Microsoft halts Windows 11 update for Ubisoft games

Microsoft has temporarily halted its Windows 11 24H2 update from being available on devices with select Ubisoft games installed. The move follows news that many users were experiencing severe crashes when playing these games, sometimes even during startup.

In a support article, Microsoft acknowledged the issue saying the affected games, all Ubisoft titles, may freeze or crash when starting, loading into a game, or in the middle of gameplay after installing the update.

Microsoft took the step to block these games from installing via the usual Windows Update channel to prevent other problems. Anyone who already installed 24H2 and doesn’t want to deal with these issues may roll back to version 23H2.

Complaints about the crashes have surfaced across Reddit and Microsoft forums since the 24H2 update rolled out in phases in early October.

Users have also flagged similar issues with Ubisoft games, including a user of the Windows Insider subreddit named Rachidramone. He reported the issue as far back as July during the preview version of 24H2.

Microsoft’s update or Ubisoft’s software? Source of issue remains unclear

Microsoft listed several games impacted by the issue, including Assassin’s Creed Valhalla, Assassin’s Creed Origins, Assassin’s Creed Odyssey, Star Wars Outlaws, and Avatar: Frontiers of Pandora. Other titles include Far Cry and Need for Speed. It has also reportedly hit Unbound.

Although Ubisoft has put out a temporary fix for Star Wars Outlaws, neither company has released a permanent solution for the other games.

It seems the issue only manifests itself in Ubisoft games, causing concern about the source of the said problem whether it is Microsoft’s update, Ubisoft’s software, or a combination of both.

This is unusual for preemptive blocking of updates for devices with these games and has raised some questions about how the glitch came to be, and why it seems to be publisher-specific.