How To Fix PS4/PS5 Game Crashing Issue?

PlayStation 5 is one of the most popular gaming consoles, with 14M+ units sold, while PS4 is in a different league, with 51M+ units sold at the time of writing this. Both consoles offer a huge list of games like Returnals, Spider-Man: Miles Morales, and others. However, based on the latest dump of reports we at GetDroidTips received as well as ones posted on the PlayStation community, Reddit, and other forums, users are facing PS4/PS5 game crashing issues.

Potential Reasons Why Your PS4/PS5 Crashed

PlayStation 5 doesn’t have a factory defect (at least that we know of) that would explain why users are reporting PS5 crashing issues. This means there can be varied issues crashing the console. I have mentioned some issues that might be behind your PS5 crashing or freezing.

Outdated system software
Overheating issue
Aggressive reset mode
Hardware issue
Enabled HDMI device link
Outdated game version

Pull of a restart

You just encountered a problem with your PS5, the first thing that comes to mind is if restarting the console can help. Well, if you thought it would, you are almost right because many times, the PS5 or technically any other device would crash, it’s because of temporary issues and that is where a good tug in the form of restart or reboot makes everything go away. Here’s how you can do it

Press the power button for a few seconds.
Release as soon as you hear two beeps as that’s your cue. Disconnect the console from the power outlet, you can remove the plug.
Wait for a minute so everything settles down.
Connect the power plug and press the power button and viola, at least some of you got the issue fixed if not all.
If it doesn’t seem to fix the issue, proceed with the next method.

Disable Rest Mode

Both PS4 and PS5 have a rest mode that the console enters when reporting no activity from the user. It is a power-saving mode and consumes less power during the process. You can set how soon you want the rest mode to kick in after there’s no activity or you are just thinking about what to play on the home screen but don’t make any movements.

However, aggressive rest mode is a thing that has often caused games to crash or freeze or even cause the console to randomly shutdown. Other users are struggling with crashing issues after they wake their console from rest mode. Here’s how you can disable rest mode until the air is clear.
For PS5:

Go to Settings.
Proceed to “System >> Power Saving >> Set Time Until PS5 Enters Enter Mode”.
You need to set the timer that goes off and activates Rest Mode when left idle and inactive. Set it to “Don’t Put in Reset Mode”.

For PS4:

Go to Settings.
Navigate to “Power Save Options”.
Click on “Set Features Available in Rest Mode”.
Tap on the first option i.e. Supply Power to USB Ports and set it to “Off”.
Uncheck “Stay Connected to the Internet”.
Uncheck “Enable Turning on PS4 over Network”.
Uncheck “Keep Application Suspended”.

Check the power cord

An inconsistent or loose connection between the console and the power cord can hamper its performance. Now, you need to make sure that the power cord is firmly attached to the outlet and the console. Here’s how you should do it.

First, turn off PS4/PS5 and disconnect the primary power cord.
Verify if the power cord you are using is actually okay or damaged. Slight cuts and bruises on the cable can render it useless. Take a few minutes here and there.
Now, connect the power cord to the PlayStation consoles.
Power On the console and check if the game is running properly or if it is still crashing.

Update the particular game

Developers push updates to their games every now and then to include new in-app purchases, missions, tasks, UI and graphics upgrades, and whatnot. Among the updates, there will be bug patches that resolve previously discovered bugs. Unless you keep on updating the game with the latest patches available, there’s a fat chance that you will end up with a game crashing issue. Thus, updating does help. Here’s how to do it.

Go to the game library on your console.
Hover on the game you want to check for updates and tap on it, go to its options and select ‘Check For Updates’. Make sure you are connected to the internet and download the update (if available).
If the problem persists, the next thing you can do is to uninstall/delete and reinstall the game.

Reinstall the game

You either have a digital game or a game stored on a disc on both PS4 and PS5. This means you can delete and download the game for a digital title while a game on the disc requires uninstallation and reinstallation from the disc. Note that this method works the best if a specific game or a few ones are crashing abruptly but not other games and the system itself.
If it’s a digital game:-

Go to the Game Library of your console, proceed to Options and select the game that you want to sack.
Tap on Delete and there you go.
Go to My PlayStation >> Game Library >> Purchased.
Now, download the game that you want to and install it.
Link the game you want to with either PS4 or PS5 and you are done.

