Sims 3 crashes randomly
Hi guys, my game has been crashing out of nowhere and I have no idea why. At first it only crashed when I put on open world, but since it seemed to be an issue with only one save I just deleted it, b...
Forum Discussion
Source
sims 3
Summary
Stopped working
Date
06/03/2023 14:57
status
Report sent
Description
Faulting Application Path: C:\Games\The Sims 3\Game\Bin\TS3W.exe
Problem signature
Problem Event Name: APPCRASH
Application Name: TS3W.exe
Application Version: 0.0.0.32
Application Timestamp: 52dec247
Fault Module Name: d3d9.dll
Fault Module Version: 10.0.19041.2311
Fault Module Timestamp: 28d34277
Exception Code: c0000005
Exception Offset: 00135186
Operating system version: 10.0.19045.2.0.0.768.100
Location Identification: 1046
Additional Information 1: a89c
Additional Information 2: a89cbad0343d4637e5843732a061706b
Additional Information 3: 317c
Additional Information 4: 317c5e048f31f7e118ae1a2e1c38c695
Additional information about the issue
Memory Enclosure ID: e62074b3f1c507132da7b10de6bb2028 (2136871221474304040)@puzzlezaddict It crashed again so I'm sending you the report of the problem. I had to translate it since my computer is in portuguese, sorry if there's any mistakes.
@lilaaaaaaaaaaali The translation is fine, but you don't need to do that in the future—I've seen enough of these errors to know what they mean in any language. This error report says that Sims 3 crashed because of a component of DirectX 9 (d3d9.dll), and the type of crash was an access violation. This is, unfortunately, quite generic, with possible causes ranging from bad custom content to an outdated graphics driver (you hopefully addressed that already) to another system issue.
It's also possible that running Pets is more than your laptop can handle. Pets is the most demanding expansion by far, with Seasons being second but depending heavily on the weather. Rain, snow, and sleet are much heavier than sunny days, which is why I asked about the weather. As an example, I've seen Sims 3 crash on lower-end systems only when it snows, with the game otherwise being mostly stable.
Anyway, please try playing with no custom content at all, and no mods other than those from NRaas. You don't need to save your progress, or you can use "save as" to rename the save so the original remains intact under its old name. If you get another crash, turn off all inclement weather and test again.
Please also list the mods you're currently using.
BrntWafflesBigQEyesn24DEFAULT
ccmerged
NRaas_MasterController
[pixelswirl] Orchard Default
NRaas_StoryProgression
NRaas_StoryProgressionCareer
NRaas_StoryProgressionExtra
NRaas_StoryProgressionLovers
NRaas_StoryProgressionMoney
NRaas_StoryProgressionOthers
NRaas_StoryProgressionPopulation
NRaas_StoryProgressionRelationship
NRaas_StoryProgressionSkill
StoreFix_Decrap_Fixes
StoreFix_Fixes
StoreITEMS_part1
StoreITEMS_part2
StoreITEMS_part3
StoreITEMS_part4
StoreITEMS_part5
NRaas_Dreamer
NRaas_ErrorTrap
NRaas_Overwatch
NRaas_SleepFreedom
NRaas_Woohooer
cmar_tfMaternitySuperPack@puzzlezaddict All my mods and CC. I've already cleaned the mods folder before, that's why there's not that much.
@lilaaaaaaaaaaali Please test without NRaas StoryProgression. Although it's a well-made mod that won't introduce corruption or other in-game issues, it is pretty heavy, and it could be taxing your system past what it can handle. I'm not saying you can't play with it, but if the game runs better without it, you may be able to add SP back and simply slow its overall pace and/or remove some of the modules.
The others probably aren't the issue, although I'd test without the store stuff too in case there's a problem with how those items were decrapped. In particular, a crash could happen when a sim interacted with a premium content object, "premium" meaning an object that adds new interactions rather than one that's just a reskin of a base game object. (The basketball hoop is premium content; a new chess table is not.) I can't help with decrapped content at all, but it would be useful to at least do some testing.
@puzzlezaddict I've tried without any of the NRaas SP mods and the store items and it still crashed.
@lilaaaaaaaaaaali Is there any difference in the frequency of the crashes? What's the weather like in-game right now, and does your active houshold include any pets?
I'm starting to think this may just be a limitation of your computer's hardware. That wouldn't be surprising, but there are still a few intermediate steps you can take that might improve performance enough to make the game playable.
@puzzlezaddict It's still summer in the game and the crashes always happens a few minutes after my dog grows up.
@lilaaaaaaaaaaali Does the dog have short or long hair? If long, does it help to change the coat to short? You can take the dog into CAS, or Create a Pet, through mods or cheats. After doing so, use "save as" to rename the save, quit to desktop, delete the cache files, and reload before aging up the dog.
I ask because long-haired dogs are known to be more demanding to render than short-haired ones, and as mentioned, your computer doesn't have the graphics power to run all packs smoothly. This would be an example of how to possibly lower the stress on the GPU.
@puzzlezaddict Thank you, what do you reckon would be the best computer configurations to run the sims 3 smoothly? I'm thinking of buying a new one.
@lilaaaaaaaaaaali For Sims 3, any new-ish computer with a dedicated graphics card that doesn't have MX in its name would be more than fine. These have processors that can more than keep up with Sims 3, and at least 8 GB RAM and 256 GB storage, which are sufficient here. (You might want 500 GB storage if you're planning on installing other games, for example Sims 4.) The current entry-level graphics card, the Nvidia RTX 3050, is more than fast enough for ultra graphics settings in either its desktop or laptop iteration, and the last-gen GTX 1650 is too.
Even the tier below that, computers with the fastest integrated graphics chips currently available, are usually good enough for high settings if not ultra. One example is the Intel i5-1135G7, but if you're going this route and are considering different processors, please ask about the specific models. Intel has made its better graphics chips optional in some processors, so you don't know what you're getting unless you read the specs carefully.
For any computer you're considering, desktop or laptop, feel free to link it and ask for a second opinion. You could also post a budget and country and ask for help picking something out, although based on the language you're using for Windows, I'm guessing I'd also need a list of stores to check out. (I only have lists of online stores for a few countries.) Point is, just ask for whatever kind of help you'd like, and we can figure something out.
