Predator PHN16-72-why my laptop is crashing when playing AAA games

Hello, my laptop is a Predator PHN16-72 with specs Intel Core i9-14900hx and RTX 4060 8GB 16 GB RAM

I want to ask why when I tried to play or even just opened AAA games like Spiderman 2 the last of us part 1 the game didn't appear and there was only a black screen and my laptop didn't respond when I pressed the alt+f4 button or something else and finally I had to force it to turn off via the power button but before that there was an error message which basically made me lack vram, is there anything I can do so that my laptop can function normally again and can play the games I mentioned or something else?

[Edited the thread to add model name to the title]

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Puraw

Hi Lumrlh,

With a Predator PHN16‑72 (i9‑14900HX + RTX 4060), black screens and crashes when launching AAA titles can have several causes, but thermals are a prime suspect on these high‑power CPUs/GPUs. A few things you can check:

Monitor temps under load – use HWInfo64 or MSI Afterburner to see CPU/GPU temps while gaming. If either spikes above ~95 °C, throttling or shutdowns can occur.
Cooling system – ensure fans/vents are clear of dust; compressed air can help.
Surface & airflow – avoid soft surfaces; elevate the rear slightly or use a cooling pad.
Drivers & BIOS – update GPU drivers from NVIDIA and check Acer’s support page for the latest BIOS/firmware. If BIOS v1.17 (June 2025) is available for your exact model, it’s worth applying—especially if the changelog mentions stability or thermal fixes.
- Connect AC power, reset any OC/UV settings, and don’t interrupt the process.
- After flashing, load BIOS defaults once, then re‑apply custom settings.
Power plan – set Windows to “High Performance” or Acer’s “Best Performance” in PredatorSense.
VRAM error messages – often a side effect of driver crashes; a clean NVIDIA driver install (using DDU) can help.

👉 First step: log temps during a crash attempt. If they’re high, focus on cooling and BIOS update. If temps are fine, look at drivers or game‑specific issues.