Forum Discussion

erinmay98's avatar
erinmay98
Rising Newcomer
2 months ago

Missing TS3W.exe in Sims 3 Install (Only Have TS3.exe 1.0.0.18)

Hi everyone,

I’m having an issue with my Sims 3 installation through the EA App. My launcher shows version 1.69, but in my Game\Bin folder I only have TS3.exe, and when I check its properties it still shows version 1.0.0.18. The correct executable, TS3W.exe, is completely missing.

I’ve already tried everything on my end:

  • Full uninstall/reinstall of Sims 3
  • Clearing EA App cache
  • Deleting leftover folders in Program Files and Program Files (x86)
  • Moving the Documents\Electronic Arts\The Sims 3 folder
  • Logging out and back into the EA App

No matter what I do, TS3W.exe never appears. Because I’m stuck with TS3.exe 1.0.0.18, which is not Large Address Aware, the game will run for a few hours and then crash with a memory exhaustion error. TS3W.exe (v1.69) is Large Address Aware and should allow the game to use 4 GB of memory, which is what I need to stop the crashes.

When I contacted EA Support, I was also pointed to the workaround for 12th-gen Intel (Alder Lake) processors, but I don’t have a 12th-gen CPU and my game runs fine — it just crashes because of the memory issue. That workaround doesn’t apply to me.

EA Support has confirmed this means the Game Data files containing TS3W.exe are not being installed properly, but so far I haven’t been given a way to manually install them.

Is anyone else running into this issue? And can EA please provide the official Game Data package or installer that includes TS3W.exe (v1.69), since the EA App doesn’t seem to deliver it for me?

Thanks!

crashing
gameplay issue
never cc or mods
pc
technical issues

4 Replies

  • puzzlezaddict's avatar
    puzzlezaddict
    Hero+
    2 months ago

    erinmay98​  The 1.0.0.18 is the internal build number, which is correct for your version.  TS3W.exe has a different build number and is only for patches 1.67 and below.

    Sims 3 is in fact large-address aware and has been since 2010.  It can use up to about 3.7 GB memory before running out (because there's some overhead).  How much is it using when it crashes for you, and are you sure that this is an out-of-memory crash and not something else?  How much RAM does your computer have, and how much is free when Sims 3 crashes?  If there isn't enough available for the game, it can of course run out of memory even though it hasn't approached its own limit.

  • erinmay98's avatar
    erinmay98
    Rising Newcomer
    2 months ago

    puzzlezaddict​ Thanks, that makes sense now about TS3.exe. When it crashes, the log shows “Free virtual memory: 46 MB” and Task Manager usually has TS3.exe up around 3.6–3.7 GB. I’ve got 16 GB RAM but I do use a lot of CC, so I guess it’s just running out of memory. Any tips on keeping the usage lower so I can play longer before it crashes?

  • puzzlezaddict's avatar
    puzzlezaddict
    Hero+
    2 months ago

    erinmay98​  I would test with your mods and custom content removed, not because you need to play that way in general but because it would be helpful to know how much of a difference it made.  And if you're playing in a custom world, try an EA-made world that isn't Isla Paradiso or Bridgeport for comparison.  Some custom worlds are simply too large to stay under the memory limit.

    There are lots of other tips I could offer, but that's partly dependent on the results of the above.

About The Sims 3 Technical Issues

Get help with issues in The Sims 3 from fellow Simmers.83,414 PostsLatest Activity: 8 hours ago