Getting Back Into TS3

SpecterCody · April 2016

So, I've put tons of time into The Sims 4, mostly building. Lately I really miss the possibilities and themes of The Sims 3 and want to give it a shot again. What can I do to make sure the game runs relatively smoothly? I recall playing Island Paradise only to have the game constantly freeze up during live mode. Create a style would take so long to boot up it was painful. I can rule out my pc being the issue btw.

I'll add I've heard mention of fan made mods that aim to fix some issues, which ones do you guys recommend? Thanks in advance

lisasc360 · April 2016

I just got into using mods myself because I always wanted to use the Traveler mod from NRaas. I also use Master Control, MC Cheats, Overwatch, Errortrap, Traffic as the last three were recommended to me by igazor who is quite knowledgable on the NRaas mods. He would be the go to person on any questions you have about them...

SpecterCody · April 2016

@lisasc360 Alright, checking those out on the NRaas site, thanks

nickibitsward · April 2016

SpecterCody wrote: »

So, I've put tons of time into The Sims 4, mostly building. Lately I really miss the possibilities and themes of The Sims 3 and want to give it a shot again. What can I do to make sure the game runs relatively smoothly? I recall playing Island Paradise only to have the game constantly freeze up during live mode. Create a style would take so long to boot up it was painful. I can rule out my pc being the issue btw.

I'll add I've heard mention of fan made mods that aim to fix some issues, which ones do you guys recommend? Thanks in advance

I don't play IP a lot but last time I did I got rid of all the houseboats and ports, some of them are glitched. I didn't experience a lot of lag or problems. I don't know about create a style I have no problems there but I continually delete patterns I'm not using and it pretty much is instantaneous.

lisasc360 · April 2016

You are quite welcome @SpecterCody...

HappySimmer3 · April 2016

I find that I often have to quit and restart the game after about 3 hours or so (I can sometimes play longer but that's the baseline), especially in worlds that I've played for a while. CASt is a little slow to load but not that bad. I guess it depends on how patient you are, and how many custom patterns, if any, you have. Also if you save a lot of presets that you've change, those are going to add to the loading times.

I also use the NRAAS Register mod to set deer, raccoons, horses, and strays to a lower number. If I'm not really playing much with the wild animals or strays in a game save I set them to zero, because they often have routing issues that can lag the game.

That's all I can think of for now. Luckily I don't experience a lot of lag.

SpecterCody · April 2016

@nickibitsward It may have been those causing some issues, I'll try that if I have problems. It seemed like running a resort maybe was an issue as well?

@HappySimmer3 I know what you mean, I was doing a reset cheat to temporarily fix the freezing issue. As for CASt, maybe I just had too many items in my game from all the expansions which bogs it down. Interesting tip to disable the wild animals though, never really considered them.

Thanks everyone!

nickibitsward · April 2016

SpecterCody wrote: »

@nickibitsward It may have been those causing some issues, I'll try that if I have problems. It seemed like running a resort maybe was an issue as well?

@HappySimmer3 I know what you mean, I was doing a reset cheat to temporarily fix the freezing issue. As for CASt, maybe I just had too many items in my game from all the expansions which bogs it down. Interesting tip to disable the wild animals though, never really considered them.

Thanks everyone!

Enjoy Sims 3!

Megasteph · April 2016

My biggest recommandation to be honest if you dont have yet, is to get an ssd (soldi state drive) to play sims3. The sheer amount of data that is create when building or simply having the story progession on makes the game really laggy even if you have a good computer. An ssd would help you load all the datas in the game about 10 times faster than a regular hard drive for instance.

TadOlson · April 2016

I got my game loaded with tons of Mods and use the NRaas story progression because it actually works while EA's is a bugfest and messes up the game.I've got the entire collection of Sims 3 and loaded my Mods filder with over 1000 package files of CC and 97 NRaas Mod files aling with over 100 other Mods to make th game playable.I get into the game in a few minutes at the most in EA's worlds and about 90 seconds in custom worlds when loading a legacy game.

