[Fix] Nintendo Switch “The software Was Closed Because An Error Occurred”

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» Home » Error Codes » [Fix] Nintendo Switch “The software Was Closed Because An Error Occurred”
  • Platform: Nintendo Switch
  • Error code: The software Was Closed Because An Error Occurred
  • Error says: The software Was Closed Because An Error Occurred
  • Occurs: The error may come while launching a game or during gameplay on a Nintendo Switch device.
  • Effect of the error: The error may prevent the users from a launching a game or interrupt their gameplay.

As per our research, there can be different reasons behind the error, and users have to try all kinds of workarounds. In the next section of the article, we are going to provide you with all the workarounds that will be required to resolve this issue.


Fixes For Nintendo Switch “The software was closed because an error occurred” issue


Fix 1: Make sure that you have no corrupt game files

The most common cause of this issue on the Nintendo Switch is the presence of corrupt game files on your device.

To make sure that you are not facing this error, you need to verify the integrity of all your game files. The process of verifying the integrity of the game files on a Nintendo Switch is entirely different from what you might have learned for the different game clients. 

Here is how you can verify the integrity of the game files on a Nintendo Switch.

  • Launch the system settings.
  • Click on Data Management.
  • Click on Manage Software.
  • You will see a list of games.
  • Select the game that you were playing while you got the other.
  • Click on the option Check for corrupt data.

The Nintendo Switch will now look for corrupt game files on the game that you were playing. Will also replace the corrupt files with the regular files, and if there are any missing files on the database that are important for the gameplay, they will also be downloaded.


Fix 2: The system software on your Nintendo Switch is outdated

As you might understand that your computer always gets outdated if you do not download the latest system update. It is the same with the Nintendo Switch.

Many players forget to download the latest update of the Nintendo Switch.

This causes issues on the device as the version of the software that you are running on your device is no longer compatible with the version of the server.

As soon as you will connect the device to the Internet to play any games, you will face compatibility issues. 

Software closing is just one of them. When you face this issue, make sure that you are running the latest update of the Nintendo Switch firmware. 

If not, look for the latest version and install the latest update.


Fix 3: Storage Space issue on your Nintendo Switch

If you have downloaded too many games on your Nintendo Switch, then there might be a storage issue with the device.

If the device is running low on storage space, it might not be able to launch any processes related to the game that you’re trying to play, and the software will be closed.

Check the space on the Nintendo Switch and move all the unnecessary files to a different folder. And if you do not need the files at all, delete them altogether. 

Now try to re-launch the game and see if this solves the issue.


Fix 4: There are some hardware issues on your Nintendo Switch.

The Nintendo Switch is not an invincible machine and it can also be having some hardware issues. 

Unfortunately, you cannot solve the hardware issues by yourself. To get rid of the hardware issues on the Nintendo Switch, you need to contact Nintendo support and get connected to a technician.

The technician has all the developmental tools they need to get rid of the issue. If some actions of yours are affecting the Nintendo Switch, they might be also able to get you some insight into that.


Fix 5: Switch the game

If you’re getting the error code only on one game, then there may be a problem with the game server.

Try playing a different game and if the issue disappears, this means that the game that you were playing earlier had the issue. 

For the game that you were playing earlier, just wait and come back later and if the issue still persists then you might need to delete the game and reinstall it.


Fix 6: Restart the Nintendo Switch

There are some temporary glitches on the Nintendo Switch which you can get rid of by a simple power cycling session.

This shuts down all the processes on the Nintendo Switch and then you can relaunch the game that you were playing earlier. This seems like a simple solution but sometimes this simple solution is the best fix that you can try.


Fix 7: Drive a factory reset on the Nintendo Switch

If you notice that there is a grave technical error on your Nintendo Switch, that seems to be an issue with the software, then you can try to drive a factory reset on your Nintendo Switch.

Before you try this solution, make sure that you know that this will delete all the preferences that you have set on the switch.

You will need to download all the games that you were playing on the Switch again and all the preferences will also need to be reset. If you are OK with this, then you can factory reset the Nintendo Switch.

This will get rid of all the corrupt data from the device and it will be as good as new.


Fix 8: Contact the Nintendo support team

Trying all the solutions on the list above and still coming out frustrated means that you need to contact the Nintendo support team.

They will generate a support ticket and help you through the issue. 

You can also visit the user forums for the Nintendo Switch where the other players continuously shared their experiences with different error codes and might be able to help you with this.

These Player forums are found on platforms like Facebook, Reddit, Twitter, and Tumblr.


To conclude


The Nintendo Switch error about the software closing because of an unexpected error is not a very specific error code.

There can be many different reasons behind this error code and we have mentioned all of them along with the solutions that can help you get rid of the issue.

We hope that this was helpful to you and you are able to play on your Nintendo Switch without any interruptions after reading this article. Keep following for more gaming and technical advice. Happy gaming!!


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Falguni Rana is a technology writer who has expertise in software and hardware troubleshooting. She publishes how-to and troubleshooting guides for different apps, websites, games, and consumer hardware products.