3DXChat is a Windows-only download. Before buying access, check your computer against the published minimum requirements, because the official support pages state plainly that netbooks and older laptops are not supported.

Minimum requirements

The official support page lists these minimums:

• Operating system: Windows 10 or Windows 11, 64-bit

• Processor: Intel Core i3, AMD Phenom II X4, or better

• Memory: 4 GB of RAM

• Graphics: a DirectX 11 compatible card with 2 GB or more of memory and support for Pixel Shader 5.0

• Storage: 10 GB of free disk space

• Network: a broadband internet connection

These are minimums rather than comfortable settings. A card that only just clears the 2 GB line will start the game, but busy venues full of avatars are where a weak machine shows.

What to install alongside the game

Support asks for a handful of Microsoft runtimes and current drivers before the client will start reliably:

1. The latest DirectX 9.0c runtime.

2. The current driver for your graphics card, taken from NVIDIA or AMD rather than from Windows Update.

3. The Microsoft Visual C++ 2010 Redistributable, in both the 32-bit and the 64-bit package.

4. Microsoft .NET Framework 4.5.

Restart the computer after installing drivers so the new settings take effect, and only then start the game.

Security software

Two steps prevent most first-run failures. Put the game and the patcher on the exception lists of your firewall and your antivirus, then run both as administrator. Support calls out Norton Antivirus by name: several players only got past the problem after adding the game folder to Norton's exception list.

What still needs checking

See also

• Account, subscription, and game-time codes

• First login, interface, and settings