Forum Discussion

5 years ago

Sims 3 crashing on new gaming laptop

Hi everyone, I've just splurged on a brand new gaming PC after running Sims 3 on my Macbook (mid 2010) for 10 years. While the gaming quality is excellent and feels like I'm playing a brand new game...

DxDiag.txt134 KB

technical issues

Harriet13

5 years ago

@puzzlezaddict

Ok, Origin uninstalled, cache cleared, reinstalled.

Here is my driver download page:

https://support.hp.com/us-en/drivers/selfservice/omen-15-ek0000-laptop-pc-series/32827267/model/34766871?sku=3F854EA

All compatibility settings undone!

I'm playing in:
Sunset Valley, Twinbrook, Starlight Shores, Apaloosa Plains, Bridgeport. I also have Rivereview & Roaring Heights downloaded but the problem started before I had installed either.

I don't use any custom content besides what came with the Riverview & Roaring Heights downloads.

The mods I had were:
NRAAS Error Trap
NRAAS Master Controller
NRAAS Overwatch
NRAAS Story Progression
Nointro
- however I removed them all to see if there was perhaps an issue with one of them. Unfortunately the crashes persisted and I haven't reinstalled them yet.

FPS: absolute mayhem! Running around in the mid-200s even when I limit it to 60hz using the in-game system! That's very interesting to know.

Perhaps I should see if I get another crash and do another DXDiag for you?

puzzlezaddict

Hero+

5 years ago

@Harriet13 Having fps over 200 could certainly cause crashes, although your graphics card is fast enough that it might handle those framerates just fine in the short term. It's easy enough to manually limit fps and see whether it helps though. The in-game tool doesn't work at all, but you can use the built-in Nvidia Control Panel instead. Right-click on the desktop, select the Control Panel, then Manage 3D settings, and under Global Settings, you'll see a Max Frame Rate:

Turn it on, set it to 72 (half of 144) for now, just to see how the game runs, and let me know. If you get another crash, please do run another dxdiag. And please test in a new save in Sunset Valley, to set a baseline for performance. The other worlds should be fine too, but with the exception of Riverview and Twinbrook, they're not as well made and can introduce other issues.

The NRaas mods you mentioned will all help performance, other than StoryProgression, which is quite demanding at its faster speeds. So as long as you're testing, it's a good idea to remove SP; you can add it back when your game is stable. Given the packs you have installed, I'd add NRaas Register and Traffic as well, for their improved management of role sims (especially stray pets) and vehicle spawning.

Harriet13
5 years ago
@puzzlezaddict thank you so much for all of your advice!
I'm wondering if this could be part of my issue? Trying to bring up NVIDIA control panel and got the attached message.
I will definitely try all of your other suggestions and get back to you. Thank you again for your help!
- puzzlezaddict
  Hero+
  5 years ago
  @Harriet13 That is an odd error—I don't think I've seen it before, at least on a system that did in fact have an Nvidia card and a properly installed driver—but try restarting your computer and opening the CP before you open any apps, especially before launching Sims 3. If you still can't access the CP, it might just be how the driver or some installed HP software works. Let me get back to you on that.
  
  In the meantime, you can use RivaTuner Statistics Server to limit framerates instead. RTSS is a free download from Guru3D; go to the bottom of the page for the real download (as opposed to any ads that might show up). Once installed, you'll see something like this:
  
  You can set a global limit, or one for TS3.exe (not TS3W, that's for disc or Steam installs). Set the fps limit (red box), and choose whether RTSS should start with Windows (yellow box). The other settings don't matter, although you can choose to have RTSS display your real-time fps if you want.
  
  Unlike some other tools, RTSS does need to be running in the background to work, so make sure to minimize it rather than Xing it out.
  - Harriet13
    5 years ago
    Hey @puzzlezaddict thanks for all your help so far and sorry I haven't come back to you sooner, I haven't been able to play as much in the last week.
    So initially all of your guidance worked amazingly. no crashes whatsoever - and then the other day my game started crashing again. The only difference is that because it had been running fine I reloaded Story Progression into my game - so I wonder if it could have been what triggered it perhaps? Needless to say, I've taken that mod back out but am still getting crashes.
    I re-did your initial step as well as checked for all updates on my computer. I haven't uninstalled Origin "The Hard Way" again but I can if you think that's still part of the issue!
    I also fixed the issue with my NVIDIA control panel telling me it's not enabled, so set my frame rate to 70fps now.
    Here is the latest DXDiag:
    Here is "Restore Health"
    Windows PowerShell
    Copyright (C) Microsoft Corporation. All rights reserved.
    Try the new cross-platform PowerShell https://aka.ms/pscore6
    PS C:\windows\system32> DISM.exe /Online /Cleanup-image /Restorehealth
    Deployment Image Servicing and Management tool
    Version: 10.0.19041.572
    Image Version: 10.0.19042.572
    [==========================100.0%==========================] The restore operation completed successfully.
    The operation completed successfully.
    PS C:\windows\system32>
    Here is "sfc /scannow"
    Windows PowerShell
    Copyright (C) Microsoft Corporation. All rights reserved.
    Try the new cross-platform PowerShell https://aka.ms/pscore6
    PS C:\windows\system32> sfc /scannow
    Beginning system scan. This process will take some time.
    Beginning verification phase of system scan.
    Verification 100% complete.
    Windows Resource Protection did not find any integrity violations.
    DxDiag25oct.txt136 KB