Since the 2.18 update, arma3_x64.exe crashes right before showing the main menu in Windows 7 64 bit.
The 64 bit executable was working fine up to version 2.16. Reverting to the 2.16 branch from the main branch (2.18)using Steam allows the game to work fine again with no issues, which proves that the source of the problem can be tracked down to something different introduced in the v2.18 x64 executable. Nothing has been changed in the operative system, drivers, DirectX or VCC redistributables in the affected PC.
The 32bit executable of the 2.18 version on the other hand is able to load the main menu. I've not tried to enter any game though. But even if this was possible, the performance is very low and unsuitable to play in heavy public servers such as KOTH, which is why I switched to the 64 bit version years ago.
Solutions that didn't fix the issue:
- Switching the memory allocator didn't work
- Verifying the cache through Steam didn't work
- Switching to the legacy v2.16 branch and switching back to the main 2.18 branch, reinstalling all the files didn't work
Relevant fragment of the crash rpt:
{F4453148}
```
15:31:02 Creating action map cache
15:31:02 MovesType CfgGesturesMale load time 404.0 ms
15:31:02 Loading movesType CfgMovesMaleSdr
15:31:02 Creating action map cache
15:31:12 Warning: looped for animation: a3\anims_f_epa\data\anim\sdr\cts\hubcleaned\briefing\hubbriefing_loop.rtm differs (looped now 1)! MoveName: hubbriefing_loop
15:31:12 Warning: looped for animation: a3\anims_f_epa\data\anim\sdr\cts\hubcleaned\briefing\hubbriefing_loop.rtm differs (looped now 0)! MoveName: hubbriefing_ext
15:31:12 Warning: looped for animation: a3\anims_f_epa\data\anim\sdr\cts\hubcleaned\spectator\hubspectator_stand.rtm differs (looped now 0)! MoveName: hubspectator_stand
15:31:14 MovesType CfgMovesMaleSdr load time 11280.0 ms
=======================================================
-------------------------------------------------------
Exception code: C000001D ILLEGAL_INSTRUCTION at 3FDF79A3
```
The crash happens just when the game is about to show the world scene in the main menu.
The full rpt is attached to this report.
Could it be something related to a new Visual C++ redistributable version that the v2.18 is using and that somehow was not installed with the steam update?