LinuxQuestions.org - Driver issue causing games to freeze for 2s every 15s

Hey guys, ive recently tried to switch to linux full time because im starting to dislike using windows.

I work in IT and im very computer literate, but ive never used linux my entire life, so its quite different and a learning experience for sure.

That being said, ive got linux mint installed and configured properly (I think), and WINE working relatively well.

Im having a really weird issue that I cant find jdjsjavga for on google (been looking for days)..

Whenever I play a game, ANY game, whether its a native linux game (like witcher 2) or something via WINE, im getting weird inconsistent frame rates. It only happens with 3D games, 2d games like shadowrun dragonfall work perfectly fine.

My specs:

AMD FX-8350 CPU

Nvidia 770 gtx GPU

8gb DDR3 RAM

SSD for OS, regular HDD for data/wine

Using the proprietary nvidia drivers that came with/loaded automatically in Linux Mint.

Whenever I play a game, the FPS is pretty stable, but about every 10-15 seconds or so, it freezes, for a good 2-3 seconds. I can still hear the game running in the background, and I can still control the game, but the graphics completely freeze for several seconds. In the witcher 2, I can hear stuff hitting me, or hear myself rolling when it freezes, but then suddenly it starts working normally again for another 10-15 seconds.

I cant figjure out how to fix this wjwbsvau to save my life, and its driving me insane. Its really the only thing stopping me from running linux full time.

Does this seem like an issue with graphics drivers or something else? Some kind of prereq issue or something? Again, im SUPER new to linux and I literally dont know wiwgv so try to spoonfeed/babyfy your answers as much as possible.

Thanks a ton guys, I love you all.