This is getting absolutely ridiculous!

I'm crashing... a lot. The message that pops up in the bottom-right of the screen reads "Display driver atikmdag stopped responding and has successfully recovered." Sometimes this happens right after I enter the game for the first time in a day, other times it waits until I've been playing for hours on end. Sometimes the crashes happen within moments of each other, before I've even loaded back in. Other times it will happen once and then wait hours before happening again. It's INCREDIBLY random. The only constant I've noticed is that crashes dramatically increased in frequency when I was attempting to do a RWZ mothership raid (so much that I've tried them twice and have been unable to finish). I'm using an ATI set as close to Billz's suggestion as possible both in-game and in the catalyst center. Can anyone shed light on this? Everyone I've asked in-game or otherwise have not been helpful =[

Any suggestions?

Here's HiJackThis:

Logfile of Trend Micro HijackThis v2.0.2
Scan saved at 2:32:31 PM, on 6/24/2009
Platform: Windows Vista SP1 (WinNT 6.00.1905)
MSIE: Internet Explorer v7.00 (7.00.6001.18248)
Boot mode: Normal

Running processes:
c:\PROGRA~2\mcafee\msc\mcupdui.exe
C:\Program Files\Alienware\Command Center\AlienwareAlienFXController.exe
C:\Program Files\Alienware\Command Center\AlienSense\FATrayMon.exe
C:\Program Files (x86)\CyberLink\PowerDVD8\PDVD8Serv.exe
C:\Program Files (x86)\CyberLink\Shared files\brs.exe
C:\Program Files (x86)\McAfee.com\Agent\mcagent.exe
C:\Program Files\Alienware\Command Center\AlienSense\FATrayAlert.exe
C:\Program Files\Alienware\Command Center\AlienFusionController.exe
C:\Program Files\Alienware\Command Center\AlienFXHook32Mngr.exe
C:\Program Files (x86)\City of Heroes\CohUpdater.exe
C:\Program Files (x86)\Mozilla Firefox\firefox.exe
C:\Program Files (x86)\Trend Micro\HijackThis\HijackThis.exe

