64-bit version sim icon and panel dissappeared
Newly installed, with two expansion packs (Late Nights and World Adventure), and no mods, there is only one Sim in the household.
The sim was in Egypt when the game crashed. Upon loading the save, the Sim was not controllable, the panel could not be opened, and the household net worth was 0.
I waited until the vacation time expired, and everything returned to normal. I then made a new save. However, a few moments later, the game crashed again, and upon loading the new save, the same error occurred.
I also tried an earlier save, but it works fine.
Please advise me on how to solve this problem. Thanks.
@hyng98 You said the earlier save works fine, so I'd simply use that. Trying to fix an already-corrupt save is a dicey prospect—it might work, it might not, and it might appear to work but leave behind corruption that shows up later. So the older save is the more reliable option by far.
Normally I'd suggest trying the backup save, which is the data from the second-to-last time you saved and which the game keeps even if you don't, but it sounds like you've overwritten that backup by saving again. If not, if you used "save as" when your sim returned home, you can try the backup. In Documents > Electronic Arts > The Sims 3 > Saves, you'll find a folder with your save name and another with a .backup extension, e.g. SunsetValley.sims3 and SunsetValley.sims3.backup. Rename the save and delete the .backup (perhaps SunsetValley1.sims3), and that save can be loaded from the Main Menu.
While troubleshooting, please delete the five cache files in your Sims 3 user folder every time you quit the game. They should be deleted regularly anyway, but especially in this case. For reference, they are:
- CASPartCache.package
- compositorCache.package
- scriptCache.package
- simCompositorCache.package
- socialCache.package
If the above doesn't help and you're willing to try mods, install NRaas ErrorTrap, Overwatch, and MasterController, all described here:
Load the save, let the game clock run for a few sim-minutes if you can (or just wait a real-time minute if the clock isn't running), click on City Hall or the map tag for the base camp, and select NRaas > MasterController > Town Options > Reset Everything. This can take a few minutes to run, depending on the world and the speed of your computer. When it's done, you'll get a notification. Let the game clock run for a few more sim-minutes, then "save as" and rename the save yet again, quit, delete the cache files again, reload, and see whether you can play normally.
If that doesn't help either, you can repeat the above in the home world (NOT in Egypt) while also switching households. Run the MC reset first, then choose a different household; you can switch by clicking the house itself and selecting Make Active. When you've done that, let the game clock run a bit, "save as," quit, delete the cache files, reload, run another MC reset, and see whether you can switch back to the original household.
