On March 28th, Microsoft rolled out an update on the Windows 11 operating system (KB5023774) and promptly proceeded to break Red Dead Redemption 2. Following the installation of KB5023774, users will find themselves unable to open the game via the Rockstar Games Launcher – but fear not, Microsoft has a fix lined up.
KB5023774 is a preview update that comes in as part of Windows 11 21H2 – one behind the most current version of Windows 11. That’s where Microsoft’s mitigation efforts come into play – the tech giant has explained that, if you want to regain access to your rootin’-tootin’ cowboy adventures, you’ll need to upgrade to the current version – 22H2.
It’s Hard Here in the Wild West
Microsoft and Rockstar Games have apparently joined forces to get to the bottom of this issue, but at the moment, the workaround that has been put in place seems fairly comprehensive. Typically, a tech team will mitigate the impact of an incident – by figuring out a workaround or a ‘temporary fix’ – while it attempts to figure out a permanent resolution for the root cause of said incident.
That’s what’s happening here.
Of course, some publications are leaning toward the impression that Microsoft has no interest in fixing the issue, and instead, it’s relying on the dismissive order of ‘just upgrade it’ to resolve the root cause of the bug, but that almost certainly isn’t the case. In fact, Microsoft clearly stated that this workaround is a mitigation effort and not a fix, so… There’s that.
There’s nothing stopping you from updating your Windows 11 version if you do want to get access to Red Dead Redemption 2 more or less immediately, though. It’s entirely up to you.
For more Insider Gaming news, check out our coverage of Google’s desire to hand game testing over to AI.
