Getting graphics glitches and crashes every time I play Halo. Can't work out why.
Usually, I first get major graphics glitches i.e. colour spectrum, white screen, etc.

Then the game either exceptions or just crashes to desktop instantly. And then everything I else use glitches out and crashes.

Sometimes I can play 1 or 2 maps before anything happens.

I'm not using OS or anything else. (Well, using Steam and xfire in the background usually, but even when I'm not, I still get glitches)

I'm on Windows 8, but I doubt that's the issue as I did manage to play Halo for a while without any issues for about a week. Then for unknown reasons, it decided to glitch out.

I've refreshed Windows twice and I've run virus scans. (Refresh might leave some stuff behind if it hides well, but that doesn't explain everything else being fine)

I can play most other games perfectly fine with no issues. Been playing The Witcher 1 & 2 regularly and Team Fortress 2. I can also play Need for Speed World, Batman Arkham City and seemingly Metro 2033.(Haven't played Metro much) (Can also play Minesweeper and Solitaire, Windows 8 apps, but that's likely a given :P)
Only other app that has the same kind of issue is VLC Media Player. It usually takes about half an hour before anything happens, then I get major glitches.

Specs:
Motherboard: M5A97 R2.0
CPU: Phenom II X4 965
GPU: Geforce 9500 GT
4GB DDR3 RAM (Corsair XMS3 1600Mhz to be fairly exact)
SATA 1 HDD (250GB. It's Western Digital, but searching the model number finds nothing)

I'm pretty annoyed since I've missed about 20 ZA clan events. But eh.

Anyway, anybody know what the issue could be?

P.S. Oh and btw I built this PC myself. Doubt I've broken something since I have an antistatic wristband and I'm fairly careful but I suppose it's slightly possible

Could there be a cooling issue? I know Halo can be pretty intensive due to its unoptimized code.

I don't think so. I installed HWMonitor and checked the temperatures and everything was under 50 degrees. Though I'm not really sure what the maximum temperature is that this graphics card can take. But then, The Witcher 2 should be intensive due to being unoptimised and having insane graphics and doesn't crash. (Haven't checked temperatures after playing though. Forgot)

Run something like driver reviver.

All of my drivers are up to date. I always check.

Try getting a new computer.

This made me laugh. And laugh. And laugh. And laugh. And laugh. You get the picture.

I don't know what drugs you're taking, but I want them.

Maybe DirectX needs updating?

I found the issue! :D
Unless your computer has a touchpad screen and keyboard on the screen. what in God's green earth are you doing on windows 8?

It's a tablet browser and family fun OS and personally, I must say it will NEVER find its way onto my primary computer. The only reason I will be getting it is to learn it for the purposes of my college PC tech classes.
Re-instal windows 7 is the best recommended course of action here. Windows 8 is for the ADHD kiddies.

That's not the issue. I run Win8 in a VM and Halo runs just fine.

Also, if you don't like the default Win8 shell, just replace it. Don't like the GUI? Replace it. It's not that hard.

better idea. win 7 is insanely stable, hows about I wait a few years before having a technology spaz attack and save my money for better things like windows 9.
If you buy a NEW computer and it has 8 on it, that is one thing, but if you literally take money to "upgrade" to a current computer to windows 8... I simply do not understand that. That is just getting caught in the "gotta have the latest " craze so you can increase performances by fractions of percentages. It's like the person who raves about having DDR3 2200 over my 1600. I laugh SO HARD at those people because they bought literally FRACTIONS of percentages of a technology whose "base" performance is already way high up there. And that is how I see windows 7. I have used windows 8 too. It is no real change in performance that I can visually notice so why should i get it? I don't feel like finger painting on my screen and I definitely don't need the other little visual tricks and crap like that. I mean hell, if anything, that crap is destined to bog you DOWN in the end.
Also, the basics in netcode and most other basic program functions are mirrored from win 7 too because it is impractical to make code simply for windows 7 and other code simply for windows 8. They aren't going to do that because they would lose a LOT of money paying top programmers. All I see that is left is that they turned a computer into a tablet.

Eliteslasher, this isn't a Windows 8 opinions thread. As has been said, including in my OP, Windows 8 is almost certainly not the issue here.

This thread is concerning the issue that I can't play Halo without weird glitches.

In response to the others, I've got the latest versions of DirectX.

The annoying thing is I do check things like that often, so it can't be something simple like that. I wish it was something simple that I'd missed.

