Why Monitor Turns Off When Starting Games: Complete Guide

When launching games such as Space Marine 2, the monitor turns off and the system stops responding due to a conflict between Xbox Game Bar and game initialization processes, leading to DCOM failure and hanging of the graphics subsystem. This issue is typically caused by incorrect Game Bar settings, outdated graphics card drivers, or corrupted system files that disrupt normal game launches and monitor power management.

Table of Contents

• Causes of monitor and system freeze issues
• Solutions for PresenceWriter DCOM issues
• Space Marine 2 specific issues
• Preventing future issues
• Diagnosis and monitoring

Causes of monitor and system freeze issues

The primary reason the monitor turns off and the system freezes when launching games is related to a conflict between the Xbox Game Bar service and game initialization processes. The DCOM error “Windows.Gaming.GameBar.PresenceServer.Internal.PresenceWriter DCOM server registration failed within the allotted time” indicates that the Game Bar service fails to register in the Distributed Component Object Model (DCOM) before the game launches.

This error occurs when the Game Bar service conflicts with graphics card drivers or game launch processes, causing a system failure that leads to monitor shutdown and system freeze.

Other possible causes include:

• Outdated graphics card drivers - as you noted, the temporary disappearance of the problem after updating drivers confirms this
• Corrupted system files - especially those related to DirectX, Visual C++ redistributable, and gaming services
• Windows power configurations - incorrect settings can cause the monitor to enter sleep mode under high loads
• Multiple monitor conflicts - as mentioned in research, removing a second monitor sometimes resolves the issue
• Corrupted Xbox Game Bar installation - the PresenceWriter service may be incorrectly configured

Solutions for PresenceWriter DCOM issues

Disabling the Xbox Game Bar PresenceWriter service

The most effective solution is to completely disable the PresenceWriter service:

1. Open Registry Editor (regedit)
2. Navigate to the path: HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\CLSID\{7E5FE3D9-CC18-4B68-8BD9-9A3493279D94}
3. Right-click on the key and select Make unavailable
4. Restart the system

Important: Before modifying the registry, create a system restore point in case you need to roll back the changes.

Alternative methods for disabling Game Bar

If modifying the registry seems too complex, use these methods:

Through Windows Settings:

1. Open Settings → Gaming
2. Disable all Xbox Game Bar options
3. Uninstall the Xbox app from Microsoft Store if it’s installed

Through Windows Services:

1. Press Win + R, type services.msc
2. Find the Xbox Game Bar service
3. Open its properties and set the startup type to Disabled

Updating graphics card drivers

Since you noticed a temporary fix for the problem after updating drivers, this confirms the importance of up-to-date drivers:

1. Download the latest drivers from the official NVIDIA, AMD, or Intel websites
2. Perform a clean installation of the drivers (remove old drivers before installing new ones)
3. Restart your computer after installation

Space Marine 2 specific issues

For Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine 2, there are additional solutions that may help:

Verifying game file integrity

1. Open Steam
2. Right-click on Space Marine 2 in your library
3. Select Properties → Local Files → Verify integrity of game files

Graphics settings

If the issue occurs specifically in Space Marine 2:

1. Set all graphics settings to Low or Medium
2. Select Fullscreen display mode
3. Disable V-Sync and resolution scaling
4. Check if the game is installed on an SSD (slow installation on HDD can cause issues)

Research shows that when Space Marine 2 is first installed on an HDD, loading can take a very long time even on powerful computers.

Additional solutions for Space Marine 2

• Disable Steam Overlay - disable Steam Overlay in Steam settings
• Reinstall Easy Anti-Cheat - reinstall the Easy Anti-Cheat service
• Disable antivirus - temporarily disable antivirus software
• Close background programs - close all browsers and other applications before launching the game

Preventing future issues

Regular system maintenance

To prevent the problem from recurring:

1. Update Windows regularly - install all latest updates through Windows Update
2. Check system events - regularly review Windows Event Log for DCOM errors
3. Use DirectX diagnostics - run dxdiag to check DirectX status

Optimizing Windows settings

Power Settings:

1. Open Settings → System → Power & sleep
2. Select Additional power options
3. Set the mode to High performance
4. Disable automatic sleep mode for the monitor

Power settings for graphics card:

1. Set maximum performance in graphics card settings
2. Disable power saving for the GPU

Preventive measures for gaming systems

• Regularly update drivers - set up automatic driver updates
• Use SSD for games - install games on SSD for better performance
• Monitor temperature - ensure that the cooling system is working properly
• Check file integrity - periodically verify game files through Steam

Diagnosis and monitoring

Using Windows Event Log

For troubleshooting issues:

1. Open Event Viewer (eventvwr.msc)
2. Go to Windows Logs → System
3. Look for errors with ID 10010 (DCOM errors)
4. Check the Application log for errors related to games

Real-time monitoring

Use the following tools for monitoring:

• HWMonitor - tracking temperatures and loads
• MSI Afterburner - monitoring performance and temperature
• Windows Performance Recorder - recording events when launching games

Collecting crash information

When a crash occurs:

1. Take a screenshot of the error in the Event Log
2. Record the exact time of the crash
3. Note which games were launched
4. Check if the latest updates were installed

By following these recommendations, you can resolve the issue with monitor shutdown and system freezing when launching games. Start by disabling the Xbox Game Bar PresenceWriter service, as this is the most common cause of such issues in Windows 11.

Sources

1. Fix Space Marine 2 Not Launching / Loading on PC - Driver Easy
2. Fix Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine 2 Crashing on Startup and Stuck on Loading Screen - Reddit
3. Black screen on startup? :: Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine 2 General Discussions - Steam
4. Computer Crashes when I play video games need help fixing this issue - Microsoft Q&A
5. Anyone else getting new DCOM error related to game bar? - Reddit
6. Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine 2 crashing on PC, stuck on loading screen, and black screen - PC Guide
7. How To Fix Space Marine 2 Crashing on PC - Systweak
8. Fix Warhammer 40K Space Marine 2 Crashing/Not Launching - Minitool
9. How to Fix Warhammer 40K: Space Marine 2 Black Screen and Crashing Issues - Lagofast
10. Dealing With The Space Marine 2 Black Screen on Startup? Here’s a Fix! - Insider Gaming