iMac, 32G RAM, 4G video and sims 3

jimbbq

Ok, I have been trying very hard to make sims 3 work on mac. I had a macbook pro with 16G RAM and 2G video card and it runs like plum. In fact I cant even install late night and generations. So I gave up.

Now I have access to the most power imac money can buy (before you ask , no it is not mine, I dont have such money for a computer). Do you think sims 3 will run well with high graphics on this iMac?

Anyone with any luck with iMac and sims 3?

Thanks!

igazor

Typing to you right now on my somewhat older mid-range iMac, with TS3 running (paused and minimized). But the answer, for the most part, isn't likely to be what you want to hear depending on what you mean by "run well."

TS3 for Mac is a crippled version of its Windows sibling because of the way EA arranged its port into OS X. Doesn't matter how much RAM you have over a certain point, the Mac version can only utilize 2 GB. That's it, when the game reaches for more it will glitch, crash, or Error 12 upon trying to save. There are RAM purging tricks one can deploy constantly to try and stay under 2 GB of usage and they do help, but only up to a point and there is no way to increase the limit. It is possible to have fun with TS3 for Mac on suitable hardware and many do. But if the goal is all EPs and long-running multi-generational games in heavily populated worlds without having to hold one's breath every time one goes into CAS or Edit Town for fear of not being able to get back out again safely, then probably not as much.

The way I make this work, as have many others, is to Bootcamp Windows onto our Macs, install TS3 for Windows on the Win side, and play there. Then there is no more 2 GB restriction, it becomes almost 4 GB as it is for other Windows players. And I expect you would have a much easier time getting that graphics card recognized and its fps rate limited properly, but can't speak from experience with the newest AMD cards on the newest iMacs. As this is not your own computer though, it's not clear if this path to installation and gameplay is feasible for you and it does require the purchase of a retail standalone copy of Windows as well as sufficient available drive space to accommodate both operating systems.

jimbbq

That sounds disappointing... installing windows is quite a hassle I guess I will have to be happy playing ts4...

ArielGrint

jimbbq wrote: »

Ok, I have been trying very hard to make sims 3 work on mac. I had a macbook pro with 16G RAM and 2G video card and it runs like plum. In fact I cant even install late night and generations. So I gave up.

Now I have access to the most power imac money can buy (before you ask , no it is not mine, I dont have such money for a computer). Do you think sims 3 will run well with high graphics on this iMac?

Anyone with any luck with iMac and sims 3?

Thanks!

I am quite surprised to hear that. I play Sims 3 on my MacBook pro(late 2013 13" model with 8gb of RAM, 2,4Ghz i5 and a 1536Mb Intel Iris Video card), I run it in Parallels(!) that runs Windows 7(so that adds some stress on the computer) and I am still quite happy with the performance. I have all EP's up to Seasons, no SP's, about a gig of CC/Store items and it works fine. I used to have crashes at first because it didn't recognise my video card and then because I seemingly had a bad piece of CC and some EA generated errors to boot... After making the game recognise the video card, going through my CC and installing NRaas' ErrorTrap it pretty much doesn't crash even though my Sims are now living on a big&complex lot and I have been playing them for quite a few Sim days. I used to play with all the EPs up to Isla Paradiso before but just didn't find University Life and Isla Paradiso to be that crucial to my game so I removed those... I don't max out my graphics settings simply because I don't need them to be maxed out(e.g. I don't care about being able to see my neighbours houses in high detail or be able to count leaves on the trees), but I think I can put them on max if I'd want to... So Parallels might be an option for you(it does cost money and you would need a retail copy of Windows, but let's say there are ways around that) as it's less permanent than Bootcamp. Windows install takes 15-20 mins tops I think and is just basically clicking "Yes" and "Proceed"

BluebellFlora

ArielGrint wrote: »

So Parallels might be an option for you(it does cost money and you would need a retail copy of Windows, but let's say there are ways around that) as it's less permanent than Bootcamp. Windows install takes 15-20 mins tops I think and is just basically clicking "Yes" and "Proceed"

Boot Camp isn't permanent. You can get rid of the partition any time you like without losing any data on the Mac partition.

jimbbq

So basically it is not worth even trying with native mac os ...

BluebellFlora

jimbbq wrote: »

So basically it is not worth even trying with native mac os ...

