Judging by the amount of hits we got for our previous NFS : Shift troubleshooting article, it seems a lot of folks were experiencing the dreaded ‘black screen crash’ problem with the game. If you tried the workarounds mentioned in our previous article (thanks to those who posted more possible solutions as comments btw) and still couldn’t get the game to work or got it to play rather sh1ttly, here is something else that you can try. Given below is a custom configuration file for NFS : Shift with settings that could minimize the occurrences of black screens or random CTDs.

Note that the idea behind this workaround was originally posted in EA’s support forums. Credit to whoever figured this out first.

How to apply updated fix

  1. Make a backup of your current GraphicsConfig.xml file located in My Documents –> NFS Shift folder (in case anything goes wrong, replace edited config with backup copy)
  2. Download the custom configuration file from this location. UnRAR the archive using WinZip or WinRAR.
  3. Replace your existing copy of GraphicsConfig.xml (located in My Documents—> NFS Shift folder) with one in downloaded archive.
  4. Run the game.

Note that the above configuration file will launch the game in 1280x720 resolution. If your monitor/VGA does not support it, please change the resolution by editing this line in configuration file (open GraphicsConfig.xml with a text editor such as notepad) :

<prop name="Mode" adapter="0" width="1280" height="720" antialias="0" refresh="60" />

For example, if you want to run the game in 1024 x 768 resolution, edit the above so that it reads:

<prop name="Mode" adapter="0" width="1024 height="768" antialias="0" refresh="60" />

If you still cannot get it to work, you can try manually editing other settings in the configuration file. However, placing incorrect values might cause the game malfunction – proceed at your own risk.

Please do not copy and paste this article elsewhere. You are of course welcome to link to it.
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22 Comments

  1. Tharaka Devinda // 9/21/2009 11:42:00 PM  

    This method worked for me. My system specs:
    Win 7 x64 (7100)
    2GB RAM
    Foxconn 9600GT (Forceware 182.06)

  2. sandeep // 10/04/2009 07:34:00 AM  

    I tried this fix but doesn't seem to work!

    my system configuration:

    OS Name Microsoft® Windows Vista™ Home Premium
    Processor Intel(R) Core(TM)2 Duo CPU P8600 @ 2.40GHz, 2401 Mhz, 2 Core(s), 2 Logical Processor(s)
    4 GB RAM

    Any help is highly appreciated...I have tried all the solutions mentioned here so far!

  3. Anonymous // 10/07/2009 01:19:00 PM  

    Works great for me. Playing right now!

    SHIFT 1.0.1.0 (compatibility mode: 98/ME)

    Specs:
    Windows 7 x64 Retail
    AMD 64 x2 6000+
    4GB DDR2 800mhz
    ATI 4770 512mb

  4. FlexWAre™ // 10/17/2009 10:28:00 AM  

    I Tried this fix but NFS still blank screen,

    My system

    OS Vista Ultimate x64 SP1
    Processor AMD X2 6000+
    RAM 4 GB
    GeForce 9800GT SLI mode

    Anyone help me......Please???

  5. Unknown // 10/23/2009 07:38:00 PM  

    Encountered the problem myself at the start of a race. Only the sound I could still hear.

    My solution was (and is) very simple. Just hit 'ESC' button to get a menu where you have an option to resume the race again.

    Hit 'ENTER' and you are good to go.

    Worked like a charm each time I encounter this error so far.

    Specs:
    WinXP SP2 (Dutch) with ATI 4670 (1GB) on a Intel Dual Core (2,66GHz).

