Computer deadlocks when playing early access games

[chaosTecnicality]

Steam support helpfully suggested I reach out to the discussions boards, as they couldn't figure out what was going on here.

So far I have: uninstalled/reinstalled both games twice, uninstalled the Steam client and reinstalled from a fresh download, verified the game files, which verify without a problem, and used iobit powerful uninstaller to check that none of the games left files hanging around.
What I'm doing as soon as I post this is to uninstall steam again, scan with iobit, manually remove any remaining steam folders from my computer, run ccleaner's registry cleaner, reboot and then reinstall from a fresh download. I'm frustrated enough at this point to take the nuke-from-orbit strategy.

The games causing the deadlock:
Slime Rancher, on the menu screen
Niche, within five minutes of launch

The symptoms: total deadlock, no computer response to mouse, keyboard, ctrl+alt+del, esc, capslock button does not toggle the capslock status light, image on both screens remains but stays frozen, no response to a shut down from the power button, I have to long-press to cut it off, and it boots like normal afterwards.

[chaosTecnicality]

Reinstall/reboot did nothing.

[chaosTecnicality]

I'd meant to say on the original post, but updating my drivers was one of the first things I tried.

When I say it freezes within five minutes, I mean that's when the freeze starts, I've left it as long as an hour, waiting to see if it would come back.

I did consider it might be a developer issue, but I find it odd two different developers would cause the same issue, especially when other players don't seem to be having the same problems. I guess my last resort will just be waiting it out. I don't have any other early access games to test the theory against but all the rest of my already owned games appear to be running fine.

[The Giving One]

Originally posted by chaosTecnicality:

and used iobit powerful uninstaller to check that none of the games left files hanging around.

Some IOBit software is garbage, and can possibly conflict with Steam.

https://support.steampowered.com/kb_article.php?ref=9828-SFLZ-9289

Post screenshots of all of your installed programs, please.

EDIT...And CCleaner (monitoring mode active). Disable all monitoring of your PC from the CCleaner settings menu.

So we already see possible issues as relevant to your problem, just from your OP of the thread. Now, post screenshots as requested, please.

Steam is not the issue. So reinstalling Steam is not the solution. The issue is most likely the conflict that is on your system that is with Steam. Getting rid of that/those is the right course of action.

[Brujeira]

Ah... I have been kind of holding off posting in this thread for fear of seeming... alarmist. You'll see why when I tell this story. For what it's worth, I hope the OP is not having the same issue I had.

So, a few months back, my PC started doing something very strange. Games that had worked perfectly before started hardlocking my PC. Sometimes it would take a few minutes to do so, but most of the affected games hardlocked on startup. There was no obvious pattern to it either - it seemed to affect random games from different publishers. It even affected games from completely different genres and I couldn't figure out what kind of glitch could affect both a fast paced twin-stick shooter and the slowest paced turn-based strategy game I've ever played.

I gave up trying to narrow the cause down when I bought a game called "100% Orange Juice" and that hardlocked too. I'd tried the demo and liked it enough to buy it during a sale. The demo worked fine - the full version hardlocked on startup. "What the actual ♥♥♥♥? What kind of difference could there be between the startup routines of the demo and the live version? Oh, I give up." Of course, no-one else had these issues.

Sound familiar? Here's why I hope that the OP's problems don't have the same cause - my problems were caused by impending graphics card failure. It went completely three weeks after the "100% Orange Juice" debacle. I replaced it with the old card I'd cannibalised from my previous PC and everything started working again. I've since bought a new card and everything's still OK. I do hope that I've wasted my time typing all of this and that the OP's problems have a far less expensive cause.

[The Giving One]

Originally posted by Brujeira:

Sound familiar? Here's why I hope that the OP's problems don't have the same cause - my problems were caused by impending graphics card failure. It went completely three weeks after the "100% Orange Juice" debacle. I replaced it with the old card I'd cannibalised from my previous PC and everything started working again. I've since bought a new card and everything's still OK. I do hope that I've wasted my time typing all of this and that the OP's problems have a far less expensive cause.

I also had that issue with a GTX 970 FTW once, that was brand new. Luckily, I could RMA that card and got another one.

But it was TDR, from what I understood.

https://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/hardware/drivers/display/timeout-detection-and-recovery

So no, you did not waste your time here at all in my opinion. In fact, your post is very helpful and I also had not considered that possibilty but did when you posted this. Thanks.

[chaosTecnicality]

Originally posted by The Giving One:

Originally posted by chaosTecnicality:

and used iobit powerful uninstaller to check that none of the games left files hanging around.

Some IOBit software is garbage, and can possibly conflict with Steam.

https://support.steampowered.com/kb_article.php?ref=9828-SFLZ-9289

Post screenshots of all of your installed programs, please.

EDIT...And CCleaner (monitoring mode active). Disable all monitoring of your PC from the CCleaner settings menu.

