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EllieTulloch's avatar
EllieTulloch
New Novice
4 months ago

sims 3 expansion packs not showing in launcher

Is anyone else having an issue with their expansion packs not appearing in the launcher? The EA app says I own the content, but that it needs updating in the game hub before I can play it but I can’t find where to update it. Any advice?

technical issues
  • puzzlezaddict's avatar
    puzzlezaddict
    Hero+
    4 months ago

    EllieTulloch  The "update required" message is a known issue; there isn't an actual update:

    https://answers.ea.com/t5/Technical-Issues-PC/PC-EA-app-Error-quot-An-update-is-required-to-launch-this-game/td-p/13817377

    You can try clearing the EA App's cache:

    https://help.ea.com/en-us/help/faq/clear-cache-to-fix-problems-with-your-games/

    and repairing the game, under Sims 3 > Manage > Repair.  You can also make sure the packs are showing as installed under Manage > Manage add-ons.

    If that doesn't help, and the packs are installed properly, try force-updating the App.  Go here:

    C:\Program Files\Electronic Arts\EA Desktop\EA Desktop

    and run the EAUpdater.exe.

    If that doesn't help either, please list the packs that are missing and where you bought them.

    • EllieTulloch's avatar
      EllieTulloch
      New Novice
      4 months ago

      Thank you for your suggestions  puzzlezaddicthave tried all of these and I’m still having the same issue. 

      I’m missing world adventures, ambitions, generations and master suite stuff and they were all bought as discs instore from Game. I bought them along with 6 other packs around 8-10 years ago and I have them registered to my EA account where it shows that I own 11 add-ons including the missing 4.  I have 7 other packs in total that are all working fine and showing up on the launcher. I’ve tested them all in-game and they are displaying normal. Only one pack was bought through the EA app a couple of years ago and that was Late Night, which is working along with the others I bought in disc form.

      I’ve been playing all my expansion packs on my old laptop for 10 years with no issue, and I’m only now experiencing problems when I’ve tried to switch over to a new laptop. The new laptop is running the Sims fine and I don’t think it’s an issue of having too many packs running at once because they aren’t even appearing in the launcher for me to be able to choose a couple to play with. 

      It may be worth noting that my new laptop doesn’t take discs so I can’t just pop in the disc, but it is recognising that I own some of the other packs that were also bought as discs. 

  • puzzlezaddict's avatar
    puzzlezaddict
    Hero+
    4 months ago

    EllieTulloch  The next step would be to contact EA customer support to ask if there's a problem with your codes.  Packs not showing in the launcher often means the associated codes have been removed or are otherwise invalid.  This can happen for a variety of reasons.

    Take a photo for each pack showing the disc, its case, and the product code (clearly readable).  You can upload these photos when you submit the help request.

    I would strongly recommend using live chat rather than email.  If you don't see the option, try this link:

    https://help.ea.com/en/help-contact-us/?product=the-sims-3&topic=missing-game&category=manage-my-account&subcategory=find-missing-game

    • EllieTulloch's avatar
      EllieTulloch
      New Novice
      4 months ago

      puzzlezaddict 

      Thank you I will try that! 

      I did already contact them via live chat and their suggestion was to post on here😅 but I’ll take your advice and submit photos of my codes this time. Hopefully they can come up with a solution as I spent a lot of money on these packs!

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