  6. Unknown // 10/24/2009 04:23:00 AM  

    I tried this solution but got even worse, on the pre test lap video, this video got in to a loop, so it plays over and over without stopping

  7. tdao4 // 11/29/2009 02:19:00 AM  

    yea, i have the same problem, i replaced the crack and everything, it works fine until the part where you start your "Career", there is this video. For mine, it either kept on going and play the video or it stops and it says that "there is a problem occur, it has to stopped the game"...can someone help me fix this please, i have window 7 ultimate 64 bit......thnx

  8. Sky Lather // 12/19/2009 04:11:00 PM  
    This comment has been removed by the author.
  9. Sky Lather // 12/19/2009 04:12:00 PM  

    this is not the problem
    my problem is that -
    when i start my career in nfs shift& when then the loading comes for the race -the game stops working
    please help mme as soon as possible.
    my system specs-win vista sp 1
    4GB RAM
    ATI Radeon HD 4650 series
    & im using a laptop.

  10. Unknown // 3/17/2010 08:34:00 AM  

    I CANNOT FIND THE GRAPHICSCONFIG.XML FILE. ITS JUST NOT THERE. WAT DO I DO? I CLICK ON THE SHIFT ICON AND IT TURNS TO A BLACK SCREEN THEN CHANGES TO A LIGHTER BLACK SCREEN AND THEN THE ERROR REPORT POPS UP AND SAIS A PROBLEM OCCURRED AND NFS SHIFT HAS TO SHUT DOWN SORRY FOR THE INCONVENIENCE. PLEASE HELP :(

  11. Unknown // 3/19/2010 07:30:00 PM  

    same problem here t_j_m_2012

  12. Unknown // 4/27/2010 09:08:00 AM  

    Worked great! Sweet! Thanks!

  13. arjun // 5/21/2010 11:07:00 AM  

    WORKS :) Thanks :)

  14. Unknown // 7/25/2010 04:10:00 PM  

    Not working for me also.

    Kindly help just able to blackb screen post that nothing works & error comes

  15. Unknown // 8/15/2010 04:02:00 PM  

    the link was deleted, you have another link??please i need that..

  16. krishna apparels // 12/15/2010 06:05:00 PM  

    plz sent me the site at patelmatang@ymail.com i want it argently plz anyone if get plz send it to me

  17. Unknown // 4/08/2011 10:14:00 AM  

    I just cant find graphicsconfig.xml its not there in my documents..my entire installation program ran well & cracked..but when i click shift.exe it goes black for 1 sec and get back to windows..

    my system specs- windows 7(32 bit),processor-pentium e5400 dual core(2.7ghz),ram-2.99gb,graphics card- nvidia 9500gt(1 gb)..
    any body can help me just send me advise here- mr.bukai2008@gmail.com..
    I really want to play this game..

  18. Automobile Blogger // 9/28/2011 06:55:00 PM  

    The file is not there in the uploaded location. Please gimme the new link.. to my email mailtojamsheed@gmail.com

  19. ravi // 11/05/2011 08:04:00 PM  

    the link of updated fix for nfs:shift black screen crash is dead please send me link at ravi23sethi@gmail.com.please do it urgently my game is not starting

  20. NanaPaige // 1/05/2013 01:35:00 AM  

    :[ link isn't working! I would very much like it though haha,
    could you update or email me the link?
    nana.p.duvall@gmail.com

  21. harsh // 12/09/2014 08:41:00 PM  

    the link is not working so please send me the link on me email harshwardhanmehrotra@gmail.com

  22. Unknown // 4/12/2018 09:32:00 AM  

    THIS DIDN'T WORK ON MY PC ...!!!!

    Operating System: Windows 10 Enterprise 64-bit
    System Manufacturer: Hewlett-Packard
    System Model: HP Compaq dc7700p Small Form Factor
    BIOS: Default System BIOS
    Processor: Intel(R) Core(TM)2 CPU 6600 @ 2.40GHz (2 CPUs), ~2.4GHz
    Memory: 4096MB RAM
    Available OS Memory: 4032MB RAM
    DirectX Version: DirectX 12
    Card name: AMD Radeon HD 5450
    Chip type: AMD Radeon Graphics Processor
    Display Memory: 2294 MB
    Current Mode: 1024 x 768 (32 bit) (60Hz)