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SenoritaMartita's avatar
SenoritaMartita
5 years ago
Solved

Origin: The Sims 3 "Black Screen" Issue (launching game)

The Sims 3 launches with an eternal black screen, using Origin. You can still hear The Sims 3 theme song playing in the background (as if the game is loading) but the screen always stays black. In f...
pc
technical issues
  • puzzlezaddict's avatar
    puzzlezaddict
    5 years ago

    @SenoritaMartita  Try launching the game in windowed mode, which you can do by editing options.ini, in Documents\Electronic Arts\The Sims 3.  Open the file and crtl-F to search for fullscreen , and set it to 0 (zero).  Save, close options.ini (and the File Explorer window overall; the game doesn't like the user folder being open when it's running), and see whether you can play.

    If you're already in windowed mode, you can try changing to fullscreen, although that seems less likely to work.  Please also undo any compatibility mode you've set for Sims 3; the game should run fine in Windows 10.

SenoritaMartita's avatar
SenoritaMartita
5 years ago

@puzzlezaddict  The game has worked on the same computer/monitor before (on the newer computer) before it suddenly black screened. Gave up the newer PC, so what you'll see in the DxDiag file now is the data from the older one. But for the fun of it, I connected an older monitor just to try your theory, but the same issue occurred again (monitor disconnected) when game launched.  (Both computers/monitors fail to open Sims 3). All drivers up to date with the recommended versions, according to Windows. 

  • puzzlezaddict's avatar
    puzzlezaddict
    Hero+
    5 years ago

    @SenoritaMartita  Try launching the game in windowed mode, which you can do by editing options.ini, in Documents\Electronic Arts\The Sims 3.  Open the file and crtl-F to search for fullscreen , and set it to 0 (zero).  Save, close options.ini (and the File Explorer window overall; the game doesn't like the user folder being open when it's running), and see whether you can play.

    If you're already in windowed mode, you can try changing to fullscreen, although that seems less likely to work.  Please also undo any compatibility mode you've set for Sims 3; the game should run fine in Windows 10.

    • SenoritaMartita's avatar
      SenoritaMartita
      5 years ago

      @puzzlezaddictThank you so much! I can finally see the game after editing the options.ini file (fullscreen) to zero. Would have never figured that out on my own! Also, your guide on how to edit it was very easy to follow for a newbie like me. You're a hero!

    • Noradoll's avatar
      Noradoll
      3 years ago

      The Opinion ini doesn't even exist in my folder. There's a options tab but when I press edit on it it brings me to a blank documents page pls help I just bought the game and 3 expansions.

      • puzzlezaddict's avatar
        puzzlezaddict
        Hero+
        3 years ago

        @Noradoll  What exactly is your issue?  If your computer is set to not show file extensions, you'd just see an "options" file without the .ini at the end.  But if this file is blank, that means the game isn't loading beyond a very brief attempt.

        In addition to describing your issue, please also run a dxdiag and attach it to a post so I can see if there are any obvious system issues interfering with Sims 3.

        https://help.ea.com/en/help/pc/how-to-gather-dxdiag-information/

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