GeneralEtrius GeneralEtrius

Crysis keeps crashing

Crysis keeps crashing

It seems that my computer crashes when I play Crysis or orther demanding games. The system completely shuts itself down. I think it may be a result of heat from dust collection. I opened my computer and cleaned off all the dust (there was a lot), and it seemed to run better, but crashed again. The demo ran perfectly, without a hitch, so this is frusterating. I wish Windows would tell me WHY the computer shut itself off.

Can anyone help me?

98,407 views 48 replies
Reply #26 Top

i you referring to the ones with nano suits?

Reply #27 Top

Sounds like a heating issue on the CPU. Depending on your rig, cleaning out the dust simply may not be enough.

Edit: Wow. Captain obvious to the rescue. When I saw the thread yesterday, I thought I made the second reply in the thread. Accidently stepped right into the second page of the thread.

Reply #28 Top

Sounds like a heating issue on the CPU. Depending on your rig, cleaning out the dust simply may not be enough.

Do you have any suggestions? Remember, I said that the demo ran mine with everything maxed.

Also, is and ATI Radeon 4850 enough to run Crysis with High/Very High settings?

Reply #29 Top

How did you clean the dust?

Was it with compressed air?

And make sure that you get the video card fan as well. You will need to pull the video card to clean it.

Also, you can check the operation of each fan with the case open while you play. Dust can clog fans so they no longer function as intended. If a CPU or video card fan is running slowly, you will have this same problem.

As to the demo running fine - a demo may not use the resources of the full game. Your 4850 should run the game just fine, but EA sites don't really show what is needed. Typical of EA.

All in all, it does sound like an overheating issue. If something overheats the system will simply shut down and reboot. If it is a software issue you will likely get a BSOD (blue screen of death), which might give an indication of the faulty driver. If it is a hardware problem, Windows probably can not report it in the sys log - because the hardware shuts down before the OS can report it.

Reply #30 Top

Also, you can check the operation of each fan with the case open while you play. Dust can clog fans so they no longer function as intended.

this will work for a little while, but dont rely on it indefinitly

my dad's work computer would shut down every once in a while and we couldnt figure out what was wrong

then, it started shutting down more often, and would always start up with an overheating error warning message.

so we took the side casing off and it fixed the problem for a while, then the shutdowns came again and the same error message, i checked the BIOS it said the computer was running at 96 degrees Celcuis, after being turned off all night...

so, i took it apart and looked at the fan, the intake was clogged with dust. i mean, seriously, it looked like someone had harvested a museums worth of dustbunnies and stuck it right in the fan

so i cleaned it out, put it all back together, and ran the computer, and its been a few months now without any problems

another thing you may want to try is find a registry fixer/cleaner and run it every once in a while (CCleaner is a good one). what happens is everytime you create a file/program, save a file/program, delete a file/program etc etc, basically do anything on your computer, it creates or changes a registry entry, and most of the time the computer doesnt clean up after the changes. this clogs up the computer and makes it run slower/hotter, so cleaning the cache and cleaning the registry every once in a while will also help

Reply #31 Top

Quoting GeneralEtrius, reply 3

Sounds like a heating issue on the CPU. Depending on your rig, cleaning out the dust simply may not be enough.
Do you have any suggestions? Remember, I said that the demo ran mine with everything maxed.
Get a program that monitors how warm your CPU is. I use the program I got with my GFX-cards, nVidia somethingoranother (haven't used it in ages, since I had these exact problems). Obviously, being an ATI rig, you're going to need another program, anyway.

Depending on what program you use, you should be able to tell it to set of a small alarm or 'pling' when it goes above a certain temperature. I could even make a log of the temperatures of my CPU, both my GPU's and my Motherboard at the same time, right up until the computer crashed.

That will at least tell you if that's the problem. If that's it, I'd rip the rig apart, clean out all dust like a mad cleaning lady, and then see if I can't get better cooling. Simply getting two new (massive) chassi fans to help clear the air inside the rig helped my case, going from a crash every hour to being completely crash-free since then.

Quoting GeneralEtrius, reply 3
Also, is and ATI Radeon 4850 enough to run Crysis with High/Very High settings?
No idea.

Reply #32 Top

And make sure that you get the video card fan as well. You will need to pull the video card to clean it.

My can of air has this tube that you can stick into spaces to clean. Would that work? I don't want to take a chance with breaking my PC.

Reply #33 Top

Look, I had the same problem. My 8800GTX was heating my casing.

