protonscr

[BUG] Half Life Alyx crash when loading saves

steamvropen bug
ValveSoftware/SteamVR-for-Linux#482 · opened 2021-11-21 by j0sk · updated 2025-12-14 · 9 comments · github
Jj0sk 2021-11-21 github

Describe the bug
When you are killed in the game then load save games user interface is shown. When you click to load save game then Half Life Alyx crash like 70% of times.

To Reproduce
Steps to reproduce the behavior:

  1. Open SteamVR and then Half Life Alyx. Be sure that in Linux you are opening native (non proton) version of game with Vulkan api.
  2. Load your existing save game
  3. Die in game
  4. User interface menu of saved games is displayed
  5. Click one of the saved games
  6. 70% times whole game crash

Expected behavior
Save game should be loaded without crashing the whole game.

System Information (please complete the following information):

Screenshots
N/A

Additional context
I found that same error exists with Windows when Vulkan API is used. One solution to avoid this issue is minimize the game on the monitor. That fixed issue on the Windows and I was able to create on KDE Plasma Desktop window rule that automatic minimize the "hlvr" window on monitor. That fixed this issue too on linux. Without that window rule there is no way to minimize the game on monitor.

This way I made the window rule:

Launch Steam and Steam VR

Launch the game and stay on the menu

ALT+TAB to your Plasma desktop

Open Plasma SETTINGS > WINDOW MANAGEMENT > WINDOW RULES > ADD NEW

Fill the form:
Description: Half Life Alyx fix
Window class (application): Exact Match hlvr
Match whole window class: no
Window types: All selecteted

Add property: Size and Minimized

Settings for size:
Apply initially 800 600 (It may be good that it is running on small window too)

Settings for minimized:
Force Yes

Press APPLY

Now Half Life game should be minimized on monitor

Put your VR Helmet on and start playing. Now it shouldn't crash any more during the loading the save games

This issue is well known:
https://www.reddit.com/r/HalfLifeAlyx/comments/k85k0s/game_crash_or_steamvr_crash_when_loading_saves/
https://www.reddit.com/r/HalfLifeAlyx/comments/oj8pv2/alyx_crashes_exclusively_when_loading_late_saves/
https://www.reddit.com/r/HalfLifeAlyx/comments/i6r10l/loading_screen_crashes_fix/
https://www.reddit.com/r/HalfLifeAlyx/comments/o9i4q0/half_life_alyx_crashes_steamvr_when_loading_need/

Note: Commenters who are also experiencing this issue are encouraged to include the "System Information" section in their replies.

I hope that this game will get real fix for this issue.

AAndreuha 2022-01-05 github

Experiencing the same issue. Saves about half way through Chapter 8 no longer load.
Tried many things.
Only a few saves in the list are visible so there's no apparent way to backtrack except with a significant reversion or starting a new game from the same chapter.

Ffrankvoelker 2022-01-14 github

Same here, first fresh start with Vulkan is ok but after dying and loading a savegame game either crashes completely or I have very bad inconsistency betweeen left and right eye, image is "jumping" around, when I turn my head it does not follow correctly... bad headache

Ookawo80085 2022-01-14 github

Half-Life: Alyx crashes SteamVR with -203 so consistently that i use it as a test for -203 crashes. Same symptoms, crashes on second/third scene loads, doesn't matter if its a death, level transition, checkpoint load, any scene load really.

Funny thing is that the game itself doesn't crash, usually only vrcompositor does (usually on texture the update call), more info in #452.

Ttopin89 2022-01-15 github

Experiencing the same issue. Saves about half way through Chapter 8 no longer load. Tried many things. Only a few saves in the list are visible so there's no apparent way to backtrack except with a significant reversion or starting a new game from the same chapter.

Just got the same, but on Windows. Most common answer was "just minimize it all with Win-D". Most unexpectedly, it helped. Maybe problems are related, maybe not. Second part, most cases, my included, starts with "but I have 2080/3060/etc". I'm also not sure if this is related.

Ookawo80085 2022-01-16 github

Experiencing the same issue. Saves about half way through Chapter 8 no longer load. Tried many things. Only a few saves in the list are visible so there's no apparent way to backtrack except with a significant reversion or starting a new game from the same chapter.

Just got the same, but on Windows. Most common answer was "just minimize it all with Win-D". Most unexpectedly, it helped. Maybe problems are related, maybe not. Second part, most cases, my included, starts with "but I have 2080/3060/etc". I'm also not sure if this is related.

Interesting, I'll try out that fix on Linux next time I get some free time.

BBurAndBYsAlt 2022-08-02 github

mdmpde.txt
Have the same issue, maybe decoded mdmp helps figure out the stuff.
ntdll!NtGetContextThread+0x14: 00007ffa'b018ed74 c3 ret!
P.S.: It happened at several times at the same place with the same exception. Maybe some of my files are corrupted???

XXDM-Inc 2022-12-11 github

same here if i try to use a older version a steamVR

Rrdeforest 2024-03-09 github

Switching to native Linux version fixed this for me (and some other stuff I didn't even know was broken)

MMichaelMacha 2025-12-14 github

I'm having the same issue on KUbuntu 24.04, but can add a few details. This didn't happen at all, until right after the beginning of Chapter 8 for me (Captivity). Fresh loads work fine; but mid-game loads are hit-or-miss, which is another thing suggesting to me that this might be a memory management issue. I also have occasions when I am apparently teleported into the middle of a wall during a load.

It may be unrelated, but that has also happened to me a few times in-game. I get an orange screen with no way out... I suspect it may be a completely different bug, but it might be relevant.

Don't get me wrong, other than this it's an amazing game; but it's also around a half-decade old at this point and I'm a little surprised this stuff is still cropping up.

Oh, also, I'm using the HTC Vive (the original) and am definitely running Linux native.

Nothing extracted yet.