Re: The Sims 3 won't launch

@MAWriterGirl  I've split your post into its own thread because your dxdiag (and thanks for including it) doesn't show any sign of the DX9 error.  Furthermore, it would be somewhat unusual for DirectX 9 to disappear or become corrupted after being installed correctly.  This obviously doesn't include cases where the user reinstalls Windows, but it doesn't sound like you've done that.

At any rate, your dxdiag shows some generic Windows errors, so it's best to clean those up.  Please run a couple of basic checks of your Windows system files:

• Hit Windows key-X
• Choose either “PowerShell (Administrator)” or “Windows Terminal (Administrator),” whichever option is offered
• Inside the window that appears, copy and paste “DISM.exe /Online /Cleanup-image /Restorehealth” without quotes, and enter
• The system will start validating soon. If it throws an error, please list it here
• After it reaches 100%, hit Windows key-X again
• Again, choose “PowerShell (Administrator)” or “Windows Terminal (Administrator)”
• Inside the window, copy and paste “sfc /scannow” without quotes, and enter
• Post the message you receive here

Restart your computer, hit Windows key-i, select Update & Security, and click the box to check for updates.  If any install, restart again afterwards.

For the Sims 3 error itself, are you trying to launch from within the EA App, or from a desktop shortcut or an .exe in the program files?  If the latter, please open it through the App.  And please also remind me whether you originally installed the game through the App or via disc.  I ask because the Sims 3 errors in your dxdiag reference an .exe that the EA App version of Sims 3 doesn't use at all.  So either you have a different kind of install or you're trying to run that .exe manually.

@puzzlezaddict   I went through all the steps listed above (I should note here that I also did this last evening, to no avail).  The "restore health" operation didn't throw any errors and said "the operation completed successfully".  The "scan now" operation message said ""Windows Resource Protection found corrupt files and successfully repaired them."  (I got the same results last night when I tried this step.)  I then tried to run the game through the EA app, and no dice.  I just got a black loading screen and the little blue rotating circle, and it never stopped.

I've always launched my game from a desktop shortcut, as I have the base game and all the EPs, as well as 5 SPs, on disc, and that was how I originally installed them.  I mentioned in my original post that I tried repairing the game through the app; after I posted, it went through the base game and all 11 EPs, but still wouldn't run the game.

When I found that you'd split my post into its own thread and that the DX9 error isn't the problem, I have to admit my first thought was, "It figures that I get a unique error!"  Thanks for your efforts at helping to clear it up; I hope it's possible to do that.

@MAWriterGirl  Try forcing the game to launch in windowed mode.  Go into Documents > Electronic Arts > The Sims 3, open Options.ini, ctrl-F to search for fullscreen , and set it to 0 (zero).  Even if you've done this before, the Options file may have corrupted or reverted to default settings for one reason or another.

If that doesn't help, please move the entire Sims 4 folder out of Documents > Electronic Arts and onto your desktop, then try again to play.  After the initial attempt launch, when you have a new Options.ini file, you may need to edit it again to set the gam to open in windowed mode.  If it does work, you won't see any of your user content, including saves, but it can be restored from your old folder.  Let me know if you need help with the process.

If you can't play in a clean user folder either, please create a new admin Windows account.  Make it local, as in, don't link it with your Microsoft account.  Try to open Sims 3 and let me know how it goes.

Since you've repaired through the EA App, please continue to try to open Sims 4 through the App; the repair will likely have made it impossible to launch the game without the App running, if it wasn't already.  And let me know if the problem has changed or changes, for example if you can't even open the launcher.

@puzzlezaddict  Okay ... so I reset "fullscreen" to 0 in the Options folder, attempted to run the game, and for a few minutes it worked.  As my save was loading up, the music "shorted out" and the whole game crashed.  Subsequent attempts to run it in windowed mode didn't work.

So I went to the next step, removing the Sims 3 folder from Documents > Electronic Arts to desktop -- and that's where I hit a wall.  It refuses to move the folder; I get a pop-up box claiming that something in the folder isn't available because it's being used in another program (screenshot attached).  I had attempted this the other evening and it happened then as well.  I thought having the EA app open might be the culprit, so I restarted my computer and, first thing, attempted to move the Sims 3 folder to desktop.  I still got this message.  It makes me wonder if this has anything to do with my inability to launch the game.  I have OneDrive which came installed with this computer (it uses Windows 10); would it be advisable, or even an option, to uninstall OneDrive if I have to?

Since I have this weird obstacle to continuing with the second step, I'll post this and give you a chance to peruse it.  Once again, many thanks for your help.

@puzzlezaddict  I think, tentatively anyway, that the problem is solved.  I've spent the last four hours since arriving home from work laboring over this thing.  I had to make OneDrive start syncing something before I could even find the icon (which was in the hidden-icons tray), but once I did, I paused syncing and took out the Sims 3 folder.  Then I ran the game through the EA app so that it generated a clean folder, and it finally worked without crashing.  I put it through several tests: first, with no existing saves placed into the new folder, and using an EA world; second, with no existing saves and using a player-created world; third, with my most recently created save.  The game worked fine on all three tests.

