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On Windows, try the game’s own Exit command first, then press Alt + F4. If it stays open, use Win + R, run cmd, identify the game with tasklist, and close its process with taskkill. Use a forced command only after normal closing fails: unsaved progress or other data may be lost.
Try these keyboard-first options
- Use the game’s Exit or Quit option if it still responds. A normal exit gives the game a chance to save and shut down cleanly.
- Press Alt + F4 while the game is focused. This asks the active app to close; it is not a guaranteed force kill. Wait for any save or confirmation prompt. If nothing happens, check that the game still has focus before trying again, so you do not close another app. Microsoft documents this shortcut as closing the active item or exiting the active app.
- Press Alt + Tab to switch away, or press Win + D to show the desktop. If a hidden exit confirmation appears, bring it forward and respond to it.
- Try Task View: press Win + Tab, locate the game, right-click its preview and choose Close if that option appears. Task View can request that a window close, but an unresponsive game may ignore the request. Win + Tab opens Task View.
- Try Xbox Game Bar: press Win + G and use the overlay to switch back to Windows if it appears. Game Bar is not a universal force-quit tool; Microsoft documents cases where it may not appear over full-screen games using Vulkan or OpenGL. See the Game Bar guide and known issues.
These options depend on the game, keyboard focus, and Windows still responding. If they fail, close the process from a command line.
Close the game with Command Prompt
Press Win + R, type cmd, and press Enter. If Run does not open, press Win + X and choose Terminal or Command Prompt, depending on what your Windows installation shows.
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1. Find the game process
Run:
tasklistLook for the game’s executable name in the Image Name column. It may not match the title shown in the launcher. To narrow the output, replace the search words with part of the executable or launcher name:
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tasklist | findstr /i "game launcher"To look for processes Windows marks as not responding:
tasklist /v /fi "STATUS eq NOT RESPONDING"If you know the process ID (PID), confirm it before closing it:
tasklist /fi "PID eq 1234"Microsoft’s tasklist reference explains the command and its image, PID, and status filters.
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2. End the correct process
Use the actual executable name, including .exe:
taskkill /f /im GameName.exe /tOr target a confirmed PID instead:
taskkill /f /pid 1234 /t/imselects a process by image (executable) name./pidselects a process by its ID./fforces the process to end rather than waiting for it to close normally./talso ends child processes created by the target.
Replace GameName.exe or 1234 with the exact name or PID you found. Targeting a PID is often safer when there are multiple instances or similarly named processes. Do not guess a system-process name or use a broad target. The taskkill documentation lists these switches.
Success usually means Command Prompt reports that the process was terminated, the window disappears, and the launcher changes from Running to Play or its equivalent. Run tasklist again to confirm it is gone. If Windows says the process does not exist, the visible image may be a launcher, crash dialog, overlay, or stale window rather than the live game process.
Use PowerShell instead
Press Win + R, enter powershell, and press Enter. You can list processes by name and resource use:
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Get-Process | Sort-Object CPU -DescendingTo search for a name containing a distinctive word, replace game with part of the process name:
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If the game closed but the launcher says it is still running
The game window and its launcher are separate processes. A game may disappear while its process, an anti-cheat helper, crash reporter, overlay, or cloud-sync component remains. First identify and close the actual game executable; do not kill the launcher just because its status has not updated. If the game process is gone but the launcher itself is stuck, exit and reopen the launcher.
Epic describes its “application is still running” error as a case where the game or launcher process needs to be closed before relaunching. The same distinction is useful with other launchers, though their interfaces and process names differ. Epic’s support article covers its LS-0018 error.
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If the keyboard or screen is trapped
Try Alt + Tab, Win + Tab, or Win + G. If those do nothing, press Ctrl + Alt + Delete. This opens the Windows security screen; it does not itself force-close a game. If the screen responds, choose an available option such as Sign out or Restart. Signing out closes the whole user session and may lose unsaved work in other apps too.
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If the game process cannot be ended but Windows still responds, restart normally as a last software fallback. From PowerShell:
Restart-ComputerUse a forced restart only if the normal restart cannot proceed:
Restart-Computer -ForceA restart affects every open application, and a forced restart can discard unsaved work. If the entire PC is unresponsive, holding the physical power button is a final hardware-level option, with greater risk of data loss. No user-level command can guarantee closure if Windows, the graphics driver, or the game is deadlocked. See Microsoft’s PowerShell restart guidance.
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A stuck-looking image does not always mean the game is still running. Windows may not have refreshed the desktop, or the remaining window may belong to a launcher, crash dialog, or overlay. Press Win + D or use Alt + Tab to check. If the process is absent and the display artifact remains, restart Windows rather than indiscriminately terminating system processes. Restarting Windows Explorer is an advanced shell-recovery step; it can refresh the desktop and taskbar, but it does not close a game process.
After you regain control
- Wait for the launcher to update before starting the game again.
- If it still reports the game as running, confirm the game process is gone; then fully exit and reopen the launcher if necessary.
- If the problem repeats, test overlays one at a time and consider using borderless or windowed mode instead of exclusive full-screen.
- Update the game, launcher, graphics driver, or Windows when there is a recurring issue—not as a required step after a one-off freeze.
- Verify game files if the problem recurs or the launcher reports damaged files.
- Note whether the freeze follows Alt+Tab, sleep/wake, a particular graphics mode, or a specific launcher. That detail helps narrow down the cause.
On a Mac
Press Option + Command + Esc, select the game in the Force Quit window, and choose Force Quit. If it fails, Apple recommends restarting the Mac; if the Mac will not restart, hold its power button for up to 10 seconds. See Apple’s Force Quit instructions.
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