---

Edited by Jaz on Dec 24, 2012 at 06:54 AM

have you reinstalled halo? it might fix the problem. and i recommend to install windows 7, because it is proven to be quite stable windows? stable? hahaha and that it can run halo, without problems. and because the way micro$oft fixes bugs: they release bad product and then they will sometimes release updates, which makes it look like that micro$oft would actually care.
Edited by afD2345 on Dec 24, 2012 at 07:38 AM
Edited by afD2345 on Dec 24, 2012 at 08:05 AM

I perfectly understand that. I seriously do. I am simply saying that every single time a new OS comes out, people whine and complain on this site about glitches that they didn't have before and I say the same thing every time "don't use the new insert program or OS name here, let them make it stable first" but noone seems to take the hint year after year. I remember it happened with vista, it happened with 7 and low-and-behold it's happening again. The best thing to do to not get glitches is let the glitches fix themselves by giving Microsoft a year with the OS. Buying an OS within the first year of its release and not expecting a million glitches (unfixable glitches even because there WILL be those until microsoft finds the solution) is never a good idea. And I'm not saying that it necessarily "is" a unfixable glitch you are experiencing, I am just saying that until you know an OS to be stable. Dual boot with it sure so you can learn it, but make your primary work OS the known stable OS for the programs you mostly use.
Also, halo is an old game, to be perfectly honest, for this game to function to it's peak, it should probably be played on the OS it was closer too. XP is still a great OS. I would tripple boot with it right now myself just for halo and some other older games I have that I still like to play, but I simply don't have the money to buy another SSD.

He's already said it's almost certainly not caused by the OS, so your point is nullified.

OBJECTION!



micro$oft might have released an update that messed up something. it would not be the first time they did...

Fair point. But I'm pretty sure they didn't release an update around the time it messed up.

But yeah, I suppose I'll search the web for somebody somewhere who might possibly have the same issue as me. :/

Talking about updates that mess up the program... Gmod lmao. Poor Gary screws his own game.

Worked out that I might just need a new graphics card.

So once I've got some more money(or found the £40 I lost), I'm going to buy a new graphics card and hope it works. Even if it doesn't, I can still find out what the issue really is and just mark off graphics card.

The play one or two maps thing leads me to suspect that it is a hardware issue as a software problem tend to cause problems immediately. Check to be sure that you PC vents are not clogged with dust, do a full vacuum and clean, be sure the fan on the video card is working properly and not clogged and insure there is proper air flow. The GPU's on the video cards generate as much or more heat that the main CPU and need as much cooling or errors will occur.


As for the other person who recommended uninstalling Windows 8 and installing Windows 7, while that is fine for him just like with XP, windows 7 is now the old operating system and going backwards in computer OS's is never and advisable course of action.

Waffles, shouldn't really be getting issues like that. The 6870 isn't even that recent and drivers should support Halo by now. You should google it.
I'm using the same graphics card that's been running Halo for years on my old computer though. :/

Yeah Dennis, does seem like a hardware issue after looking at it all. Issue is, temperatures never go above 50 degrees so there shouldn't be any overheating. So my guess at the moment is that the graphics card's broken. To be honest, I have hit the graphics card a few times accidentally, on account of it being in the way of all of my front panel wires.
Only problem with that theory is that programs continue to crash after Halo's crashed.

So that leads me to two alternative theories: Harddrive's broken or I've got a virus. I've run virus scans with Windows's built-in anti-virus and AVG though, so a virus is doubtful. I've also used my old/dad's computer to scan any suspicious files that I might download with Kaspersky.

So harddrive's the other likely culprit other than the graphics card. And harddrives are hard to replace when you've got a ton of programs installed and files that you've spent weeks downloading. Need to work out how to get Windows 8 over to a new HDD without losing everything. (Of course I could just partition it all but quite difficult when the partitions could be at risk of corruption)

But then I'm not really sure whether a graphics card glitch can cause... well, everything to glitch out, even non-game applications. So hoping someone else can give an angle on it.

you can clone hard disks with clonezilla, here is tutorial:

http://clonezilla.org/show-live-doc-content.php?topic=clonezilla-live/doc/03_Disk_to_disk_clone

Malwarebytes Anti-Malware is good anti-malware software

also, do NOT ever have 2 or more Anti-Virus programs at same time, it is very bad idea.
i am not sure what you mean by "Windows's built-in anti-virus", but if you mean windows security essentials, remove it, but if you mean windows defender, it is not anti-virus,
it is anti-malware program, so it does not matter.
Edited by afD2345 on Dec 27, 2012 at 07:18 AM

Well, I scanned with whatever Windows's firewall/defender thing is. Pretty pointless anyway since whether it's an anti-virus or not, it's rubbish as everyone knows.
But anyway, as soon as I installed AVG, the built-in anti-virus got disabled. So don't worry, I am not running conflicting anti-virus programs.

Ghost is better than Clonezilla.