[INFORMATION] How does this forum work ?
Introduction
This forum is for bug reports on the Sims 4. It's main purpose is to report bugs which the devs need to fix, not to troubleshoot your game.
Bugs by nature don't really have a sol...
Forum Discussion
The Bug Template/ Info to Provide
Before posting in the bug forum, please try the following things first
- Check the compiled list: [READ FIRST] Compiled list of Bugs. If the issue you're about to report already has a thread, please use that one. Make sure to click me too on the first post and if you have new information, also post. Also post if the thread didn't have an answer in > 3 month.
- Search the forum. There's a lot of open issues reported that aren't on the compiled list. A quick search and checking the first page will avoid multiple threads on the same issue.
- It's important that you remove all custom content and mods before reporting something. A lot of stuff is broken the bug forum isn't the place to get support for mod issues. This is so EA can't dismiss a bug as mod/cc related.
- It's always helpful for narrowing down the bug, if you could also test it on a new save as well as other Sims and households/houses. This isn't always possible though.
- In the bug forum, bumping a thread is only considered necro posting if the thread is either has been tagged as FIXED or if it's from before 2017 (when the template was introduced)
Good Practice on your bug report
- Use an accurate title and add Pack tags if you know which pack is involved (List for tags below). Titles are limited in length so don't make them too long. It's not necessary to include Patch numbers unless the same bug occurred before.
- Fill out the template completely and provide all information asked. Information on how to find version number and common known issues with the bug template can be found below.
- Depending on your issues, please also provide, Specs, pictures, LastException/LastCrash files, houses/Sims or when asked Saves. Details on how to find and provide those can be found below.
- If you post a picture it's very helpful if you encircle the actual issue.
- Create one thread per issue. This may sound tedious especially for little things but it allows EA to track issues better. There are exceptions to this when something is very similar or unclear if the same or not. Sometimes one issue also has multiple threads as the symptoms can differ. Sometimes it's hard to distinguish if something is a different issue or the same so your thread might get accidentally merged or you will be asked to make a separate thread even if it's not necessary.
Processing of threads
There are two aspects when it comes to processing stuff in the bug forum.
- EA Bug Team: Bugs reported will be collected by EA and handled internally. They rarely post any acknowledgments and wont' give out ETA's on when stuff will be fixed. The bug team will ask for info when needed.
- Me (and other helpers): I mostly provide a compiled list of reported bugs and try to keep the bug forum free of duplicates (as much as possible). I will also troubleshoot where I see necessary. I do not work for EA or have any other association but I try my best to keep the bug forum organized. How I handle the forum changes from time to time so please check this thread for current info on that: [PLEASE READ] Information/Questions about the bug forum.
Both of these aspects help to ensure that your bug report will be seen even if you do not get an answer. As said before, if you need troubleshooting help, it's better to use the tech forums of your platform. The bug forum is mainly for reporting.
Status of a Bug
EA doesn't give out ETAs or information on status of bugs nor do they acknowledge every issue you see reported. This does not mean that they aren't legit bugs or that they won't get fixed somewhere down the line.
The tag on a thread can give you an indication on what the status is and if it's worth bumping a thread or not. If an issue didn't have an answer in > 3 month and you're still affected, it's always good to bump it.
Threads that are marked as By Design, Fixed, Archived or Mod/CC issue are closed issues. Make new threads (Fixed, Archived) or bump them (Mods/CC, By Design) if you still have issues or don't agree. Archived threads often already have a new thread so check the last post of the thread for links. By Design and Mods/CC are also often moved to feedback/mods.
Threads that are marked as solved (check mark) are still open issues unless they have one of the tag mentioned above. The solved mark is used to increase the visibility of a post within the thread. That post will show as second post in the thread so you don't have to read the whole thread for more information. Threads marked this way are mostly threads that either have a Workaround you can use until EA fixes the issue or to highlight a post of a Guru/CM that contains information. These threads are NOT considered fixed. They are open bugs.