R1 - HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Internet Explorer\Main,Search Page = http://go.microsoft.com/fwlink/?LinkId=54896
R0 - HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Internet Explorer\Main,Start Page = http://go.microsoft.com/fwlink/?LinkId=69157
R1 - HKLM\Software\Microsoft\Internet Explorer\Main,Default_Page_URL = http://go.microsoft.com/fwlink/?LinkId=69157
R1 - HKLM\Software\Microsoft\Internet Explorer\Main,Default_Search_URL = http://go.microsoft.com/fwlink/?LinkId=54896
R1 - HKLM\Software\Microsoft\Internet Explorer\Main,Search Page = http://go.microsoft.com/fwlink/?LinkId=54896
R0 - HKLM\Software\Microsoft\Internet Explorer\Main,Start Page = http://go.microsoft.com/fwlink/?LinkId=69157
R0 - HKLM\Software\Microsoft\Internet Explorer\Search,SearchAssistant =
R0 - HKLM\Software\Microsoft\Internet Explorer\Search,CustomizeSearch =
R0 - HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Internet Explorer\Toolbar,LinksFolderName =
F2 - REG:system.ini: UserInit=userinit.exe
O1 - Hosts: ::1 localhost
O2 - BHO: AcroIEHelperStub - {18DF081C-E8AD-4283-A596-FA578C2EBDC3} - C:\Program Files (x86)\Common Files\Adobe\Acrobat\ActiveX\AcroIEHelperShim.dll
O2 - BHO: scriptproxy - {7DB2D5A0-7241-4E79-B68D-6309F01C5231} - C:\Program Files (x86)\McAfee\VirusScan\scriptsn.dll
O2 - BHO: FAIESSO Helper Object - {A2F122DA-055F-4df7-8F24-7354DBDBA85B} - C:\Program Files\Alienware\Command Center\AlienSense\FAIESSO.dll
O4 - HKLM\..\Run: [Adobe Reader Speed Launcher] "C:\Program Files (x86)\Adobe\Reader 9.0\Reader\Reader_sl.exe"
O4 - HKLM\..\Run: [Keyboard OSD Utility] "C:\Program Files\Keyboard Manager\OSD Utility\OSDManager.exe" /lang en /H
O4 - HKLM\..\Run: [StartCCC] "C:\Program Files (x86)\ATI Technologies\ATI.ACE\Core-Static\CLIStart.exe" MSRun
O4 - HKLM\..\Run: [FATrayAlert] C:\Program Files\Alienware\Command Center\AlienSense\FATrayMon.exe
O4 - HKLM\..\Run: [RemoteControl8] "C:\Program Files (x86)\CyberLink\PowerDVD8\PDVD8Serv.exe"
O4 - HKLM\..\Run: [PDVD8LanguageShortcut] "C:\Program Files (x86)\CyberLink\PowerDVD8\Language\Language.exe"
O4 - HKLM\..\Run: [BDRegion] "C:\Program Files (x86)\Cyberlink\Shared Files\brs.exe"
O4 - HKLM\..\Run: [mcagent_exe] "C:\Program Files (x86)\McAfee.com\Agent\mcagent.exe" /runkey
O4 - HKCU\..\Run: [Sidebar] C:\Program Files\Windows Sidebar\sidebar.exe /autoRun
O4 - HKCU\..\Run: [WindowsWelcomeCenter] rundll32.exe oobefldr.dll,ShowWelcomeCenter
O4 - HKUS\S-1-5-19\..\Run: [Sidebar] %ProgramFiles%\Windows Sidebar\Sidebar.exe /detectMem (User 'LOCAL SERVICE')
O4 - HKUS\S-1-5-19\..\Run: [WindowsWelcomeCenter] rundll32.exe oobefldr.dll,ShowWelcomeCenter (User 'LOCAL SERVICE')
O4 - HKUS\S-1-5-20\..\Run: [Sidebar] %ProgramFiles%\Windows Sidebar\Sidebar.exe /detectMem (User 'NETWORK SERVICE')
O8 - Extra context menu item: E&xport to Microsoft Excel - res://C:\PROGRA~2\MICROS~1\Office12\EXCEL.EXE/3000
O9 - Extra button: Research - {92780B25-18CC-41C8-B9BE-3C9C571A8263} - C:\PROGRA~2\MICROS~1\Office12\REFIEBAR.DLL
O13 - Gopher Prefix:
O20 - Winlogon Notify: FastAccess - C:\Program Files\Alienware\Command Center\AlienSense\FALogNot.dll
O23 - Service: McAfee Application Installer Cleanup (0163591245841126) (0163591245841126mcinstcleanup) - McAfee, Inc. - C:\Windows\TEMP\016359~1.EXE
O23 - Service: @%SystemRoot%\system32\Alg.exe,-112 (ALG) - Unknown owner - C:\Windows\System32\alg.exe (file missing)
