Re: sims 4 keeps crashing on windows 10 it the only game that crashes

@Lori57  Is your other mouse made by Razer?  There are issues with Razer software and Sims 4, although it's usually enough to either update the Razer software or disable it before playing.

But using your new mouse instead is of course the easiest workaround of all.

Both are Logitech. But Sims 4 has started crashing differently now, The difference is it told me what the problem was. 

VIDEO_TDR_FAILURE (nvlddmkm.sys) Windows 10 BSOD Error

Done. I will play for a couple of days and let you know if it worked.

The fix has worked, I haven't had a crash yet.

I obviously had to replace the mouse to get the error message to appear on the screen, before that it just froze without letting me know the cause. Thank you for your help, I am back to enjoying Sims again. Lori.

This fix has worked for me. After buying the new mouse, I did a clean install of my graphics driver and it is all fixed. Thank you for your help, greatly appreciated.

Link to fix below.

https://crinrict.com/blog/2019/02/clean-re-install-of-graphics-drivers-with-display-driver-uninstaller-ddu.html

After the last update it has started crashing again. I can only play on the lowest possible settings, which is not nice. I have tried everything including a complete re-install of the game. I am using GeForce to update game drivers and optimize the game, it thinks it should run at maximum settings. It should not be this hard to simply play a game.

@Lori57  Please disable the GeForce Experience setting to optimize your game settings.  This option can mess with Sims 4 (even though it shouldn't), so it's best to not use it, especially while troubleshooting.

Please also run a new dxdiag and attach it to a post, so I can see if anything relevant has changed.

https://help.ea.com/en/help/pc/how-to-gather-dxdiag-information/

Ok I did that.

I have been trying different things, but I turned the GeForce experience optimization off early this morning. I have tried without Mods, I tried everything but manually removing my graphics driver and re-installing it. I do have the latest update. I am getting too old for this.

@Lori57  Your dxdiag lists several crashes of MSI software, either its Gaming App or something called MSI_LED, followed by BlueScreens.  Are you getting BlueScreens when Sims 4 crashes, or is your computer shutting down or restarting on you?  Regardless, it's a good idea to get rid of the software.  You can kill it in the Task Manager (check the background processes list), but it may restart itself, in which case you'll need to uninstall it entirely.

The next step I'd suggest is in fact a clean uninstall and reinstall of the graphics driver, so please do that if the above doesn't work.  But install a slightly older driver, one from April or May, instead of the newest one from Nvidia.  You can get older drivers here:

https://www.nvidia.com/en-us/geforce/drivers/

When installing the driver, don't install GeForce Experience, at least for now.  And if asked, don't let the driver update either.  The versions from this spring are new enough that they'll work fine with Sims 4.

Ok trying the suggestions, I will let you know.

 Thank you for your help, I only got 2 blue screens, usually I have to shut it down.

That did not go as well as I hoped. After doing all of the suggestions I could not even play on low settings. ROFL

But i installed the latest driver and started back on low settings, it worked.

I am slowly increasing the settings one by one and testing it out, a bit tedious but the best I can think of.

Thank you again for all of your help, I will let you know how it goes.

My Graphics Settings.

Sims                            Very High.

Objects                        High.

Lighting                       Low.     The game Freezes if I try to go higher.

Reflections                 High.

Visual Effects             Medium.   The game Freezes if I try to go higher.

Edge Smoothing      High.

3D Screen

Resolution                 High.

View Distance           High.

Uncompressed Sim Textures & Post Processing Effects are both ticked.

I am not sure if this will help anybody who has the same problem, but at least I can play the game. And I know which settings caused the game to freeze.

Again a big THANK YOU for all your help. Lori

@Lori57  That is quite strange.  I wouldn't expect the game to freeze on any graphics settings, just maybe not run quite as well.  Does the same thing happen if you disable post processing, or if you enable vertical sync, also in the graphics options?

If you'd prefer to just play instead of poking at this any further, that's understandable.

I never tried either of those, I could do to see what happens.

What really worries me is the next EP to come will overload my system altogether. As I have pre-ordered, not getting it is not an option.

I am trying to talk better half into buying me a new computer, as he doesnt play games he does not understand. LOL

@Lori57  I have no idea what the next pack's impact will be, but most of the expansions so far have not raised the game's demands too much.  So hopefully it'll run fine on your computer.

If and when you do want a new system, feel free to ask for help here.  You can list your budget and country, as well as any other details that matter to you (laptop or desktop, extra storage, other games you want to run, etc.), and I'll look for some good options.  Or if you prefer, I can just list out the hardware you'd want so you can do your own shopping.

