Known Issue: Big Box Startup Videos Not Playing Reliably

Overview

Some users are experiencing an issue where Big Box startup videos do not play consistently, or are skipped entirely, when launching Big Box. Reports began around LaunchBox 13.19–13.20 and continue through recent builds.

Symptoms

You may see one or more of the following:

• Startup video plays only on first launch, then gets skipped on subsequent launches

• Restarting Windows may allow the video to play once, then it stops again

• Startup video plays intermittently (for example, around 1 in 3 launches)

• Big Box skips the splash screen, but the startup video also fails to play

• Occurs on fresh installs as well as upgraded builds

• Reproduced across both low end and high end systems

• Happens with both FFMPEG and Windows Media Player

Affected Versions

• Reported from approximately 13.19–13.20 onward

• Confirmed by users in 13.24

• Reproduced internally in 13.25 beta

Expected Behavior

When a startup video is present in LaunchBox/Videos/Startup, Big Box should:

• Reliably play the startup video on every launch

• Allow users to skip the video via controller, keyboard, or mouse

• Transition smoothly into Big Box after playback or skip

What This Is Not

This issue is not typically caused by:

• Incorrect folder structure

  • Correct path is LaunchBox/Videos/Startup

• A specific video file, format, or number of videos

• System performance alone

Current Understanding

Based on community reports and internal investigation:

• The issue is real but highly inconsistent, which made it difficult to diagnose

• The problem appears tied to startup video changes introduced when Big Box moved away from the legacy VLC based playback system

• Startup video playback now relies on FFMPEG or Windows Media Player, depending on user settings

• The behaviour suggests a timing or initialization issue in certain Windows or machine environments

What We’re Doing

• We’ve now identified machines internally that reproduce the issue

• The startup video system has been rebuilt from the ground up in a test branch

• Early testing shows strong improvements, including:

  • Startup videos playing reliably across repeated launches

  • Proper skipping via controller, keyboard, or mouse

  • Improved transitions into Big Box during or after playback

What Happens Next

• Continued testing across a wider range of systems and configurations

• Once validated, the fix will be included in a future LaunchBox update

• Progress updates will be shared as testing continues

How You Can Help

If you’re affected and willing to share details, the following are especially helpful:

• Windows version

• CPU and GPU details, integrated vs dedicated

• How Big Box is launched

• Playback engine selected, FFMPEG or Windows Media Player

• Startup video file details and how many videos are present

Thank you for your patience and for the detailed reports. Your feedback directly helped us identify and rebuild this system.