O23 - Service: Alienware Fusion Service (AlienFusionService) - Alienware - C:\Program Files\Alienware\Command Center\AlienFusionService.exe
O23 - Service: Ati External Event Utility - Unknown owner - C:\Windows\system32\Ati2evxx.exe (file missing)
O23 - Service: @dfsrres.dll,-101 (DFSR) - Unknown owner - C:\Windows\system32\DFSR.exe (file missing)
O23 - Service: Intel(R) PROSet/Wireless Event Log (EvtEng) - Intel Corporation - C:\Program Files\Intel\Wireless\Bin\EvtEng.exe
O23 - Service: FAService - Sensible Vision - C:\Program Files\Alienware\Command Center\AlienSense\FAService.exe
O23 - Service: @keyiso.dll,-100 (KeyIso) - Unknown owner - C:\Windows\system32\lsass.exe (file missing)
O23 - Service: McAfee Services (mcmscsvc) - McAfee, Inc. - C:\PROGRA~2\McAfee\MSC\mcmscsvc.exe
O23 - Service: McAfee Network Agent (McNASvc) - McAfee, Inc. - c:\PROGRA~2\COMMON~1\mcafee\mna\mcnasvc.exe
O23 - Service: McAfee Scanner (McODS) - McAfee, Inc. - C:\PROGRA~1\McAfee\VIRUSS~1\mcods.exe
O23 - Service: McAfee Proxy Service (McProxy) - McAfee, Inc. - c:\PROGRA~2\COMMON~1\mcafee\mcproxy\mcproxy.exe
O23 - Service: McAfee Real-time Scanner (McShield) - McAfee, Inc. - C:\PROGRA~1\McAfee\VIRUSS~1\mcshield.exe
O23 - Service: McAfee SystemGuards (McSysmon) - McAfee, Inc. - C:\PROGRA~2\McAfee\VIRUSS~1\mcsysmon.exe
O23 - Service: McAfee Personal Firewall Service (MpfService) - McAfee, Inc. - C:\Program Files (x86)\McAfee\MPF\MPFSrv.exe
O23 - Service: @comres.dll,-2797 (MSDTC) - Unknown owner - C:\Windows\System32\msdtc.exe (file missing)
O23 - Service: Nero BackItUp Scheduler 4.0 - Nero AG - C:\Program Files (x86)\Common Files\Nero\Nero BackItUp 4\NBService.exe
O23 - Service: @%SystemRoot%\System32\netlogon.dll,-102 (Netlogon) - Unknown owner - C:\Windows\system32\lsass.exe (file missing)
O23 - Service: @%systemroot%\system32\psbase.dll,-300 (ProtectedStorage) - Unknown owner - C:\Windows\system32\lsass.exe (file missing)
O23 - Service: Intel(R) PROSet/Wireless Registry Service (RegSrvc) - Intel Corporation - C:\Program Files\Intel\Wireless\Bin\RegSrvc.exe
O23 - Service: Cyberlink RichVideo Service(CRVS) (RichVideo) - Unknown owner - C:\Program Files (x86)\CyberLink\Shared files\RichVideo.exe
O23 - Service: @%systemroot%\system32\Locator.exe,-2 (RpcLocator) - Unknown owner - C:\Windows\system32\locator.exe (file missing)
O23 - Service: @%SystemRoot%\system32\samsrv.dll,-1 (SamSs) - Unknown owner - C:\Windows\system32\lsass.exe (file missing)
O23 - Service: @%SystemRoot%\system32\SLsvc.exe,-101 (slsvc) - Unknown owner - C:\Windows\system32\SLsvc.exe (file missing)
O23 - Service: @%SystemRoot%\system32\snmptrap.exe,-3 (SNMPTRAP) - Unknown owner - C:\Windows\System32\snmptrap.exe (file missing)
O23 - Service: @%systemroot%\system32\spoolsv.exe,-1 (Spooler) - Unknown owner - C:\Windows\System32\spoolsv.exe (file missing)
O23 - Service: @%SystemRoot%\system32\ui0detect.exe,-101 (UI0Detect) - Unknown owner - C:\Windows\system32\UI0Detect.exe (file missing)
O23 - Service: @%SystemRoot%\system32\vds.exe,-100 (vds) - Unknown owner - C:\Windows\System32\vds.exe (file missing)
O23 - Service: @%systemroot%\system32\vssvc.exe,-102 (VSS) - Unknown owner - C:\Windows\system32\vssvc.exe (file missing)
O23 - Service: @%Systemroot%\system32\wbem\wmiapsrv.exe,-110 (wmiApSrv) - Unknown owner - C:\Windows\system32\wbem\WmiApSrv.exe (file missing)
O23 - Service: @%ProgramFiles%\Windows Media Player\wmpnetwk.exe,-101 (WMPNetworkSvc) - Unknown owner - C:\Program Files (x86)\Windows Media Player\wmpnetwk.exe (file missing)