I spent probably an hour digging around my OneDrive files in search of four saves that I had accidentally trashed when I uninstalled and reinstalled the entire game last week, in my first attempt to fix this whole problem.  Luckily I managed to find them, restore them and redownload them; but that's the only good thing OneDrive has done for me.  Once I got those saves back, I followed the instructions you linked to deactivate OneDrive.  I've found it more of a headache than anything else and wouldn't mind uninstalling it; I probably will if I start seeing a lot of messages asking me if I want to back everything up to OneDrive.  I use this computer solely to play The Sims 3; so other than those lost saves, I've never had anything I really cared about backed up to OneDrive and wouldn't miss it.

After finding that the game runs fine now, I'm guessing there must have been some kind of corrupted file somewhere in the old game folder.  Months ago I set up separate backup folders for downloaded CC, store content, and mods, so I have clean copies of everything I use in the game.  I figure I'll have to manually reinstall all of it from those clean copies so that I don't end up with another corrupted folder; and at the same time it'll give me a chance to cull out CC I don't use anymore.  If there's an alternative to that, I would be very glad to find out about it.

So I think the problem has been solved, but if this is a fluke and it decides to stop working for me later, I'll post here.  For now, many thanks for all your help -- I'm so grateful for your willingness to spend time and effort on my problem!

EDIT ... I installed a recently created save and started playing, only to find that I was playing with nothing but the base game.  I went back to the launcher and checked all the EPs and SPs; then I tried to install some CC, and all I got was a message saying there were no packages to install.  I got the same problem with one store-content item, even after I redownloaded it from the Sims 3 store site.  I've been researching this issue, especially since when I got the EA app and it ran the game successfully, I noticed I'd been booted up to patch 1.69 where I had 1.67 before (and no issues with that regarding CC and store stuff).  I saw a post from someone else who had this exact same problem, and it contained a link to a thread with a possible solution, so I'll give that a try first and see what happens.

@MAWriterGirl  Patch 1.69 is the only version you'd get when installing the game through the EA App, or when installing from a disc and allowing the App to update your game.  Patch 1.67 is for disc-only installs that don't require the App in order to run; and for Steam installs, where neither the EA App nor Steam needs to be open at all.

For your expansions not loading in-game, you did the right thing by selecting all the packs again.  This is a relatively common issue with the pack selector and has been since its introduction: it can "forget" which packs you've chosen and load none of them at all.  If this gets to be too much of a problem, look into Lazy Duchess's custom launcher, which is designed to avoid these issues and others.

The "no packages to install" error has a known workaround:

https://answers.ea.com/t5/Technical-Issues-PC/Sims-3-Launcher-quot-There-are-no-packages-to-install-quot/m-p/11946593#M252702

I'd get rid of OneDrive too, especially if you're not going to use it for anything.  Just make absolutely sure your Documents directory isn't inside OneDrive, as the guide describes.  In case you don't want to go digging, the way to confirm is to open Command Prompt (you can search Windows for it) and enter this command:

reg query "HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Explorer\Shell Folders" /v "Personal"

You should see C:\Users\[your username]\Documents.  If you do, you're fine, and you can deal with OneDrive however you want.  I haven't actually uninstalled it; I'm simply using a local Windows account, not linked with my Microsoft account, so OneDrive couldn't sync even if it wanted to do so.  The only reminders I get are after a Windows feature update, once a year, when Windows asks if I might want to reconsider my choices.

@puzzlezaddict  I'm a little ahead of you with the CC problem 🙂  ...that's the thread I was checking out.  I started following the instructions, but discovered that my applications page looks different from the one in the OP's screenshot (I've attached a screenshot of mine).  So I'm not sure if I'm doing it right.  Whether it was because I didn't do it the right way or because I was among the group for whom this solution didn't work, I figured it was better to see if someone could tell me what settings I should use on this version of the applications page.

If it turns out this doesn't work for me even after I find out whether my settings are right or not, I had a thought, to try to install my CC in package form.  A lot of it is in Sims3Packs, but I remember a post on crinrict's blog explaining how to convert a Sims3Pack into a .package file.  Would this be feasible at all?

I also took care that my Documents folder isn't in OneDrive anymore, and it's not, so that's all settled too.  Once I manage to solve the CC problem I think I'll be in business.  Thanks again!

@MAWriterGirl  The EA App's layout has changed a bit since that post was created, but the concept is the same.  Since the first attempt didn't help you, I'd suggest disabling everything you can find, notifications included, and testing again, this time in a(nother) clean user folder.

You can certainly convert custom content from .Sims3Pack to .package format, and there are tools that do it for you.  Google "Delphy multi-extractor" if you want to pursue it.  But Store content cannot be handled this way due to its encryption.

@puzzlezaddict  I knew store content would be a whole different thing, so I'm not too worried about that; I was able to reinstall stuff through the download dashboard, though it remains to be seen if it will stay reinstalled.  My main concern is the third-party CC I've downloaded from The Sims Resource and Mod the Sims.  I'll play around with it for a while and see what I can do, and I'll also look into the Delphy multi-extractor.  Thanks for the tip!  If and when something comes up that I can't figure my way out of, I'll post again.