Troubleshooting PC Crashes During Gaming: Seeking Guidance

Hello everyone,

I hope this post finds you well! I’m reaching out to the community because I’ve been encountering a rather troubling issue with my gaming setup, and I could really use some help in diagnosing the problem. Here’s a detailed overview of what’s been occurring:

The Issue at Hand

While engaging in various games, my PC experiences severe performance hitches that lead to one of two frustrating outcomes:
1. As I load into a game map, the system starts to lag considerably before ultimately resulting in a black screen.
2. In some instances, the entire system freezes to the point where even Ctrl+Alt+Del becomes unresponsive.

Interestingly, there’s no blue screen of death (BSOD) involved; the power remains on with the fans running and LED lights functioning, yet I am forced to perform a hard shutdown to regain control.

Steps Taken So Far

To diagnose this issue, I have already performed several checks and tests:
– Temperature Monitoring: Both the CPU and GPU temperatures remain within normal ranges, staying under 80°C even during heavy loads.
– Power Supply Stability: I conducted an OCCT power test, and it appears the PSU is stable.
– Memory Inspection: My RAM has been checked and seems to be functioning correctly.
– Upcoming GPU Driver Reinstallation: I plan to do a clean install of my GPU drivers using DDU to ensure there are no conflicts.
– No Overclocking: My system is running at stock speed, with no overclocking enabled.
– Software Updates: Both Windows and all drivers are current.

My System Specifications

For context, here are the specifications of my PC:
– CPU: AMD Ryzen 5 3600
– GPU: GeForce GTX 1660 (6GB)
– RAM: 16GB
– Power Supply: 550W
– Motherboard: Gigabyte

Observations During Gaming

This issue has arisen while playing a variety of games, including League of Legends, Overcooked 2, Rainbow Six Siege, and Assassin’s Creed. It predominantly occurs during loading screens or particularly demanding graphical sequences. Despite these gaming problems, it’s worth noting that my PC performs flawlessly during CPU and GPU stress tests, which only adds to my confusion.

Given that my setup is nearly five