If Discord’s rich presence is not working for you, you do not need to worry.
There are some easy fixes that will take you minutes to implement.
I will guide you through them one by one.
What is rich presence on Discord?
Keep reading the whole post to learn in detail.
Discord Rich Presence
Before I give you the step-by-step fixes, let me discuss the rich presence feature in detail.
Discord ‘rich presence’ is an overhaul of the Discord user’s ‘Now Playing’ section. It shows detailed information about the currently playing game on the user profile.
You can expect very detailed information from the rich presence feature. You can see things like Game duration, scores, current map, empty slots, and many more.
Not only that, you can even interact with the user via the different options.
The profile pop out gives you the option to spectate your friend. Or you can create a playing party to help others join and chat. Of course, all the information will sync with the user profile in real-time via the rich presence.
The whole idea behind rich presence revolves around three aspects:
- Showing detailed in-game information.
- Allowing users to spectate easily.
- Allowing users to join the lobby and chat easily.
Thus, the rich presence creates a unique opportunity to connect with friends. As Discord is very popular among gamers, it makes sense to implement a feature where users can see what others are playing and join them.
Overall, it brings the meaning of playing together to a whole new level.
How To Fix Discord Rich Presence Not Working
Discord’s rich presence is a great feature, no doubt.
However, sometimes there might be issues to make it work correctly. But, there are some easy solutions to the problems.
Here’s how to fix Discord rich presence:
1. Install VCRedist x86
For most people, installing the correct visual C++ redistributable x86 (or ‘VCRedist x86’ in short) fixes the issue.
If you are not aware, the VCRedist is an executable file that contains some essential functions that the Discord rich presence relies on.
For some reason, the VCRedist x86 file might be missing from your system. So manually downloading and installing the program solves the issue for most.
There are two versions of VCRedist files, 32bit (x86) and 64bit (x64). In most cases, it is seen that the 32bit version (VCRedist x86) is missing. So your best bet is to download the 32bit one.
You can download the file from the Microsoft website. Once you do that, run the file and install it following the on-screen instructions.
It will take less than a minute. After installing, restart your PC, launch Discord, and see if the rich presence feature works now.
Read more on how to Fix Spotify Listen Along Not Working on Discord.
2. Add your games manually
It is up to the game developers to optimize the rich presence feature to detect the currently playing game without issue.
But sometimes, there might be some errors in that aspect. Discord might be unable to tell which game you are playing.
In such a case, you need to add your game manually to Discord.
Here’s how to do it:
- Click on the cog icon on the bottom left to go to User Settings.
- Click on ‘Activity Status’.
- Click on the blue ‘Add it’ text.
- Type in your game name and select from the list.
- Click on the ‘Add Game’ button.
- Re-launch Discord.
Check if Discord correctly recognizes the game you are playing now.
Also, check out our separate post on how to Fix Discord Verification Email Not Sending.
3. Run the game as administrator
If you run the Discord app as administrator but the game without administrator rights, the rich presence might not work.
Discord takes data from the game to display in the profile status. So, when the Discord app runs as an administrator, but the game doesn’t, a discrepancy hinders showing data correctly.
To fix it, simply launch both the game and the Discord app with administration rights.
4. Re-enable rich presence for the game
Sometimes, disabling and then re-enabling the rich presence feature solves the issue.
When you are playing a game, do the following on the Discord app:
- Click on the Settings icon to go to User Settings.
- Go to ‘Activity Status’ from the left menu.
- Hover over the name of the game you are currently playing.
- Click on the red cross (x) sign to remove the game from the rich presence list.
- Click on the blue ‘Add it!’ text to add the game again.
- Re-launch Discord.
It should work correctly now.
Quickly check out our epic guide on how to fix Discord CAPTCHA not working.
Why Use Discord Rich Presence?
Discord’s rich presence brings in a lot of flexibility and cool features to gamers. It lets gamers show the game they are currently playing and also necessary game data relevant to the current status.
Rich presence makes it easier for other players to join and play games together. If you are playing a multiplayer game, it is super easy for your friends to join you.
Your friends will know exactly what you are playing and for how long. They will also get a join button to start playing with you in an instant. There is no need to come out of the game, knock your friends and give them invite codes to play together.
If the game is not multiplayer, your friends can still benefit from the rich presence feature. It allows others to spectate you with the click of a button. Your friends can see your pro gameplay without much hassle.
Can Someone Join Me Without Owning The Game Through Discord Rich Presence?
Whether you own a particular game or not, you will be able to see profile data. However, when it comes to chat invites and play invites, you must own the game.
Not only that, but you must also launch the game at least once after installing it.
Only then will you be able to interact with the join button.
If you do not meet these conditions, a tooltip that says ‘Game Not Detected’ will appear.
How To Turn Of Rich Presence
Sometimes, you might not want to show what you are playing to your Discord friends. Or you might want to hide the game stats.
Whatever the case might be, you would want to turn off the rich presence feature on Discord.
Rich presence is turned on by default.
Here’s how to turn off rich presence for a particular game:
- Click on the cog icon to go to User Settings.
- Go to ‘Activity Status’ from the left menu.
- Hover over the name of the game you want to remove.
- Click on the red cross (x) sign to remove the game from the rich presence.
Now rich presence is deactivated for the particular game, and your profile will not show it.
If you want to fix discord embed not working, then quickly check out our epic guide.
What Happens If You Are Playing Multiple Games Supporting Rich Presence?
Before, Discord used to show the focused game as the current game on the profile status. But that has changed.
Discord has made a recent change in its infrastructure. If you run multiple games together, the game that got connected first is regarded as the currently playing game. It is shown in the user profile.
But that does not mean other games are not syncing with the rich presence feature. You will be able to send spectate-invites, chat invites, or lobby invites on all running games simultaneously.
Hence, you get a lot of flexibility here with the recent update.
FAQ
Question: Why I’m not seeing a spectate button on my profile?
Answer: If you do not see a spectate button on your profile, it is an issue from the game developer’s side. Game developers need to get approval to add the spectate button on rich presence.
Question: How do I enable Discord rich presence?
Answer: If your game supports Discord rich presence, it should get detected automatically on launch. In some cases, you might need to add the game manually from the Discord settings.
Final Thoughts
Discord’s rich presence is a super cool feature.
It allows other Discord users to see what everyone else is playing quickly. It also allows them to join or spectate the players.
But sometimes, the rich presence does not work correctly. However, one can fix it quickly within minutes.
