Gameplay Freeze

@jessmorrow  Please move your entire Sims 4 game folder out of Documents\Electronic Arts and onto your desktop.  When you launch the game, a clean folder will be created with no content.  Don't add anything to it, just see whether you can start a new save and play for a bit without any crashing.  (Your saves and other content will be intact in the old folder but not read by the game.)  Let me know how it goes.

If you still get a crash, please run a dxdiag and attach it to a post.

https://help.ea.com/en-us/help/pc/how-to-gather-dxdiag-information/

My new game works but how do I access my old save files now?

Also now my cheats don’t work 

@jessmorrow   If your computer is a pc please post your computer's dxdiag as per the instructions above. Once you have a txt file on your desktop attach that file to the paper clip in the lower right of the forum response window.  thank you

add: a dxdiag is a utility in Windows that will list your pc hardware and drivers and other associated info. No personal data is listed - just hardware and operating system info.

@jessmorrow  One thing at a time.  You can get your saves back, but it's best to address all the other issues first.  The saves will be intact when you need them.

A dxdiag is a report on your system.  It doesn't contain any personal information, but it does list things like basic hardware, device drivers, and Windows errors.  Looking one over helps us figure out what might be wrong with your system, or at the very least where to start looking.  This is how to run one:

https://help.ea.com/en-us/help/pc/how-to-gather-dxdiag-information/

You can attach the .txt file to a reply.

When you say your cheats don't work, can you give me an example? And what happens if you try to use one?  If you've been using mods, and those mods enable certain cheats, then you wouldn't be able to use those cheats in the new game folder you created because that game folder doesn't have any mods in it.  There are other reasons cheats wouldn't work too, for example if one of your keys is broken.  Please make sure the crtl, shift, and C keys work outside the game.

here is the file

@jessmorrow  It looks like there's a problem with your graphics card driver.  Since you already have the newest version, it's best to do a clean uninstall and reinstall.  Here's how:

First, download Display Driver Uninstaller from here:

https://www.wagnardsoft.com/forums/viewtopic.php?f=5&t=2747

You can download a fresh driver here:

https://www.nvidia.com/Download/driverResults.aspx/157540/en-us

Next, take your computer completely offline—disable wifi and/or pull the ethernet cord—and double-click the DDU.exe.  Take note of where the file will land, and click Extract.  If it's easier, you can copy the path and then paste it into the address bar in a File Explorer window.  Open the folder and then Display Driver Uninstaller.exe, and you'll get a message that you're not in Safe Mode.  Click OK, then go to Options and enable Safe Mode dialog.  Here's a screenshot of what your options should look like:

Close options, and the DDU, and then open the DDU.exe again.  For launch options, choose "Safe Mode (Recommended)," and then click Reboot to Safe Mode (you'll need your password, so find it before rebooting).  Once you login, you'll see this:

Choose GPU in the dropdown menu (step one), then Nvidia (step 2) if it's not already showing.  Then click Clean and Restart (step 3).

Once your computer has rebooted, now back in normal mode, run the driver install .exe in custom mode. Select "perform a clean installation" and install ONLY the GPU driver and the PHYSX software.

Reboot again and see whether you can play for more than a few minutes, again in a clean folder.  If not, try a couple of times, then run another dxdiag.

@jessmorrow   While playing the game do you hear the cooling fan speed up (more noticeable sound)? Are you playing this game with the power brick plugged in? This laptop should have a driver to enable the game to run the graphics through the 940MX video chip. Check to see if this game is in the list in the driver. Does the laptop become noticeable more hot while playing this game?

Yes when playing any game the laptop gets very hot. I turn the fan on and it sits on a lap board with the usb fan plugged in. 

So the clean file has been placed no issues, Will this fix my old saves? How do I keep those from getting lost if I uninstall?

(Posts merged by CM)