How high is too high for CPU temps when I'm gaming? What can be done about high operating temps?

[Jophiel]

@SenorBeef

I’ve never opened a video card, so I can’t really give personal advice. I’ve read people advising against it on pc building forums on the basis that each cooling solution is unique to the manufacturer and some involve more complicated construction than others, like differently sized thermal pads for instance that need to be replaced correctly.

I’ve done it a few times on different cards. It’s not especially hard and, if you’re careful, the pads should be reusable. That said, it’s not anything I’d want to do with my primary card unless I really needed to just because there is a basic risk of damage when taking shit apart and putting it back together again and the only time thermal paste is going to be the issue on a GPU is when it’s fairly old.

[solost]

@EllisDee

This is mostly a cyberpunk thing, right? That game is super demanding from what I understand. You never noticed any issue with “lighter” games like fallout 4, right?

Are there any other demanding games you have your eye on? (Basically any big studio game from the last few years.) That Indiana Jones game comes to mind as one with ridiculous requirements.

If it’s only a problem for cyberpunk because you aren’t particularly interested in other AAA games, how many hours do you envision playing? Maybe just take the side panel off and call it good enough for cyberpunk, then put it back on when you finish the game. That would certainly be the easiest and cheapest solution. There is no harm running your computer without the side panel other than a little extra dust accumulation.

What do you consider a ‘AAA’ game? Fallout 4 is AAA, isn’t it, albeit an older one? It seems odd to call FO4 a ‘lighter’ game. I’ve played other AAA games, like GTA V and Red Dead Redemption II, though those are older as well, pre-2020s (RDR II released in 2018, I believe). The newest game I’ve played (AA though, not AAA) is Atomfall, released in 2025. None of those seemed to have any issues at all on my PC, though I was only monitoring CPU temps at that time, not GPU temps.

I mean, I would like to be able to play newer AAA games when one sounds good to me. I don’t mind playing older games that take it easy on my PC (oldest one I played and enjoyed the heck out of recently was Half Life 2, a few months ago), but they ain’t making any more of those. I would have figured my computer could handle CP2077, which was released in 2020, not long before I got my computer. But I know they did an extensive ‘2.0’ upgrade that fixed a lot of glitches, but significantly increased its processor requirements.

So, I know at some point if I want to continue playing the newest and best games, I’ll need to replace my aging computer. But is the fact that my current build is having issues with CP2077 the game’s ‘fault’ or my computer’s ‘fault’, I wonder? I’ve heard Starfield is also an inordinate processor hog. Not a game that appeals to me though, fortunately.

[Bear_Nenno]

Just as an anecdote, years ago I had a Coffee Lake Intel Core i9-9900K run in the 100+ temp range for like 48 months–constantly shutting off the computer to protect itself. Eventually, I replaced the AIO cooler. That computer still works fine. About a year ago, I put it a Noctua fan. I should have gone with a fan from the beginning.

[EllisDee]

@solost

It seems odd to call FO4 a ‘lighter’ game.

Soley because it’s old.