The Verge reports that the dreaded Blue Screen of Death (BSOD) that has been part of the Windows experience since the 1990s may now be replaced by a Black Screen of Death. This color change is just one of many changes expected as we approach the retail build of Windows 11, which will be released later this year.

According to Microsoft sources, the BSOD color will change from blue to black to match other aesthetic changes in Windows 11. the BSOD will display the usual error message codes, QR codes, and the sideways frown we have become accustomed to since Windows 8, but the background will be black instead of the traditional The background is black instead of the traditional blue. For some reason, the change from blue to black makes the error screen look a bit more miserable.

The "black screen of death" does not appear automatically in preview builds of Windows 11. Let's say you want to experience the new BSOD for yourself (why wouldn't you?). According to Tom's Hardware, the way to make the black screen appear is to change the registry to CrashControl in HKLMSYSTEM's CurrentControlSet and set DisplayPreReleaseColor to 0.

This is not the first time Microsoft has changed the color of the error screen; preview builds of Windows 10 have used a green BSOD for some time; Windows 98 and Vista, back in the day, had graphics card-related problems with the Red Screen of Death. But the Blue Screen of Death has been with us for 30 years, with subtle changes over the last few years.

We contacted Microsoft and asked if this new BSOD would be coming in the final version of Windows 11 or only in the preview build currently available.