My Sims 3 Game Instant Crashes After I Load It Up (PLEASE HELP ME!) «12...Next Go

SimClover___

Hey, my name is Ayla and I recently got a new Expansion Pack from this Easter that I decided to install just today (It's Ambitions if you're wondering). I downloaded it and then walked away to let it do it's thing, right? When I came back, I went through the whole Set-Up Wizard.. bla bla bla. Okay! Now, I load up the Sims 3 Launcher from Origin and check mark the Ambitions Expansion pack so I can play with it, right? Okay, so, I hit play, and the Sims 3 is in windowed mode, where I left it, but it only gets past the "White Maxis Loading Screen" before it says: "not responding" at the top. Okay, so, just try again, right? This has happened before and I just try again and it's cool. Not this time... no matter what I try.. it keeps doing this, and I'm super worried. I want to be able to play The Sims 3 since it's one of my favorite games. I tried to load it up without any CC or expansion packs, but it keeps doing this! Also, the last time I tried, it randomly went into full screen mode, so I had to use Task Manager to get out. I'm not a huge techy person when it comes to FILES, so try and explain how to fix it (if there's a way ) as if you're talking to a 3 year old.

More info:
I haven't touched the Sims 3 since like... maybe February? And then when I installed this expansion pack, everything is broken.
I have a Windows 7.
I will feel free to record a video of everything, and how it happens if you ask. I'll just need your email.
Even if I have to end up deleting my whole Sims 3 game and my characters, starting from scratch, it will be worth it to play again.
I've searched through the internet, people have had this problem, but the ways to fix it either didn't work, or didn't work and didn't make sense to me at all.
I have 206 hours of the Sims 3 played.
My expansion packs are as followed; Ambitions (the one that broke my entire game), Generations, World Adventure, University Life, Late Night, Supernatural, and for my STUFF packs, I just have High-end loft stuff.


UPDATE: I have been able to launch the game without any expansion packs added on. I haven't done anything else accept that! But now when I look at the Sims 3 Launcher, NONE of my Custom Content is there! In Installed, or Downloads! Like I said, all I did was uncheck the expansion pack boxes and launch the game! I rechecked them but the CC is STILL not there. But whenever I try and play with all expansion packs, or all of the expansion packs MINUS Ambitions, it shuts down and I have to manually "end task" through the task manager.

SECOND UPDATE: OMG! I just tried to launch it without ANY expansion packs again, and it's not working either! Someone please help!

SimClover___

Okay and now it does work without any expansion packs loaded in... What!?

igazor

First, try deleting your game folders five cache files before starting up. They will regenerate instantly.
CasPartCache.package
compositorCache.package
scriptCache.package
simCompositorCache.package
socialCache.package

If that doesn't help, try pulling your entire TS3 game folder out of Documents to your Desktop for safekeeping, thus forcing the game to spawn a new one on it next attempted loadup. You won't have any installed store or custom content, sims, worlds, mods, or previously saved games this way, but they will all be safe back in the pulled out folder. Can you get a new test game going with (or without) expansions on the new game folder?

SimClover___

@igazor When I deleted all of the files like you said, it didn't work. And they didn't respawn... I'm afraid I broke it more and want to make sure it's still okay to move on to the next attempt.

igazor

I guess it's possible that the game could be crashing before the cache files had a chance to respawn, though that seems odd. There is no breaking more happening, those five cache files are always safe to delete. Many of us do so out of habit every time we start up our games. They just hold temporary game data, nothing meant to be permanent anyway, much like an Internet browser cache does.

Yes, it's okay to move onto the next step of pulling out the game folder. Your game's startup routine is currently broken and therefore it's unplayable, none of this is going to make things worse than that.

SimClover___

@igazor God, I'm starting to panic a little. No, that didn't work either, with or without the expansion packs, it just immediately says "not responding" after a second or two.

Simulance

Could you possible try a full system restore and then reinstall all your games?

SimClover___

@Simulance Like I said before, I have no clue how to do that, or what it would affect.

igazor

Did you get a new game folder spawned in your Documents\Electronic Arts folder? If not, then you either have a second (unwanted and flawed) game folder someplace -- look in OneDrive if you have that -- or I am afraid to say that your installation is flawed.

You could also try instructing Origin to Repair your game.

@Simulance - A full system restore is kind of extreme. But if the game installation is damaged, then uninstalling it completely, cleaning the registry, and reinstalling everything would probably be the next course of action.

Simulance

SimClover___ wrote: »

@Simulance Like I said before, I have no clue how to do that, or what it would affect.

