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Which files should I NOT delete...

I decided to try resetting my game files and I thought I knew which ones to keep and delete, but wound up deleting my saved households and would like to know where those are saved so next time I don't make this mistake again. Lost a fully skill leveled character I was working on. :oops:

Comments

  • MissHoney118MissHoney118 Posts: 1,403 Member
    edited September 2013
    Hi.

    They're saved here:
    Documents>Electronic Arts>The Sims 3>Saves

    If you have a save file named Sunset Valley, that file will be named:
    Sunset Valley.sims3
    And you'll also have:
    Sunset Valley.sims3.backup

    This might help you too:
    http://sims3.crinrict.com/en/2011/06/tutorial-resetting-the-game-to-factory-settings-without-reinstalling.html

    Good luck!
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  • Zandyr_KayneZandyr_Kayne Posts: 199 New Member
    edited September 2013
    I'm referring to the location where a household that has been saved from Edit Town is kept. I would use it to restart in a new town with the same household all leveled up in their various skills perhaps even with their house. In this case I had had a game glitch that didn't allow me to save (Error code 12) and I had deleted my save files and intended to start from my old household, but I deleted something wrong after trying to reset the game files. I lost the files for households saved. I had hoped to start from scratch with my leveled character. I thought it might have been the userPresets.package file, but must be mistaken. I'm starting from scratch and just wanted to know if I ever did this again what did I delete that removed the file I had saved for my household that allowed me to start fresh in a new city with a ready made Sim with all her skills maxed out.
  • Zandyr_KayneZandyr_Kayne Posts: 199 New Member
    edited September 2013
    I'm not sure if Crinrict's helps here or not. Is the households that you save placed in Collections folder? Or is that just the place for custom content?
  • MissHoney118MissHoney118 Posts: 1,403 Member
    edited September 2013
    I think households that's saved to the library (along with saved lots) are in this folder:
    Documents>Electronic Arts>The Sims 3>Library
    So you might have deleted something there?
    I don't think there's a way to get them back if that's the case.

    Are you sure that you haven't hidden the household from the library by accident?

    As for the Collections folder, it's were you're saved collections will be kept if you've organized the buy/build mode in collections.

    I gave you the link to Crinrict for future use if you're going to reset your game files again.
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  • KarritzKarritz Posts: 21,908 Member
    edited September 2013
    My method of keeping my Sims and lots I've made myself is to turn them into Custom Content that I can install by putting the files in my Downloads folder and installing them like a store download.

    To do this I
    1. click on the Sim/Household/Lot in the bin,
    2 click the Share button in the popup that appears
    3 move the resulting Sims3Pack file from the Exports folder to my Downloads folder
    4 install as I would anything else in the Downloads folder

    NOTE: The Exports folder appears only after you have clicked the Share button for some reason. It is in the Sims 3 folder.

    I keep the contents of my Downloads folder in a safe place.

    When I make a new Sims 3 folder I install the contents of my Downloads folder to get it into my game.

    The games sees these Sims/Households/Lots I have saved this way as Custom Content but it is content I have made based only on things that came with the game from Origin or EA. This is the only way I know of that will let me keep them and save me from having to copy the contents of my Library folder across as that may be what is corrupting my game.

    You need to keep all of this stuff somewhere away from your Sims 3 folder in case it becomes corrupted as the contents of it would then need to be deleted and you will lose it all again if you have to delete them.
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