So we already see possible issues as relevant to your problem, just from your OP of the thread. Now, post screenshots as requested, please.

Steam is not the issue. So reinstalling Steam is not the solution. The issue is most likely the conflict that is on your system that is with Steam. Getting rid of that/those is the right course of action.

Most IOBit is garbage, honestly. I got into the unfortuneate habit of using some of their software ages ago.
here's all my installed programs.[www.dropbox.com]

Originally posted by Brujeira:

Ah... I have been kind of holding off posting in this thread for fear of seeming... alarmist. You'll see why when I tell this story. For what it's worth, I hope the OP is not having the same issue I had.

So, a few months back, my PC started doing something very strange. Games that had worked perfectly before started hardlocking my PC. Sometimes it would take a few minutes to do so, but most of the affected games hardlocked on startup. There was no obvious pattern to it either - it seemed to affect random games from different publishers. It even affected games from completely different genres and I couldn't figure out what kind of glitch could affect both a fast paced twin-stick shooter and the slowest paced turn-based strategy game I've ever played.

I gave up trying to narrow the cause down when I bought a game called "100% Orange Juice" and that hardlocked too. I'd tried the demo and liked it enough to buy it during a sale. The demo worked fine - the full version hardlocked on startup. "What the actual ♥♥♥♥? What kind of difference could there be between the startup routines of the demo and the live version? Oh, I give up." Of course, no-one else had these issues.

Sound familiar? Here's why I hope that the OP's problems don't have the same cause - my problems were caused by impending graphics card failure. It went completely three weeks after the "100% Orange Juice" debacle. I replaced it with the old card I'd cannibalised from my previous PC and everything started working again. I've since bought a new card and everything's still OK. I do hope that I've wasted my time typing all of this and that the OP's problems have a far less expensive cause.

aaaa, see, that's terrifying, because this computer's new, but I got it open-box from ABS, which has a reputation of shipping PCs with loose parts. Sure enough, I had a fan rattling around in the case when it arrived, and I'm just out of warrenty through newegg by now. that does seem to match up with my symptoms though. I'll test with a few other games. I haven't had much time to play lately, so I never got around to installing most of my collection.

[The Giving One]

Avast Free Anitivirus (must have exceptions in real-time scanning at least, but still listed)

CCleaner (monitoring mode active) Disable all monitoring mode in CCleaner settings.

IOBit Uninstaller (its IOBit. Not specifically listed, but you can just uninstall stuff yourself without the need for that on Windows)

Those are a possible issue, and the first two listed on the support page for reasons I have mentioned here.

Now, post screenshots of msconfig startup and services tabs.

Windows Start, type in msconfig and run the resulting process. Go to the tabs I said here. Be sure to check the box "hide all Microsoft services" in the services tab view.

Post the model and model number of the computer. If custom built, post the exact motherboard instead.

Post the full opearting system, and this includes if it is 32 or 64 bit.

Aside from what the good Brujeira posted above which is also a possibility, this is the direction I personally would recommend.

[chaosTecnicality]

Avast has had exceptions added to its scanning since before all this, and I've removed ccleaner's monitoring mode after you suggested it in the first post. I'm waiting for some low-demand games to download to test them against slime rancher, and then I'll try running them until something crashes.
IOBit I'm growing significantly less attached to by the minute, so I'll uninstall that while I wait and see if that helps.

Services: 1[www.dropbox.com]2[www.dropbox.com]
Startup referred me to the task manager: 1[www.dropbox.com]
Side note, if anyone has any insight as to why discord has ten startup entries I'd appreciate it.

The model is ABS Logic R730 ALA054, they have the AMD 970 chipset listed for the motherboard, I'm not sure if there's a more specific descriptor you want.

OS is windows 10 home, 64-bit

[The Giving One]

See those child processes of Avast there ? Those run possibly if if the parent antivirus is disabled, or has exceptions for real-time scanning for Steam and games. This is seen in several antivirus programs, and should be considered closely.

Google Update Service

IOBit Uninstaller Service (running currently)

Most "service" and "updater" and "manager" process should be looked at closely, and possibly considered suspect in some cases. You don't need most of that anyway, but surely not when gaming. I say "most", as there are some exceptions.

(surely not IPod or ITunes, as examples)

As far as I know, Discord is a program of Windows 10 or comes with Windows 10 and has those 10 are child processes.

So this is a prebuilt computer then ?

https://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16883102249

If so, we need to know the exact motherboard that it has. Thanks.

Considering all that has been posted so far, I highly suspect that the good Brujeira above is correct here. It could very well be your GPU on the outs.

After all else, you "could" try a clean install of the GPU drivers, using software such as DDU (Display Driver Uninstaller) and safe mode, doing that properly and in the right order.

[chaosTecnicality]

that's the one yes, it's prebuilt. How would I find the exact motherboard?

I'll keep testing games to see if I can find a common thread between what works and what doesn't. I'm really hoping it's not the gpu, that's something I really can't afford right now. Will post with updates.

