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awkssimmer's avatar
3 years ago
Solved

64-bit Mac please help me

Hi so I just updated my Macbook last night and it had a message come up saying that The Sims 3 and the super patch may not be compatible, I didn't give it much thought and I updated anyways. When I tried to play this morning I saw that I needed to download the 64-bit version instead. 

For reference:

macOS Monterey

Version 12.7

Macbook Pro

Processor 2.7 H+GHz Quad-Core Intel Core i7

Memory 16 GB 2133 MHz LPDDR3

Graphics Radeon Pro 455 2 GB

                Intel HD Graphics 530 1535 MB

Not all of my packs showed up for reinstallation which I have contacted EA about. But when I went to open the launcher, it said Unable to Start Game which i deleted the version tag. But now it says The Sims 3 has quit unexpectedly.

When I go to Documents>Electronic Arts>The Sims 3, my previous mods folder from the 32-bit version is there but I am not sure if that would be possible for folders to transfer over so, maybe I should delete that and try again? Also when I go to open the launcher and it quits, the Version tag pops up again unless it is supposed to do that.

Also when I go to Applications and look for the Sims 3 there is no folder.

I have no idea what to do, please help me!

  • @awkssimmer  The Version.tag file is supposed to regenerate each time you open the launcher, so that's normal.  Your mods should be compatible with the 64-bit version as well—any mod that works on patch 1.67 also works on patch 1.70.  The same is true for your saves and most other user content, but anything installed through the launcher, so Store items and some custom content, needs to be reinstalled.

    For now, please do a clean uninstall of the 32-bit version of Sims 3.  The uninstaller is 32-bit as well, so you'll need to delete the files manually.

    https://bluebellflora.com/how-to-do-a-clean-uninstall-and-reinstall-on-a-mac/

    Origin will have installed the 64-bit version of Sims 3 into Users > your username > Applications by default.  This isn't a problem either, but if you want the game in the main Applications folder, just drag the Sims 3.app and the "The Sims 3 Packs" folder to Applications.

    Once the 32-bit version is uninstalled and you're ready to test the 64-bit version again, please move the Sims 3 user folder out of Documents > Electronic Arts and onto your desktop.  Even though most of its content should work fine, this is a standard troubleshooting step and a way to keep the process as simple as possible.  You can restore your old content once the game is working properly.

    For the missing packs in 64-bit, you'll need to contact EA customer support.  Please see this post for more information:

    https://answers.ea.com/t5/Technical-Issues-Mac/SOLVED-64-bit-Sims-3-content-not-in-Origin-library/m-p/9653314#M8830

18 Replies

  • puzzlezaddict's avatar
    puzzlezaddict
    Hero+
    3 years ago

    @awkssimmer  Please uninstall Sims 3 through Origin, then do a clean uninstall of Origin, as described here:

    https://bluebellflora.com/how-to-uninstall-origin-on-a-mac/

    Create another new admin account on your Mac, again not connected to your Apple ID, and use that account to reinstall Origin and Sims 3.  Let Origin install the game in the default location, i.e. Users > your username > Applications, and you can install every pack you own.  Try to play, and if it works, restart your computer and try again.

  • awkssimmer's avatar
    awkssimmer
    3 years ago

    That worked! I play tested for a few minutes and it was running fine.

  • puzzlezaddict's avatar
    puzzlezaddict
    Hero+
    3 years ago

    @awkssimmer  Great, let me know if you need more help.

    You can certainly test in your main account if you want, but if that doesn't work, I'd suggest just using the secondary account.  If you'd prefer to troubleshoot the main account's issue further, there are a few more steps you can try, but I wouldn't count on any of them making a difference.

  • awkssimmer's avatar
    awkssimmer
    3 years ago

    Okay I went to test it on my main account and it said to redownload the game and all the packs, I didn't want test to it yet, do you think that redownloading on my main account will mess with it and not allow the game to work on that other account? If you think thats the case then I won't mess with it. 