Sorry. If you know what your PC is its easy to find out how but as @igazor says it's not necessary.

SimClover___

@igazor No, the folder is not there and I do not have OneDrive/I'm not too sure what it is.

I'm not sure how to tell Origin to repair the game.

If @Simulance's idea is the last resort, and I can still play the game, even if everything is gone, I'll be glad too.

igazor

Repair Game: http://help.ea.com/en/article/i-cannot-load-my-game-from-origin-or-i-am-having-issues-in-game

SimClover___

@igazor Thank you, should I put the Sims 3 folder back where it was in the EA folder under documents before I hit repair?

igazor

No, actually that would be bad. Even if you have to eventually uninstall and reinstall the entire game, keep the older game folder out of it -- it's possible that your content and saved games can be transferred over once you can get the game running properly again.

SimClover___

@igazor Okay, hitting repair now.

SimClover___

@igazor Okay, I walked away for a second and when I came back it said "Installation Complete". Should I try and load up the game now? With or without expansions, or both?

Simulance

SimClover___ wrote: »

@igazor Okay, I walked away for a second and when I came back it said "Installation Complete". Should I try and load up the game now? With or without expansions, or both?

I'd try it with EPs.

SimClover___

@Simulance Alright, here we go. So, with EPS; Nope. Wiithout EPS; Yes! Second time trying with EPS: No. Second time without EPS: No...then it worked! All EPs except Ambitions (the newest one that caused everything) No... then it worked! With the University coming up on the loading screen (my second newest one); No... then it worked! Third try with all EPs: No.. then it half worked, only to show the University Life loading screen again.

What the heck is wrong with my game.. I just want to be able to play with my EPs...


When I say "No... then it worked!" I mean it said "Not responding" then started to respond several moments later.

My game is so messed up.

SimClover___

If that didn't make any sense, just tell me and I'll try to clarify.

SimClover___

Oh, also @igazor.

SimClover___

Alright, here we go.
So, with EPS; Nope.

Wiithout EPS; Yes!

Second time trying with EPS: No.

Second time without EPS: No...then it worked!

All EPs except Ambitions (the newest one that caused everything) No... then it worked!

With the University coming up on the loading screen (my second newest one); No... then it worked!

Third try with all EPs: No.. then it half worked, only to show the University Life loading screen again, and not the Ambitions.



What the heck is wrong with my game.. I just want to be able to play with my EPs...




When I say "No... then it worked!" I mean it said "Not responding" then started to respond several moments later.

A more clarified version, not all scrunched together. Sorry if I keep replying, I'm reloading the page like every 5 seconds.

igazor

When a Windows program says "Not Responding" and hangs there forever (let's say ten minutes for the purposes of launching a game) then of course things are not working.

When a Windows program says "Not Responding" briefly or for two or three minutes, that doesn't mean it has crashed or it is malfunctioning. That's Windows itself being overly sensitive to the program not moving as fast as it thinks it should but often the program recovers. I get brief Not Respondngs on TS3 quite frequently ever since beginning to use Windows 7 years ago, especially when the Launcher is involved. Don't recall the older versions ever doing this.

The startup screen will always be that of the most recently released EP or SP, not the most recently installed one. If you don't have an EP released after Uni (like IP or ITF), then Uni is the startup screen you should be seeing.

So do you now have a new game folder in Documents that works with all EPs except Ambitions, if I've understood this right?

Edit: Or is Ambitions actually working but not showing you the startup screen you expected? You won't see the Ambitions startup screen if you have a later EP in place, as you do.

SimClover___

@igazor Well, no, there's still no new folder under documents/Electronic Arts. As for.. "...released after Uni (like IP or ITF), then Uni is the startup screen you should be seeing." I don't know what UNI, IP, OR ITF means.

I'm not sure if Ambitions is working or not. Should I try and load the game, and see if Twinbrook is an option?

igazor

Uni means the University Life expansion pack.
IP means Island Paradise, the one that came after Uni.
ITF means Into the Future, the one that came after IP.

You could try launching with all EPs and see if Twinbrook exists as you said. But I would want to know where the heck the game folder is that is making all this happen. If it's not in Documents, then something is still not right.

SimClover___

@igazor I loaded up the game (with University as the load up screen, AKA Uni, I figured that part out) and Twinbrook was indeed an option.

igazor

Okay, you're getting close to success then. Make a game in Twinbrook, save it using Save AS, and give it a silly name. Then search your hard drive as best you can for that silly named file. The game folder has to be somewhere.

What version of Windows do you have?