Sims 3 crashing to desktop 2024

@simsvieplays  Did you actually install DirectX 9, or just download and extract it?  I ask because installing is a multi-step process.  Here's how:

https://answers.ea.com/t5/Technical-Issues-PC/Sims-3-launcher-won-t-open/m-p/10711778#M247861

If you're not sure whether DX9 installed properly, there's no harm in running the installer again.  This is especially true because the errors in your dxdiag (and thanks for providing it) point to a component of DX9 as the faulting module.  That could be because the game is using the resource incorrectly, as opposed to DX9 being corrupt, but reinstalling it is still the first troubleshooting step here.

If that doesn't help, do you play with any custom content, and if so, does it help to remove the cc?  You don't need to save your progress; the point is to test.

Additionally, is there any pattern to the crashing, for example does it happen at the same sim-time of day or when you try to do something specific in-game?

Thanks for the reply!

I did correctly install Directx9 but i have installed it again incase

- I do play with cc only including a few hairs and things 

- there is no pattern to the crashes, and it can happen within 5 minutes - 1 hour. The only common factor I can notice is that it happens often when im moving the camera around/ in 3x speed or travelling around the map, but it has also crashed when I have had the camera still and in 1 x speed as well. 

- i also want to mention i use reshade but I am not confident this should be causing issues as other simmers use reshade fine with sims 3

Update: I have used the cc checker by delphy and there were a few mods conflicting with each other, so I have deleted the ones I don't care to use. I do not have many mods, obviously nraas and some other gameplay fixing mods that lots of other simmers use to fix routing etc. 

the game didn't crash during the whole sim day whereas before it crashed 2 times in the middle of the day and late afternoon, and once in the morning. However, the crashes have been random so I'm still not completely confident its fixed. Ill continue to play and keep you updated 🙂 

update: My game crashed after playing for 30 minutes ☹️ 

Ok so i took all my mods out of my game and played for 2 days and the game did not crash. So, I then began to add my cc back into my game starting with just my CAS cc. After a few minutes playing it crashed. I then began taking each individual piece of cc out at a time as I only have a few cas items.

I played for 2 days for each item I took out and then would add it back in and remove another piece etc. And it never crashed during this testing. I am super confused now! It seems to be super random.

I usually cannot play for longer than 1 and a half sim days so the fact I can suddenly play for more than 2 days even with cc is super weird.

@simsvieplays  Try playing with each cc item, or a few at a time, while one of your active sims is wearing each item.  If you need to create a test family for this, for example if you have some toddler cc but no toddler to wear it, go ahead and do that.  The idea here is that some cc isn't a problem until it's used, or used by the wrong sim.  Simply having it in the game might be fine as long as it's unused.

The game crashed during my normal gameplay with my mods folder and the crash log analyser is now saying its due to custom content. After testing some more, the game ended up crashing with my mods folder completely out of my game.

@simsvieplays  Custom content installed through the launcher would still be present even after you removed your Mods folder.  And it's not always obvious when cc is installed through the launcher as part of a bundle that includes the item you actually wanted to download.  So please check the launcher's Installed Content tab for anything that you didn't intend to install.

There's also a "run without cc" check box in the launcher, which, while not completely reliable, may be enough to remove the effects of launcher-installed cc.