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@denny072802 I understood that you had the Steam version of the game installed, which requires Windows. But that only changes the location of the program files; the user game folder will always be in Documents\Electronic Arts. (In fact, if you tried to move it, TS3 would just create a new one there.) The reason I suggested that you try removing your game folder is that the most common cause of the "serious error" issue is TS3 being unable to access those user files, not its program files. Causes include having the game folder open when TS3 launches, as well as altered permissions on the folder.
Now though, the bigger issue is that your launcher is showing version 0 instead of 1.67, as it would on a Steam install. The best thing to do is uninstall again, but clean your computer's registry of all Sims 3-related entries before reinstalling. If you're not comfortable doing this manually—deleting the wrong file can cause your computer to stop working completely—you can use a free cleaner app, like Piriform's CCleaner. Then install only the base game to test; it should still be on patch 1.67.
Another possibility that would explain the serious error, although not the wrong patch level, is that you have another game folder somewhere that TS3 is reading instead of the one you deleted. OneDrive is a frequent culprit, but you can search your computer for other instances of the folder. Look for a file called deviceconfig and check the last modified date—this will tell you if TS3 has been using that folder.
So, When I uninstalled everything, I delete everything that was related to TS3. I used the cleaner like suggested then I redownloaded it. Oddly it did not create an Electronic Arts folder in the documents whatsoever. Either way, I decided to try the game out and luckily it worked perfectly and I ended up getting a game in. I got off the game last night and I deleted the cleaner and antivirus that came with it. When I tried to play the game, it went straight to the exact same problem as I first typed. Any other ideas on how I can fix it as we ended up looping back to the start as a temporary solution.
- puzzlezaddict7 years agoHero+
@denny072802 It does sound like something changed about the permissions on your game folder again, maybe due to the antivirus that you installed and wiped. I don't know which one it was, but a couple of them are known to make things difficult when you try to uninstall them, and others don't react well to EA games or files. But to cover all bases, please run a dxdiag and attach it to a post here. Maybe something will jump out in the error reporting.
https://help.ea.com/en-us/help/pc/how-to-gather-dxdiag-information/
- 7 years ago
Here's the dxdiag text that you wanted.
- puzzlezaddict7 years agoHero+
@denny072802 Okay, I see something very strange in your dxdiag: your storage isn't listed at all. (It should be in between PS/2 and System Devices.) That suggests to me that you either have a serious problem with your hard drive(s), or you have some sort program that's blocking access, which would explain the serious error messages. Unfortunately, I don't know how to address the issue—I've never seen it before. And I could be wrong about the cause of the missing info, of course. But I can ask around to see if someone else recognizes the problem and can help.
Otherwise, you might need to get a professional to look at your system, unless you already know what program might be at fault here.
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