That is a lovely offer, if I ever get the Scotsman to loosen the purse strings I will let you know.

I only enabled Vertical Sync.

Now I am now back to full settings in Sims 4. I never disabled Post Processing.

I have played all day and not once did it freeze. I just went one step at a time like before, the game is running well. Such an easy thing, if I had only known.

I used to build my own computers but between arthritis and my eyes it would be an uphill battle now. I could teach my grandson, he is pretty smart.

Again thank you for your help, Sims saves me when I am a little stressed..

As soon as I downloaded High School it started crashing again. I definately need a new computer. ☹️

@Lori57  I'm sorry to hear that.  Let me know if you'd like to talk computer specs, now or later.  I'll be around.

I can play through GeForce Experience, not sure why that works. But I really don't care, as long as I can play.

What I am thinking of getting is :

MSI Mag Z690 Tomahawk,  IntelCore i7 12700 12 core processor,  32gb G Skill Trident Z5,  MSI GeForce RTX 3060 Gaming x12,  1 TB Sansung 980 Pro SSD,  Western Didgital 2TB HDD,  Msi 850 w Gold Power,  MSI Mag Core Liquid 240R Cooler. 3 X 120 Fans.

There is a place in Australia where you can select all the components and they will build it for you and deliver it. Just got to work on the freeing up the purse strings. LOL

@Lori57  Wow, you really are not messing around.  That's the kind of computer I'd build if I were doing so now except for the graphics card, but a 3060 will handle everything Sims 4 can ever throw at it without breaking a sweat.  And when you're ready to add a faster GPU several years from now, the rest of the computer will be ready for it, no need to upgrade any other components.

I will say that if you're planning to play Sims 3 as well, you'll have some trouble with a 12th-gen Intel processor.  The game doesn't start correctly on these CPUs, and while there's a workaround (limiting the game to one core while it loads), that can get a bit tedious.  In that case, you might consider an AMD CPU instead.  But if you don't play Sims 3, it's irrelevant.

As far as loosening the purse strings, I have no idea what you're up against, but what works for me (internally, when I'm arguing with myself) is calculating the price per hour of entertainment.  Considering how many players have put literally thousands of hours into Sims 4, and this computer should be around for the entirety of Sims 5 (if it ever shows up), the price of a custom-built PC starts to feel pretty reasonable.  I wish you good luck in your effort to persuade.

@puzzlezaddictWhat Graphics card would be good ?

I have not played Sims 3 for years.

@Lori57  I think a 3060 is actually the perfect choice for Sims 4.  Check prices for the slightly faster 3060 ti just in case the difference is minimal, but over about $50 I'd say it's not worth upgrading.  Sims 4 won't use all that speed in either case.  I was saying for my own purposes, I'd want a faster card, but not for Sims games; I play other more demanding games as well and want to keep up in the future.

You don't really need to be picky about specific card models, especially since a 3060 doesn't produce that much heat compared to high-end GPUs.  Two cooling fans will be more than sufficient, and an overclocked card would only get you a few percentage points of performance that Sims 4 won't use either.  But I'd avoid a blower card: a model with one small high-speed fan and otherwise a solid sheath where the rest of the cooling would normally be.  It's just harder for those GPUs to stay cool.

I think that is one of my biggest problems, keep the computer cool. Thank you for all you help, I look forward to telling you I am playing with no problems. 🙂

This is what I finally chose. And I am really happy with it.

MSI MAG CORE LIQUID 240R Cooler (x) (Qty: 1)
MSI MPG A850GF 850W 80 PLUS GOLD PSU (x) (Qty: 1)
WD Blue 2TB 3.5" HDD (x) (Qty: 1)
1TB (7000MB/5000MB R/W) Samsung 980 PRO Gen4 PCIe NVMe M.2 SSD (x) (Qty: 1)
Replay_Gaming GPU Support (STRIX) (x) (Qty: 1)
MSI GeForce RTX 3060 VENTUS 2X 12G OC (x) (Qty: 1)
32GB (2*16GB) G.SKILL Trident Z5 RGB DDR5 5200Mhz Black (x) (Qty: 1)
Intel Core i7-12700 12 Core Processor (x) (Qty: 1)
MSI MAG Z690 TOMAHAWK WIFI (x) (Qty: 1)
Antec DF700 FLUX ATX Case (x) (Qty: 1)

I still can't download Cottage Living, but Ea are trying to fix the problem.
Again, thanks for your help, You are Super.