Frozen Synapse consistently makes my entire PC lock up [Archive]

evilapprentice

05-28-2011, 06:24 PM

Whenever I play Frozen Synapse, my machine eventually freezes. Sometimes its immediately, sometimes its after I get some playtime in. I've launched the game about 10 times, and 7 of them ended in a manual reset. Its not just the game locking up, my entire machine locks up; no alt-tab, shift-tab, or Ctrl-alt-del, I have to manually reset.

Every time I verify the game cache after playing, its missing between 1 and 3 files, and it reacquires them - but this does nothing; I've locked up RIGHT after reacquiring the files. I've already tried deleting all my local files and re-downloading to no avail.

I'm running an AMD Phenom II x6 1090T processor and an AMD 6900 series (6970) video card. The processor is overclocked, but I have no trouble running The Witcher 2 at near max settings (it hasn't crashed once). Its not a heat issue, as the machine is water cooled and I keep an eye on the temps (peaks for both are extremely low).

Is anyone having a similar issue, or any advice?
Thanks in advance.
edit: clarified some wording, i said "Crashed" where I meant "Lock up".

dosbox

05-28-2011, 06:51 PM

evilapprentice

05-28-2011, 07:06 PM

a) always try running at stock speed to see if it fixes the problem

b) there is a known issue where you need to run with vsynch enabled on ATI cards: http://forums.mode7games.com/viewtopic.php?f=21&t=2601

a)Please don't take this as rude, because its not meant to be, but I'm not stock clocking my entirely stable machine for a single game. The other 400 games I play are fine, this one should be too; my attitude is if it doesn't run, its a problem with the game, not my machine.

b) Thank you for this - I will try it out and see how it goes.

dosbox

05-28-2011, 07:14 PM

targetbsp

05-29-2011, 02:25 AM

a)Please don't take this as rude, because its not meant to be, but I'm not stock clocking my entirely stable machine for a single game. The other 400 games I play are fine, this one should be too; my attitude is if it doesn't run, its a problem with the game, not my machine.

Yeah cause it takes so much time to change your CPU clock to test a game and then change it back if it makes no difference. :P

In theory, software cannot hang your PC (and if it can, the fault lies with Windows). Only hardware faults should be able to entirely crash your computer - and I include drivers under hardware for this. I had random freezes on my PC for months before determining that it was a fault in my soundcard driver in a feature only used by VLC with 5.1 movies! Got a new soundcard now and all is well. But the point is, however much I liked to blame VLC as it was the only one of my '400' programs with the issue... it was my hardware at fault - not it.

Pvt_Ryan

05-29-2011, 12:32 PM

I am having the same problem and the only thing I have done with my machine is flash the gfx card from a 6950 to 6970. Again the machine is completely stable with every other game I have.

Windows 7 x64
4GB RAM
Asus ATI/AMD 6950 2GB
Intel Core 2 Q6600

insanity99

05-30-2011, 02:58 PM

i had this issue. i spoke to one of the devs on the irc(always recommended)

go play offline > settings > disable menu backgrounds > apply. this fixed it for me.

FreakinSyco

05-30-2011, 08:21 PM

I'm also having this issue with my 6950, testing disabling the backgrounds now...

careface312

06-01-2011, 12:19 PM

i had this issue. i spoke to one of the devs on the irc(always recommended)

go play offline > settings > disable menu backgrounds > apply. this fixed it for me.

How do you access the play offline option? Sorry I'm an idiot with computers and can't find it.

Red Scent

06-01-2011, 12:39 PM

How do you access the play offline option? Sorry I'm an idiot with computers and can't find it.

Boot up the game.
Select "Play Offline."
Choose "Options."
Check "Disable menu background."

careface312

06-01-2011, 12:43 PM

Boot up the game.
Select "Play Offline."
Choose "Options."
Check "Disable menu background."

Oh I can't even move my mouse in the game, complete freeze. Thought it meant some sort of start up option :<

EDIT: Rolled back my video drivers and its working now (couldn't open NVIDIA control panel so had to). No idea what happened or why this has got it working lol.

