[8 Ways] Why My PS5 Can’t Start Game Or App?

Why my PS5 can’t start game or app? Some players report this problem after they update or launch the device yesterday. If you’re also stuck in this problem, this article will give you a hand.

Lucas

By Lucas / Updated on March 21, 2024

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Can't start PS5 game or app

Some PS5 users have confronted a problem: Their PS5 can’t start game or app. After some most recent updates, or didn’t do anything wrong, some users received error codes such as CE-100095-5, CE-107891-6, and CE-107885-9, which also mean PS5 saying can’t start game or app.

PS5 is such a wonderful console that allows users to have an extraordinary gaming experience of various awesome games like COD, Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth, Helldivers 2, etc, which makes it always on the heat sales board after it is released. However, “can't start game or app PS5” is a killjoy issue.

In this article, we’ll analyze some reasons why PS5 can't start game or app, and offer you proper solutions to fix this issue.

Why can't I start the game or app on PS5?

There are several things that might cause the "PS5 can't start the game or app" problem. It might be a problem with the PS5 system software, the storage device, or incompatibilities with system software or games. The following are some of the most likely probable causes of the mistake:

1. Error Code
This may be an error in the PS5 system software, game/application, or storage device driver.

2. Hardware overheating
When the inside of your PS5 console gets dirty and doesn't have good airflow, different types of errors can occur, including the ones discussed in this article.

3. Storage Device Failure
If you are installing a game/application on an auxiliary PS4/5 external HDD or internal SSD, it may fail or malfunction, resulting in the "PS5 can't launch game or application" error.

4. Insufficient storage space on PS5
The storage device is full and there is no space to run the game/application. Moreover, if you use PS5 for a long time without closing it, it fills up the cache which triggers different types of errors.

5. Corrupted or missing system files
It can be difficult to track down because not every system file is used all the time.

How to fix PS5 can’t start game or app

Whether your PS5 has those issues or not, if you can’t start game or app on PS5, we should solve it quickly. In this part, we’ll show you some methods to finish PS5 saying can’t start game or app.

Method 1. Restart your PS5

The first solution for error device is always restarting it. So, to solve the "can't start game or app PS5" bug, the most simple solution is to restart the PS5 console. You can do so using the steps outlined below:

Step 1. Turn off the PlayStation 5 system.

Step 2. Unplug the PS5 wire from the wall outlet. Furthermore, you should unplug any peripherals connected to the PS5, including the DualSense controller.

Step 3. Leave your PS5 console in this position for around 3 minutes before connecting the PS5 power cord back into the wall outlet.

Step 4. Connect the DualSense controller to the console and turn it on. Next, wait for the PS5 system software to fully load.

Method 2. Reinstall problematic game or application

Suppose a game or application is not installed correctly or any of its important files are missing or damaged. In this case, you must completely remove the game or software from the console it.

Step 1. Boot the PS5 console and select the gear icon to access the Settings menu.

Step 2. Scroll down the Settings pop-up menu and select Storage.

Step 3. After selecting Games and Apps, all PS4 and PS5 games loaded on the system will be displayed. They are listed in chronological order of when you played them by default, so the earliest played games are at the top.

PS5 Game or App

Method 3. Check PS5 disk errors

This may also occur if there is a problem with the PS5's internal or external hard disk, so you should examine the hard disk for faults to try to remove “Can’t start PS5 game or app” issue. Checking your hard drive for errors is best. As you know, the PS5 comes with a PCIe Gen 4 M.2 NVMe SSD. Therefore, it is recommended that you perform an SSD health check.

AOMEI Partition Assistant Standard is developed for this work as a professional partition manager. Its “Surface Test” and “Check Partition” features can help you check your hard drive for errors.

You just need to remove the PS5 internal or external hard drive from the host computer and connect it to your computer. Then click the button below and follow the on-screen instructions to download and install this tool on your PC.

After that, follow the steps below to check the operation of your PS5 hard disk.

Option 1. Surface test

Step 1. Download AOMEI Partition Assistant and launch it. At the main interface, click the "Test" menu and select “Disk Surface Test”.

Surface test

Step 2. Click Start to do the surface test. You may want to tick Quick Check to perform a fast test.

Start test

Option 2. Check Partition

Step 1. Open this tool, right-click the partition that you want to check, select Advanced, then select “Check Partition”.

Advanced check partition

Step 2. Select the way of checking errors to perform. As you can see from the following screenshot, there are three choices, simply choose the last one “Check whether there is a bad sector on the partition”. And click OK to go to the next step.

Check ways

Step 3. Click the Start button to check.

Start

Method 3. Check PS4 and PS5 compatibility

If the PS5 system software is not compatible with the currently installed PS5 system software, an error message "PS5 cannot start game or application" may appear. If the error code CE-107885-9 continues to appear on the screen, double-check that the game is compatible with the PS5 console.

