How to Fish Wiki

Troubleshooting

Black Screen on Launch

How to Fish is a 3D Steam title that depends on the GPU and the Steam overlay. A black screen on launch is almost always one of three things: the GPU is using a software fallback, the Steam overlay has crashed, or the game files on disk are corrupted.

Reference in-game scene — what a working display should look like before the screen goes black
Reference in-game scene — what a working display should look like before the screen goes black

Common Causes

Three causes cover most reports. First, the game is being rendered by a low-power integrated GPU instead of the discrete GPU — common on laptops with hybrid graphics. Second, the Steam overlay has crashed and the game is sitting on a blank frame. Third, one or more game files on disk are corrupted from a botched update or a power loss.

Fixes

Try the steps below in order. Most players resolve the issue in the first three steps.

Step-by-Step

  1. 1.Force How to Fish to use your discrete GPU (NVIDIA Control Panel → Manage 3D Settings → Program Settings → add the executable, set High-performance).
  2. 2.Disable the Steam overlay for the game (Right-click in Steam → Properties → General → uncheck Enable Steam Overlay).
  3. 3.Verify game files (Right-click in Steam → Properties → Installed Files → Verify).
  4. 4.Update your GPU driver to the latest stable release.
  5. 5.If the issue persists, restart Steam entirely and re-launch the game.

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