JoAnne65 · April 2016

I think playing Sims 3 in a smooth way comes down to:

A good computer (processor and video card)
Not overloading it with tons of CC
Installing Errortrap and Overwatch

And I agree with Happysimmer it probably also comes down to your expectations and how patient you are. I heard someone complain once because the game would freeze for a second every five minutes. That just really doesn't bother me though, I don't even notice. And CAS can be very slow but that's a price I'm more than willing to pay if it means I can customize everything the way I want to. I never save selfmade recoloured patterns, that helps. I have all EP's, SP's and a lot of Store stuff. And of course that slows down things as well but I wouldn't want to miss none of it.

Anyway, I hope you'll have fun with the game and solve the issues!

SpecterCody · April 2016

@Megasteph Yes I have one now, didn't last time I played. Its great and I look forward to faster loading times

@TadOlson Glad to hear you game is stable with all the mods!

@JoAnne65 My pc is definitely fine for this game since the game is pretty old now. I don't plan on much CC but I'll have plenty of other items. As far as the freezing bug goes, it was so bad that every few seconds the game would freeze for a second. I'm hoping that issue doesn't come back. Thanks for the suggestions!

Surreal · April 2016

There is a function in the Nraas mods, although not sure which one, which helps with the loading of CASt - it removes all the duplicates of an outfit (the recolors) so that only one thumbnail loads not 3 or more of each outfit - while you are over there, register at the Nraas site and ask about it. Personally, I don't mind waiting for CASt to load (it doesn't take THAT long). Long live CASt! lol

fxchrfxchr · April 2016

IP is notoriously laggy because of poor routing - Sims get stuck all the time. Luckily, there's a relatively non-laggy version over at MTS. NRaas mods are essential to prevent lag as well, such as Overwatch deleting all those extra cars building up in the non-actives' inventories. As well, you can turn off horses in IP - being big, they get stuck often.
So, why would you come back to such a poorly optimized game such as TS3 - because once you fix (as much you can) this game, it's worth it!

JoAnne65 · April 2016

SpecterCody wrote: »

@Megasteph Yes I have one now, didn't last time I played. Its great and I look forward to faster loading times

@TadOlson Glad to hear you game is stable with all the mods!

@JoAnne65 My pc is definitely fine for this game since the game is pretty old now. I don't plan on much CC but I'll have plenty of other items. As far as the freezing bug goes, it was so bad that every few seconds the game would freeze for a second. I'm hoping that issue doesn't come back. Thanks for the suggestions!

Isla Paradiso is known for freezing, as well as China. And Bridgeport is borked as well. But that's where the NRaas mods come in

(and China and Isla Paradiso can also be helped without mods, it often comes down to sims or animals getting stuck, that's what causes the freezing). Another thing that may help when there's a lot of freezing is resetsim * But when you have Overwatch/Errortrap sims and animals that are stuck are resetted automatically.

SimplyJen · April 2016

NRaas has a page: Tips for Better Game Performance
How to fix Isla Paradiso: Remove IP Lag
- One of the main reasons why crashing might occur is if the game reaches 4GB+ of ram use. This can happen anywhere between 3-6 hours depending on how much content a player has, the world, and what they are doing. For me I am lucky if the game can last 6 hours before crashing. A way to avoid this is to restart the game after a few hours. Because of the game being 32-bit, it does not matter how much ram your PC has as long as it's above 4GB. Mac users have this even worse with the game only being able to access 2GB worth of ram.
- This game does benefit from an SSD if you can justify the hefty price and if your PC/warranty allows for it. I've been running my OS + small programs off of a SSD for a year now while keeping all of my games on my HDD. Since purchasing a second SSD just for games, The Sims 3 from launch to save file loads within 4 minutes depending on the save. However not all games will benefit from an SSD. The Sims 4 for an example does not (only shaving off 1 minute on average.)
- MasterController by NRaas has a nice feature allowing you to load CAS in compact form. It will hide all presets and they become available again once the item is selected. This needs to be set for individual sims. MC > Settings > CAS > Show in Compact Form:

My pc is definitely fine for this game since the game is pretty old now.

