(SOLVED) My game keeps minimizing every 5-7 minutes! PLEASE HELP

[(BB4H) nickeliii]

I really hope somebody can help me with this. I have a Steam downloaded version of Dark Souls 2 and even though everything within the game runs impeccably, the program minimizes by itself to Desktop approx every 5-7 minutes! I can't tell you how frustrating it is to find yourself in a hard situation only to have the game disappear and continue in the background. I can restore it immediately but it's usually too late in the middle of combat.

I have tried contacting Namco Bandai support but it's been days without a response. My current specs are:
-Windows RT 8.1 64-bit
-Nvidia GeForce 600 ti
-Game purchased from Steam

I have tried: Deleting background processes on at a time, updating/rolling back my video drivers, unplugging my 2nd monitor, unplugging my mouse (im playing with an xbox 360 wired controller), numerous variations on the in-game video settings... I have no other ideas! This is the only game it's ever happened with! PLEASE HELP! I can't proceed because the boss I'm up against takes longer to kill than this issue allows for!

SOLVED: I managed to fix the issue by playing the game with the Windows Event Log running in the background. I noticed immediately after the game minimized that a program from my Samsung phone had attempted some sort of process. I deleted the program and the problem disappeared. I recommend the Event Log approach to anyone having the same issue. See if you can find the program that's conflicting, and - after making sure that there are no consequences for unistalling it - uninstall it. Thanks for all the feedback.

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Nickeliii

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[Mairaki]

nickeliii eredeti hozzászólása:

SOLVED: I managed to fix the issue by playing the game with the Windows Event Log running in the background. I noticed immediately after the game minimized that a program from my Samsung phone had attempted some sort of process. I deleted the program and the problem disappeared. I recommend the Event Log approach to anyone having the same issue. See if you can find the program that's conflicting, and - after making sure that there are no consequences for unistalling it - uninstall it. Thanks for all the feedback.

Sorry this discussion is a little old, but could you tell me what event log you used for this? I'm having trouble interpreting all the information but if I know which log to use I can figure it out from there.

[(BB4H) nickeliii]

Mairaki eredeti hozzászólása:

nickeliii eredeti hozzászólása:

SOLVED: I managed to fix the issue by playing the game with the Windows Event Log running in the background. I noticed immediately after the game minimized that a program from my Samsung phone had attempted some sort of process. I deleted the program and the problem disappeared. I recommend the Event Log approach to anyone having the same issue. See if you can find the program that's conflicting, and - after making sure that there are no consequences for unistalling it - uninstall it. Thanks for all the feedback.

Sorry this discussion is a little old, but could you tell me what event log you used for this? I'm having trouble interpreting all the information but if I know which log to use I can figure it out from there.

No worries, I used the standard Windows Event Viewer (in Windows 10 it's under Administrative Tools in the Start Menu). I just had it running in the background and when the game minimized I checked the event log for the most recent program/process that had activated. For me it was a Samsung Application that was failing to work so it showed up in the "errors" section of the log. Hope that helps

[sonderkraftfahrzeug]

Hope this helps others if you have Windows 10, have multiple monitors and your games auto minimize when starting in fullscreen, what fixed it for me was..

1. Right click on the taskbar
2. Go into Settings
3. Uncheck "Show taskbar on all displays".

This immediately fixed the issue on all of my games.

[Futil1ty]

I've been trying to figure this out for a while... I keep coming back to your thread because I'm like "oh duh, of course I should have checked the Event Viewer"... But perhaps I'm not checking in the right place because I can't find anything to show me what is minimizing all my games! I don't even own a Dark Souls game, but this thread is one of the most relevant that I've found on Steam.

My brother's PC does the same thing for all his games (Steam or otherwise... It just has something to do with Windows taking the focus off of a fullscreen game), and I can't figure out what it is! What should I have selected in the Event Viewer? BTW, I'm using Windows 7.

[Mairaki]

Sorry I can't remember what log I used in the Event Viewer, but I did find my problem was associated with something along the lines of some "Windows Updater." Not much help, I know, but I also never disabled it because I was afraid it might break something.
Somewhat of a shot in the dark, but I think I may have simply scanned each of the logs under the Windows Logs tab.

Sonder's idea with the taskbar may actually help me. Haven't tried it yet, but I do have multiple monitors and I notice that in fullscreen video (i.e. YouTube), sometimes the taskbar will show up on the bottom. Might be taskbar's fault, or just that its the same as in game, but the video fails to minimize. I'll try to remeber to come back and tell you if it helped me.

[(BB4H) nickeliii]

I wouldn't be surprised to learn that the problem is different for everybody depending on software/hardware and possible conflicts and errors throughout... I can only tell you that I solved it on my computer by opening the Windows Event Log, selecting the Administrative Events tab (under Custom Views), and leaving it running in the background while I played the game. The moment the game minimized, I checked the log and found an error that directly correlated with the timing of the problem. It was a Samsung application, most likely installed when I synced my mobile phone. A quick bit of research to ensure it wasn't a critical application... and then I uninstalled it.

Never had the problem again

[Futil1ty]

Thank you for your quick response, sir. Unfortunately, it isn't helping me solve the problem, but thank you anyway, haha!

[Futil1ty]

For anyone wondering, I used "Task Scheduler" to find my issue! (not Event Viewer)

My games would minimize on the dot at the :37 mark of every hour... Through "Task Scheduler", I discovered that the software for my EPSON WF-3640 had tasks scheduled to start an updater executable, even though I had automatic updates turned off. I've simply disabled all of those tasks and will now test the results! :)

[Riaktion]

Good luck!

[Futil1ty]

It worked!!!!!

[Riaktion]

Futil1ty eredeti hozzászólása:

It worked!!!!! :D:

Huzzah!

[turohabaneero]

I'm having trouble understanding where in the Windows Event Viewer I should look for the answer. My OS is not in English. Would it be possible for anyone here to send a link to a screenshot?

[Futil1ty]

see you next friday eredeti hozzászólása:

I'm having trouble understanding where in the Windows Event Viewer I should look for the answer. My OS is not in English. Would it be possible for anyone here to send a link to a screenshot?

What you are looking for should be in any of these 5 places:
https://i.imgur.com/lnYEUqo.jpg

[Reinier dash]

what about windows 8.1 something is minimizing my games and i can't fix it