God of War Ragnarok not Working, Launching. SDK Runtime Missing Error May Be a Culprit
The release of GoW Ragnarok was not very smooth, as some players encounter SDK Runtime missing error preventing the launch. Here you will find several tips that may prove useful.
Sony is having a busy time lately. They have announced the controversial PS5 Pro alongside 30th anniversary collection, but they do not forget about software market. Several years ago, they have started strategy of porting previously exclusive productions to PC. The latest game following this trend is the second part of Kratos’ adventures in the Scandinavian territories – God of War: Ragnarok. While the first title of Norse mythology series was enthusiastically received by PC players, the second one is not that fortunate. Many fans have issues with launching it due to SDK Runtime Missing error. Let’s analyze the situation to see if there is anything that can be done about it.
SDK Runtime missing error preventing launch of GoW Ragnarok explained
Something must have gone terribly wrong when it comes to God of War Ragnarok, as it is rather coldly received by fans on PC. Many point out problems with audio, poor performance, issues with controllers, and mouse steering. There are also some controversies with PSN accounts, upon which Sony doubled down some time ago, making it mandatory in utterly singleplayer game.
Moreover, there are multiple threads created by disheartened players on Steam Community Hub in which they report that the game is not working at all. One of them has a hint from one of the developers. What they advise is to re-run two msi files located by default in
C:\Steam\steamapps\common\God of War Ragnarok
called “PsPcSdkRuntimeInstaller.msi” and “PsPcSdkRuntimeManager.msi”. Sometimes, it can indeed solve the problem, yet there are fans who claim that it doesn’t work.
It seems that there is an issue with installing those files, as they should be included in the install script that runs while the game starts for the first time. The launch can be stuck, leaving the production inaccessible without any extra error messages. To counteract it, you can try opening the Task Manager and ending “Windows Installer” task, then running previously mentioned files again or simply click “Play” on Steam. Alternatively, restart your computer, as it will also terminate the installer process, and re-run the files. What is more, it is also a good idea to attempt to run them as an administrator.
As a last resort you can try deleting the following folder (as it helped some players in the similar case in Ghost of Tsushima):
C:\ProgramData\Sony Interactive Entertainment Inc
Notice: ProgramData folder is hidden by default. Make sure to turn on hidden files or simply paste C:\ProgramData to your Windows Explorer.
It should be recreated once more upon launching the game or after running PsPcSdkRuntimeInstaller.msi. Also, remember that verifying the integrity of game files is your best friend.
Hopefully, soon the situation will be addressed by the developers, as this is otherwise a great game that everyone should experience. Good luck!