I don't mean to insult your computer that you have yet to post specs for but people often underestimate this game. It becomes even more demanding with all of the packs installed. With that said, even a proper gaming desktop can still have issues with this game. It's a little buggy and still 32-bit at the end of the day.

KevinL5275 · April 2016

JoAnne65 wrote: »

Another thing that may help when there's a lot of freezing is resetsim * But when you have Overwatch/Errortrap sims and animals that are stuck are resetted automatically.

Is this true? I have these mods installed and I can get error messages that the same sim is stuck 3 or 4 times in a row.

My computer is a four-year-old i3-3.4GHz with 6 gig of RAM. I only lag on first start up as Nraas loads its mods, and when I go into Stylist and change outfits. I get a long pause as it loads all my custom clothing.

What is CASt? I know CAS is Create-A-Sim but what is the t ?

Surreal · April 2016

Create a sim is actually Create a Household but no one calls it that

CASt is Create a Style - the ability to change the colors and patterns of things.

GITTE2001 · April 2016

Simasaurus09 wrote: »

NRaas has a page: Tips for Better Game Performance
How to fix Isla Paradiso: Remove IP Lag
- Crashing will occur after the game reaches 4GB+ of ram use. This can happen anywhere between 3-6 hours depending on how much content a player has, the world, and what they are doing. For me I am lucky if the game can last 6 hours before crashing. A way to avoid this is to restart the game after a few hours. Because of the game being 32-bit, it does not matter how much ram your PC has as long as it's above 4GB. Mac users have this even worse with the game only being able to access 2GB worth of ram.
- This game does benefit from an SSD if you can justify the hefty price and if your PC/warranty allows for it. I've been running my OS + small programs off of a SSD for a year now while keeping all of my games on my HDD. Since purchasing a second SSD just for games, The Sims 3 from launch to save file loads within 4 minutes depending on the save. However not all games will benefit from an SSD. The Sims 4 for an example does not (only shaving off 1 minute on average.)
- MasterController by NRaas has a nice feature allowing you to load CAS in compact form. It will hide all presets and they become available again once selected. This needs to be set for individual sims. MC > CAS > Show in Compact Form:

My pc is definitely fine for this game since the game is pretty old now.

I don't mean to insult your computer that you have yet to post specs for but people often underestimate this game. It becomes even more demanding with all of the packs installed. With that said, even a proper gaming desktop can still have issues with this game. It's a little buggy and still 32-bit at the end of the day.

Indeed. Please do not think your pc will be able to handle the game. I have an new, normally definitely good enough laptop and I play on highest settings. And, of course, my game freezes sometimes too. I don't care about it, it runs still smooth. But please check your specs and ask help on the technical forum.

JoAnne65 · April 2016

KevinL5275 wrote: »

JoAnne65 wrote: »

Another thing that may help when there's a lot of freezing is resetsim * But when you have Overwatch/Errortrap sims and animals that are stuck are resetted automatically.

Is this true? I have these mods installed and I can get error messages that the same sim is stuck 3 or 4 times in a row.

My computer is a four-year-old i3-3.4GHz with 6 gig of RAM. I only lag on first start up as Nraas loads its mods, and when I go into Stylist and change outfits. I get a long pause as it loads all my custom clothing.

What is CASt? I know CAS is Create-A-Sim but what is the t ?

I have chosen to reset manually (because it also wants to reset my own sim from time to time which wasn't fun in the middle of a winter night when he was staying over somewhere and had no home to go to

), but when I reset the sim - or dog or cat - I get a notification from, it won't repeat.

