game is unplayable because of lag
Hey! Ever since a few months, my sims game has become literally unplayable because of lag. Whenever I try to play, the first few minutes work completely fine but soon it starts lagging and triggerin...
Forum Discussion
@faye87429 Hello!
Have you tried disabling mods, just to see how the game works without them? I know you said that you don't want to delete any more mods, so hopefully we can find another solution, but if that fixes the issue then we'll at least know that it's a mod-related problem.
Also, if you wouldn't mind listing what script mods you have in your game so that we can look into if there are known issues with them or updates needed, that would be good.
Also, is Sims the only game that you're having issues with/play on your PC? Have you been experiencing lag in other games, or while browsing the internet or using your PC for other things? Does the lag persist, making your computer slow for a while even after you close Sims?
A few things that can be done in your game to potentially reduce lag are -
- Use less objects in your builds. If you're using debug items (these would be locked behind a cheat or would need to be enabled by a mod, so you would likely know you were using them), remove those, as they can be more intensive than objects naturally available in your game.
- Turn off the radio music you aren't using. If you never use the radio, disable all of them, if you only listen to certain stations, disable the ones you don't listen to, etc.
- Clear the "Notifications" tab regularly with the trash bin icon, ie; the tab where pop-up notifications like bills alerts, learning Sims traits, gaining skills, etc. will show up.
- Delete the "localthumbcache.package" file in your Sims folder. This is where the game stores thumbnail information for Sims in your world, and if you never clear it, it can become a pretty big file that could slow your game down.
Have you tried disabling mods, just to see how the game works without them? I know you said that you don't want to delete any more mods, so hopefully we can find another solution, but if that fixes the issue then we'll at least know that it's a mod-related problem.
Also, if you wouldn't mind listing what script mods you have in your game so that we can look into if there are known issues with them or updates needed, that would be good.
Also, is Sims the only game that you're having issues with/play on your PC? Have you been experiencing lag in other games, or while browsing the internet or using your PC for other things? Does the lag persist, making your computer slow for a while even after you close Sims?
A few things that can be done in your game to potentially reduce lag are -
- Use less objects in your builds. If you're using debug items (these would be locked behind a cheat or would need to be enabled by a mod, so you would likely know you were using them), remove those, as they can be more intensive than objects naturally available in your game.
- Turn off the radio music you aren't using. If you never use the radio, disable all of them, if you only listen to certain stations, disable the ones you don't listen to, etc.
- Clear the "Notifications" tab regularly with the trash bin icon, ie; the tab where pop-up notifications like bills alerts, learning Sims traits, gaining skills, etc. will show up.
- Delete the "localthumbcache.package" file in your Sims folder. This is where the game stores thumbnail information for Sims in your world, and if you never clear it, it can become a pretty big file that could slow your game down.
Hi!
I just tried disabling mods and the game worked way better with almost no lag, so i´m pretty sure it´s a mod-related issue. The script mods in my game right now are: MC Command Center, UI-Cheats, More Columns Mod, 100-Traits-pack by chingyu, Photographic Memory by RSVN, the Map replacements by 20th-Century-Plumbob and I usually have Wonderful Whims installed aswell, but it´s been broken since the lovestruck patch, so i deletd it (i´m not quite sure if all of these are actually script mods and I can´t check since the game crashes everytime I click on the "view mods" button in the game options).
Yes, Sims is the only game i´m having issues with, e.g. I also play Stardew Valley with mods but that has never been an issue and everthing else on my Laptop is working comletely fine.
Thanks for the tips, I will try that and already deleted the localthumbcache file, but theres also an "avatarcache.package" file and an "onlinethumbnailcache" folder, should I delete those aswell?
One thing that would be good to know is if you are running on a Mac or PC and if you are running on a laptop or desktop.
Yep, based on what you said, it's probably a mod issue. One thing you need to look at is if all your mods are current and they have either been cleared or updated since Lovestruck was released. I know several you listed have been updated because I use them. MCCC, UICheats, and More Columns are good if you have the latest. Idk about the others you list. Wonderful has been updated now too btw.
In addition to your mods, you should take a look at your CC if you use any, particularly the older stuff and especially anything that you used before the devs added a similar item to the game in later updates and packs. Things like custom nails and now eyelashes, especially the 3D ones, could be conflicting and slowing your game down.
One thing you probably ought to consider doing if you have a lot of CC is to winnow out and remove stuff you don't use very much if at all. From personal experience, it can have a huge impact on your game performance. Just as an example, when I did it, I ended up removing about 2/3 of my CC along the way. I was one of those people who pretty much anything I though looked neat and added it to my game. Over time, I had a huge amount of CC. A lot of it was stuff that I never used. I also found a bunch of CC that had been broken from the start. So, after suffering with huge lag for about a year, I finally bit the bullet and went through everything I had, one item at the time with S4S and ended up getting rid of all my broken files, almost all my build CC and about half of my CAS stuff. Of course, you then have to go through your lots and sims to fix some things where you used CC that you'd removed. You'll also need to delete the localthumbcache file. It was really worth it when my game lag went away, and my game ran so smoothly even though it took me a couple of RL months to do.
You've said you deleted the localthumbcache file. If you don't know though, you should delete that file every time you delete or update any mods and/CC. It's not as important when you just add something but it's good practice to delete it anytime anything changes in your mods folder just to make sure everything is actually showing up ingame.
Hope this helps.
- @CGrant56 Hi!
I am currently playing on a Windows Laptop.
I appreciate your tips alot and will try to delete as much as I can, as I have loads of CC in my game right now and I´m sure I can sacrifice some more of it!!
Also, I am very sorry for not answering, I´ve had some private stuff going on.
- @faye87429 Any cache files can safely be deleted, yes. They'll be regenerated the next time you play, and the game will load any necessary files as needed.
It does sound like mods are causing the issue in some form. The ones that you mentioned all seem pretty standard to me, though. How big is your Mods folder, in GBs?
Also, as CGrant mentioned, it would be helpful to know what sort of device you're running Sims on.
