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theepicsimmer11's avatar
theepicsimmer11
Rising Newcomer
30 days ago

Sims 3 freezes after two minutes.

I redownloaded the game after being an avid sims 4 player for years. I have a Katana Gaming laptop, made sure to research what graphics i needed to put into the game to work for me, i even deleted one drive because i purely only use the laptop for gaming. I can spend hours in CAS and the game will run pretty quickly, there is no lag or crashing and an overall really fun experience but as soon as i get in game and start playing with the household i made, it will last about two minutes and then completely freeze, i can move around the sims 3 mouse but it wont click on anything, i cant move the camera, there's no sound. nothing will solve the issue and every search i make comes up with very outdated responses, its getting quite annoying now because ive downloaded quite a few packs. hoping anyone could help my situation as it would be a shame to get rid of the game for good.

3 Replies

  • theepicsimmer11​  Do you still need help?  If so, please provide a dxdiag.  Click Windows key-R, enter dxdiag in the run box, wait for the scan to finish, click "Save all information," and save the file to your desktop.  From there, you can attach it to a reply using the paper clip (Attachment) icon included with the other formatting buttons.

    Please also let me know whether you've taken steps to limit your in-game framerates.

  • Before you start:
    Always back up your Sims 3 Documents folder — this is where your saves, mods, and settings are stored.
    Go to:
    Documents\Electronic Arts\The Sims 3
    Right-click the entire folder and copy it somewhere safe (like your Desktop or an external drive).
    That way, if anything goes wrong during troubleshooting, you can restore your saves and custom content easily.

    Try this first to fix your freezes: 

    1: Make sure your GPU is recognized: 

     Go to:
    Documents\Electronic Arts\The Sims 3\DeviceConfig.log

    Open it with Notepad.

    The first few lines will say something like:
    Found: 0, Matched: 1
    → If it says Found: 1, Matched: 0, the game isn’t using your GPU properly.

    2: Install the GPU Add-on Support fix
    This forces The Sims 3 to recognize modern GPUs (NVIDIA/AMD/Intel).
    ➜ https://www.nexusmods.com/thesims3/mods/106

    3: Match your refresh rate / resolution

    In-game, go to Options → Graphics.

    Set your resolution and refresh rate to match your monitor (e.g., 1920×1080 @ 60 Hz).

    Disable Fullscreen temporarily if it keeps resetting.

    4: Add the Sims 3 to your Anti virus exclusions.

    5: Add the game to DPA (Data Execution Prevention)

    Windows search → “Advanced System Settings” → “Performance Settings” → “Data Execution Prevention”.

    Add TS3.exe and TS3W.exe to the exception list.  (Really helps with crashes/freezes)

    Apply and reboot.

    5: Clean up your save files

    Use Regul Save Cleaner: https://modthesims.info/d/652440/regul-save-cleaner.html
     — it removes bloat and junk thumbnails, Run it after every few play sessions to keep things smooth.

    This is a very old game being dragged kicking and screaming into the future, once it gets there its fine, you just have to give it some TLC and then it will start to behave on modern rigs.

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