Windows 10: BSOD and freezing while playing video games

So the backstory:

I played 7 Days to Die last weekend and had an odd freeze where everything locked up and the monitor suddenly looked like this:

https://i.imgur.com/C9c5BGS.jpg

I figured maybe it was an issue of graphics card drivers needing to be updated so the next day I went ahead and updated my drivers. Later that day 7 Days to Die crashed again, the same way. Then later World of Warcraft did. At that point I figured something must be pretty wrong, as I'd been playing WoW on and off for weeks and never had any problems.

I tried dusting out the case, worrying that it was a heat issue. Eventually during one of the restarts/freezes I got to the point where the tower would boot up but the monitor stayed in Power Saver mode. After flashing the BIOS and removing the graphics card, I was able to get back into Windows. I figured maybe my graphics card was on its way out, but it couldn't hurt to format the SSD I keep Windows on and start clean before I put a new card in. So I did that, but held off on putting the card in right away as it took forever to get all the Windows Updates handled, and eventually I ended up installing Windows 10 as there were so many problems with Windows 7.

Fast forward to now where I still haven't installed a new graphics card, as when I tried to test my system out by running some games (Rocket League, which completely freezes up on the title screen; Beseige, which plays fine but within 5-10 minutes causes a BSOD of System_Service_Exception) it didn't end well. So now I'm here, hoping someone can help get my system back to gaming like it was built for instead of this shallow, empty existence.

So far the steps I've taken are:

1. Dusted out the case/components.
2. Removed the suspected issue (dead or dying graphics card).
3. Formatted the SSD to get a clean Windows install.
4. Ran 8 passes of MemTest with 0 errors.

Attachment 82053

axe0 said:

Hi Jaffo,

Welcome to the 10forums

Please free up space on the F partition until there is at least 15% free space. Windows needs 10-15% free space (15 to be on the safe side) so the user won't be annoyed by the background stuff Windows performs.

Done. There is now about 30% free space on the F drive.

axe0 said:

Please make sure the SSD firmware is up to date.

Done. The SSD (Crucial m4 2.5-inch 128GB) firmware is up to date.

axe0 said:

If you are using a program like Ccleaner please stop using it while troubleshooting.
This because programs like Ccleaner remove dump files that are needed to troubleshoot.
Or configure Ccleaner to not remove dump files:

Done. I've changed the configuration of CCleaner, and will refrain from using it while troubleshooting.

axe0 said:

If all above do not improve the situationl, please let me know and I'll suggest a next step

No change, I'm afraid. I'm having the exact same issues with both games mentioned in my original post. In addition, World of Warcraft starts in a non-native resolution (1280x1024, I believe). As soon as I change it to 1920x1080 and hit Apply, I encounter a similar freeze as I do with Rocket League (an unrecoverable freeze that I can't Alt+Tab, Ctrl+Alt+Del, etc., my way out of; my only option is to turn off the power switch on the PSU). Strangely, however, Hearthstone runs fine. I was able to play for at least a half hour earlier today with no problems.

I've attached the latest DM log, in case there was anything that popped up that might help solve this.Attachment 82149

axe0 said:

Please update the BIOS to version 2104
ASUSTeK Computer Inc. -Support- Driver & Tools - P8Z77-V PRO

Done. The BIOS is updated, and so far I've seen the following improvements:

• Rocket League no longer freezes on the developer's logo. I was actually able to play for a few minutes before the game crashed to the desktop.
• Besiege still crashes about 5-10 minutes in, but it crashed to desktop rather than causing a BSOD.
• World of Warcraft actually allowed me to change the resolution, and I was able to play for a minute or two before it crashed to desktop.

Do you think it might be time to try and install the graphics card (Radeon HD 7970) I've got on hand, and see how things go from there?

axe0 said:

Yep.

Done. Card installed, latest drivers installed. So far I'm seeing the following:

• Rocket League seems fixed. I was able to play a full match (~6-8 minutes) with no issues.
• Besiege seems fixed. I was able to play at least 15-20 minutes with no issues.
• World of Warcraft is having issues still. I tried going nuts on the settings (maxing everything out) and it crashed a minute or two after logging in. Then I tried dialing things down a bit to more of a "High" than "Ultra", and it crashed a minute or two after logging in. From what I know of my graphics card it shouldn't be having any problems with the settings that I've attempted. The second time the game crashed I got this error (similar error the first time it crashed, but I didn't capture that one):

Attachment 82164

Edit/update: Just to be clear, I'm not expecting anyone to be able to diagnose the WoW error (I'm currently trying some of the fixes mentioned by Blizzard to handle that), but I included the information in case it makes any proverbial red flags pop up.

axe0 said:

Have you tried to reinstall WoW?

Ooh, I have not. I'll try that now and update with the results (probably going to take a couple hours).

Jaffo said:

I'll try that now and update with the results.

Nope. Still crashing within 1-2 minutes of logging in.