If it’s a game on a disc:-
Since you are using a disc-based game, you don’t have to do much stuff here. Simply search for the game in the library and hit the Delete button. You can save data on the game if you want for later. Since you already have the game on a disc, put the disc in the drive and you can play it anytime.

Play from the beginning

Both consoles let you save progress as the game saves at certain points in the game. This means you can join the exact moment you left the next time you want to play the game. However, if the game saves is corrupted, this will cause the game to crash as well. Try playing the game from the beginning and check if it makes any difference.

Update the PS4/PS5 system software

Every time a game crashes, there’s either hardware or the software behind it. Let’s tackle the software part here. Note that you need to keep the system software up to date as it does make sure your games run smoothly on the console. Here’s how you can do it.
First up, go to Settings >> System >> System Software >> System Software Update and Settings.
Next up, enable both “Download Update Files Automatically” and “Install updates Files Automatically”.
Next, select the option “Update System Software” and select “Update Using the Internet”. You should get a list of updates available on both PS4/PS5.
Once you get an update available, download it and install and that’s all.

Alternatively,

You can use the option “Update from USB Drive” and use a pretty extensive set of instructions to update the system.

Fix the overheating issue

Your PlayStation console is running games which is a pretty resource-drenching and heavyweight workout for machines. Overheating is one of the many potential issues on consoles, and unfortunately, you might be witnessing the game on your PS4 or PS5 gaming consoles.

Several things can trigger overheating issues, be it poor airflow, dust, and debris inside the vents, heavyweight graphics rendering for a longer duration, and so on. To check whether your console is overheating, see if the console is too hot to touch and if there’s hot air blowing out of the vents. Overheated PS will also make loud noises since the cooler will have to do more work. The side-effects of overheating can be seen in-game such as with frame drops and stutter to name a few.

You should place the console in a clean and cool space with ample room around it.
Check if all vents are clear, and use a cloth to clean the surface for any dust buildup.
Even if you are playing high-octane AAA titles, restrict gaming for a shorter time with intervals in-between to get the temperature back to normal.

Rebuild Database

If you ever encounter PS4/PS5 game crashing issues, you can try rebuilding the database. This process scans through the system to find and fix corrupted files and errors.

Turn off the PlayStation (4 or 5).
Press and hold the power button for a few seconds and release it when you hear two quick beeps.
Once you are in Safe Mode, connect the controller using the USB-A slot.
Scroll to “Rebuild Database” and click on it. The option is #5 on both PS4 and PS5.
Check if the game that would crash abruptly is working now or not.

Perform a factory reset on the console

This is practically the swiss army knife of troubleshooting methods. If there’s any speck of software glitch or issue left, performing a factory reset will do wonders in clearing it out.
To do a factory reset on PS4: Go to Settings >> Initialisation >> Initialize PS4. Repeat the instructions mentioned on the screen.
To do a factory reset on PS5: Go to System >> System Software >> reset Options >> Reset Your Console.
Note that You can use Safe Mode to Reset PS4/PS5 as well.

Reach out to PlayStation Support

If you can’t seem to rule out what’s causing the problem and most importantly, if the game crashing issue is happening because of a unique issue, you can reach out to PlayStation Support. The folks can help you fix the issue with resolutions specifically targeted to your console after narrowing down the culprit.

If there’s a hardware issue, well, you will have to contact PlayStation Support and get it fixed. You can report it to a local service center though, although I wouldn’t recommend it. Make sure you have a description of what’s wrong along with a screenshot or video when reaching out to the Support team.

Closing Words

This was an extensive piece on how to fix the PS4/PS5 game crashing issue that a lot of users have complained about for a long time now. Hope these troubleshooting methods help you in fixing the issue. You can always reach out to us when it does or if it doesn’t.