Fix Halo CE DX Fatal Error on Windows PC

A lot of users when trying to play Halo Combat Evolved, are seeing the following error message.

Halo – Fatal Error
Problem: We are sorry, but you need to have DirectX 9.0b installed to run this program. Please run Halo PC setup again to install DirectX.

There are two kinds of users experiencing Halo CE DX Fatal Error, one who has no clue what DirectX is, the other, who knows that the tool is installed on their system, but the issue still pops up. Not anymore, in this article, we are going to resolve this issue with ease. So, if you are seeing, Halo CE DX Fatal Error, then you are at the right place.

Before fixing the Fatal error in Halo, you need to know what’s causing the issue. Usually, the issue is caused because of a lack of DirectX. So, obviously, you need to install it on your computer to resolve the issue. However, you can not install any version of DirectX and expect the game to work.

For some users, installing DirectX doesn’t help, and for some, the tool is already installed and is working perfectly with other games. If you are one of them, then you should start troubleshooting from the second solution. But first, make sure to install the latest version of Windows on your computer.

Fix Halo CE DX Fatal Error on Windows PC

If you are seeing Halo CE DX Fatal Error on your Windows 11/10 computer, then try the following solutions to resolve the issue.

Install DirectX
Update or Install Visual C++ Redistributable
Open the game in windowed mode
Open the game as an administrator
Run the game in Compatibility Mode
Perform a clean installation of the game

Let us talk about them in detail.

1] Install DirectX

Let us start troubleshooting with a solution made obvious by the error message itself. We need to install DirectX on your computer. The tool is from Microsoft, so, there is no need to worry about it being a virus or unsafe in any shape or form. Go ahead and download DirectX. Then, install it on your system, restart the computer and try reopening Halo CE. Hopefully, it will work for you.

2] Update or Install Visual C++ Redistributable

With DirectX, you need Visual C++ Redistributable. This tool is very important for games, as they work along with DirectX to give it an environment to run. You should install the latest version of Visual C++ Redistributable on your Windows computer, restart the system and see if the issue is resolved.

3] Open the game in windowed mode

For a lot of users, opening Halo in Windowed Mode has worked as the reason for the issue on their computer is incompatibility. This can be a reason for your system as well. So, what we are going to do is follow the given steps and launch the game in Windowed Mode.

Right-click on Halo and click Properties.
Make sure that you are on the Shortcut tab.
Append -windowed in the Target field.
Click Apply > Ok.

Relaunch the game and hopefully, it will work out for you.

4] Open the game as an administrator

The issue can occur because of a lack of permission. To grant all the permissions, we need to run the game as an administrator. To do that, you can follow the prescribed steps.

Right-click on the game and go to Properties.
Click on the Compatibility tab.
Tick Run this program as an administrator.
Click Apply > Ok.

Restart the game, hopefully, it will work for you.

5] Run the game in compatibility mode

Even though Halo CE works on Windows 11/10 computers, it is an old game and works better on older OS. With compatibility mode, we are going to give the game an environment of the older Windows in order to run smoothly. Follow the given steps to do the same.

Right-click on the game and go to Properties.
Click on the Compatibility tab.
Tick Run this program in compatibility mode.
Select Windows 7 from the drop-down menu.
Click Apply > Ok.

Restart the system and reopen the game.

6] Perform a clean installation of the game

If nothing worked for you, then try a clean installation of the game and this time, make sure to read all the documents and tick all the checkboxes as it asks you whether you want to install the features or not. You should only untick the features that you know you already have on your system. Hopefully, this will do the job for you.

We have hope that you are able to resolve the issue with the given solutions.

What DirectX does Halo CE use?

Halo CE uses DirectX 9.0 or later. If you want to know which version you have just open DirectX Diagnostic Tool. To do that, open Run, type “dxdiag” and hit Enter. If you don’t have to required version, go to the first solution and install it.

How do I fix Halo crash on PC?

The most common reason why Halo keeps crashing on a PC is system requirements. If your system does not meet the minimum hardware requirements, you will experience several issues like crashing, freezing, etc. If your system fulfills the hardware requirements, you can use some fixes like updating or reinstalling your graphics driver, verifying the integrity of game files, disabling In-game Overlay, etc.