Forum Discussion

10 months ago

Solved

Game screen glitches when I load into other lots. NVIDIA GPU

Product: The Sims 4 Platform:Mac Which language are you playing the game in? English How often does the bug occur? Every time (100%) What is your current game version number? Idk What expansions...

graphics

mac

BeesOnTheRoof
9 months ago
- Marking as solution for potential workaround -
Hi hanna245rose

I saw that you have a similar system to mine. While we don’t have the exact same Setup, it would be great if you could test a workaround that worked for my system.

Step-by-Step if you are interested:
Locate Options.ini
Go to: Documents > Electronic Arts > The Sims 4
Find the file named Options.ini
Edit the file
Open Options.ini using Mac’s Notes app or a simple text editor.
Change the following values:
Find frameratelimit = 200 → Change it to frameratelimit = 30
Find advancedrendering = 1 → Change it to advancedrendering = 0
Save the file and restart The Sims 4 to apply changes.

If it doesn‘t work - Resetting the file:
If this change does not help or causes issues, you can simply delete the Options.ini file.
The game will automatically generate a fresh Options.ini with default settings when restarted.
Since changing this values, I’ve been able to play normally again.

However, this is not a perfect fix.

The game runs fine, but I did notice very minor visual oddities in specific cases:
When enlarging a rug, there was a small visual glitch. (Nothing gamebreaking, just annoying)
When rotating the camera towards the sky, I briefly saw some cloud sections load in chunks.
It’s nothing game-breaking, and the game remains fully playable for me — just something to be aware of.

If it works, it will only be a temporary solution until EA provides an official fix. With updates, these settings will most likely reset to their default values.
Additional Question: Before making any changes, did you notice your iMac running hotter than usual while playing, with increased fan activity? It would be interesting to see if this is a common factor!
Edit: Just to clarify—this is based on my own testing and personal experience. I’m not an expert, just trying to find a temporary workaround until EA provides an official fix. If you try these settings, I’d love to hear your results, but of course, I can’t guarantee they will work for everyone.

Just wanted to share some additional info:
My In-Game Graphics Settings (Currently testing if I can increase some settings—performance may vary depending on the Mac model.)
☺️ hope this helps! 🙏
Edit - marked as solution for temporary workaround (Bluebellflora)

Bluebellflora

Hero+

9 months ago

BeesOnTheRoof interesting... maybe? Have you had Activity Monitor open when playing in windowed mode to check usage? That may be a fun thing to see. As you're on an Intel Mac it also may be worth trying a NVRAM reset - https://support.apple.com/en-us/102539

BeesOnTheRoof

New Traveler

9 months ago

I will try that & keep you all updated. ThanksBluebellflora 🙏

BeesOnTheRoof
New Traveler
9 months ago
HiBluebellflora
I reset the NVRAM and set the options.ini file back to framerate = 200 (the default setting for testing).
After that, I restarted and tried to launch the EA App, which I had last reinstalled on February 5th. Unfortunately, as so often, the app kept freezing. So, I reinstalled it again and finally started The Sims 4. Before launching the game, I took a screenshot of the activity monitor.
FYI regarding CleanMyMac, I only started using it after I began experiencing issues with The Sims 4. Initially, I assumed that my old iMac was the problem, or something I did (I’m just a cozy gamer).
After loading my household from the start screen (I intended to switch to windowed mode afterward), I was placed on my lot in San Myshuno.
However, the game had already crashed graphically at that point. I was able to zoom out of the Feng Apartment, and everything appeared normal, but as soon as I tried to zoom back in, everything flickered like strobe lights.
I must have accidentally clicked on Travel, which took me to the world overview. There, my Sims portrait still showed a blinking camera icon, and the apartment itself on the map overview was also flashing intensely. The game then became unresponsive. Unfortunately I was not able to catch the blinking, but I attach a picture of what it normally looks like…
While I was in the world overview, I took another screenshot of the Activity Monitor.
Unfortunately, I dont have time to test further today, but I hope the detailed explanation helps for further investigation…
- BeesOnTheRoof
  New Traveler
  9 months ago
  PS: I can confirm that the Feng Apartment is not the problem. I have played there completely normally, even after the graphical glitches started.
  Let me know if you need any additional information. Thanks in advance!