The Elder Scrolls Online

"Unable to load skin" error when starting ESO launcher.

Update 46 is now available for testing on the PTS! You can read the latest patch notes here: https://forums.elderscrollsonline.com/en/discussion/676209
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Sarannah
Sarannah
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Hi,
When I build my new computer earlier this year I had the "Unable to load skin" error when starting the ESO launcher, the game itself has been running fine whenever it did boot. Back then I completely fixed it by inputting new/correct values in the BIOS manually: The CPU power limits to 307.00 volt, 253 Watt, 253 Watt, and setting my pCore and eCore limits to 5.6Ghz(4.4 Ghz eCore) with sync all cores. Setting the pCore and eCore limit to 5.6/4.4 solved the "Unable to load skin" error completely. And so, my ESO launcher has been working fine for months with these BIOS settings.
Another game released this week gave me a crash to desktop due to outdated BIOS drivers, so I had to update my BIOS to the latest version yesterday. This again gave me back the ESO "Unable to load skin" launcher error. This time I wanted to put in these same values in the BIOS again, but with this new BIOS version this is no longer possible. Due to new restrictions being put in place, by the new BIOS version.
As these restrictions are in place, I also find it too risky to use intel XTU to lower the CPU core ratio's. As I am assuming these restrictions are in place for a reason.

So I have been searching online for any other possible solutions, and have tried them all:
1: Deleting the ESO launcher/programdata folder.
2: Running ESO as administrator.
3: Changing the windows power settings from "best performance" to "best power efficiency".
4: Disabling Intel SpeedStep and SpeedShift in the BIOS.

But none of this works. How do I fix this? For now I can just spam the launcher hoping it will work some time, but that is not a permanent solution and really annoying!
Any help or ideas are greatly appreciated. Thanks in advance!

Specs: i9-14900k CPU, Asus ROG STRIX Z790-E Gaming Wifi motherboard BIOS version 2801(Updated from version 2102), GPU RTX 4080 Super Gaming X slim, Windows 11 23H2, Corsair DDR5 Vengeance 64GB RAM(2x32GB) 6400 Mhz, Samsung 990 pro 2TB NVMe M2 SSD.

PS: Once ESO actually starts I have absolutely no issues at all, no crashes, no disconnects, no lag, no delays. No other problems on the computer either(though I had that crash in that new game due to the BIOS being outdated and that game being only a week old). Though a while back the new ESO Beta launcher gave me this "Unable to load skin" error again, and I had to switch back to the regular launcher.
PPS: I'm not the only one with this issue, some of these are quite recent: https://steamcommunity.com/app/306130/discussions/0/4342113141665069864/
Edited by Sarannah on December 19, 2024 1:51PM
  • Bluepetunia
    Bluepetunia
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    A major incident happened at their DataCeanters...https://forums.elderscrollsonline.com/en/discussion/670279/error-200-repeatedly/p1
  • Sarannah
    Sarannah
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    Thank you, but this is unrelated to that incident!
  • edward_frigidhands
    edward_frigidhands
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    Sarannah wrote: »
    Hi,
    When I build my new computer earlier this year I had the "Unable to load skin" error when starting the ESO launcher, the game itself has been running fine whenever it did boot. Back then I completely fixed it by inputting new/correct values in the BIOS manually: The CPU power limits to 307.00 volt, 253 Watt, 253 Watt, and setting my pCore and eCore limits to 5.6Ghz with sync all cores. Setting the pCore and eCore limit to 5.6 solved the "Unable to load skin" error completely. And so, my ESO launcher has been working fine for months with these BIOS settings.
    Another game released this week gave me a crash to desktop due to outdated BIOS drivers, so I had to update my BIOS to the latest version yesterday. This again gave me back the ESO "Unable to load skin" launcher error. This time I wanted to put in these same values in the BIOS again, but with this new BIOS version this is no longer possible. Due to new restrictions being put in place, by the new BIOS version.
    As these restrictions are in place, I also find it too risky to use intel XTU to lower the CPU core ratio's. As I am assuming these restrictions are in place for a reason.

    So I have been searching online for any other possible solutions, and have tried them all:
    1: Deleting the ESO launcher/programdata folder.
    2: Running ESO as administrator.
    3: Changing the windows power settings from "best performance" to "best power efficiency".
    4: Disabling Intel SpeedStep and SpeedShift in the BIOS.

