[PC] Possible workarounds for Mass Effect Legendary Edition launch problems. [ Edited ]

[holger1405]

If the game does not start for you, there are several possible workarounds:

NEW February 2023: If the MELE Launcher is not running after switching to EA app.

• Go to your "C:\Program Files (x86)\Origin Games\Mass Effect Legendary Edition\Game\Launcher" folder. 
• Right click the "MassEffectLauncher.exe" > Properties > compatibility.
• Disable "Run as Administrator" > Click "OK"
  That should allow you to run MELE again.

• If you changed the global settings inside the "Manage 3D Settings" panel of the NVIDIA control panel anytime in the past, look at this post.
• Disable "Controlled folder Access" of the Windows defender.
• Disabling OneDrive folder protection. 
  
• Corruptions in the "License" folder might also keep the games from starting.
  Make sure Origin and Steam are closed.
  Press the Windows key and "R" at the same time
  Copy and paste C:\ProgramData\Electronic Arts\EA Services into the new window > hit ENTER.
  Move the "License" folder to your Desktop > Test.
• A overprotective Virus scanner or other security software could also block the access to game files. 
  (If you use "Sophos Home Premium" or other Sophos products look at this post and this post .)
• Disabling Bluetooth on some motherboards fixed the issues for some players as well.
• The Nahimic audio service, which is installed with the Realtek audio drivers from some motherboard manufacturers like MSI or Asus, causes many problems, and here it does too, it seems.
  (The Realtek stand alone audio drivers normally don't have the Nahimic software installed.) 
  ROG's Sonic Radar 3 is one of the apps that uses it.
• If you use a VPN, look at this post.
• Check if the regional settings of your EA account (not Origin) is set right .
• If you have the game on Steam and it will only launch Origin but not the game, a possible cause is in this thread.
  (Warning! This requires some deeper computer knowledge.)

Notice: The games will not run on Windows 7.
LE1 & LE2 will not run on CPUs with only 2 physical or logical cores. (You need 4 logical cores.)

Fixed:

1. If you have a Windows user name with special characters in it:
   Either:
   create an new Windows user account with only ASCII characters in it. > Reboot > Log on to the new account > Test.
   Or:
   Press the Windows key and "R" at the same time.
   Type or copy and paste "control" into the new window. (Without the quotes) > Hit ENTER.
   Choose "Region" > Administrative Tools > Change Locale > Check "Beta: Use Unicode UTF-8 for worldwide language support" > klick "OK"
   Reboot > Test.
   This issue was fixed with Patch 1.03
   
2. It looks like the game requires a CPU with AVX instruction set
   It turned out that only the Launcher needs the AVX instruction set. Almost all CPUs built for end consumer use in the last 10 years have this instruction set.
   However, if you are not sure, you can check the technical specifications of your CPU on the manufacturer's website.
   If you have this problem, in this post by is a workaround for the problem. (As always, use third party tools at your own risk.)
   This issue was fixed with Patch 1.03
   

[BLKSQ_guitarbard]

Tried all of the above and it still didn't work. Thank you, though, and hopefully it'll work for someone else.

[ChinDisRespect]

It gives me a disk write error when i go to continue the innstall. 

[mcsupersport]

Posting that someone stated that turning off Bluetooth on their motherboard fixed their issues.  https://answers.ea.com/t5/Mass-Effect-Legendary-Edition/Possible-fix-for-Mass-Effect-Legendary-Editi... 

Figure I will post it so most fixes can wind up in this thread to help the most people.

[B-02_Alyx]

This is seriously disappointing. Could the OS be the problem if you're running Windows 7?

[Winterkid]

I was wondering if it was Windows 7 also.

[gbBaku]

@holger1405 Did EA say when would they fix this? I shouldn't need to do any of these for a 60 euro game.

[NikSharkeh]

I had the same issue - Launcher does not actually start any Mass Effect games and just goes back to launcher menu after clicking Start. Doing the "Beta: Use Unicode UTF-8 for worldwide language support" step from your post solved the issue and all launching fine now. It seems the launcher has an issue with systems whose default language is not English.

My system is Windows 10

[holger1405]

@B-02_Alyx 

The minimum system requirements for MELE do include a 64 bit Windows 10, but normally games with that requirement also run on 64 bit Windows 7, so imho a other problem is more likely.

[holger1405]

@gbBaku 

I am confidant that they will fix at least some of the issues, but Patches need some time and the game is not even 24 hours out.