Forum Discussion

AddyAva's avatar
AddyAva
5 years ago
Solved

Sims 3 64 bit bad graphics

I've recently got the new MacBook m1 air and managed to install most of my expansion packs with the game running smoothly. However, the graphics in the game are so bad for me- they're a bit fuzzy and...
mac
technical issues
  • puzzlezaddict's avatar
    puzzlezaddict
    5 years ago

    @AddyAva  Try bringing up the cheats console (cmd-shift-C) and entering "fullscreen" without quotes, or "fullscreen off" if the first doesn't work.  You an also edit options.ini, in Documents> Electronic Arts > The Sims 3, to set fullscreen to 0.  (Open the file with TextEdit.)

    The in-game resolution may be the issue though.  At 1024x768, the game would be blurry on any system.  Try setting the resolution as high as it goes, then decreasing it until you get the effect you want.  Stick with your Mac's native resolution and any supported scaled resolutions:

    • 2560x1600 (native)
    • 1680x1050
    • 1440x900
    • 1024x640 (probably not offered in-game)

    Sometimes when you change the in-game resolution, the game looks a bit wrong in fullscreen until you switch to windowed mode and back.

puzzlezaddict's avatar
puzzlezaddict
Hero+
5 years ago

@AddyAva  Try bringing up the cheats console (cmd-shift-C) and entering "fullscreen" without quotes, or "fullscreen off" if the first doesn't work.  You an also edit options.ini, in Documents> Electronic Arts > The Sims 3, to set fullscreen to 0.  (Open the file with TextEdit.)

The in-game resolution may be the issue though.  At 1024x768, the game would be blurry on any system.  Try setting the resolution as high as it goes, then decreasing it until you get the effect you want.  Stick with your Mac's native resolution and any supported scaled resolutions:

  • 2560x1600 (native)
  • 1680x1050
  • 1440x900
  • 1024x640 (probably not offered in-game)

Sometimes when you change the in-game resolution, the game looks a bit wrong in fullscreen until you switch to windowed mode and back.

  • Klose2014-16's avatar
    Klose2014-16
    5 years ago

    Hi there, I had the same issue with the graphics, so I followed all steps above and got it working. However, the Interface is very, very small. Is there any way I can change that? My Macbooks resolution is 2560x1600, and my graphics card is Intel Iris Graphics 6100 1536 MB.  I would appreciate any help!

    • puzzlezaddict's avatar
      puzzlezaddict
      Hero+
      5 years ago

      @Klose2014-16  Unfortunately, there's no way to adjust the size of the user interface, even with mods.  It occupies the same number of pixels in all resolutions; the more pixels are on your screen, the smaller the UI will be.

      If it's really too small to work with, you can try playing in fullscreen mode at a smaller resolution, for example one of those I listed in my previous post.  You might even get better performance as your graphics chip has less work to do at the lower resolution.  But it's certainly a trade-off.

      • Klose2014-16's avatar
        Klose2014-16
        5 years ago

        @puzzlezaddict Thanks for the quick reply! I'll probably play at a smaller resolution then, even though it's not ideal.

About The Sims 3 Technical Issues

Get help with issues in The Sims 3 from fellow Simmers.83,117 PostsLatest Activity: 5 hours ago