MBP randomly restarts while playing games!!

[astarling06]

Hello to all,

I'm having a recurring issue with my 2.0 CD MBP in that every time I play a racing game (Ford Racing 2 and Redline) my MBP randomly restarts for no apparent reason. It doesn't matter if I have it on a desk or in my lap or if I have it plugged into power outlet. The only other programs I have running while playing games is Safari, Dashboard, and Finder. It does not randomly restart on any other program. I went out to the websites for both games and have not found any updates to firmware or the software. Has anyone else experienced this issue? Any solutions?? I have not tried any other games other than the ones I listed above so I can't be sure if it occurs on ALL games. I certainly don't want to buy another game of a different type to find out that it does the same thing. Thank you for any help you can give me on this issue.

 

[mad jew]

Check the Console app in the Utilities folder to see if it caught anything in the crash logs.

 

[matt l]

sounds like it might be over heating, check your temps on reboot, also try spaying some compressed air into the vents

 

[astarling06]

MBP randomly restarts while playing games!

Check the Console app in the Utilities folder to see if it caught anything in the crash logs.

I had a look at the Console but I don't know what I'm looking at or what I'm looking for. It looks like a log of different things that have happened to the computer while in use. I didn't see anything specifically about either one of those games (Redline or Ford Racing 2).

 

[astarling06]

sounds like it might be over heating, check your temps on reboot, also try spaying some compressed air into the vents

What should I use to check the temperature? A thermometer? Just kidding! Are there any freeware programs or widgets that check the temperature or is there something already available in OSX?

 

[astarling06]

sounds like it might be over heating, check your temps on reboot, also try spaying some compressed air into the vents

Also, what is a good operating temperature?

 

[anothermacaddic]

Also, what is a good operating temperature?

Use smc fan control and yes its free.

I would in this case with just the hard reboot, no displayed kernel panic would assume that its a driver issue. Make sure youve been doing all the updates both for your computer and for the game, then say if you are running 10.4 be sure that your game supports the version you are using. Then see if there are people in the game manufacturers forums for simillar problems. Heat wont usually just crash a system with no other glitches. Say it studders a bit then gets slow for a good 30 seconds then the screen turns blue and pixeled then I might go after a heat issue. In the log find the section right before the startup processes, the few lines right before that will tell you your problem, Im steadfast on a driver for this one.

I went to the doctor and said hey it hurts when i move my arm like this....he said well dont move your arm like that...may be the best advice for you until the game manufacturer patches it. I might not hold my breath. I cant count the times that games have been rushed to the pc shelves just to have a million unhappy customers waiting for patches that never really help. The most notable in my mind is the pc version of Blazing Angels. When it came out for pc it was a flight game with NO SUPPORT for flight sticks! 3+ months later a crappy patch was issued that let you fly upside down before you died. FUN!!! It was more commonly refered to as Blazing Anus because everyone who bought that game got screwed.

Was this game originally for like playstation and then ported to the mac? If so its almost the kiss of death.

 

[astarling06]

Use smc fan control and yes its free.

I would in this case with just the hard reboot, no displayed kernel panic would assume that its a driver issue. Make sure youve been doing all the updates both for your computer and for the game, then say if you are running 10.4 be sure that your game supports the version you are using. Then see if there are people in the game manufacturers forums for simillar problems. Heat wont usually just crash a system with no other glitches. Say it studders a bit then gets slow for a good 30 seconds then the screen turns blue and pixeled then I might go after a heat issue. In the log find the section right before the startup processes, the few lines right before that will tell you your problem, Im steadfast on a driver for this one.

I went to the doctor and said hey it hurts when i move my arm like this....he said well dont move your arm like that...may be the best advice for you until the game manufacturer patches it. I might not hold my breath. I cant count the times that games have been rushed to the pc shelves just to have a million unhappy customers waiting for patches that never really help. The most notable in my mind is the pc version of Blazing Angels. When it came out for pc it was a flight game with NO SUPPORT for flight sticks! 3+ months later a crappy patch was issued that let you fly upside down before you died. FUN!!! It was more commonly refered to as Blazing Anus because everyone who bought that game got screwed.

Was this game originally for like playstation and then ported to the mac? If so its almost the kiss of death.

I'm not sure if they were ported from any game system. Ford Racing 2 is pretty old and Redline is made by Ambrosia Software and I think they only make Mac games but I'm not certain. I made sure that I have all the current updates for the MBP and I went out to the game manufacturer's websites to see if there were any patches. NO LUCK! I went back into the console and found this little nugget: Aug 31 12:37:50 localhost kernel[0]: Previous Shutdown Cause: 3
I don't know what cause "3" is so looking in the Console so I don't know how much that helps. I agree that it is probably not a heat issue based on characteristics you mentioned about the game slowing down, pixelated screen, blue screen, and studdering. It doesn't do any of that. I'll be racing around a corner and all of a sudden the MBP reboots. Thanks for the good knowledge. Anyone else got any ideas? Any other games (racing) that are fun to play?