).
• 🔄 Enable game mode in the settings (at Xiaomi: Settings → Accessibility → Game mode).
• 🛠️ Install light firmware (for example, LineageOS) if your device is outdated.

⚠️ Attention: On devices with 2 GB RAM (for example, Redmi 5A, Samsung Galaxy J2) most modern games will crash regardless of optimization. Consider upgrading your device.

2. Processor overheating

Mobile processors (especially Snapdragon 8xx and Mediatek Helio) are prone to thermal throttling automatic decrease in performance when overheated. If the chip temperature exceeds 70-80°C, the system may force close the game to avoid hardware damage. Most often this happens:

• 🌡️ In hot weather or in direct sunlight.
• 🔋 When charging while playing (especially on fast charges 30W+).
• 🎮 In resource-intensive games with high graphics settings.

How diagnose:

• Install the application CPU Monitor or AIDA64 and check the processor temperature during the game.
• If the temperature rises above 75°C this is a critical indicator.

Solutions:

• 🧊 Remove the case from the smartphone (it may block the heat sink).
• 🔌 Do not play while charging (or use charging power no more than 10W).
• 🖥️ Lower the graphics settings in the game (turn off anti-aliasing, shadows, lower the resolution).
• 🛠️ Replace the thermal paste (relevant for dismountable devices like Samsung Galaxy S older models).

3. Conflicts with firmware or updates

Errors in the firmware are one of the most insidious reasons for crashes. For example, after updating Android 13 many users Pixel i OnePlus faced problems with game compatibility. Also, crashes can be caused by:

• 🤖 Beta versions Android (unstable builds).
• 📱 Custom firmware (for example, MIUI on Xiaomi with localization errors).
• 🔄 Incomplete updates (when the firmware was downloaded but not installed correctly).

How to check:

1. Check the firmware version in Settings → About phone → MIUI/Android version.
2. Check reviews of the latest update on the forums (for example, 4PDA or XDA Developers).
3. If the update was released recently (less than 2 weeks ago), there is a high probability bugs.

Solutions:

• 🔙 Roll back to the previous firmware version (instructions for Samsung, Xiaomi and other brands are different).
• 📥 Install the update manually via Recovery Mode (download the full package from the manufacturer's official website).
• 🛠️ Reset the settings to factory settings (after saving the data first!).

⚠️ Attention: Rolling back the firmware may lead to locking the bootloader on some devices (for example, Huawei after EMUI 10).Check the risks for your model!

Brand	Problematic firmware version	Typical symptoms	Solution
Xiaomi (MIUI)	MIUI 14 (Android 13)	Crashes in Genshin Impact, Honor of Kings	Disable "MIUI Optimization" in the developer settings
Samsung (One UI)	One UI 5.1	Freezes in Call of Duty: Mobile	Clear cache through Recovery Mode
Realme/Oppo (ColorOS)	ColorOS 13	Black screen when starting games	Disable "Game Spatial Sound"

4. Errors in game data or cache

Corrupted game files or a full cache are a common cause of crashes. This can happen after:

• 📥 Incomplete loading of the game (for example, if the game is downloaded). was interrupted).
• 🗃️ Automatic clearing of the cache by system optimizers (for example, Clean Master).
• 🔄 Game updates "on top" of the old version without a complete reinstallation.

How to clear the cache:

1. Go in Settings → Applications → [Game name] → Memory.
2. Click "Clear cache" (do not delete data, otherwise you will lose progress!).
3. If this does not help, delete the game data (attention: progress will be lost!).

How to reinstall the game correctly:

• 📲 Delete the game via Settings → Applications (not just from the desktop!).
• 🗃️ Delete the folder with residual files in /Android/obb/[game name] (use a file manager).
• 🔄 Restart your device.
• 📥 Download the game again from Google Play (do not use APK from third-party sources!).

Delete the game via settings|Check the OBB folder|Reboot the phone|Download the game only from Google Play|Check the free space on the device-->

5. Aggressive battery optimization

Smartphone manufacturers (especially Xiaomi, Huawei, Oppoactively use battery optimization functions that can Forcibly close games run in the background. This is done to save battery, but often leads to crashes.

Symptoms of the problem:

• The game crashes when the screen is locked or switched to another application.
• In the error logs (viewed via Logcat) there is a mention android.os.PowerManager.
• On devices Xiaomi in the battery settings, the game is marked as "Limited".

