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Re: Sims 3 won't open: Alder Lake (Intel 12th-gen) CPU

Hi all. I haven't had any problems with starting my game since the move to the EA Launcher (which DirectX fixed in my case) until now. I can get to the Sims launcher, but once I press play, it just takes me back to the EA launcher. I've tried clearing the cache and having the EA launcher "repair" the game. The only thing I can think of that might be causing this is that I bought the university expansion today -- which won't even install, I guess that's a common problem nowadays. But I haven't heard of that messing with anyone's gameplay. Either way, my game was working fine a few days ago. Any ideas? Could this be because of the expansion?

2 Replies

puzzlezaddict
Hero+
2 years ago
@Fredvines If your computer has a 12th- or 13th-gen Intel processor, you'd have needed to apply a workaround to get the game running. If that workaround was the Lazy Duchess Alder Lake patch, the repair would have reversed the effects. You can find the info here if you need it:

https://answers.ea.com/t5/Technical-Issues-PC/Sims-3-won-t-open-Alder-Lake-Intel-12th-gen-CPU/m-p/11057820#M248615

If that's not the issue, please run a dxdiag and attach it to a post.

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

For the pack not installing, try clearing the EA App's cache and restarting your computer.

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

The other two workarounds are to uninstall and reinstall the entire game, which isn't guaranteed to help, and one or more other packs might not install properly; or to use Origin temporarily, as described here:

https://answers.ea.com/t5/Technical-Issues-PC/Sims-3-DLC-stuck-on-preparing/m-p/12662918#M259111

I've heard mixed reports about whether Origin still works, but it shouldn't do any harm.
Fredvines
2 years ago
Ahhh thank you so much. I didn't realize the repair would reverse the Alder Lake patch. The Origin trick for expansions worked too. You are singlehandedly carrying this community. Much love.