Fix Planet Zoo: Crash at Startup, Black Screen, 100% CPU Usage, Freezing

Planet Zoo is finally available on PC. The Zoo simulation game currently has some known issues that we will address in this guide. Continue reading to find out.

Fix Planet Zoo Issues

Let’s find out how to get rid of these irritating issues and take care of the animals.

Below are the System Requirements of the game:

Minimum Requirements

• Requires a 64-bit processor and operating system
• OS: Windows 7 (SP1+)/8.1/10 64bit
• Processor: Intel i5-2500 / AMD FX-6350
• Memory: 8 GB RAM
• Graphics: NVIDIA GeForce GTX 770 (2GB) / AMD Radeon R9 270X (2GB)
• Storage: 16 GB available space

Recommend Requirements

• Requires a 64-bit processor and operating system
• OS: Windows 10 64bit
• Processor: Intel i7-4770k / AMD Ryzen 5 1600
• Memory: 16 GB RAM
• Graphics: NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1070 (8GB) or AMD Radeon RX 580 (8GB)
• Storage: 16 GB available space

First look at the settings tell us that the game is pretty demanding, you need a good gaming RIG to run this game at recommended settings. If your PC hardware falls in between these, then you should not have any trouble running the game.

Planet Zoo High CPU Usage 100%

Players on Reddit are reporting that the game is leading to 100% CPU usage, this is further leading to stuttering and freezing in the game.

The developer has acknowledged this issue, and the only way to get rid of this issue would be locking your FPS to 30. Locking a game to 30 FPS in 2019 is a nightmare, so I would recommend you wait for the hotfix update which will be arriving soon.

Fix Planet Zoo Crash at Startup

Players on forums are reporting that they are facing constant crashing issues in the game. The developer has acknowledged the issue and is working on a fix. There are a few things that you can do to get rid of this error for the time being.

Turn off Anti-Virus

For some reason, your anti-virus or the firewall might be messing with the game. It is advised that you add the game to the exceptions.

Disable Full-Screen Optimization

Full-screen optimization and DPI settings come pre-configured with Windows 10. These are known for causing trouble with games leading to several issues. To disable:

• Locate the game installation
• Find the .exe file of the game
• Right-click > Properties > Compatibility Tab
• Tick the “Disable Full-Screen Optimizations” tab
• Now, click the “Change high DPI settings” button
• Tick “Override high DPI scaling behavior” and select “Application” from the drop-down menu
• Save Settings.

Run Game with Administrative Rights

• Right-click the game’s .exe file
• Click on “Run as administrator”

Running as administrator gives the game administrative rights and allows it to run with escalated permissions.

Disable Msi Afterburner or Any Overclocking App

If you’re facing the crashing issue with your game, then I’d recommend you to check for any overclocking related apps running. 9 out of 10 times, the problem is caused by MSI Afterburner or the Zotac Firestorm. Turning them off or toning down the overclocking settings should fix the problem.

There are videos on YouTube that you can check if you are having trouble turning any of these things off.

Planet Zoo DirectX Crash

Some players are reporting that their game crashes randomly and gives a DirectX or Fatal Error. This is also a known error and the developer is working on fixing it. However, there’s workaround for the time being; Lock your game FPS to 30, also make sure your GPU is not overclocked.

After doing all this, most of the game-problems should be ironed out. Do comment below if this guide helped you out.