Permafrost Known Issues & Fixes: Quests, Co-op, Crashes
Permafrost known bugs and the developer's own workarounds for stuck quests, co-op joining and progression, crashes, missing map markers and controller problems.
Short answer: the developer maintains a Known Issues list next to the game's patch notes, and the revision current at the time of writing is dated October 11, 2026 — two days after the Early Access launch. Most entries are not bugs waiting on a patch: they have a workaround you can apply right now. The three that cause the most frustration are joining a friend's world, quest steps that refuse to register, and crashes, and each has an official fix below.
The five fastest fixes
| Symptom | What to do |
|---|---|
| Can't find or join a friend's world | Type the host's full server name in the search box, then click Toggle and Reload (or Reload then Toggle). Refreshing the list repeatedly also helps. |
| Multiplayer greyed out, "missing auth token" | Take Steam out of offline mode, and turn off any VPN or game accelerator. |
| Main quest won't advance in co-op | Let the host complete the step. For the Skinwalker and tower quests, the host should do them solo. |
| Quest item step won't register | Do the steps in the order the quest gives them, and pick up quest items one at a time. |
| Crashing to desktop | Settings → Video: turn off multi-frame generation and super resolution, lower the quality preset, toggle V-Sync. Still crashing? Add -dx11 to your launch options. |
Co-op problems
You cannot find or join a friend's world
The developer states this is still being worked on, but gives a workaround that players report as effective: type the host's complete server name into the search box, then click Toggle and Reload — or Reload first and Toggle second. Refreshing the server list several times in a row also helps. If the host's world still will not appear, it is worth checking that the host is actually online in Steam rather than appearing offline.
Multiplayer options are greyed out, or you get "missing auth token"
Two causes are named by the developer: Steam running in offline mode, and a VPN or game accelerator interfering with the connection. Turn off the accelerator or VPN, take Steam online, and restart the game before trying to host or join.
The main quest will not advance in co-op
This one is a rule rather than a bug: let the host complete the quest step. For the Skinwalker quest and the tower quest, the developer's guidance is stronger — the host should complete those alone. Their testers reportedly reproduced the fix on every new server, so a fresh world is not the answer; the host doing the step is.
Two Skinwalker keys or chests will not open
Have the host open the Skinwalker chest. As with the progression problem above, this is a host-authority issue rather than a missing key.
Guests cannot see the dog
A known visibility bug. The floating object a guest may notice is described by the developer as the dog's harness — the dog is there, its model just is not being drawn for non-host players.
Main quest problems
The church roof key is lost or used up
The developer names three ways this key disappears: it can vanish when Anna's chest is opened with the "Take All" pickup, it can be spent on other locked chests, and it can be lost when the roof door is opened while you are holding another item. The advertised habit is to pick the key up on its own, equip it, and use it only on the roof door.
The High Frequency quest will not advance
Order matters more than the quest itself. Build the radio station at your base before repairing the tower radio. The developer also notes that pushing Hopes and Dreams ahead of it can block progress — which is the opposite of what you would assume from reading the quest as optional side content.
The Skinwalker box is empty (The Way Home / Brave the Cold)
Press Space to skip the end of the Skinwalker dialogue and the blueprint appears. The empty box is a dialogue-timing bug rather than a reward that failed to generate.
Meeting the Leader will not complete
Same class of fix: skip the Leader's conversation with Space and the objective registers.
Hopes and Dreams: the first recording
The first recording sits at the rear of the truck with the hanging corpse, on the route from the collapsed bridge toward the facility. Separately, the developer acknowledges a known bug where a player who already holds all three recordings still does not get the step credited.
Vintage Zoo: the wolf, and the crafting step
If the wolf does not appear, clear the other animals in the area and sleep — the spawn appears to depend on the area being cleaned out. On the weapon-crafting step, the list says pistols do not count and you must craft a different weapon type. Note that the patch notes for the same update say the TR-22 RUDI pistol now does count for the "Craft Any Weapon" task — see the conflict section below.
Quest order can lock a step out
The developer's own summary: completing steps early, or picking up quest items (stairs, walls, house, recordings, samples) before the quest asks for them, can stop those steps from registering. Where the quest gives you an order, follow it, and avoid grabbing quest props you do not need yet.
Map and markers
Quest markers disappear. Switch from offline mode to online mode and the markers come back. This is a display issue tied to the session mode, not a lost quest.
Explored map and custom markers reset on load. Acknowledged as a known issue and being worked on. Until it is fixed, treat custom markers as temporary.
Crashes and performance
Crashes to desktop. The official sequence is: open Settings → Video, turn off multi-frame generation and super resolution, lower the quality preset, and toggle V-Sync. If the game still crashes, add -dx11 to the launch options.
Error 11c7 / "CreateProcess() returned 11". Turn off Windows Smart App Control. This is a Windows-side blocker rather than a game setting, which is why the usual graphics changes do not touch it.
Frame rate drops after opening the settings menu. Restart the game.
DirectX 11 runs slower than DirectX 12. The developer says this is expected behaviour, not a fault — use DX11 only if DX12 crashes. That is a correction to the way the launch option is often described: DX11 is a crash workaround that costs you performance, not a free fallback.
Settings and controls
Key bindings reset after restarting. Acknowledged and being worked on.
The camera stays zoomed in after aiming. Return to the main menu and reload your save.
The fast travel sled will not unlock on a controller. Unlock it once with a mouse, pressing F. After that the point stays unlocked.
Inventory tabs cycle on their own. Unplug any extra controllers or devices, or disable Steam Input for Permafrost.
Everything else on the list
The middle roof part will not place. Put a wall underneath, then remove the wall. For a taller room, build two levels and remove the middle one.
The screen flashes red but your stats do not drop. Reload the save.
A bridge is only half built. Restart the game and repair it again.
Animals are not respawning. Clear the animals in that area and sleep.
"Oh Deer!" reward cannot be claimed. Acknowledged as a known issue and being fixed — there is no player-side workaround listed.
The Iron Pickaxe description mentions moonstone. The developer confirms the description is wrong: you need a Quality Iron Pickaxe to mine moonstone.
One conflict worth knowing: does a pistol count?
Two official documents published in the same week do not agree:
- The patch notes say the TR-22 RUDI pistol now counts for the "Craft Any Weapon" task.
- The Known Issues list still says that on the Vintage Zoo crafting step, pistols do not count and you need another weapon type.
Both statements may be true of different quests — "Craft Any Weapon" and the Vintage Zoo step need not be the same objective — but neither document says so explicitly. If you are stuck on that step, 待确认: craft a non-pistol weapon first, then retry the pistol if the step still will not take. That satisfies both documents rather than guessing which one is stale.
How to report something not on the list
The developer asks for new problems through the game's bug report board, and says log and save files can be uploaded to their support file hub ↗ — logs and saves are what let them reproduce a crash, so a report with the files attached is worth far more than a description alone.
What this page cannot tell you
This page mirrors the developer's own list, so its accuracy is limited to what they have published. There is no published console command or save-editing method for repairing a stuck quest, and this wiki will not invent one. Two areas are explicitly still in progress: quest blockers and co-op problems, both of which the developer says they are continuing to fix. Treat any specific "this is fixed now" claim — including the ones on this page — as 待确认 until the patch notes for your build confirm it.
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