    But none of this works. How do I fix this? For now I can just spam the launcher hoping it will work some time, but that is not a permanent solution and really annoying!
    Any help or ideas are greatly appreciated. Thanks in advance!

    Specs: i9-14900k CPU, Asus ROG STRIX Z790-E Gaming Wifi motherboard BIOS version 2801(Updated from version 2102), GPU RTX 4080 Super Gaming X slim, Windows 11 23H2, Corsair DDR5 Vengeance 64GB RAM(2x32GB), Samsung 990 pro 2TB NVMe M2 SSD.

    PS: Once ESO actually starts I have absolutely no issues at all, no crashes, no disconnects, no lag, no delays. No other problems on the computer either(though I had that crash in that new game due to the BIOS being outdated and that game being only a week old). Though a while back the new ESO Beta launcher gave me this "Unable to load skin" error again, and I had to switch back to the regular launcher.
    PPS: I'm not the only one with this issue, some of these are quite recent: https://steamcommunity.com/app/306130/discussions/0/4342113141665069864/

    Hello,

    I have been having this same issue with increasing frequency over the past week.

    Over the last 24 hours this has increased to the point where the launcher simply will not turn on 99% of attempts.
  • edward_frigidhands
    edward_frigidhands
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    Sarannah wrote: »
    Hi,
    When I build my new computer earlier this year I had the "Unable to load skin" error when starting the ESO launcher, the game itself has been running fine whenever it did boot. Back then I completely fixed it by inputting new/correct values in the BIOS manually: The CPU power limits to 307.00 volt, 253 Watt, 253 Watt, and setting my pCore and eCore limits to 5.6Ghz with sync all cores. Setting the pCore and eCore limit to 5.6 solved the "Unable to load skin" error completely. And so, my ESO launcher has been working fine for months with these BIOS settings.
    Another game released this week gave me a crash to desktop due to outdated BIOS drivers, so I had to update my BIOS to the latest version yesterday. This again gave me back the ESO "Unable to load skin" launcher error. This time I wanted to put in these same values in the BIOS again, but with this new BIOS version this is no longer possible. Due to new restrictions being put in place, by the new BIOS version.
    As these restrictions are in place, I also find it too risky to use intel XTU to lower the CPU core ratio's. As I am assuming these restrictions are in place for a reason.

    So I have been searching online for any other possible solutions, and have tried them all:
    1: Deleting the ESO launcher/programdata folder.
    2: Running ESO as administrator.
    3: Changing the windows power settings from "best performance" to "best power efficiency".
    4: Disabling Intel SpeedStep and SpeedShift in the BIOS.

    But none of this works. How do I fix this? For now I can just spam the launcher hoping it will work some time, but that is not a permanent solution and really annoying!
    Any help or ideas are greatly appreciated. Thanks in advance!

    Specs: i9-14900k CPU, Asus ROG STRIX Z790-E Gaming Wifi motherboard BIOS version 2801(Updated from version 2102), GPU RTX 4080 Super Gaming X slim, Windows 11 23H2, Corsair DDR5 Vengeance 64GB RAM(2x32GB) 6400 Mhz, Samsung 990 pro 2TB NVMe M2 SSD.

    PS: Once ESO actually starts I have absolutely no issues at all, no crashes, no disconnects, no lag, no delays. No other problems on the computer either(though I had that crash in that new game due to the BIOS being outdated and that game being only a week old). Though a while back the new ESO Beta launcher gave me this "Unable to load skin" error again, and I had to switch back to the regular launcher.
    PPS: I'm not the only one with this issue, some of these are quite recent: https://steamcommunity.com/app/306130/discussions/0/4342113141665069864/

    This is what worked for me:

    Go to computer's Control Panel and Navigate to Power Options. Select "Choose a power plan" and swap the plan to "Power Saver" mode. This will allow you to turn the launcher on. Once the Launcher is on change the power plan back to what I am using "High Performance".

    This is working for me right now however I am unable to stay connected to ESO tonight because there seems to be some sort of latency issue. I think I am probably going to play some other games until they fix whatever it is that is going with ESO right now.

