Penumbra: Overture crashes/returns to the desktop after the intro ends?

The game can launch and display the menu on cards that are not supported, but as the game needs to load advanced 3D routines the game will crash. Check the following options:


1. You do not meet the minimum system requirements
Graphics: ATI Radeon 8500/NVIDIA GeForce3(GeForce4MX not supported).
Audio: Basically any audio card able to output stereo sound in Windows.

See related article on Requirements to get a full list of computer specifications.


2. Your drivers are not up to date.
The drivers for your video and/or audio card needs to be updated, visit the manufacture to download the latest version.

See related articles on how to find out what video card you have & what audio card you have.
See related articles for a list on common manufactures of video/audio cards and their websites.


3. You do not have the latest patch.
Make sure you have the latest patch of Penumbra: Overture.