Re: (2024) Sims 4 Crashes Before Title Screen - Customer Service Didn't Help

OK, I finally got around to doing this and...nothing changed. I did find out, though, that the file that's failing is called 'ntdll.dll'

@infinite101_  The ntdll.dll file is part of Windows, and such an essential part that it's unlikely to be corrupt given that your computer is working overall.  This is probably about some other resource that calls the .dll file instead.  Still, you can try running a couple of basic checks on your Windows system files:

• Hit Windows key-X
• Choose either “PowerShell (Administrator)” or “Windows Terminal (Administrator),” whichever option is offered
• Inside the window that appears, copy and paste “DISM.exe /Online /Cleanup-image /Restorehealth” without quotes, and enter
• The system will start validating soon. If it throws an error, please list it here
• After it reaches 100%, hit Windows key-X again
• Again, choose “PowerShell (Administrator)” or “Windows Terminal (Administrator)”
• Inside the window, copy and paste “sfc /scannow” without quotes, and enter
• Post the message you receive here

Restart your computer, hit Windows key-i, select Update & Security, and click the box to check for updates.  If any install, restart again afterwards.

Please keep testing in a clean boot, at least for now.  If this doesn't help, please look for new errors in the Reliability Monitor.  Hit Windows key-R and enter "perfmon /rel" without quotes, and you'll see a chart of errors and updates with a column for each day.  Today is on the right.

Look for an error that happened at exactly the time of your most recent attempt to launch Sims 4, specifically after running DISM and sfc.  If you find one, double-click it to see more details, then copy that info and paste it into a reply here.  If you don't see a new error, check back in an hour or so—the Reliability Monitor doesn't always update right away.

Here's the message!

'PS C:\Users\(username)> sfc /scannow

Beginning system scan. This process will take some time.

Beginning verification phase of system scan.
Verification 100% complete.

Windows Resource Protection did not find any integrity violations.'

My PC is completely updated. I did another clean boot, and closed all of the bg processes - except from the ones saying 'access denied' like 'Antimalware Core Service' or that just kept coming back within a few seconds. This reliability monitor shows what happened after I did the first clean boot at 1 am (when I replied) and now at 1 pm. (I'm having the same issues with Gotham Knights, so I thought I'd try starting it too after I was finished running Sims 4).

@infinite101_  Please right-click one of the "Sims 4 stopped working" entries, select View technical details, copy the info you see there, and paste it into a reply here.  Then check the other Sims 4 entries too.  If they're all the same error, you can just say so.  If you see a different error, I'd like that as well.

As for the other errors, I'm only interested if they happened while you were trying to play Sims 4.  It's a bit worrisome that you have so many system errors too, although that might be a relic of trying to kill some processes in the Task Manager.  But let's start with the Sims 4 errors and go from there.

Here's the most recent 'Sims 4 stopped working' entry: 

'Source
The Sims™ 4

Summary
Stopped working

Date
‎16/‎06/‎2024 13:02

Status
Report sent

Description
Faulting Application Path: C:\Program Files\EA Games\The Sims 4\Game\Bin\TS4_DX9_x64.exe

Problem signature
Problem Event Name: APPCRASH
Application Name: TS4_DX9_x64.exe
Application Version: 1.107.151.1020
Application Timestamp: 665a58a3
Fault Module Name: StackHash_7828
Fault Module Version: 10.0.22621.3733
Fault Module Timestamp: 67ca8829
Exception Code: c0000374
Exception Offset: PCH_B6_FROM_ntdll+0x00000000000A0AF4
OS Version: 10.0.22621.2.0.0.768.101
Locale ID: 2057
Additional Information 1: 7828
Additional Information 2: 7828e88ea226f37507d3dd102fa1e6c9
Additional Information 3: 4f80
Additional Information 4: 4f80e046c534aa31ffcbc717b85fab21

Extra information about the problem
Bucket ID: 4d4aa31db8b9271bfd8449e5a93e229a (2126906174761476762)'

Yup, all the errors are 'APPCRASH's

@infinite101_  This is the same kind of error that I was hoping would be resolved with a clean boot.  Since that hasn't happened, and given the other errors in the Reliability Monitor, I'd suggest running a repair install of Windows.  Here's how (option two):

https://www.elevenforum.com/t/repair-install-windows-11-with-an-in-place-upgrade.418/

This shouldn't delete any of your data, but if you get to step 14 and are NOT asked to keep personal files and apps, back out and start over.

Once you've run the repair install and restarted your computer, please try playing normally, with the Sims 4 folder removed from Documents > Electronic Arts.  If you get another crash, please try the clean boot again.  If that doesn't help either, try the clean boot but with your computer offline.  You can sign into the EA App and put it in offline mode, then disable wifi and/or disconnect the ethernet cable before pressing Play.