New Sims 3 expansion: says in-game content, can't install

I purchased the sims 3 expansion pack generations and it says that I own it but it didn't download and there is no download button

edited title for visibility; merged thread with 14 Me Toos. -puzzlezaddict

technical issues

puzzlezaddict
2 years ago
Edit: For anyone currently seeing this issue, please first make sure the EA App is up-to-date:

Exit out of the EA App if it's running, or end it in the Task Manager.

Open the Task Manager and end the EABackgroundService, under background processes.

In a File Explorer window, open C:\Program Files\Electronic Arts\EA Desktop\EA Desktop.

Double-click EAUpdater.exe to run it.

If this doesn't help, see below.

@esonic46 Try creating folders for the missing packs, to see whether the EA App will repair those packs once they're "installed."

Open the Task Manager, and if the EA App or EABackgroundService is running, end it.

Open the game's program files, either in C:\Program Files\EA Games\The Sims 3 or a custom location if you chose one.

Create a folder for each pack that won't install. Pack folders are labeled by type and release order, for example Seasons is EP08.

Copy the contents of another pack's folder into the one(s) you created. It doesn't matter which one; the point is to have data inside the folder.

Clear the EA App's cache.

Repair the game: in the EA App, select Sims 3 > Manage > Repair.

Hopefully the App will repair the packs, replacing the other packs' files with the correct ones.

I don't actually know whether this will work, so let me know either way.

142 Replies

puzzlezaddict
Hero+
2 years ago
@raebae2005 Please go to the main Sims 3 page (My Collection > Sims 3), click Manage > Manage Add-ons, find Generations on the list, and install it if you can. If not, please clear the EA App's cache:

https://help.ea.com/en/help/faq/clear-cache-to-fix-problems-with-your-games/

Restart your computer, and repair the game: open My Collection, hover over the Sims 3 icon, click the three dots, and select Repair. Then try again to download Generations as above.
raebae2005
2 years ago
I've done everything you said and their is no install button for me to download
puzzlezaddict
Hero+
2 years ago
The only reliable solution to this problem is uninstalling and reinstalling Sims 3. However, due to the occasional problem reinstalling some or all packs, I would recommend an approach that preserves your existing install, if your computer has the space to accommodate it. Please see this post for more information:

https://answers.ea.com/t5/Technical-Issues-PC/New-Sims-3-expansion-says-in-game-content-can-t-install/m-p/13122328#M262052

Previous answer (outdated now that Origin no longer works in Windows):

Spoiler

@raebae2005 Can you still run Origin? Please try if you haven't already. You can find a download link here:

https://answers.ea.com/t5/Origin-Client-Web-Technical/Downloading-and-installing-Origin-Windows-and-Mac/m-p/11915666

Make sure that the EA App and the EABackgroundService are NOT running in the Task Manager, then launch the installer and see whether Origin opens properly. If so, open your game library, click the Sims 3 icon, click More > Expansion Packs, find Generations on the list, and install it.

If you see a copy that says Unlocked but none that says Download, you'll need to contact EA customer support and ask that the "entitlement," as it's called, for the 32-bit version of Generations be added to your account. This problem is common for players running the 64-bit Mac version of the game and much less so for the Windows version, but it does happen. Use this link:

https://help.ea.com/en/help-contact-us/?product=the-sims-3&topic=missing-game&category=manage-my-account&subcategory=find-missing-game

Make sure you're signed into an EA site (this one is fine) before clicking the link and that the location in the lower-right corner of the browser window is set to U.S. or U.K.
EllisLuie
2 years ago
Last week, I bought Sims 3: Island Paradise. The purchase went through without issue, money gone from account, and the pack shows up as owned content when I look at it in the EA App. However, I have no option to download it like I normally do. Before this, I bought a different expansion, no issue. However, with this pack, there is no download button anywhere. It just shows as 'in-game content' rather than "installed' like all the other packs.
I have been through every solution I could find on Answers HQ for this. I cleared the cache, uninstalled and reinstalled the EA app, ran CCleaner, and whatever else. I have sent so many emails to Customer Experience begging them to help me, but every 'solution' they offer me is useless, and it's always a different agent that responds, so no one actually helps me. I am so frustrated. Does anyone know any other thing I can try to install and play this pack that I spent money on?
I love the Sims and want to keep playing the different games and expansions, but this is really souring my experience.
puzzlezaddict
Hero+
2 years ago
@EllisLuie If you click the DLC button on the main Sims 3 page and find Island Paradise on the list, what do you see? Please post a screenshot, and of course if there's a Download button, click it and let me know what happens.
mellobananas
2 years ago
I have the same problem! payment has gone through and they're showing that I have purchased it but there is no way to download the content!
EllisLuie
2 years ago
@puzzlezaddict I attached a screenshot to my post with what I see from the 'manage add-ons' screen. It shows up in the list but there is no download button.
puzzlezaddict
Hero+
2 years ago
@EllisLuie I saw your screenshot but actually meant something else: specifically what you see if you click the DLC button on the main page for Sims 3. This is not the Manage Add-ons button, it's separate.

@mellobananas Same question to you: please open your game library, click Sims 3, click the DLC button, find your new pack on the list, and let me know what you see there.
mellobananas
2 years ago
I had exactly the same problem. I tried all the things they suggested but none of it worked. I got it to work by unistalling the game and expansions rather than the App/Game launcher. Then when I reinstalled the game it just downloaded the new content in automatically. I was worried I'd lose my game progress but I thought it was worth the risk to give it a go and my saved game was still in tact after I unistalled and reinstalled it. Hope this helps!
Pixelien101
2 years ago
I have the same issue with ambitions and generations