5 annoying startup programs every gamer regrets installing

You wake up. You boot your PC. You’re ready to game, vibe, or just watch one single YouTube video.But then it starts—the ambush. Notifications. Auto-launchers. RAM-hogging apps you didn’t even open. Welcome to the startup boss battle—and these 5 programs are always waiting for a rematch

1. Razer Synapse – Forcing RGB like it’s the law

All you wanted was a nice gaming mouse or keyboard.
Instead, you got a startup program that launches every time, demands admin access, and nags you about saving profiles and firmware updates—even if your lights are already working fine.

Bonus rage: When it updates mid-match and resets all your RGB to puke green.

2. GeForce Experience – The pop-up prince

Yes, it’s great for optimizing graphics and recording clips.
But did you ask for daily log-ins, update prompts, and driver alerts on every boot? Didn’t think so.

And let’s not even talk about those mysterious NVIDIA Container processes lurking in Task Manager.

Good luck launching your game before it finishes “Checking for updates…”

3. Microsoft Teams – Why are you even here?

Somehow installed during a Windows update. Somehow still here.
You’re a gamer, not a corporate manager, and yet Teams opens every time like it’s part of your squad.

Bonus points if it logs in, crashes, reboots, and stays in the tray… doing nothing.

4. Adobe Creative Cloud – You opened Photoshop once, now it lives with you

This one’s a clingy ex. You installed Premiere or Photoshop for one thing, and now Creative Cloud thinks you need constant updates, font syncing, and pop-ups about apps you don’t even use.

“Would you like to update Adobe XD?”
No. I don’t even know what that is.

5. Epic Games Launcher – The silent resource thief

You didn’t open it. You don’t remember it running. And yet… there it is.
Slurping RAM in the background, updating Fortnite in secret, and launching itself on boot like it’s your main platform.

It’s the digital equivalent of a roommate who eats your snacks and disappears before rent’s due

Honorable mentions (aka the sneaky squad):

• Discord – We love it. But do we need it to start with Windows and launch full screen?
• SteelSeries GG – Only exists to tell you about a new Sonar update.
• Logitech G Hub – Launches with Windows, but never detects your gear the first time.
• Battle.net – Wakes up your PC just to tell you Diablo 4 has a patch.
• OneDrive – Just let us use “Downloads” in peace.

Final thoughts

We install these apps because we need them. But they act like we begged them to take over our PC.
If startup programs had a difficulty setting, gamers would be stuck on Nightmare Mode by default.

Check your Task Manager. Tweak your startup apps. Or embrace the pain.
Because every time you turn on your PC—it’s not just booting… it’s surviving