How to fix the general error in Victoria 3

In Victoria 3, it's possible to get hit with the 'general error issue' within the game's launcher that's stopping some players from being able to load up and begin their Victoria journey. Check out how to fix the Victoria 3 general error.

• Once you are in, why not check out our Victoria 3 starter tips, which covers some useful ways to get better at the game.

How to fix the general error in Victoria 3

Click to enlarge

The general error is a problem with Victoria 3's launcher that displays the following message:

"we were unable to parse the launcher settings file. Settings.formatVersion should be integer. Settings.formatVersion should be equal to constant. Make sure you have a valid configuration and try again."

As the issue is with the launcher, it means the main files for the game are probably ok. Paradox will likely deploy a hotfix for this bug soon, but in the meantime, you may want to know how to fix it and get into the game. We have a few tips that have worked for us to fix the launcher.

Restart your game

The first thing you should try is restarting your Steam client, which may cause the bug to fix itself, making the launcher work next time you start the game from your library. You can also try restarting your whole PC for the same effect.

Enable debug mode

Right-click Victoria 3 in your Steam library and select 'Properties.' Under the 'Launch Options' tab, type into the text box "-debug_mode", then exit Steam before attempting to launch the game again. 

FormatVersion 

Locate the Victoria 3 files on your PC and select the 'Launcher' folder. Open 'launcher-settings.json' and then change the 'FormatVersion' to 1. Relaunch the game on Steam again and it should work. 

That's all for our primer on how to fix the general error in Victoria 3, and now you should be able to get into the game.

We also cover the best countries to play in Victoria 3, if you want some help choosing your starting nation.