Hdfisise

06-03-2011, 07:36 AM

I hear the 69xx series currently have to force Vsync in the catalyst control center.

Aesculapius

06-09-2011, 01:38 PM

I can confirm the vsync solution. I have a 6950 and was having crashing issues (sometimes the whole system). Setting the vsync in the catalyst control center did the trick.

On a related note, the same issue occurs with SpaceChem.

LucianDK

06-18-2011, 12:25 PM

Zaggeh

06-18-2011, 04:00 PM

Turned on catalyst-forced vsync and disabled menu backgrounds. Game no longer crashes my entire system, but the game client itself freezes constantly. I'll be able to move the mouse maybe half an inch and then it freezes for like half a minute, then I can click and move a little bit more, but then it freezes again.

Any ideas?

Windows 7 Home Premium 64-bit, SP1
AMD Phenom II 1100T
Radeon HD 6970 Latest drivers (package 8.861, Catalyst 11.6)
16GB DDR3 2000

LucianDK

06-18-2011, 04:03 PM

Sounds like the game wasnt playtested very well if it has such a violent reaction to ati hardware.

LucianDK

06-19-2011, 10:06 AM

Update: Just got a message from steam to my ticket, they are willing to take back Frozen Synapse and refund it because of the technical issues. As I have an ati series 69xx videocards which FS does not agree with.

EDIT: Steam have just refunded me the money for FS and removed it from my account, which I am thankful for.

Hdfisise

06-19-2011, 03:45 PM

I believe it is more a driver issue on AMDs side than the games fault.

Metal85

06-20-2011, 08:16 AM

i have a ati 3850 (yes, its not the newest but still can run the newest games on high) and the game runs perfectly.
just today i had a little issue that the game. it took a long time to load the outcome. it complained that i should maybe turn off the AI something if this keeps happening.
just the weird thing is, i dint had this trouble before. this problem happens when i press the restart button. but only today. i pressed many times this button when i failed a mission and nothing happened.
did they install an patch or is it a bug in the game once you pass level 10?

Destructo-Bot

06-20-2011, 06:20 PM

I have an ATI 6950 and a stock speed i5 2500k. The game was grey-screening and locking up my entire PC forcing a hard reboot. I'll give the vsynch a try and see what happens.

NKuga

07-04-2011, 01:22 PM

I am also getting crashes with my i5 750 (@ 3.4GHz) / 6950 2GB. (BIOS modified to unlock the extra shaders on the card but not flashed to a full 6970)

Before I tried any troubleshooting options, I would get menu crashes that completely locked up my computer's display (no driver crash recovery) and forced a restart.

Once I disabled menu backgrounds and forced VSync via CCC, the game loads but randomly freezes during gameplay. I can't even get through the tutorial. At least now it doesn't freeze my whole computer.

I have nothing against the developer, but if there are no other fixes on the way I'll go ask Steam Support for a refund.

TNT LotLP

07-04-2011, 02:37 PM

After trying out all the fixes suggested here, the game still didn't work. Ticket put in for a refund. i5 and HD 6950 2GB W7 64 bits.

Protein214x

07-04-2011, 02:52 PM

Having trouble also with the 6950 card. I know for a fact the 6950 is widespread defective because I've been having the same issues with low-end games. I get freezes and vertical lines.

eightohfive

07-04-2011, 03:38 PM

a)Please don't take this as rude, because its not meant to be, but I'm not stock clocking my entirely stable machine for a single game. The other 400 games I play are fine, this one should be too; my attitude is if it doesn't run, its a problem with the game, not my machine.

b) Thank you for this - I will try it out and see how it goes.

That is an interesting "attitude" considering the nature of PC gaming involves so many hundreds of millions of possible PC combinations that it is impossible to test a game (let alone indie) for all those combos...which means almost inevitably someone's computer won't run the game properly even though it is well above recommended.