How to disable optimization:

• 🔋 On Xiaomi: Settings → Battery → Battery optimization → All applications → [Game] → Unlimited.
• ⚡ On Samsung: Settings → Device care → Battery → Background mode → Deep sleep → Remove the game from the list.
• 🛠️ Clean Android: Settings → Applications → [Game] → Advanced → Battery → Battery optimization → No restrictions.

Additional settings:

• 🔄 Enable performance mode in the game settings (if available).
• 📵 Disable "Adaptive Battery" in Settings → Battery → Settings batteries.

How to check error logs?

Install Logcat Extreme from Google Play → launch the game → wait for the crash → open the logs and look for lines with FATAL EXCEPTION or ANR (Application Not Responding).

6. Incompatibility with hardware or drivers

Some games (especially those with support Vulkan API or Ray Tracing) require specific GPU drivers. If your device uses outdated drivers (for example, on Mali-G72 or Adreno 5xx), the game may crash with a rendering error.

How to check compatibility:

• 📋 Check the game requirements in Google Play (section "Required").
• 🔍 Find out your GPU model via AIDA64 or DevCheck.
• 🌐 Check the list of supported devices on the official website of the game.

Solutions:

• 🔄 Update the GPU drivers (on some devices this can be done through Settings → System → Software Update).
• 🎯 Enable or disable Force GPU Rendering in the developer settings (Settings → About phone → Build number (tap 7 times) → Developer settings → Force GPU processing).
• 🛠️ Install an alternative version of the game (for example PUBG Mobile Lite instead of the standard one PUBG).

Critical information: On devices with processors Mediatek Helio G80/G90 (for example, Redmi Note 9, Realme 6there are often problems with games on Unreal Engine 4 due to errors in the drivers. The solution is to roll back the version of the game or wait for a patch from the developers.

7. Viruses, root access and modified APK

If you installed games from third-party sources (not Google Play), the risk of crashes increases significantly. Reasons:

• 🦠 Viruses or Trojans masquerading as games (especially in APKs with “hacked” graphics).
• 🔓 Modified versions of games (with cheats or remote protection) that conflict with Google Play Services.
• 🛠️ root access that break security mechanisms (for example, How to check security: Scan the device via data-i="213">📋 Make sure the game has been verified SafetyNet).

How to check security:

• 🛡️ Scan your device via Malwarebytes or Dr.Web.
• 🔍 Check the hash of the APK file on the website VirusTotal.
• 📋 Make sure the game has been verified Google Play Protect.

Solutions:

• 🚫 Remove all games not installed from Google Play.
• 🔄 Disable root access for the game (via Magisk or SuperSU).
• 🛠️ Reflash your device if you suspect a deep infection.

⚠️ Attention: Games with root access (for example, emulators or cheats) can lead to account bans Developers (MiHoYo, Tencent, Supercell) are actively fighting modified clients.

FAQ: Frequently asked questions about game crashes on Android

Is it possible to restore progress after clearing the game data?

Yes, if the game supports synchronization with your account Google Play Games, Facebook or its own server (for example MiHoYo Account for Genshin Impact) After reinstallation, log in to your account - progress will be restored automatically. If synchronization was not enabled, progress will be lost.

Why does the game crash only on Wi-Fi, but works fine on mobile data?

Possible reasons:

1. Problems with MTU (Maximum Transmission Unit) in the router. Try changing the value to 1472.
2. Packet blocking by antivirus or parental controls on the router.
3. Unstable connection (check ping to the game servers via PingTools).

Solution: reboot the router, turn off the VPN (if you use it) or try connecting to another Wi-Fi network.

How to find out if the firmware is to blame for the crashes?

Do the following:

1. Check if they crash whether all games or just one.
2. Install OpenGL ES Info and check whether the required game versions are supported OpenGL ES 3.2 or Vulkan 1.1.
3. Look at reviews about firmware on the forums (for example, 4PDA).

If the problem is widespread, the firmware is to blame. If only one game crashes, the problem is in it itself.

Does a factory reset help with game crashes?

Yes, but only if the reason is:

• Conflicts with other applications.
• Damaged system settings.
• Residual files from old versions of the game.

Before resetting, save the data (photos, contacts, messages) and the list of installed applications (you can through Titanium Backup).

What games crash most often on Android?

According to statistics from forums and user reports, most often they complain about crashes in:

• Genshin Impact (especially on devices with Mali-G76 i Adreno 618).
• Call of Duty: Mobile (problems with Unity on Android 12+).
• PUBG New State (requires OpenGL ES 3.2+).
• Honor of Kings (conflicts with MIUI 13+).
• Free Fire (crashes on devices with 2 GB RAM).