Forum Discussion

5 years ago

Solved

Why is Sims 3 so slow

I'm really stumped.

On my old computer (AMD Ahtlon II, 2GB ASUS GPU, 8GB RAM, Windows 7, 1.5 TB SATA HDD), Sims 3, GW 2, and WoW ran smooth as silk on full graphics.

My new computer shouldn't be having issues playing Sims 3 - it handles Cyberpunk 2077 on full graphics with zero issues.

My new build is Ryzen 5 CPU (in a full tower case with 8 case fans and a giant two-fan heatsink), AMD Red Dragon 580x 8GB GPU, 64GB RAM, Windows 10 64 bit, 1 TB M2 SSD and 1 TB SATA SSD, and a Sceptre curved monitor. All parts brand new.

The only issue at all is internet (live rural, so I depend on a hotspot, which means evil data caps by greedy wireless providers), but it really shouldn't be an issue at all.

I just reinstalled Sims 3 with all the expansions (except maybe 3). Again, my old computer handled it all just fine (along with heavy mods).

All that said, WHY in the world would Sims 3 gameplay be SO laggy?

By laggy I mean the Create new Sim menu is slow as snail sh*t. It takes forever to load, even basic stuff like altering appearance, let alone loading clothes. Even loading the game on startup takes FOREVER. Once in the game, build menu, even moving the view stops dead and takes forever to recover from.

Is this an issue with having a 64 bit OS? I have Sims 4, but its superior graphics are all it has going for it - Sims 3 is the best in the franchise imo.

Please, how can I fix this?

technical issues

puzzlezaddict
5 years ago
@SectumInfernal Given what you've described, it's worth playing in a clean user folder, since you brought over files from your old computer. Move the entire Sims 3 folder out of Documents\Electronic Arts and onto your desktop and let the game create a new one. Don't add any of your existing content to the new folder yet; just see how a new save runs.

If that doesn't make a difference, I'd still like to see the dxdiag. It lists a lot of useful info even if the dxdiag doesn't itself flag anything as a problem.

3 Replies

puzzlezaddict
Hero+
5 years ago
@SectumInfernal That is absolutely not the kind of performance I'd expect from your hardware. There are performance issues with Sims 3 for sure, but not like what you've described. Please let me know whether you use mods and custom content; it's fine if you do, but that should be taken into account. Please also list the world(s) in which you're playing, and let me know whether you've taken steps to manually limit your in-game framerates.

It's worth checking CPU use in the Task Manager as well. If Origin is using most of the CPU's resources, try putting it in offline mode before launching the game.

And please run a dxdiag and attach it to a post.

https://help.ea.com/en-us/help/pc/how-to-gather-dxdiag-information/
SectumInfernal
5 years ago
@puzzlezaddict Really appreciate your advice!
I used dxdiag, but no issues were found. I tried Origin offline mode, but no change. CPU usage was roughly 30% at peak, and 12% at idle.
When I first started the game, mentioned not recognizing my RX 580 GPU. I did enter the MSI Dragon Center and added TS3 application to the list of games for gaming mode, but it only helped performance slightly. Didn't matter if full or minimal graphics (tested both).
Have to wait 30 seconds to a minute looking at a black screen with a random white bar across the bottom and along left side of screen before even start-up developer logos appear (which load just fine, no lag or glitch). Takes at least 1-2 mins to log in, then about 5-10-15 mins to get into the game after choosing city (not all appear either, even right after purchase). Create a Sim takes forever to load clothing items, and sometimes glitches out (stuck on traits menu, which is black with purple letters and icons for some reason, and freezes apart from Sim idle movement).
My new theory is it's an issue from copying files over from my old computer to save on downloading (to avoid hitting data cap). Initially, I also copied over mods (skin, clothing, lots, etc.), and removed them, but no change after.
I really didn't want to have to do this, but I may have to remove and reinstall without importing the old files ☹️
...especially not going to be fun hunting down old mod content.
puzzlezaddict
Hero+
5 years ago
@SectumInfernal Given what you've described, it's worth playing in a clean user folder, since you brought over files from your old computer. Move the entire Sims 3 folder out of Documents\Electronic Arts and onto your desktop and let the game create a new one. Don't add any of your existing content to the new folder yet; just see how a new save runs.

If that doesn't make a difference, I'd still like to see the dxdiag. It lists a lot of useful info even if the dxdiag doesn't itself flag anything as a problem.