Windows 11’s August update is crashing some games; Microsoft links reports to RGB drivers

Microsoft is investigating game crashes and unexpected reboots on Windows 11 following the August Patch Tuesday update KB5121003. The company says the issue appears tied to systems with RGB‑equipped peripherals or components that install drivers with names like “inpoutx64,” and it has not yet identified a specific device or software as the root cause.

The reports began after KB5121003 rolled out on August 11. Microsoft acknowledges symptoms that include games becoming unresponsive, closing without warning, throwing EXCEPTION_ACCESS_VIOLATION errors, and—on some systems—triggering a sudden reboot. The problem has been seen on Windows 11 24H2 (build 26100.9168) and 25H2 (build 26200.9168) after installing the update.

What Microsoft has confirmed

In a support note referenced by multiple outlets, Microsoft says it is actively investigating whether KB5121003 is responsible for the inability to run certain games as expected. The company’s latest detail connects affected systems to RGB hardware or software that deploys drivers/components with filenames similar to inpoutx64. No permanent fix is available yet, and Microsoft has asked affected users to share diagnostics via Feedback Hub while it continues the investigation.

Neowin’s coverage adds that Microsoft has not singled out any particular RGB device or vendor utility and is still working to understand how the games are interacting with those components. Microsoft has not advised removing hardware or disabling RGB features at this time.

What players and studios report

User reports point to a handful of popular titles. The games called out so far include:

• ARC Raiders
• MARVEL Tōkon: Fighting Souls
• The Finals

Embark, the studio behind ARC Raiders and The Finals, told players in a Discord message that crashes relate to the file inpoutx64.sys, which it says changed with the Windows update. Embark described a temporary workaround that removes that driver and its related service/entry. Microsoft has not endorsed this approach. If you’re affected, note that details remain in flux and the vendor investigation is still underway.

Windows Latest also notes that some users said rolling back KB5121003 restored normal behavior, but doing so would remove a large batch of security fixes. Neowin cautions that uninstalling the update is unwise for that reason.

The state of play

• Microsoft is investigating game crashes after Windows 11 KB5121003 and is collecting feedback and diagnostics.
• Systems with RGB hardware/software and drivers named like inpoutx64 appear more likely to be affected, but a specific product has not been identified.
• Confirmed titles in reports include ARC Raiders, MARVEL Tōkon: Fighting Souls, and The Finals.
• There is no official fix yet. Community theories about kernel changes also exist, but they are not confirmed by Microsoft.

For now, the most constructive step for impacted players and IT admins is to capture the behavior and submit it through Feedback Hub so Microsoft can correlate driver, hardware, and game combinations. If a studio provides guidance for its title, review it carefully and weigh the security trade‑offs before removing system drivers or backing out updates.

Sources: Neowin, Neowin, Windows Latest

Alex Mira

Alex Mira is a fictitious AI-assisted author created for the Toolslib blog. Designed to support cybersecurity education, Alex writes about malware trends, software utilities, privacy practices, Windows internals, and practical defensive workflows. Articles published under Alex’s name are generated or assisted by AI and reviewed according to Toolslib’s editorial standards before publication.