ETA: CAS used to be Create a Sim; it became Create a Household after a patch or EP I think? And yes, CASt is create a style, customizing stuff in every colour you want to

ts1depot · April 2016

Surreal wrote: »

Create a sim is actually Create a Household but no one calls it that CASt is Create a Style - the ability to change the colors and patterns of things.

CAS is to Create a Household what CASt is to Create a Household. So technically, when people talk about CAS, they're talking about a feature of Create a Household. They're not referring to CAH itself.

Create a Sim refers to the part of CAH where you can edit premade sims or create a sim from scratch (hair, features, clothing, traits, etc.) without saving as a household. This is the version of CAH you get when you're making over sims in the stylist's chair, planning outfits from the dresser, or editing sims using testingcheatsenabled. It's the stripped down version of Create a Household without the ability to add new members or save to household or create relationships. You will even see it referred to it as CAS in-game. Enter "testingcheatsenabled true", click on a sim in Live Mode, and you will see, "Edit in Create a Sim." Yes, the loading screen says "entering Create a Household," but it probably says that because the devs probably decided to reuse the same loading screens for both CAS and CAH.

Create a Household only specifically refers to the part of the game where you can either load premade sims or take sims you created in CAS and make a family out of them (complete with relationships), that you can then play in your game as a household.

Surreal · April 2016

Have we made this clearer... or not? lol

BSIRegina · April 2016

One big thing that really helped my game was to limit the FPS. With my newish video card it was running around 300 frames per second and CASt was unusable. I'm currently using 3Booter but once I reinstall my video drivers will use vsynch instead.

KevinL5275 wrote: »

JoAnne65 wrote: »

Another thing that may help when there's a lot of freezing is resetsim * But when you have Overwatch/Errortrap sims and animals that are stuck are resetted automatically.

Is this true? I have these mods installed and I can get error messages that the same sim is stuck 3 or 4 times in a row.

My computer is a four-year-old i3-3.4GHz with 6 gig of RAM. I only lag on first start up as Nraas loads its mods, and when I go into Stylist and change outfits. I get a long pause as it loads all my custom clothing.

What is CASt? I know CAS is Create-A-Sim but what is the t ?

Yes, it should reset the Sim unless you've turned that feature off. Sometimes a person should turn it off in order to find where said Sim is getting stuck and fix it. Otherwise they get bounced back to their house again and again as they sometimes keep trying to do the same things.

SpecterCody · April 2016

@Surreal Happily CASt seems to be running smooth now, at least on a smaller lot. I'll consider some mods though if it becomes an issue, thanks

@fxchrfxchr Thanks for those tips, Island paradise is my fave expansion so I'll be glad to be able to fix it

@GITTE2001 I know what you mean, the game isn't well optimized so even a good pc can't fix that. I just think it was never intended to grow so big and became too bloated to support all the content it offered. BTW my specs are intel i-5 2310 (2.9GHZ), nvidia gtx760 with a 480GB SSD if you are interested. Its pretty decent but lagging behind in cpu power lately.

suzses · April 2016

Is this true? I have these mods installed and I can get error messages that the same sim is stuck 3 or 4 times in a row.

@KevinL It is true, but I've had the same issue once in a while. The problem has been with the stuck sim's home lot. Go to their house and see if there is something there you can modify.

@SpecterCody You might also want to check out this forum thread/fix for Isla Paradiso:

http://forums.thesims.com/en_US/discussion/811253/removing-lag-download-save-file#latest

ihatepizza210 · April 2016

> @SpecterCody said:
> Happily CASt seems to be running smooth now, at least on a smaller lot. I'll consider some mods though if it becomes an issue, thanks :smile:

I found that the NRaas mods not only made the game more stable, but really added to the gameplay because I'm able to customize so many features. I'd recommend Story Progression and Master Controller, even if you're not having issues. You'll never look back.

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Getting Back Into TS3

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