Method 4. Change saved data and game/app settings

This is one possible solution to this error. Here are the steps to change saved data and game/app settings.

Step 1. Go to "Settings" on your PS5 console and select "Saved Data" and "Game/App Settings".

Step 2. From the left pane, select the "Game Presets" tab. Navigate to the "Performance Mode" or "Resolution Mode" area as shown in the image.

PS5 Game Preset

Step 3. Change it from Game Default to Performance Mode.

Step 4. Then restart your PS5 and launch the app/game to try again.

Method 5. Update PS5 system software

Outdated software versions can cause various problems and errors. Luckily, Sony releases new updates frequently to help fix glitches and improve PS5 performance. In addition, new versions may contain additional features to enhance your gaming experience.

Step 1. Before starting the process, make sure that your console has a stable Internet connection.

Step 2. Navigate to Settings > System > System Software > System Software Update and Settings.

Step 3. Choose Update System Software. If there’s an available update, download and install it by following on-screen instructions.

Update PS5 system software

Method 6. Rebuild PS5 database

Rebuilding a database is an operation that restores the database to a previous state. It can be done by deleting all data in the current database and then importing the data from the backup file. This program can revive a sluggish or frozen system and keep your PS5 console running smoothly.

To rebuild the PS5 database, install and use the PS5 Database Manager. Then click on File and choose to open the backup file. Then click "Start Rebuild Database" and follow the pop-up instructions to complete the process. Alternatively, follow the steps below to rebuild your PS5 database.

Step 1. Turn off the PS5 console, and then press and hold the Power button on the device until you hear two beeps.

Step 2. Plug the controller into the PS5 system with a USB cable and press the PS button on the controller. Then it will boot into the Safe Mode.

Step 3. Choose the Clear Cache and Rebuild Database option to continue.

Step 4. Pick Rebuild Database in the next screen.

Step 5. After the process ends, restart the console.

Method 7. Replace old hard disk on PS5

If your old hard drive has a 'low disk space' message and you think it has reached the end of its life, replacing it with a new hard drive and reinstalling programs and games will solve the problem. Of course, you don't want to lose your game data, so you can clone everything to the new hard drive.

You can directly upgrade your AOMEI Partition Assistant to the Professional edition to unlock “Disk Clone” function. This tool allows users to clone Xbox, PS, and other drives safe and sound. And the PS5 supports external hard drives formatted to exFAT or FAT32. exFAT is recommended because it has no restrictions on file size. If your hard disk file system does not have these 2 types, don’t worry, this tool can also help you format your hard disk to exFAT and get it ready.

AOMEI Partition Assistant

The Best Windows Disk Partition Manager and PC Optimizer

Connect old and new disk to your computer, we can start.

Step 1. Install and launch AOMEI Partition Assistant. Select Clone Disk.

Disk Copy Wizard

Step 2. You may choose Clone Disk Quickly so that you can resize the partition later. If you choose the other one, you can still change the partition size later.

Copy Disk Quickly

Step 3. Select the source disk (eg: disk 4).

Select Source Disk

Step 4. Now select the destination new HDD (eg: disk 3). If you want to clone old PS disk to SSD, check the "Optimize the performance of SSD" box for faster speed.

Select Destination Disk

Step 5. Edit partitions on the new hard drive. Click Next in the following window.

Edit Disk

Step 6. Everything on Disk 4 is now on the new hard drive. Click Apply to execute all operations.

Apply

There is a piece of final confirmation information next to this step, click Proceed to continue. After completing, you’ll see the following window. The copy time depends on the size of your PS3 hard drive.

▶ Tip: "Sector-by-sector Copy" will make the exact duplication of your hard drive and you cannot change the partition size during this copying method. However, this method will copy all deleted, lost files, or inaccessible data on the old hard drive to the new one. So if you want to recover deleted files from hard drive, try this way and resize the partition later using this software after completion.

Method 8. Factory reset PS5

The last way is to factory reset PS5.

Step 1. Open Settings from the home menu of the PS5 console.

Step 2. Move to System Software > Reset Options > Reset your console.

Step 3. The console will be reset automatically. Simply wait for the operation to be completed.

Step 4. Restart your PlayStation 5 system and reinstall the game/app. After that, launch the game/app to verify if the issue has been resolved.

Factory reset PS5

Conclusion

Why can't start game or app PS5? How can I deal with the "Can't Start the Game or App PS5" error and relevant error codes? The answers to these questions may be found on this page. In addition, specific procedures for each solution are provided. AOMEI Partition Assistant has various functions to help manage disk and partition problems for your PC and other devices.

Lucas
Lucas · Staff Editor
I prefer peaceful and quiet life during vacation,but sometimes I watch football match if my favorite club performs brilliantly in that season. And I love reading, painting and calligraphy, thus I send my friends festival handwriting cards every year.