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  • @BrittanyAkina  Your computer should definitely be able to run Sims 3 on ultra graphics settings.  (Water and high-detail lots should be turned down to lower the stress on the game engine, but that's a limitation of the game, not your hardware.)  But there are a few details that may need to get sorted out.  First of all, are you playing while the laptop is running off battery, and if so, does it help to plug it in?  And what happens when your game doesn't launch?  If you see an error message, please post a screenshot.

    Please also go into Documents > Electronic Arts > The Sims 3, open the file labeled deviceconfig.log, copy the first 40 or so lines (stop when you hit Options), and paste them into a reply.  You can delete your user and computer names, about 20 lines down if you want; there's no identifying info anywhere in the rest of the file.

    And please run a dxdiag and attach it to a post as well.

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

  • BrittanyAkina's avatar
    BrittanyAkina
    4 years ago

    @puzzlezaddict I am running while plugged in primarily. I have tried unplugged as well but my laptop is usually plugged in. 
    There is no error that pops up, it opens the launcher, I click to start the game, it opens a black screen like it's starting up for a few seconds, then it goes away and nothing happens. I checked and it is not running in the background. 

    === Application info ===
    Name: Sims3
    Version:
    Build: Release
    === Rating info ===
    GPU: 1 GPU Memory: 4 CPU: 1 RAM: 4 CPU Speed: 1596 Threading: 3
    Adjusted CPU: 1728 RAM: 8119 Adjusted RAM: 7607 Cores: 4
    === Machine info ===
    OS version: Windows 8 6.2.9200
    OS prod type: 0
    OS major ver: 6
    OS minor ver: 2
    OS SP major ver: 0
    OS SP minor ver: 0
    OS is 64Bit: 1
    CPU: GenuineIntel
    Brand: Intel(R) Core(TM) i7 CPU Q 720 @ 1.60GHz
    Family: 6
    Model: 14
    Cores: 4
    HT: 1
    x64: 0
    Memory: 8119MB
    Free memory: 5325MB
    User:
    Computer: 
    === Graphics device info ===
    Number: 0
    Name (driver): NVIDIA NVS 5100M
    Name (database): NVIDIA NVS 5100M [Found: 0, Matched: 1]
    Vendor: NVIDIA
    Chipset: Vendor: 10de, Device: 0a2c, Board: 1521103c, Chipset: 00a2
    Driver: nvd3dum.dll, Version: 21.21.13.4201, GUID: D7B71E3E-496C-11CF-E563-2C3518C2D835
    Driver version: 4201
    Monitor: \\.\DISPLAY1
    Texture memory: 4048MB
    Vertex program: 3.0
    Pixel program: 3.0
    Hardware TnL: 1

    I also attached the dxdiag.

    Thank you for the help

  • puzzlezaddict's avatar
    puzzlezaddict
    Hero+
    4 years ago

    @BrittanyAkina  Are you really saying Sims 3 has launched on this computer at some point?  I ask for two reasons.  One is that your dxdiag is full of DirectX 9 errors, and the game won't open at all until this is addressed.  Maybe you've done so already, and the errors are from before, but if not, please manually install DX9 now, as described here:

    https://answers.ea.com/t5/Technical-Issues-PC/SIMS-3-GAME-WON-T-LAUNCH-WINDOWS-10/m-p/10711778#M247861

    The other reason is that the deviceconfig.log is from an entirely different computer, perhaps your old one if you moved over some files.  The log should update every time the game actually loads, so either it's never loaded or the file is being synced from somewhere else, or you're looking for the file in the wrong location.  To make sure it's the correct file, right-click on it and select Properties, then General, and look for the file path in Location.  It should be exactly this:

    C:\Users\[your username]\Documents\Electronic Arts\The Sims 3

    If the file path is different, please look in the above location.  If the file path is the same, do you use OneDrive, and is it set to automatically sync the contents of Documents?  That could be the cause—OneDrive is downloading an old version of deviceconfig—and the underlying problem—OneDrive is also downloading other files that are getting in the way.

    If you're not sure whether OneDrive is set to automatically sync Documents, here's how to check:

    https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/office/choose-which-onedrive-folders-to-sync-to-your-computer-98b8b011-8b94-419b-aa95-a14ff2415e85

  • BrittanyAkina's avatar
    BrittanyAkina
    4 years ago
    @puzzlezaddict Yes I did move all my game files from my old computer to my new one and opened origin where the games are installed.
    Would re-installing the game be helpful?
  • puzzlezaddict's avatar
    puzzlezaddict
    Hero+
    4 years ago

    @BrittanyAkina  I think it's unlikely that the game's program files are the problem here.  (If you're worried about the integrity of the program files, just repair the game: open your Origin game library, right-click on the Sims 3 icon, and select Repair.)  Instead, try removing your previous content, at least for now.  Move the entire Sims 3 folder out of Documents\Electronic Arts and onto your desktop, and when you launch the game, if it launches, a clean folder will spawn with no content.  Don't add anything to that folder yet; just start a new save and see how it runs.

    If you're satisfied, you can transfer your saves and other content from the old folder to the new one, but don't move over any files that regenerate themselves.  For example, use the new options.ini that will have spawned rather than the old one.  Here's an explanation of everything in your user folder so you know what's worth preserving:

    https://sims3.crinrict.com/en/2011/01/faq-user-files.html

    If you haven't already, you'll also want to manually limit your in-game framerates.  I can help with that if you'd like, but let's get the game running well first.

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