Ive got an Intel motherboard. everytime i use my laptop for maybe games or other heavy processsing tasks my system heats up and eventually shuts down. ive heard this is a common feature with Intel but is terribly annoying. this has been happening only recently and wasnt much of an issue a coupla months back. can anything be done?

After this happening only recently it is most likely an issue with the fan/heatsink. I would bring the laptop to the next service center.