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Resident Evil 9 Gunfire Triggers Unexpected OLED TV Restarts


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The report of a Resident Evil 9: Requiem player's OLED TV restarting due to the muzzle flash of the titular "Requiem" gun highlights a rare but documented technical issue where extreme brightness triggers a power failure in display hardware.The Issue and Its ContextReddit user u/yorgo332 reported that every time they fire the Requiem gun—a powerful revolver in the game—their LG C1 OLED TV restarts. While the muzzle flash is intended to be immersive, it appears to trigger a safety or hardware failure in the television. This is not an isolated phenomenon; other gamers have reported similar reboots during bright white flashes in titles like Fortnite, Kingdom Hearts, and Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War.Technical CausesThe primary reason this occurs is the fundamental way OLED technology functions:
  • Pixel Luminance and Power: Unlike LCDs that use a constant backlight, OLED pixels generate their own light. Bright white pixels consume significantly more energy than darker ones.
  • Power Surges: A sudden transition from a dark environment to a massive bright flash (like a muzzle flash or explosion) can cause a power surge. If this surge is too much for the TV’s internal power supply, the household outlet, or the surge protector, the device may trip and restart as a protective measure.
  • In-Game Brightness Bugs: Some players have specifically reported that Resident Evil Requiem has a bug where brightness occasionally spikes to maximum during cutscenes or item inspections, which may exacerbate the power draw on OLED screens.
Theories and Potential FixesWhile there is no official resolution yet, several theories and solutions have been proposed by the community and experts:
  • Power Management: Experts suggest plugging the TV directly into a main wall socket rather than a power strip, or using a UPS (Uninterruptible Power Supply) to stabilize the power delivery.
  • Settings Adjustments: Reducing the TV's overall brightness or disabling HDR (High Dynamic Range) can lower the peak power draw during flashes. One user suggested turning off Instant Game Response as a possible fix for similar issues.
  • Hardware Defects: In some cases, this behavior indicates a failing power supply unit (PSU) or a defective panel within the TV, necessitating a professional repair or replacement under warranty.
  • Processing Bugs: There is also speculation that a bug in the TV's image processing, triggered by the specific visual or audio data of the gun firing, could be causing the crash.
TechRadar has reached out to LG for comment on the matter, but a definitive cause for this "immersion"-breaking bug remains unconfirmed.

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