[MAC] Sims 3 Generations Installation problem. Select destination; can't find base game file.

I originally bought the sims 3 plus late night expansion cd, and it's been working fine for a long time. I just bought and downloaded the Generations expansion from amazon, but as soon as I try to install it and choose the destination to install it to, this message comes up:

"To install The Sims™ 3 Generations you must already have The Sims™ 3 installed. Select a volume where the The Sims3.app is already installed"

I have sims 3 installed already, I have the most recent update and everything, and I've tried choosing the hard drive as the install destination, as well as the parent folder and even subfolders that my sims 3 files are in. I have a Mac, version 10.8.1. Please help me!

technical issues

Anonymous
13 years ago
Approved
I think I actually figured it out! When browsing for the location to place the install, I clicked the bar at the top of the window that said mstanford (my name), and from the drop down I chose Macintosh HD instead. I had to choose the hard drive like I always do, but this time I had to choose it through browsing. Weird stuff.

15 Replies

Anonymous
11 years ago
Approved
There seem to be a lot of posters on this topic, which is already marked as solved. If you are having a similar problem but the solution marked in this thread does not work for you, please start your own thread so that we can locate and assist you.
General information that may help some people:
When you install the base game, if it asks you where to install, usually the default suggestion will be Applications on your Mac's hard drive. If this does not appear, simply navigate to it and then install. If your Mac has more than one hard drive, choose the one that you wish to install your games to. Before doing anything, make sure there is enough space for the game on the drive you have chosen. In the past I have seen players using external drives but they tended to be more likely to have problems so use the normal hard drive if possible.
Once the base game is installed, it is recommended that you patch it up to date. If you find that the updates via the Launcher don't work, use the manual superpatch instead. If you are not sure how to do this, start a thread and ask for help and we will give you more detailed guidance.
If you now decide to add an expansion pack, the procedure is the same - just point the installer towards the hard drive where you installed the base game. You need the base game installed before you can install any expansion or stuff packs.
Anonymous
11 years ago
Approved
im currently at the select a destination and my macintosh hd is already listed and it wont go so i googled every possible way to fix this problem i cant locate my sims 3 base game i looked in all my folders cant find it anywhere what do i do !!!!!!!!!!
Anonymous
11 years ago
Approved
@Tvelez0311 wrote:
im currently at the select a destination and my macintosh hd is already listed and it wont go so i googled every possible way to fix this problem i cant locate my sims 3 base game i looked in all my folders cant find it anywhere what do i do !!!!!!!!!!
If your Mac hard drive is automatically selected, can you not just continue with the installation? Is the button to continue greyed-out or do you get an error message?
Are you sure you have the base game installed correctly? If so, you should find it inside a folder called "The Sims 3" in Applications on your Mac. If it isn't there then you probably haven't installed the base game in the right place and this is why you are having trouble installing expansions.
If you continue to have trouble please start a thread of your own, as this one is marked as solved.

Caspin
Kat_Batt
11 years ago
Thank you so much, was having the same problem which I haven't encountered before when installing new expansions!
Anonymous
9 years ago
Approved
I also have a Mac computer and I can't seem to get working when it comes to the "Select Destination" and I did the same thing you did and it's still not working. Please help me!!