[The Giving One]

Originally posted by chaosTecnicality:

that's the one yes, it's prebuilt. How would I find the exact motherboard?

I'll keep testing games to see if I can find a common thread between what works and what doesn't. I'm really hoping it's not the gpu, that's something I really can't afford right now. Will post with updates.

You should be able to use the official ABS website or the place where you bought the prebuilt computer and find out the exact motherboard. Or, use third party software, temporarily installed, to identify the motherboard.

The website or manual/paperwork that you got with the computer should tell you what motherboard it has.

EDIT...also, was this by chance an "upgrade" to Windows 10 from a previous OS or did you buy the computer with Windows 10 already installed ?

[chaosTecnicality]

Originally posted by The Giving One:

You should be able to use the official ABS website or the place where you bought the prebuilt computer and find out the exact motherboard. Or, use third party software, temporarily installed, to identify the motherboard.

The website or manual/paperwork that you got with the computer should tell you what motherboard it has.

EDIT...also, was this by chance an "upgrade" to Windows 10 from a previous OS or did you buy the computer with Windows 10 already installed ?

Win10 came preinstalled.
Here's the motherboard stuff from speccy[www.dropbox.com]

[The Giving One]

Originally posted by chaosTecnicality:

Here's the motherboard stuff from speccy[www.dropbox.com]

Is this the board, linked from the official MSI website ?

https://us.msi.com/Motherboard/support/970A-G43.html#down-driver&Win10%2064

If so, I only see 2 drivers for Windows 10 64 bit there, but you should be sure that you have all device drivers updated fully from MSI only, if you have not.

So here is what I personally would suggest....

Make sure Windows is fully up to date. Consider doing a BIOS update, unless you have the latest BIOS, as well. Usually, this is not a problem. However, most manufacturer's sometimes recommend having the lastest BIOS if running Windows 10.

Only get BIOS updates from MSI, the same link I posted above using the menus on that page and for "BIOS" instead of "driver".

-Remove/disable/uninstall any problematic software, as we have disucssed. When uninstalling software, be sure to restart the computer before further testing. Playtest the issue again.

-Make sure all device drivers are fully up to date, except for GPU, from MSI only. If you have an Nvidia card, get the GPU drivers updated from Nvidia only. If AMD, that site instead. Don't use Windows to update your device drivers. Playtest the issue again.

-Perform a clean reinstall of the GPU drivers. Use DDU (Display Driver Uninstaller) and safe mode with this method.....

http://www.guru3d.com/files-details/display-driver-uninstaller-download.html

1. Uninstall all Nvidia software/drivers from Windows in normal boot.
2. Reboot into safe mode.
3. Clean out all driver remnants using DDU
4. Reboot into normal Windows and install latest drivers from Nvidia/AMD
5. Reboot again.

Now, playtest the problem once more.

If you continue to get TDR issues or the "lockup" with your computer as you have described, I sadly would then say it is more likely that the good Brujeira could be correct. It very well could be your GPU on the outs.

EDIT..I don't see how it can be a Steam issue. Yes, you said just EA games are causing this, apparently. But if you can launch those games from your Steam library fine, this it is not a Steam problem, but surely a hardware/driver (possible software conflict) issue.

[chaosTecnicality]

Posting this mostly for my own sake of keeping everything I've tried in one spot.
Games Tested:

Shelter 2 - ran
Sunless Sea - ran
Stardew Valley - ran
Don't Starve - ran
Antichamber - ran
Slime hunter - immediate deadlock

I'm noticing that literally every other game I run for the first time results in Avast giving me a popup that reads something along the line of [name] added to game exceptions, and I'm remembering that I've never seen that for Niche or Slime Hunter. I did try running Slime Hunter with Avast disabled, to no effect.


Still working on the list of stuff to attempt from The Giving One

Originally posted by The Giving One:

Originally posted by chaosTecnicality:

Here's the motherboard stuff from speccy[www.dropbox.com]

Is this the board, linked from the official MSI website ?

https://us.msi.com/Motherboard/support/970A-G43.html#down-driver&Win10%2064

As far as I can tell, that's the one, yes.

[The Giving One]

Originally posted by chaosTecnicality:

I did try running Slime Hunter with Avast disabled, to no effect.

Because some antivirus programs have child processes that can still conflict and be a problem, even if you disable the parent antivirus itself.

We see this all the time here. Many of them have those child processes, and if so, you should see them in msconfig from Windows Start and services and startup/task manager tabs.

If that is the board, then please follow what was suggested previously concerning all device drivers, except for GPU.

EDIT..My TDR issue, if that is what you have, was for only one game also.....The Witcher 3. Total lockup after launching the game but not on other games. I would not think the game has much relevance to the problem, if it is TDR or a hardware problem as we are maybe thinking it is.

Since you are saying it is only one game, from your last post, that enforces the possibility actually that it may be TDR or hardware (GPU).