# Why does my new computer freeze and restart when i play games? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [September 17, 2003, 6:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-my-new-computer-freeze-and-restart-when-i-play-games/202196 "2003-09-17T18:56:11Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 7\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![non-native](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/bc8723/32.png) [@non-native](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/non-native)\ **Post date:** [September 17, 2003, 6:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-my-new-computer-freeze-and-restart-when-i-play-games/202196/1 "2003-09-17T18:56:11Z")
I just got this computer from ABS and starting today whenever turn on a game (namely SOF II and WarCraft III) it freezes then restarts on it’s own. I’m guessing it’s something I downloaded since this problem arrised only after I got my internet hooked up yesterday. So I did a virus scan but that didn’t do much. I have a no idea what’s going on because the games were working fine even after all the downloads. Any suggestions and/or tips would be appreciated. ---
**Author:** ![Kewk](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/7ab992/32.png) [@Kewk](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kewk)\ **Post date:** [September 17, 2003, 6:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-my-new-computer-freeze-and-restart-when-i-play-games/202196/2 "2003-09-17T18:58:33Z")
#1 Did you make sure that you computer meets the minimum system requirements listed on the game boxes? #2 Have you made sure that you video card and sound card drivers are up to date? #3 More extreme, you might need to makre sure your motherboard drivers are up to date as well. ---
**Author:** ![Joe\_Random](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/e8c25b/32.png) [@Joe\_Random](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Joe_Random)\ **Post date:** [September 17, 2003, 7:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-my-new-computer-freeze-and-restart-when-i-play-games/202196/3 "2003-09-17T19:03:01Z")
I wonder if this could be a delayed case of the MSBlast worm? Make sure to go to [http://www.windowsupdate.com](http://www.windowsupdate.com) and installl any needed critical updates or security patches. ---
**Author:** ![handy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/b5a626/32.png) [@handy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/handy)\ **Post date:** [September 17, 2003, 8:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-my-new-computer-freeze-and-restart-when-i-play-games/202196/4 "2003-09-17T20:54:31Z")
What kind of computer & operating system? Could be heat related too. Hope the fans are working. ---
**Author:** ![AskNott](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/asknott/32/5790_2.png) [@AskNott](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AskNott)\ **Post date:** [September 17, 2003, 9:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-my-new-computer-freeze-and-restart-when-i-play-games/202196/5 "2003-09-17T21:09:37Z")
A few years ago, I had a similar problem. It turned out my screen saver was mistaking gaming for “no activity,” and it tried to start. That was enough to trip the game up, and it would quit. When I disabled the screen saver, the problem went away. ---
**Author:** ![World\_Eater](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/f04885/32.png) [@World\_Eater](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/World_Eater)\ **Post date:** [September 17, 2003, 9:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-my-new-computer-freeze-and-restart-when-i-play-games/202196/6 "2003-09-17T21:49:22Z")
I just put the finishing touches on a new computer the other day, and was having the same problem. Installing the latest video drivers seemed to help. ---
**Author:** ![handy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/b5a626/32.png) [@handy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/handy)\ **Post date:** [September 18, 2003, 3:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-my-new-computer-freeze-and-restart-when-i-play-games/202196/7 "2003-09-18T15:29:19Z")
BTW, under the XP support center it says: "To specify what Windows does if the system stops unexpectedly You must be logged on as a computer administrator in order to complete this procedure. Open System in Control Panel. On the Advanced tab, under Startup and Recovery, click Settings. Under System Failure, select the check boxes that correspond to the actions you want Windows to perform if a Stop error occurs: Write an event to the system log specifies that event information will be recorded in the system log. Send an administrative alert specifies that your system administrator will be notified. Automatically reboot specifies that Windows will automatically restart your computer."