Error invalid-game-executable-path
Enginefall "Invalid game executable path" at launch: Smart App Control
What you see
A "Launch Error" box over the Easy Anti-Cheat screen says "Invalid game executable path!" followed by the path to ColtraneClient-Win64-Shipping.exe, with only an Exit button. One player said the game had worked the day before.
Usually fixable on your sideReported
Windows 11 Smart App Control is blocking the game from starting. Three players, in April, May and on the September playtest, got past it by turning Smart App Control off in Windows Security.
What players try
One at a time. Tell us whether each one worked and the next opens.
Open Windows Security, go to App & browser control, open Smart App Control settings and choose Off. Players on the official Enginefall Discord said on 9 April, 23 May and 25 September that this is what let the game run. Microsoft says there is no way to let a single app through Smart App Control, so turning it off is the only option, and that recent Windows updates let you turn it back on later without reinstalling Windows.
ReportedA Community Manager on the official Discord suggested this on 25 September. The player it was suggested to was already using the Playtest app, and it did not fix it for them.
Unconfirmed- Note
Moving the game to the C: drive and restarting Steam did not help
On 25 September the same player moved the install to the C: drive, restarted the PC and fully exited Steam on staff suggestions, and still got the error until they turned Smart App Control off.
Reported
Sorted. Glad that worked.
Nothing worked. Here's what to do next.
You've ruled out every step on this page, which is useful. Post this where the developers and other players will see it, so nobody makes you repeat yourself.
What we know and don’t
On 25 September, the second day of the closed playtest, a player in the official Enginefall Discord said the game would not launch and showed “Invalid game executable Path”. A Community Manager suggested launching from the Playtest app, agreed that installing on a drive other than C: could matter, and suggested fully exiting Steam. The player tried all of it and still got the error. About 40 minutes after first asking, the player posted “FIX: had to turn this off in windows security now the game runs”, with a screenshot of the Smart App Control setting switched to Off.
It is not the first time. On 23 May a player posted a screenshot of the same “Launch Error” box, pointing at the Playtest’s ColtraneClient-Win64-Shipping.exe, and said it had been fine the day before. A few minutes later they wrote that something in Windows Defender was blocking the game and that they had to turn Smart App Control off. On 9 April a player asked in the Discord support channel about an “error unknown path” when launching from Steam, and answered themselves soon after: a Windows threat protection feature, Smart App Control, was stopping it.
Smart App Control is a Windows 11 feature that blocks apps it cannot verify. Microsoft’s Smart App Control FAQ says there is currently no way to allow a single app through it. If you turn it off to play, that applies to every app on the PC, so weigh that before you do it.
The studio has not said anything about this error. All three reports are from players on the official Discord, which we can’t link to. If turning Smart App Control off does not help, post what you see on the server status page.
Also shown as
invalid game executable pathinvalid game executableinvalid executable pathcoltraneclient-win64-shipping.execoltraneclient-win64-shippingerror unknown pathsmart app control
Last checked September 26, 2026.
Other errors
Still stuck? Check whether the servers are having trouble, or post what you see on the status page.
Enginefall Playtest, Steam build 25439640. Updated 2026-09-24. Numbers can change between builds. Maintained by Lynxx.