My recommendation would be to open your casing to let the heat come out and you could do what I did; place a large fan (a fan you would use in any part of your house) right next to your casing.

Its not the best solution but its a temporary one until you can get better venting for your PC. Removing the dust is a good start but I doubt it's gonna be enough.

Bottom line is; you have to cooldown your casing.

Reply #34 Top

Would adding a new powerful case fan or replacing the old one do any good. I was looking on Newegg the other day.

I'm using a Gateway FX 6800 PC, so it's got a better case than most PCs (has a side vent as well as back vents, but this also sucks dust)

Opening the case may be a temporary, but like you said, not the best. If something happened. Water cooling would be a last resort, but if the pipes are faulty and it spilled, you are absolutely fucked.

Thank you all for the help. Hopefully I can get this all sorted out soon.

Reply #35 Top

I'm still having issues. Even on Medium settings, it still crashes. I don't want to open up my case and take everything out, as I don't have a special wrist strap. I really need to know if an ATI Radeon 4850 is good enough to run Crysis, because I may have to upgrade.

Reply #36 Top

well, what are the specs exactly? the box tells you the minimum requirements to play so work it out. but a insufficiently powerful graphics card or processor wouldnt cause the computer to shut down. it might cause the game to crash, or at least slow down and stall/stop responding, but it wouldnt shut your computer down.

the only thing it can be is overheating or a bug/virus/error etc telling/causing the comp to shut down

if you dont want to take it apart yourself you can always send it to a certified repairer and get them to do it

Reply #37 Top

the only thing it can be is overheating or a bug/virus/error etc telling/causing the comp to shut down

I'm using a trial of AVG to do so to see if this works. I think there may be a virus increasing the work of the graphics card. If only creation of viruses was punishable by 20 years in federal prison... Though that wouldn't work as a lot of viruses come from Europe.

Reply #38 Top

The issue is overheating over extended play sessions, not viruses.
I played through the entire game of Crysis in a single sitting, we're talking 9 straight hours, and the last part of the game crashed time and again. I left it for 30 minutes, letting my PC cool down, and returned to a crash-free game. The amount of work your Video Card and CPU are required to do for Crysis is quite significant; don't underestimate the processing power requiring for the visuals.
My suggestion would be to play the game in short bursts, on lower settings, or open the side of your tower and sit a personal fan to blow cool air directly onto the components.

Best of luck.

Reply #39 Top

The issue is overheating over extended play sessions, not viruses.

I played through the entire game of Crysis in a single sitting, we're talking 9 straight hours, and the last part of the game crashed time and again. I left it for 30 minutes, letting my PC cool down, and returned to a crash-free game. The amount of work your Video Card and CPU are required to do for Crysis is quite significant; don't underestimate the processing power requiring for the visuals.

My suggestion would be to play the game in short bursts, on lower settings, or open the side of your tower and sit a personal fan to blow cool air directly onto the components.

Best of luck.

The game crashes in less then 30 minutes right when I play immediatly after turning the computer on. Also, game that I have that never crashed before, such as UT3 and Assassin's Creed, also crash.

I'll try the open case, but my parents would get freaked out about it.

Reply #40 Top

Quoting GeneralEtrius, reply 14
The game crashes in less then 30 minutes right when I play immediatly after turning the computer on.

So Crysis just crashes the moment you start it up, or does it take a few minutes first? Have you used the tool for your video card to check the Temp of the card?

I assume you've patched the game and aren't using a cracked EXE?

Reply #41 Top

I haven`t read every post written here, I don`t know if this has been mentioned yet.  I tried running vanilla crysis with an 8800gt and had some similar problem`s.  I would reccomend trying this mod.

http://forum.strategyinformer.com/showthread.php?t=21685

It`s a performance improvement mod.  I could barely run vanilla crysis at med settings.  After installing that mod, High settings at a pretty smooth frame rate.  It improves performance and visual quality, I was very impressed with it.  It turned an unplayable game into a great experience. 

I just read your last post about UT3 and AC crashing too.  Hmm..I don`t know what to say.  Take the above advice and open the case, Make sure there is not dust or pet hair clogging the fans or airflow.

EDIT

Have you downloaded the Catalyst Cotrol Centre(CCC)?  It`s normally packaged with the AMD/ATI drivers.  Use that application to make sure the fan speed is set high enough on your GPU.

Good Luck

Reply #42 Top

I tried to clean out the CPU heatsink using compressed air, but I lost the access tube. I would guess that there might be some dust in between each metal sheet, but it was impossible to reach in there. The case feels hot where the CPU, so I think my CPU is to blame. You'd think an i7 could do better...