If you want to always be able to say, without doubt, its the game and not your machine then you have to go buy an XBOX.

tpg0007

07-06-2011, 11:43 PM

Just wanted to chime in, same issue with 6950. Gray screen lockup. Have yet to try v-sync or whatever though.

So be warned if you have a 6900 series card.

app1es

07-07-2011, 09:58 AM

I confirm it's happening to my 6970 core i7 950 all stock and this is only game with this issue. I won't refund the game just yet as I'll wait for dev to fix with ati. Hopefully sooner than later. Suggestions posted for fix prevent computer from locking up however the game crashes now.

LucianDK

07-07-2011, 10:00 AM

DreamTwister

07-08-2011, 07:17 PM

ATI 6950 here. I have to agree with the people asking for refunds for this game. I've been having nothing but HARD LOCKUPS with what I've designated The Red Screen of Doom (very original, I know). I've NEVER had this kind of complete system crashes... I think since the WindowsME era. I bought the sountrack edition and I'm going to stick with the game in hopes that this issue gets resolved. I've tried every solution on their forums [ http://forums.mode7games.com/viewforum.php?f=21&sid=a853b76d6933e26e8a38580ea58b0026 ] without any luck. I can't really blame ATI for this. It's not like they released a set of drivers that broke the game. This apparently has been an issue since the beta days of this game from what I've been able to gather. I really hope it gets sorted out. I want to play this game so bad!

H3r3t1C23

07-14-2011, 01:12 PM

6950 here. as soon as launch the game it will lockup with grey stripes across the screen and a buzzing sound from the speakers. no response to alt-tab etc.
haven't even been able to complete registration

sirix

07-15-2011, 11:40 PM

Same deal for me.

2x 6970's, no overclock, crashes as soon as I start it up.

How has this been looked over in fixes for months?

DreamTwister

07-17-2011, 02:58 AM

Same deal for me.

2x 6970's, no overclock, crashes as soon as I start it up.

How has this been looked over in fixes for months?

Because for some reason the developers seems to have stop supporting this game. No, seriously, when was the last time that it was patched?... how come so many people with ATI cards have THE SAME eh, REPLICATE-ABLE PROBLEM? And their only response on their forums is, well, "turn off menu backgrounds"... pretty much for any problem that people are having. No. How about FIX your damn menu background or eliminate it altogether? And guess what... disabling doesn't fix the issue for me. Sorry, I don't mean to sound like a troll but this game seems so good to be plagued with crap like that!

grrr!

Peex

07-18-2011, 07:19 AM

Same thing happening here.

Stock 6950 2GB, gives me vertical stripes lockup, after hard reset gives me BCCODE 124 (BSOD from VGA "overheating" fault)

Janne36

08-12-2011, 10:15 AM

Same problem here.

6950 2GB and game freezes my whole computer. Game has truly earned it's name.

EDIT: I tried beta drivers with no luck. Seems like a refund time.

RaHLogiX

08-20-2011, 08:13 AM

I have the same issue.
i5-2500K + Radeon 6970. I can start the game, but it will crash randomly after few minutes. Sound is looped and all I can do is to manually reset my computer, because it's completely hanged.

Any hopes this will be resolved or I can try to refund FS...?

Hootie00

08-20-2011, 08:38 PM

For those with ATI/AMD cards, I suggest you follow the solution I found and posted in another thread here

http://forums.steampowered.com/forums/showthread.php?t=2013926

Was having the same problem as most of you, and this worked perfectly.

EDIT: Looks like this solution was already posted, don't mind me!

zeanomourph

08-20-2011, 09:30 PM

Frozen Synapse constantly crashes and locks up my computer. I have 2x 1gig Radeon 6970 cards. I attempted forcing Vsynch in catalyst, but no worky.

Not even gotten to play the game yet :( So ive put in a request for a refund as its unplayable for me.

You have the kind of money it takes to front for two 6970's... But can't cover $30 for an indie game... $30 that will help the devs afford to fix the kinds of problems you are having.
Hell, chances are you didn't even pay full price for it seeing as it was on sale just a few days back.. And now you want a refund?

