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Activation UI problem and screen tearing

Hello there,

I'm having some problems launching my sims 3 game.
Whenever I try to launch my game, I get the launcher, I click play, and after that, nothing happens.

When I look in my task manager, I do see activation UI.exe, which when I close that down, reverts origin so that I must click play again.
After that it's in a loop. Same thing keeps happening.
I did some changes to the compatibility mode, like DPI and such.
When I undo that, the game launches, but with terrible screen tearing, eventhough my FPS is capped.

How is this possible?
I did install the Creators update, because I was prompted to do so.
Can I revert the Creators update in some kind of way?

Comments

  • igazorigazor Posts: 19,330 Member
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  • JeanJean Posts: 1,243 Member
    already tried that.. it wont make a difference.
    I've rolled back my windows to before Creators update now.
    And via detours, I've managed to put the Updates to manual so I have control over it.

    But now after the rollback my sims 3 is still having screen tearing. So i'm reinstalling them via Origin, hoping that will fix it. I've also deleted sims 3 from NVCP, and plan to manually put the profile for Sims 3 back, where I'm going to force vsync on and select optimal performance.
    After that I think it should work. Or should I use some kind of frame rate limiter? If so, which one would you recommend?
  • igazorigazor Posts: 19,330 Member
    Note that the Nvidia Control Panel method, when it does work, will only do so in full screen mode. If it's just not locking things in, or you require windowed mode, then we move onto Nvidia Inspector. Also make sure you are using the correct executable to limit, it's TS3.exe for Patch 1.69, but TS3w.exe (with the "w") for Patch 1.67 and below.

    http://www.guru3d.com/files-details/nvidia-profile-inspector-download.html
    (Look for the download links 2/3 of the way down the page. Any that show up in the upper right corner if you have no ad blocker are advertising links and probably malware, not the real downloads)

    Here is a graphic with instructions under the 2nd Spoiler. One more step to add though. In addition to what she is showing how to change, where it says Frame Rate Limiter and "Off" at the top of Section 2, the "Off" should be changed to 60 (if that is the refresh rate of your monitor, if yours runs higher than 60 Hz then enter its actual refresh rate).
    http://forums.thesims.com/en_US/discussion/comment/15984633#Comment_15984633
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  • JeanJean Posts: 1,243 Member
    Not working... I need some sort of frame limiter that actually helps for screen tearing.
  • igazorigazor Posts: 19,330 Member
    I'm sorry that Nvidia Inspector is not working for you, it does for most who try it. What graphics card do you have and what kind of actual frame rates are you getting in-game (fps on cheat code) when you can get the game working, even with the screen tears?

    MSI Afterburner is another tool that has a loyal following.
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  • phoebebebe13phoebebebe13 Posts: 19,400 Member
    edited August 2017
    Jean wrote: »
    Not working... I need some sort of frame limiter that actually helps for screen tearing.

    Your fps is capped at 60 and your getting screen tearing? What is your video card and what screen resolution are you playing in ? Do you use 3rd party CC ? What eps are you playing ?
  • JeanJean Posts: 1,243 Member
    edited August 2017
    I have an NVIDIA Geforce 840M, with 4gb memory.
    I'm getting around 29-30 fps :)

    MSI afterburner, haven't tried.. dont know how that one works either!

    For @phoebebebe13 : I use the videocard mentioned above and I play in my highest resolution possible, which is 1920x1080 pixels
  • phoebebebe13phoebebebe13 Posts: 19,400 Member
    edited August 2017
    Your video card is below requirements to run this whole game or the heavier eps such as Pets, ITF, IP and seasons. Your stressing out your video card which can cause screen tearing. Your video card can not handle gaming at higher resolutions in 1080p. Why your fps is lower than 60 which is normal. You will never reach 60 fps with that video card and 1080p resolution. That video card can not handle the game on high settings either.

    If you intend on playing this whole game on that card try playing in windowed mode , lowering your game settings and or lowering the game resolution in the launcher, I would try any one of these one options or a combination of these options. See if any of this works. If your still getting screen tearing after trying these options you may have permanently damaged your video card.

    If you have permanently damaged your video card Im afraid you would need to buy a new computer. Laptops can not be upgraded with video card and processor. You are stuck with the specs you buy. If your hardware fails and they no longer make your hardware your laptop becomes a throw away computer. They no longer make 800 series video cards
  • JeanJean Posts: 1,243 Member
    I don't want to have 60fps per say. 30 would be enough. And the game worked fine in the past.
    It's just now that I have screen tearing. I'll try lowering my resolution! Thanks.
  • phoebebebe13phoebebebe13 Posts: 19,400 Member
    Jean wrote: »
    I don't want to have 60fps per say. 30 would be enough. And the game worked fine in the past.
    It's just now that I have screen tearing. I'll try lowering my resolution! Thanks.

    Your computer does not meet requirements. You may have damaged your video card. People who have to cap their fps are those who have a more powerful computer and their fps runs over their monitor refresh rate. Your under your monitor refresh rate so there is no need for vsync or capping your fps
  • igazorigazor Posts: 19,330 Member
    Bah, I'm sorry but should have asked which card the OP was working with in the beginning. Those Level 4 Nvidia cards (740, 840, 940, any x40 with the M versions being a bit weaker) are deceptively tricky as they don't have the required throughput, that is bit bus width, that the full game with the heavier hitting EPs demands. Different players have varying experiences with them, some can get them to work better than others, some can't even get their game launched, and reportedly these cards do not age well.

    Hope that windowed mode and lowering the resolution helps but yes it is possible that the card has been overly stressed for too long by now unfortunately.
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  • phoebebebe13phoebebebe13 Posts: 19,400 Member
    @igazor . It's not your fault. Usually when people come in here talking capping fps, Nvidia control panel and screen tearing we automatically think higher end video card. Its rare ( has this ever happened before?) that we will get these questions from someone who has a weaker Nvidia video card that does not meet requirements. Under powered computers with intel graphics are more obvious why one would get screen tearing.
  • phoebebebe13phoebebebe13 Posts: 19,400 Member
    @Jean Were you able to fix your screen tearing?
  • JeanJean Posts: 1,243 Member
    Yes! Smaller resolution seemed to fix it!
    Thanks for your advice, my game seems more stable now. @phoebebebe13
  • phoebebebe13phoebebebe13 Posts: 19,400 Member
    @Jean Your welcome. OK good keep it that way or you will damage your laptop. I have no idea if you have already done some permanent damage. If you did ,it will shorten the lifespan overall of your laptop. Once that laptop video card quits working, the laptop becomes a throw away computer and you will need a new computer. Also own a laptop cooling pad if you don't own one. When you game it pushes your computer and generates more heat. Heat can do permanent damage to any computer if you don't have proper cooling while gaming.
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