  • awkssimmer's avatar
    awkssimmer
    3 years ago

    I also transferred my Mods folder over to the other account. I went to play and it quit unexpectedly! I trashed the folder and then it ran fine again and was able to play. Maybe that was part of the issue the whole time? :O

  • puzzlezaddict's avatar
    puzzlezaddict
    Hero+
    3 years ago

    @awkssimmer  In my original reply, I suggested playing in a clean user folder and said that meant allowing the game to generate a new folder and not putting anything into it.  That would include mods.  I also mentioned the clean folder a couple other times in later posts.  So while your mods might be a problem, they shouldn't be the problem if you continued testing in a clean folder as requested.

    You can of course proceed to testing your mods in the new account and try to figure out which one(s) you need to remove.  The 50/50 method can help you get through a lot of content quickly:

    https://modthesims.info/wiki.php?title=Game_Help:Finding_Problem_Custom_Content#The_50.25_Method

    The fact that you'd need to redownload Sims 3 on the main account is strange: Origin would normally recognize the game as installed even when it's through a different account.  That in turn suggests some other issue with your main account, whether it's with settings or permissions or something else I'm not thinking of at the moment.  So I'd just use the alternate account to play, at least for now.

  • awkssimmer's avatar
    awkssimmer
    3 years ago

    Ah okay. I won't mess with that then. Thanks for your help!

  • I have figured out how to play the sims 3 on Mac after all this time!!!!! And I only think it's fair to share how i did it after copious amounts of research. 

    Mind you, I am not as good as explaining things so bare with me.

    1. So first things first, go to origin and download Sims 3. If your Mac does not run on 64-bit DO NOT download 64-bit because it can become very confusing.

    To check if your mac is 32-bit or 64, click the apple logo in the top left corner, go to 'About This Mac', then click 'System Report', go to where it says "Graphic/Displays" and it should say it under pixel depth. Now, this could be different for other versions as I have a Macbook Air from 2013. It is MacOS Sierra. 

    DO NOT INSTAL PACKS YET!!

    2. After all the installation is complete, start up Sims 3 to make sure it's up and running good (go to CAS, or simply start playing a random household). I never had issues with starting up The Sims 3, so if it doesn't open, I'm sorry.

    If you're only playing base game, you're good to go & scroll down to the end of this post to see some things you should be wary about when playing the sims.

    3. When The Sims is running good, you can then go and Instal your packs. 

    4. When Installing Multiple Packs then trying to run the game, you will likely get 'Unexpected Error' or something like that. I found a really good solution: https://answers.ea.com/t5/Technical-Issues-Mac/CURRENT-ISSUE-Sims-3-Unknown-Error-in-El-Capitan-and-later-OS/m-p/5794065 

    if you scroll down a bit, you will find a comment by @corey_0414. They explain a method that helped me fix my game. So read carefully.  

    For University Life players, I'm almost certain you will not be able to play that expansion. The game quits by itself because of how much Memory the world uses up. And I'm pretty sure it's the same for Island Paradise but you can test that out. (This is my experience with University Life)

    5. Try running up your game. It will take about three to five minutes for the Launcher to open (from someone with only 3 expansion packs installed) and it should work fine. 

    Here are some Issues Mac Players will run into.  

    Your time in CAS is very limited. I would recommend spending 10-15 minutes in CAS because of how much memory it uses. Though, it's fine for me to get in and out of CAS, creating different households. 

    In my experience, I could spend about 30 minutes to an hour in Build/Buy Mode. After you get out of Build Mode, SAVE UR GAME IMMEDIATELY!! I cannot stress this enough, I had to redo so many plots because i forgot to save after building. And sometimes after getting out of build mode, about five minutes later, my game would quit so this is why.

    I would say you would get to play around two hours until your mac gives up and the game will quit on it's own. So occasionally save your game. especially after important events.

    Be careful of what CC you install. I would say make sure you only put .package/.sims3pack files and avoid putting in .rar/.zip files (break them down first). If you have bad CC, the launcher won't open.

    Mind you, your mac will get really hot so have like an ice pack or something under it. 

    This is all I can think of so far and my experience with Playing the Sims 3 has been satisfying to say the least. 

    I AM NOT a professional at this stuff, just a fellow simmer so I may not be able to answer certain questions. I hope this works well for you.

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