People with too much money are fine.
Stingy people are fine.
Stingy people with too much money need to learn a little something called charity. The virtue, not the supposedly non-profit organisation.

RaHLogiX

08-21-2011, 07:36 AM

AliZeyk

09-01-2011, 06:12 PM

I've been having the exact same issue. i7, Win7Pro, 6950.

You have the kind of money it takes to front for two 6970's... But can't cover $30 for an indie game... $30 that will help the devs afford to fix the kinds of problems you are having.
Hell, chances are you didn't even pay full price for it seeing as it was on sale just a few days back.. And now you want a refund?

People with too much money are fine.
Stingy people are fine.
Stingy people with too much money need to learn a little something called charity. The virtue, not the supposedly non-profit organisation.

I have to strongly disagree with this; if the devs had made any indication that they were looking into the issue and were working on fixing it, then maybe I could agree with you. However, they seem to have made no effort to fix it other than one suggestion that for many people simply does not work. If he wants a refund, I say he is fully entitled to one at this point.

tl;dr; Support indie devs that support thier games.

fkj

09-02-2011, 12:53 PM

I also have a 6950 gfx.

When I first tried the game, it started up en window mode, whent through the logos and then the computer frose up with a light blue screen and I had to reset it.

After reading this thread, I then set force v-sync in CCC, which alloved me to start the game. I then set the game up to full screen and then disabled v-sync, which still allows me to play the game (granted I have only played 10 min, so far).

Try it out, if you haven't already.

~Frank

TroudhuK

10-02-2011, 04:41 PM

@fkj: It seems to be the best method, I tried it, I even relaunched the game without v-sync, and it worked. Maybe it is a problem with the window mode?
Windows 7 x64 + HD6950 of course.

lessthandan

11-20-2011, 07:01 PM

So.... six months later, and this game still has crippling stability issues with 69xx video cards?

I started up the game today for the first time in a while, hoping to get back into it a little bit. A few minutes into the game, I was surprised to see my entire computer lock up, forcing me to reboot.

I assumed that six months later, someone would have patched this by now. I guess not.

I understand about the "disable menu background" option, but I really shouldn't have to disable the eyecandy to get it working properly.

I'm disappointed to say the least.

ZzzombieBunny

12-15-2011, 12:20 PM

Just bought the game the other day and it immediately locked up my computer on the mainscreen. Figured it was the windowed mode since I know my drivers seem to have issue with that in other games lately. So I updated my drivers and also forced v-sync. Been playing without any problems in fullscreen since then. I also did NOT have to disable the backgrounds, so im assuming the problem has to do with either or both the v-sync and windowed mode. Which kinda feels like a driver issue than the actual game, since other people seem to be able to run the game without any problems.

I have a 1090T and a Radeon 6950, which seems to be the problem setup for most people with this problem.

Id suggest trying to force v-sync and/or playing in fullscreen if you keep experiencing lockups.

Tyraa Rane

12-23-2011, 10:53 AM

FYI, this is still an issue. I just got a gray screen of death on my system shortly after launching the game:

Core 2 Quad Q9650
Sapphire Radeon 6970 2GB
8GB RAM
Catalyst 11.12
Windows 7 x64

I'm really disappointed that neither the devs nor AMD have taken the time to address this issue. A gray screen of death is not something I want to see on my system. Ever.

Good news is I have a netbook that can run the game, so I can play (and get the winter achievement) on that.

SuperFreeza

12-24-2011, 01:26 AM

That is an interesting "attitude" considering the nature of PC gaming involves so many hundreds of millions of possible PC combinations that it is impossible to test a game (let alone indie) for all those combos...which means almost inevitably someone's computer won't run the game properly even though it is well above recommended.

If you want to always be able to say, without doubt, its the game and not your machine then you have to go buy an XBOX.

I hope you meant the perceived attitude in general, or else your post would look kind of silly if you meant that his issue could be individual in this specific case (as you posted it after many replies indicating the issue was widespread). On that note, I will chime in that I am having the same issue as many others are.