I installed Sims 3 Ambitions and now game says, "an unknown error occurred"

@missmik4794  Please do a clean uninstall of everything Sims-related.

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

Install the base game only, no packs (not even the Starter Pack), and run the Super Patch (digital download version) to manually patch the game to 1.67.

https://bluebellflora.com/sims-3-manual-super-patch-for-mac-1-67/

Try to launch the game, and let me know whether you get the unknown error.  If you get the server error, just ignore it for now—it will go away when you install almost any pack.  But please list all the packs you'd like to install, so I can write out the workarounds for Ambitions, and any other packs that need special help, in detail.

Hey, I know this is a couple of years into the future so I'm not sure if you're still active here. I followed your advice for this issue regarding ambitions sort of breaking Sims 3 on Mac, I've deleted all the files, updated patches, etc. - but it's still not working. Feeling a touch hopeless. Do you have any other steps I could try to make the game work again?

@leopold1230  Are you running the 32-bit or 64-bit version of Sims 3?  Are you getting an unknown error, or something else?  And what other packs have you installed, and what packs (if any) would you like to install but haven't yet?

You're so kind for reaching out.

Okay, mind you once again, not very tech-savvy here. So I didn't know how to figure that out immediately, but I looked through my Mac's system preferences, system report, and then found The Sims 3 game. It said 64-bit intel - No. I'm attaching a screenshot of that. 

It always says "an unknown error occurred" when I attempt to open the game.

Ideally, I would love to have Generations, World Adventures, Seasons, Pets, Supernatural, and Ambitions. Of course, if ambitions is just going to break my game every time it doesn't need to be included!

@leopold1230  It's not that Ambitions is broken, it's that it doesn't get installed correctly.  But this is fixable.  First, create an alias for Ambitions, as described here:

https://bluebellflora.com/sims-3-packs-not-showing-as-installed/

Next, copy a folder from Ambitions into the folder for Seasons, which is your newest pack by release date.  The video in this post explains how:

https://answers.ea.com/t5/Technical-Issues-Mac/CURRENT-ISSUE-Sims-3-Unknown-Error-in-El-Capitan-and-later-OS/m-p/5725514#M4852

You'd need to do the same if you were installing Late Night, Fast Lane, or Outdoor Living; other packs are unaffected.  And if you installed a pack released after Seasons, you'd need to repeat the second step above, copying the folder from Ambitions into the folder for that now-newest pack.

I don't know what the specs of your Mac are, and if the above doesn't help, please list them: everything under About This Mac including the operating system and except for the serial number.  It may or may not be possible to run the 64-bit version of Sims 3 instead, but I'd need to know the specs to be able to tell you.

You are my hero. Wow. Going forward if I download more packs that are newer, will I have to repeat these steps each time?

@leopold1230  If you install a pack that's newer than Seasons, you'll need to repeat the second step: copying the folder from Ambitions into the folder for the newer pack.  If you install Late Night, Fast Lane, or Outdoor Living, you'll need to apply both fixes for that pack, the same as you did for Ambitions.  If you install a pack that's older than Seasons and isn't one of the other three affected packs, for example World Adventures or Generations, you don't need to do anything.