Spoiler
Since there seems to be a lot of misunderstanding of what I do and what I'm capable to do, I want to stress again, that I DO NOT WORK FOR EA. I do have the ability to forward stuff to the AHQ Staff. I compile lists for everyone here to see what's already reported. It's not in my hands what Maxis chooses to handle what way. I do not have any information when what is going to be fixed. I'm basically merely a collector/messenger should I get some info I can pass on (which is really rare). Do not think it's for naught if you report here. It's not. This forum is being monitored by Maxis. There's a lot of stuff I don't know and I depend on each and everyone of you to help me out and clarify things. There's a lot of sites with info and I can't read them all.
The Bug Template
If you can't find the issue you want to report by checking the compiled list or using the search bar, you should create a new post. To do so, click on the New topic button (be aware that it sometimes takes a moment for the button to appear).
Please make sure you choose English in the top bar or you might have issues picking options.
After that you'll be asked to fill out a template. You need to fill out EVERY field, including the comment field at the bottom. Just adding a picture doesn't help, you need to add actual text.
One of the fields asks for your Game Version. If you're unsure how to get the info, check out this post: How to find your game version number
Once you fill out everything, a Submit button will appear at the bottom. To get an email if your threads gets an answer, you can also subscribe to it before submitting. This is a good way to keep up with progress on the issue. If the Submit button does not show up although you filled out all the fields, try add some spaces to the comment box, especially if you c/p something to the box.
You can also directly attach images (bit unsure if all ranks have this abilities) or add files to your post (not all extensions are supported).
If you still have issue posting, please either create a new thread in PC Tech instead. Fill out all the info needed as asked in this post here
Good info to add additionally can be the following
Lagging/Freezing or any other issues of more technical nature
--> Should be posted in your own thread in the technical forum
- Some basic Info about your Computer: Processor, Amount of RAM, Graphic Card and Operating System (Mac with bootcamp/parallel desktop, Win 7, Win XP, …) ?
- Do you have a 32 or 64 bit
Graphical Issues
- Some basic Info about your Computer: Processor, Amount of RAM, Graphic Card and Operating System (Mac, Win 7, Win XP, …), especially your graphic card
- What date has your graphic card driver
Additional Info
In addition there are some additional files/information that may be helpful to provide if you would like to report a bug. When uploading Last Exceptions, please always upload the game ones and not BE or MCCC.
These files will be located in documents\electronicarts\thesims4\
• lastCrash.txt (if it exists. If there is more than one, please include all of them.)
• lastException.txt (if it exists. If there is more than one, please include all of them.)
• lastUIException.txt (if it exists. If there is more than one, please include all of them.)
• Config.log
• the entire saves folder (you will not be able to add your saves folder to the post, please upload to some third party site and send a link)
To share those, please either use googleDrive or OneDrive to upload and share the link or upload them directly to your post. Files need to be < 20 MB to upload.
How to share files containing XML/HTML
There are several txt files that contain XML/HTML and hence aren't allowed for upload. There's several options how to provide those files.
Affected files: lastcrash, lastexception, lastUIException
Method 1: Create a rar file and upload that
- Download winrar or 7z (just google)
- Create a rar archive for the files you want to upload
- Attach to post
Method 2: Copy/Paste the content to a post
- Open the file with a text editor on your computer and then copy the whole content to your clipboard
- Create a new post and paste the content you just content.
- Mark the whole text and click the Insert Spoiler Tag button to add spoiler tags.
- If the text is too long,split it up in multiple posts.
Method 3: Upload the files to google or oneDrive
- Use a file sharing site (preferably google or onedrive) to upload your files
- Make sure the file is publicly available so no one has to ask for permission
- Depending on what info you're providing and who asked for it, either post it in the thread or PM the person who asked for it.
Method 4: Create a pdf or word file
If you have the means you can create a word file or a pdf and upload that. I believe both should be possible without editing the text.
Method 5: Edit the files to remove the XML/HTLM
- Open the file with a text editor
- Find this Line: <?xml version="1.0" ?><root>
- Delete that
- Save the file
- Upload
(need to test if that works for all the files mentioned above still)
EA app Issues
If you encounter an EA app issue, please file an EA Error Report in the EA app client (In EA app > Help > EA Error Reporter). This can be very helpful in figuring out EA app problems.
