No Man’s Sky Not Using GPU? Try These Fixes

If No Man’s Sky is not using your GPU, the game will stutter or crash. Luckily, there are several ways to fix this problem quickly.

How to fix No Man’s Sky not using GPU?

1. Force the Game to Use the Dedicated GPU

Set Windows to always run the game with your high-performance card.

1. Press Win + I and open Settings.
2. Go to System > Display > Graphics settings.
3. Select No Man’s Sky from the list, or browse and add the executable.
4. Click Options and set it to High performance.
   

If the game still refuses to launch, you can read more in this article about No Man’s Sky not launching.

2. Update or Reinstall Graphics Drivers

Outdated drivers can prevent the game from using your GPU correctly.

1. Right-click the Start menu and select Device Manager.
2. Expand Display adapters.
3. Right-click your GPU and choose Update driver.
4. Pick Search automatically for drivers.
   
5. If that fails, reinstall drivers from the GPU manufacturer’s site.

Some players also reported input errors caused by driver issues, which you can troubleshoot in this article on No Man’s Sky controller not working.

3. Disable Integrated Graphics in BIOS

Disabling the onboard GPU forces Windows to always use the dedicated card.

1. Restart your PC and press the BIOS key, often F2 or Delete.
2. Locate the Advanced > Integrated graphics option.
3. Set it to Disabled.
4. Save and exit BIOS.

4. Check Steam Launch Settings

Custom launch options can force the game to bypass GPU acceleration.

1. Open Steam Library.
2. Right-click No Man’s Sky and select Properties.
3. Under General, find Launch options.
   
4. Clear any custom launch flags.

If Steam also fails to recognize your controller, you can find step-by-step help in this article about No Man’s Sky not detecting controller.

Connection conflicts may also stop the game from initializing correctly; see how to fix Error Creating WebSockets in No Man’s Sky for additional troubleshooting.

5. Switch to Vulkan or DirectX

Switching the graphics API can solve GPU detection problems.

1. In the game launcher, open Settings.
2. Change the renderer from OpenGL to Vulkan or DirectX 12.
3. Relaunch the game and test performance.

Conclusion

When No Man’s Sky ignores the dedicated GPU, performance drops significantly. By forcing high-performance mode, updating drivers, and adjusting BIOS or Steam settings, you can get smooth gameplay again.

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