How to fix the game not loading past main menu

Overview

This guide is here to guide you, in a guiding way, on how to fix the Bethesda re-release version of DOOM II freezing on the sigil background image when you try to play the game

The Issue and how to fix it

Bethesda re-release version of DOOM II has an installation issue that causes the game to freeze on the sigil background image (see the screenshot below), after selecting a difficulty on a single player game, starting a multiplayer game or accessing the Add-ons menu. Also, the Bethesda account menu does not function and the sigil image is shown as the main menu background instead of the actual DOOM II menu background image.

To fix this issue you need to install Microsoft Visual C++ 2019 Redistributable[support.microsoft.com] package on your system. The file you need to download and install is the x64 version (vc_redist.x64.exe), as the re-release version is a 64-bit Windows application.

Direct Download link: [link]

The problem explained in detail

Some components of the game require the latest iteration of the Visual C++ runtime libraries to function properly. Normally Steam should automatically install any third-party software required by a game when the game is started for the first time. However, when the Bethesda re-release version was added to Steam, it was not configured by the developers so that Steam knows to install the required runtime redistributable package when the game is launched.

Microsoft Visual C++ redistributable files are some of the most common runtime libraries that video games and software in general require. And most Steam users likely already have the required redistributable installed on their system, and won’t experience any problems running the DOOM re-release versions. Users that does not have the redistributable installed, however, are left with an unplayable game. Bethesda / Nerve Software has so far overlooked this issue, hence this guide exist.

The reason that the game functions at all without the required runtime libraries, has to do with the way the DOOM re-release versions are build. The re-release versions are using the Unity game engine, but the DOOM games were not re-created entirely in Unity, and the new engine works as a shell around a port of the original game code. Unity engine seems to only be responsible for some of the rendering (?), user input, game menus and split-screen multiplayer. The DOOM game code runs as a plug-in (DoomLib.dll) inside the Unity game engine, and without Visual C++ 2019 runtime libraries, this plug-in fails to load making the game unplayable.

The game uses two other plug-ins (OsirisOnline.dll and Rewired_DirectInput.dll) that also has Visual C++ 2019 runtime dependencies. One of them seems to be for handling controller input and the other for the Bethesda account and Add-on features.