Game stops during a cutscene on an i5 7600 with an RX 470 graphics card. Screenshots are available.
Game stops during a cutscene on an i5 7600 with an RX 470 graphics card. Screenshots are available.
Hey there, everyone. I came across this forum via Linus' YouTube channel. I'm in my mid-30s and completely new to building computers. I built my own PC just for playing Mass Effect: Andromeda. I tried posting on EA's forums, but usually they don't respond well. I think the people there are younger and sometimes give wrong tips.
The problem I'm facing with the early access version of Mass Effect on Origin is that after about 15-20 minutes, the graphics card freezes and the game crashes without any error messages. It just jumps to the desktop. I'm planning to upgrade soon—tomorrow I'll get an ASUS RX 480 with 8GB RAM. Here are my current specs:
- Motherboard: Asus ROG Strix Z270F Kaby Lake ATX
- CPU: Intel i5 7600 (cooler not overclocked)
- GPU: MSI RX 470 4GB
- RAM: G.Skill RipJaw V DDR4 8GB
- SSD: SAND-DISK extreme over 400MB
- HDD: 1TB 7200PSU
- Case: Corsair CX 750M (80+ Bronze)
I was running the game in high settings at 1080p. It consistently hit around 60 FPS, never dropping below that. Then it just stopped abruptly. My OS is Windows 10 64-bit Pro, and I did a clean install. The room temperature is 22°C, and my GPU stayed under 60°C max on the monitor. Everything else was in the mid-40s or lower.
I'm planning to add more RAM later, but right now I'm worried about scaling with multiple GPUs—since I'll be using an RX 480, which has less VRAM than my current setup. Will this work smoothly with two GPUs?
I've experimented with most options, past the cut-scenes, but I'm worried it could crash anytime. I adjusted the game settings to windowed borderless, which seems to have resolved the problem—surprisingly, even a tough title can have issues while some run smoothly on basic hardware like laptop GPUs. I shared my experience in a forum because admins often ask about members' backgrounds and targeting. I really enjoy the concept of using multiple GPUs for crossfire, especially with RGB models to create an artistic look. By the way, in a few months I plan to donate these GPUs—one for my wife's desktop and another for my nephew. I think I'll buy two 1070TI cards, though AMD might be a bit too complicated. I've been invested in this for at least six months since a free monitor is on the way.
When games launch, issues are common. Allow some time for developers to fix them before playing again. Your system seems fine, but it might be due to insufficient RAM—16GB is ideal. Try reinstalling graphics drivers, lowering graphics settings, or removing config files; these steps rarely resolve the problem.
Are you sure the RAM will make a noticeable difference with your upcoming upgrade? Your current setup already supports 3600 MHz, so adding more RAM might not be necessary unless you need higher performance.
The event viewer indicates that after the crash, it may provide hints about the cause, such as GPU drivers or other factors.
It doesn’t make much sense upgrading from an RX 470 to an RX 480. Focus stays on the game, which seems to be acting unfairly with its drivers and causing crashes.
I hadn’t noticed the event viewer, but the issue appeared to fix itself. Someone recommended disabling Origin In Game and turning off MSI/GPU background processors for RGB lighting. I disabled them during startup under "MSI gaming App," and everything worked fine. I’m consistently seeing around 60fps at 1080p, though it can dip to about 50fps in demanding scenes—this doesn’t stand out to me. It seems the problem was related to GPU drivers; the OC in MSI Gaming App offers features like gaming mode, eye rest, and other unused options. Overclocking isn’t necessary. I’m impressed that a budget Core i5 7600 handles the game so smoothly. I wish I hadn’t chosen an AMD card—I should have picked a single GTX 1080 instead of mixing RX 470 and RX 480. While the RX 470 is affordable and can run demanding titles at 1080p, I’m not yet ready for 4K or VR features.
I plan to use both cards, having the choice to crossfire them—but in retrospect I might have preferred a GTX 1080, perhaps two. I think I’ll wait around six months until the 1080 Ti becomes available and becomes more affordable. During that time I can save some money for a better GPU and a high-quality gaming keyboard and mouse, preferably an ASUS RGB model to match my setup. I’m budgeting about £150 overall, but I’m cautious about any "TRAMP STAMPS" on them.