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vampirepills's avatar
vampirepills
Seasoned Novice
21 days ago
Solved

Sims 3 .Dll Error

Same old story, Sims 3 crashes before even starting. Error window says, "the code execution cannot proceed because .dll was not found. reinstalling the program may fix this problem."  Solutions trie...
crashing
pc
technical issues
  • puzzlezaddict's avatar
    puzzlezaddict
    10 days ago

    vampirepills​  This error points to a component of the 2005 x86 VC++ runtime, which Sims 3 uses.  So please uninstall and reinstall it.  Open Windows Settings > Apps, scroll down to the Microsoft Visual C++ Redistributables, click the 2005 version (it won't say x86, but it's the right one as long as it does NOT say x64), and uninstall it.  You can get a fresh copy here:

    https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/download/details.aspx?id=26347

    You only need the x86 version.  Restart after installing it and before trying to play.

    If that doesn't help, please remove or rename the Sims 3 folder in Documents > Electronic Arts and try again.

puzzlezaddict's avatar
puzzlezaddict
Hero+
17 days ago

vampirepills​  Sorry for the late reply.  What kind of install is this: EA App, Steam, disc, or something else?  The EA App doesn't require the Alder Lake patch now that it's been updated, so if you've installed through the App, the patch is redundant and may cause some harm.  So in that case, please repair the game (Sims 3 > Manage > Repair) before doing anything else.

A disc or Steam install does still require the Alder Lake patch, and a disc install would need the Super Patch too.  But the Alder Lake patch is only relevant for certain CPUs, and your dxdiag doesn't list your model, so I can't tell whether you'd need it at all.

Regardless, the error you've listed often happens as a result of the Alder Lake patch, so it would be best to undo the effects.  In Steam, you can repair by right-clicking the Sims 3 game tile and selecting Properties > Installed Files > Verify integrity of the game files.  The Super Patch repairs a disc install.

Once you've done that, try the Task Manager method again if you have a disc or Steam install, or skip it if you have an EA App install, and let me know what happens.  If you still can't play, please look for new errors in the Reliability Monitor.  Hit Windows key-R and enter "perfmon /rel" without quotes, and you'll see a chart of errors and updates with a column for each day.  Today is on the right.

Look for an error that happened at exactly the time of your most recent attempt to open Sims 3.  If you find one, double-click it to see more details, then copy that info and paste it into a reply here.  If you don't see a new error, check back in an hour or so—the Reliability Monitor doesn't always update right away.

  • vampirepills's avatar
    vampirepills
    Seasoned Novice
    16 days ago

    Sorry for the also late reply! I figured out that the Alder Lake patch was not compatible with my system, and I gave it a fresh reinstall, which has brought me to a new issue; the game won't start up.
    I can turn on the launcher, but getting the game running, I can get as far as a black window before it inevitably crashes again. Smooth patch installed, Task Manager method every time. 

    This is a Steam install, newest DXDIAG attached. Any help would be fantastic!

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