Players using the AMD Radeon RX 9070 XT GPU have reported encountering a "fatal error" that prevents Apex Legends from launching. The issue, confirmed by the Apex Legends Community account on X, is currently under investigation.
The error message reads: "The application's device failed due to badly formed commands sent by the application. This is a design-time issue that should be investigated and fixed." This appears to be related to bindless rendering, a feature where the GPU accesses shaders without CPU mediation.
While rolling back graphics drivers to version 26.7.1 has been suggested as a solution, some users report that this does not resolve the problem. A workaround that has proven effective for some involves adding specific commands to the game's Steam launch options. To implement this, navigate to Apex Legends on your Steam library, click the cog icon for properties, and paste the following commands into the launch options field: "+staticprop_color_use_bindless 0 +staticprop_depth_use_bindless 0 +r_drawworld_depth_bindless 0".
Adding these commands disables the bindless rendering technology, which may result in a slight performance decrease. However, this workaround allows players to launch and play Apex Legends. A permanent fix from AMD or Respawn Entertainment is still pending.