If you're running Sierra or El Capitan it won't be very happy. Have you checked that your graphics card is supported? Most post-2013 Macs have unsupported graphics cards so the game isn't compatible. Some can get it to run by tweaking the GraphicsCards.sgr and GraphicsRules.sgr files but it's not a guaranteed 100% fix. TS3 is an old game now and hasn't been updated in over 3 years for macOS.

ArielGrint

BluebellFlora wrote: »

ArielGrint wrote: »

So Parallels might be an option for you(it does cost money and you would need a retail copy of Windows, but let's say there are ways around that) as it's less permanent than Bootcamp. Windows install takes 15-20 mins tops I think and is just basically clicking "Yes" and "Proceed"

Boot Camp isn't permanent. You can get rid of the partition any time you like without losing any data on the Mac partition.

That is of course true, but it is certainly much easier to drag two files into the trash(one for the VM itself and one for Parallels if you no longer need it) than to wipe the Boot Camp partition Plus with Boot Camp you have to assign it a good amount of disk space straightaway to ensure that you don't run out in the future as you cannot increase the partition size afterwards, if you will run out of space and really can't remove anything, you'll have to start the process all over again. With Parallels you just set the size of the VM to be dynamic so it's easier to adjust it if you want to install more games or something like that. I have 256Gb on my MacBook's SSD so having more control over disk space is crucial at times. So that is what I meant with Parallels being a less permanent solution.

BluebellFlora

ArielGrint wrote: »

BluebellFlora wrote: »

ArielGrint wrote: »

So Parallels might be an option for you(it does cost money and you would need a retail copy of Windows, but let's say there are ways around that) as it's less permanent than Bootcamp. Windows install takes 15-20 mins tops I think and is just basically clicking "Yes" and "Proceed"

Boot Camp isn't permanent. You can get rid of the partition any time you like without losing any data on the Mac partition.

That is of course true, but it is certainly much easier to drag two files into the trash(one for the VM itself and one for Parallels if you no longer need it) than to wipe the Boot Camp partition Plus with Boot Camp you have to assign it a good amount of disk space straightaway to ensure that you don't run out in the future as you cannot increase the partition size afterwards, if you will run out of space and really can't remove anything, you'll have to start the process all over again. With Parallels you just set the size of the VM to be dynamic so it's easier to adjust it if you want to install more games or something like that. I have 256Gb on my MacBook's SSD so having more control over disk space is crucial at times. So that is what I meant with Parallels being a less permanent solution.

I think we have to agree to differ. No need to explain VMs, I've been using them for years and have Boot Camped every single Mac I own with an Intel chip. But if you are going to recommend a VM I think it's wise to also explain the cons as well as the pros - extra financial outlay and poorer graphics. By stating that Boot Camp is permanent you're implying that it cannot be reversed which of course isn't true

hmg337

I have a Mid-2010 iMac running Mac OS X El Capitan. It has 256 MB of VRAM and 16 GB of RAM. I've been experiencing problems with the game. I have the Sims 3 patch 1.67 installed, Ambitions, Seasons, and Into the future installed. First, when I run the game with the mods, an error message occurs right before starting the game. When I get to registering the game, it automatically freezes. When I get to the Avatar screen, I pick the Avatar, and when I update my Avatar, the game freezes and I have to restart the computer us8ing the button on the back. How do I fix this?

hmg337

Oops. I misspelled using. My mistake. I'm sorry for bumping my previous comment with another comment.

Tremayne4260

Try doing this as I find I have to do this at times. Move your Sims 3 folder to your Desktop (Do NOT Delete it!). It is found under Documents > Electronic Arts > Sims3. Your saved games are here and it will be fine. Next start your game again. You will not see any of your saved games or CC at this point. Start a new game to make sure that your game is running correctly. Sometimes things can become corrupt and you need to "clean" it out. Also remember to clean the memory while you play. There are many good tips which are found in the Mac User's Best Friend thread at the top of this forum.

hmg337

I have a problem with my mac. I know it doesn't fit the thread, and I can't create a new thread, but I have a problem. I've downloaded the sims 3 original game, the sims 3 ambitions, and the sims 3 Seasons through the Origin Client. When I clicked on the sims 3 seasons, I can't even install it. I clicked the download now button, but it wont install the game. Please, help me.

hmg337

Sorry to bump the same thread, but I solved the problem. I just had to install the CD versions of Seasons and Into the future.