I found the ATI overdrive that has fan speeds, but everything is greyed out. I also may have made a mistake when I redownloaded CCC, because it thinks I have two graphics cards when I have only one, and it says that I have a 4870 when I have a 4850. It also said that my card usual runs at 86 degrees (not sure if its F or C)

So Crysis just crashes the moment you start it up, or does it take a few minutes first?

It crashes after about a half hour of play.

I ran AVG, didn't find anything bad.

All in all, it seems that I might need some professional help with this issue.

Reply #43 Top

Quoting GeneralEtrius, reply 17
86 degrees (not sure if its F or C)
...
It crashes after about a half hour of play.
...
All in all, it seems that I might need some professional help with this issue.

Oh god I hope it's F. If it's C, I'm surprised your card didn't burn up like an ant under a magnifying glass! You'll need to try and confirm this, it should be detailed somewhere.

The fact that it crashes after a particular time frame rather than at a particular occurance means two things; it's either heat related - this is where I'm putting my money - or it's memory related. I experienced the same situation, as detailed above, and so I believe it's heat related. When it crashes, is it a clean crash to the desktop, or do you receive an error message? Does your computer freeze up?

I'm afraid you might need some professional help in terms of cooling. Research possible solutions or people who've solved a similar issue and try and talk with them about it, to make sure that your issue is the same. Don't spend money on additional cooling if you don't have to. Not much more I can say, sorry mate. Best of luck!

Reply #44 Top

When it crashes, is it a clean crash to the desktop, or do you receive an error message? Does your computer freeze up?

I explained it before. The screen goes black, and the computer shuts itself off.

Reply #45 Top

Sorry, I must have missed that part, but it certainly answers your question: this is a safety feature of your hardware, to prevent it from burning out when over-heating. You need additional cooling on your components.

Reply #46 Top

Given that your rig is running over 80 degrees (most likely C, I've never seen a program with a default setting of F), you need some serious cooling power, and NOW.

The first step is obviously to check that all your fans are running. This may involve opening the case, but you won't have to touch anything. Also, provided you are VERY careful, you do not need a grounding wire to handle your components for short amounts of time. I wouldn't particularly recommend it, but you can ground yourself on any grounded metal surface; I typically use my kitchen sink.

The second would be compressed air. Trust me, this is a must. I tried to use a vaccuum, didn't get the job done (even though it looked fine) and went over the same areas with compressed air. Dust everywhere. Be sure to take it outside when you spray it.

The next step would be to check that your CPU has the correct layer of thermal grease. Note that while it's very difficult to have too little of this stuff, it's quite easy to go overboard! Make sure you've got some, but don't use a whole tube or you'll kill it.

The last resort is the installation of more fans. Preferably, you would have 2 outtake (blowing out) vents in the back, and two intake vents, in the front and side. However, some cases are not built for this, like mine.

As I have a badly cooled computer with a reasonable (GeForce 9600) graphics card, I'll try and find a copy of crysis and run it, and see if I run into the same problem. Cheers, and best of luck.

Reply #47 Top

I had issues with cooling a long time ago, nearly burnt out my old AMD. I decided to put my most recent computer to the ultimate test; I built it during the Australian Summer, which is around the Christmas Period. If a computer can withstand the Australian summer than it's worthy of playing my games.

Reply #48 Top

The first step is obviously to check that all your fans are running. This may involve opening the case, but you won't have to touch anything. Also, provided you are VERY careful, you do not need a grounding wire to handle your components for short amounts of time. I wouldn't particularly recommend it, but you can ground yourself on any grounded metal surface; I typically use my kitchen sink.

I'll have to try that if I take out my graphics card to clean it. But if you take out the graphics card and put it back in again, would you have to go through the hardware installation process again, or does the computer not know anything?

The second would be compressed air. Trust me, this is a must. I tried to use a vaccuum, didn't get the job done (even though it looked fine) and went over the same areas with compressed air. Dust everywhere. Be sure to take it outside when you spray it.

I tried this. Got a lot of dust out of the computer, but I still think there may be some in the heat sink. And there always seems to be a thin layer of dust on my video card whenever I open my case to clean it, and all the circuit joints make it tough to clean. I also really cant get the dust out, because it just resettles. However, I feel a lot of heat where the CPU is when it crashes. I think that the CPU is getting stressed because there isn't enough RAM. Even though I have 3 gigs of DDR3, I don't think its enough.