Blue screen means overheating?

[oquabili]

So I'm a light gamer, not too hardcore. I'm not running Battlefield 4 or Crysis 3 on max settings or anything like that. I do like to play games like Vindictus and Tera Online, neither of which are light on graphics. The problem is, for some time now, when I play these games, my computer starts making a lot of noise and eventually just restarts. Someone suggested it might be a blue screen (I never actually saw a blue screen so I'm not sure). The reason I'm asking and not just buying better is because:

1, I do not want to buy new hardware right now
2. I used to be able to run these games just fine with no problem.

Furthermore, games that I used to run hours on end now have the same problem when I play for 20-30 minutes. Games like Assassins Creed 3 used to run perfectly and is now giving me major issues. I don't understand what's going on and think my video card may have broken or malfunctioned or something.

FYI, here's my system:

Processor: Intel Core 2 Duo E7500 @ 2.93GHz
RAM: 2.00 GB
Video Card: nVidia GeForce GT 430 2GB
Windows 7 32-bit

 

[manofchalk]

System crashes can be caused by plenty of things, overheating is just one possible cause.

The noises that your machine makes, does it sound like a fan?
Also have you tried monitoring temperatures while your gaming? Download a program called CoreTemp and another called MSI Afterburner, those will show the temperatures of the CPU and GPU respectively. Game for a bit, tab out and see what they say.

 

[oquabili]

It's definitely the fan, and just feeling the case, it gets REALLY hot when I game. I'll try to see whether it's the GPU or CPU

 

[manofchalk]

If the case itself gets hot (all over or just in a specific spot?), I'm inclined to think its a problem with case airflow.

 

[Cjbspur98]

The card is pretty old anyway, same for CPU and a suitable upgrade to meet your needs would be very cheap. I would recommend a HD 6750 GFX card (£50-£60) and a RAM upgrade to 6 gigs (6 new gigs of RAM are about £60, buy RAM at this page:http://www.ebuyer.com/159919-crucial-2gb-ddr3-1333mhz-memory-module-ct25664ba1339?utm_source=google&utm_medium=products&gclid=CMWU__i9x7oCFfMdtAodEikAzw). All in all, your upgrade will cost around £120, not much and you will see no problems, worth it I think.
If you dont want to upgrade, then check problems with PSU maybe try adjusting fan speeds using a graphics driver. If that still doesn't work, then yeah, you have to upgrade your kit

 

[photonboy]

I agree it's almost certainly the Graphics Card.

THIS HD7750 is $75 after MIR. See if a similar deal exists where you live. I think HD7750's come with a FREE GAME as well (see AMD BRONZE list as you can choose).
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814102969

I also agree a new graphics card but I really don't recommend more RAM as you can't even use much of it.

When you have 32-bit Windows you can access 4GB of memory which INCLUDES the video card. Basically if you installed 4GB or more you can access 2.8GB of that roughly.

Besides you said you didn't want to buy any new hardware.

Summary:
a) probably the graphics card so replace with one in your budget

 

[oquabili]

Okay so I've been playing vindictus now for like 10 minutes and the heat on the case is where the PCI slots are, so it's the video card. CoreTemp is showing 87C on one core and 81C on the other. MSI Afterburner is shoing the GPU temp capped at 100C. I think it might be more but the program isn't showing it.

I should note that my PC is a slim tower so everything is packed tightly. Should I try leaving the case open?

 

[manofchalk]

Yea, both are running hot so its a case airflow issue. Removing the side panel is fine for a temporary solution, but will track dust into it so you will eventually want to get a new gaming grade case with decent airflow.

 

[oquabili]

Is it dangerous to leave it open? It's enclosed in a cabinet in my desk. The entire back is open and you can leave a door on the front open. but it is wood, so its not gonna like catch fire right? lol

 

[manofchalk]

Unless said wood is made of sawdust glued together, I wouldn't be worried about your desk bursting into flames .

 

[oquabili]

Okay cool haha thanks for the help, I'll try it out