    I know you mentioned this isn't currently working for you but I wanted to let you know and also say something here since it is frankly a little bit surprising that none of ZOS staff have hopped in to address this for us.
  • edward_frigidhands
    edward_frigidhands
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    edward_frigidhands wrote: »
    show previous quotes

    This is what worked for me:

    Go to computer's Control Panel and Navigate to Power Options. Select "Choose a power plan" and swap the plan to "Power Saver" mode. This will allow you to turn the launcher on. Once the Launcher is on change the power plan back to what I am using "High Performance".

    This is working for me right now however I am unable to stay connected to ESO tonight because there seems to be some sort of latency issue. I think I am probably going to play some other games until they fix whatever it is that is going with ESO right now.

    I know you mentioned this isn't currently working for you but I wanted to let you know and also say something here since it is frankly a little bit surprising that none of ZOS staff have hopped in to address this for us.

    Alright I actually have a bit of an update. ESO is not letting me stay connected to the servers in anything other than the power saver mode.

    ESO is the only game on my computer I am having this issue with. I am able to play Overwatch, Marvel Rivals, Baldur's Gate 3 and Throne And Liberty without these problems occurring.
  • Sarannah
    Sarannah
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    Yeah, that powerplan thingy sadly isn't working for me. For some reason having the CPU set at maximum settings has the issue of the ESO launcher not starting. Not sure what checks the ESO launcher does when starting, but the "Unable to load skin" error is annoying and affecting quite a few players. While everything else on the pc runs as it should, including ESO itself when it actually launches.
    edward_frigidhands wrote: »
    Alright I actually have a bit of an update. ESO is not letting me stay connected to the servers in anything other than the power saver mode.
    To me this points to you receiving too much internet data at the same time(packet overload), but when you use the powersaving powerplan, your computer somehow does not. This could point to your computer discarding the overload of packets when on the powersaving plan, while still receiving the overload of packets when not on the powersaving plan. Look at your router settings and turn of packet bouncing, turn off ping responses, and let it discard stray packets. (Also make sure it does not rebuild your connection) (Note: Staying connected is unrelated to the "Unable to load skin" error)
  • S_Northman
    S_Northman
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    Same issues as you with a i9 14900K
    For me it worked at the beginning with my new compute for a few weeks, but something happened maybe just before the 45 version update, or W11 24H2 update.
    The solution with power management doesn't work for me
    See here
    https://forums.elderscrollsonline.com/en/discussion/675705/unable-to-reinstall-the-game-after-unable-to-load-skin-bug#latest
  • S_Northman
    S_Northman
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    Incredible. I found this insane fix on another forum, and it works for me

    _____________________________________________
    Well, ladies and gentlemen, I’ve found the most insane solution.
    Here’s what you need to do:
    Go to: C:\Program Files (x86)\Steam\steamapps\common\Zenimax Online\Launcher
    Find Bethesda.net_Launcher.exe, left-click it once, then press Enter on your keyboard and DO NOT LET GO until you see the launcher window appear.
    That’s it. You’re good to go — enjoy the game.
    P.S. It might happen that you don’t have Bethesda.net_Launcher.exe in the folder I mentioned.
    In that case, when you see the error, open Task Manager, find the process, then choose “Open file location.”
    From there, do the same thing as before.
    _______________________________________________________
  • rbullis
    rbullis
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    Same issue here, this Unable to load skin issue is very frustrating. Even after a complete fresh install the issue is still persistent.

    PC
    Win 11 24h2 64bit
    Fresh install of game.

    lkrlqis9294n.png
    Edited by rbullis on April 9, 2025 1:56AM
  • S_Northman
    S_Northman
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    Try this, it works perfectly for me after a few seconds. 100% efficient.

    If you are playing through Steam

    Fix 1
    Go to: C:\Program Files (x86)\Steam\steamapps\common\Zenimax Online\Launcher
    Find Bethesda.net_Launcher.exe, left-click it once to select it, then press Enter on your keyboard and maintain it until you see the launcher window appears.

    Maybe some 'unable to laod skin' windows will appear, but close them after the Launcher has started

    Fix 2
    In Steam, left-click the PLAY button as usual, release the mouse button, and immediately after press and maintain Enter on the keyboard until the launcher windows appears. The mouse cursor must retain on the PLAY button.


    If you are not using Steam, try fix 1 using your installation file where it is
    Probably C:\Program Files (x86)\Zenimax Online\Launcher

    Fix 1 is more reliable than fix 2 and requires less dexterity and synchronization.
    Edited by S_Northman on April 9, 2025 6:33PM
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