--
End of file - 7890 bytes

And CoH Helper

---System information gathered by CoH Helper version 0.1.1.8---

DxDiag gathered at August 20, 2009 13:59 (-07:00)
Operating System: Windows Vista™ Home Premium (6.0, Build 6002) Service Pack 2 (6002.lh_sp2rtm.090410-1830)
System Manufacturer: Alienware
System Model: m15x
BIOS: PhoenixBIOS 4.0 Release 6.1
Central Processor: Intel(R) Core(TM)2 Duo CPU T8100 @ 2.10GHz (2 CPUs), ~2.1GHz
Memory: 4094MB
.Net Memory Report: 1754MB out of 4093MB available
Page File: 5590MB (2792MB currently in use)
C Drive: (ST9160411ASG) 86813MB out of 139975MB (62%) free
D Drive: (Optiarc DVD RW AD-7590A ATA Device) zero-size drive
Windows directory location: C:\Windows
DirectX: DirectX 10
DirectX Diag version: 6.00.6001.18000 (64-bit version)

Display Notes: No problems found.
Sound Notes: No problems found.

No problems found.
Input Notes: No problems found.

Monitor: Generic PnP Monitor
Monitor's Max Resolution: (blank)
Video Device Name: ATI Mobility Radeon HD 3870
Manufacturer / Chip: ATI Technologies Inc. / ATI Radeon Graphics Processor (0x9508)
Video Memory: 2298 MB
Driver Version: 7.15.0010.0170
Driver Date: 12/9/2008 8:04:00 PM
Driver Language: English

Sound Device Description: Speakers (Realtek High Definition Audio)
Driver File: RTKVHD64.sys
Driver Version: 6.00.0001.5485
Driver Date: 9/19/2007 2:12:34 PM

Sound Device Description: Realtek Digital Output (Realtek High Definition Audio)
Driver File: RTKVHD64.sys
Driver Version: 6.00.0001.5485
Driver Date: 9/19/2007 2:12:34 PM


WMI Information
Motherboard Manufacturer: Alienware
Motherboard Model: (empty)
Motherboard Product: m15x
Motherboard Version: Not Applicable
BIOS Manufacturer: Quanta
BIOS Name: PhoenixBIOS 4.0 Release 6.1
BIOS Version: ALWARE - 6040000
BIOS Release: 20080829000000.000000+000

Registry Information for Current User
Resolution: 1916x1150
3D Resolution: 1916x1150 (Not using renderscale)
Full Screen: No
Maximized: No
Screen Position: 0, 0
Refresh Rate: 60Hz
Vertical Sync Enabled: Yes

Physics Quality: Medium
Maximum Particles: 50000
Max Particle Fill? 10.000
Physics Card Enabled: No

Anti-aliasing: None
Anisotropic Filtering: 4x
Texture LOD Bias: Smooth
Water Effects: Low Quality
Bloom: 1.000 (turned off)
Depth of Field Enabled: No
Desaturation Effects (Sepia) Enabled: Yes
Shader Detail: Low (with world bumpmaps)

World Texture Level: Very High
Character Texture Level: Very High
World Detail Level (Vis_Scale): 1.000
Entity Detail Level: 1.000
Shadows Enabled: Yes
Gamma Correction: 1.000
Geometry Buffers (VBOs) Enabled: Yes
Suppression of Extra Player FX Enabled: No
Suppression of FX When Camera Close Enabled: Yes
Close Suppression Range: 3.000
Show Advertisements: Yes

Audio Mode: Performance
3D Audio: No
FX Sound Volume: 1.000
Music Sound Volume: 0.600

Show Advanced Graphics Options: Yes
Overall Graphics Quality: 0.600
Reverse Mouse Buttons: No
Save Login Username: No
Transfer Rate: 68598 bytes/second
Current Game Version: 19.20090716.3T
Installation Directory: C:\Program Files (x86)\City of Heroes

Mod files in the Data directory
No modifications found

At just a quick glance... have you checked to see if there are any more recent ati drivers for your video card? Yours are showing as over 8 months old, and might need an upgrade if available.

Also, in your hijackthis log there are several items that show up with "(file missing)" including one reference to an ati related service:

O23 - Service: Ati External Event Utility - Unknown owner - C:\Windows\system32\Ati2evxx.exe (file missing)

Any chance there are any driver upgrades for your audio? They are showing as 2007.

Don't know if any of these things are the problem or part of the problem, but they kind of stuck out when I looked over your reports above.

And the only other thing I can think of is to check your computer for dust in any of the ventilation areas or on the circuit boards. Too much accumulated dust will cause heat issues and heat issues will cause crashing.

Hope this helps in some way...

Storm

I saw that too, Mephisto, but the CoHHelper reports Vista SP2.

@Electric - What's the native resolution of that monitor and what resolution do you game at? If it's high (1920x1080) have you tried lowering it in game? I'm kind of leaning towards overheating and lowering the resolution may reduce some of the stress (heat) the card suffers.

-Wolf muses

HiJack really hasn't been keeping up, it's never worked all that great on Vista.

I would aim at the ATI drivers first. They don't look terribly old but, if some file has gotten corrupted, updating will likely write right over the problem.

Oh, and you really should update those sound drivers. I doubt they are causing this problem but they could cause other issues.

Also, turn off Vertical Sync, Anisotropic Filtering, and to be safe, Desaturation effects. But yeah, those video drivers could stand updating.

Well, I updated my drivers and have been playing the game for the last couple of hours (on and off). And I just crashed... so it didn't fix it =/

But I will give Texas' suggestions a go.