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happiihaden118's avatar
happiihaden118
New Rookie
24 days ago
Solved

Newest update broke launching the Sims 4

Ever since the 1st update, my Sims 4 will not open. I attempt to open the Sims 4 in the EA app, and it then will black screen, and flicker between black and white.  The closest I've gotten is the menu screen, then it froze and crashed. I've reinstalled both the Sims 4 and EA multiple times, I've cleared, repaired and everything, on both the Sims 4 and EA app. I have no mods/saves on it, and I' ve tried just downloading the base game, and it still won't work

crashing
ea app
launching
updates
  • puzzlezaddict's avatar
    puzzlezaddict
    20 days ago

    happiihaden118​  Well, this is a completely different computer too, and the dxdiag is missing some info because the progess crashed while running.  That could be a fluke or a sign of a serious system issue.  So first, please run a couple of basic checks of your Windows system files:

    • Hit Windows key-X
    • Choose either “PowerShell (Administrator)” or “Windows Terminal (Administrator),” whichever option is offered
    • Inside the window that appears, copy and paste “DISM.exe /Online /Cleanup-image /Restorehealth” without quotes, and enter
    • The system will start validating soon. If it throws an error, please list it here
    • After it reaches 100%, hit Windows key-X again
    • Again, choose “PowerShell (Administrator)” or “Windows Terminal (Administrator)”
    • Inside the window, copy and paste “sfc /scannow” without quotes, and enter
    • Post the message you receive here


    Restart your computer, hit Windows key-i, select Update & Security, and click the box to check for updates.  If any install, restart again afterwards.

    Next, please do a clean uninstall and reinstall of both graphics drivers, as the dxdiag shows that at least one of them is crashing repeatedly, and the dxdiag is also missing some information about the drivers.  (That could be due to a system issue or a corrupt driver.)  Here's how:

    https://crinrict.com/blog/2019/02/clean-re-install-of-graphics-drivers-with-display-driver-uninstaller-ddu.html

    CRITICAL:  If you only use a PIN to sign into Windows, switch to a full password first. There's a bug with Windows 11 that can send you into a boot loop when booting into safe mode, as the above instructions describe, if you only have a PIN.  But setting a full password gets around that.

    Use the newest drivers HP provides for your laptop.  Go here:

    https://support.hp.com/us-en/drivers/laptops

    Enter your laptop's serial number, choose your OS (just Windows 11 is fine) if prompted, click All Drivers, expand Driver-Graphics, and download the newest Intel and Nvidia drivers by version number.  The first part of the version number is the most important, e.g. 32 is newer than 31; after that, the last four numbers matter.

    The proper order of operations here is uninstall the Nvidia driver > uninstall the Intel driver > restart > reinstall the Intel driver > restart > reinstall the Nvidia driver > restart, all while offline.  Then go back online and test the game.

    I will say that what you've described sounds exactly like a current issue with HP gaming laptops and Sims 4 that has very different fixes.  The graphics driver crashes do need to be addressed first, but if you still can't play, try one of these workarounds:


    None of these works for everyone, but something almost always does, so keep trying the workarounds until you find one that lets you play.

6 Replies

  • puzzlezaddict's avatar
    puzzlezaddict
    Hero+
    23 days ago

    happiihaden118​  Thanks for the dxdiag, which shows your computer is critically low on free storage.  2.7 GB isn't enough for Windows itself to maneuver even before it's trying to run a demanding app like Sims 4.

    So please clear another 30 GB if you can, but at least 15 at a minimum.  This is a bit more free space than you need, but some of it should be taken back when your system increases the size of the page file, which is also too small and is where data is stored that should be in RAM but doesn't fit.

    Restart your computer after clearing the space, then try to play.  If the game still doesn't work, please post a new dxdiag.

  • puzzlezaddict's avatar
    puzzlezaddict
    Hero+
    21 days ago

    happiihaden118​  This is a very old dxdiag, as is the last one (I didn't notice before, sorry).  Please run a new one and make sure that's what you're uploading.

    Still, the initialization error is typically antivirus-related, so please set exceptions in yours for TS4_DX9_x64 and TS4_Launcher_x64, or the Bin folder they're in.

    By the way, if your computer actually thinks it's October 2024, that can also cause the initialization error, so let it sync with internet time and try again to play.

  • happiihaden118's avatar
    happiihaden118
    New Rookie
    20 days ago

    So here's another one, I don't know why it did that, I ain't even own the computer in October </3

    I did go and do a scan for any corrupt files, and fixed them, but it continues not to work. I might try downloading another EA game to test if its just the Sims 4 though

  • puzzlezaddict's avatar
    puzzlezaddict
    Hero+
    20 days ago

    happiihaden118​  Well, this is a completely different computer too, and the dxdiag is missing some info because the progess crashed while running.  That could be a fluke or a sign of a serious system issue.  So first, please run a couple of basic checks of your Windows system files:

    • Hit Windows key-X
    • Choose either “PowerShell (Administrator)” or “Windows Terminal (Administrator),” whichever option is offered
    • Inside the window that appears, copy and paste “DISM.exe /Online /Cleanup-image /Restorehealth” without quotes, and enter
    • The system will start validating soon. If it throws an error, please list it here
    • After it reaches 100%, hit Windows key-X again
    • Again, choose “PowerShell (Administrator)” or “Windows Terminal (Administrator)”
    • Inside the window, copy and paste “sfc /scannow” without quotes, and enter
    • Post the message you receive here


    Restart your computer, hit Windows key-i, select Update & Security, and click the box to check for updates.  If any install, restart again afterwards.

    Next, please do a clean uninstall and reinstall of both graphics drivers, as the dxdiag shows that at least one of them is crashing repeatedly, and the dxdiag is also missing some information about the drivers.  (That could be due to a system issue or a corrupt driver.)  Here's how:

    https://crinrict.com/blog/2019/02/clean-re-install-of-graphics-drivers-with-display-driver-uninstaller-ddu.html

    CRITICAL:  If you only use a PIN to sign into Windows, switch to a full password first. There's a bug with Windows 11 that can send you into a boot loop when booting into safe mode, as the above instructions describe, if you only have a PIN.  But setting a full password gets around that.

    Use the newest drivers HP provides for your laptop.  Go here:

    https://support.hp.com/us-en/drivers/laptops

    Enter your laptop's serial number, choose your OS (just Windows 11 is fine) if prompted, click All Drivers, expand Driver-Graphics, and download the newest Intel and Nvidia drivers by version number.  The first part of the version number is the most important, e.g. 32 is newer than 31; after that, the last four numbers matter.

    The proper order of operations here is uninstall the Nvidia driver > uninstall the Intel driver > restart > reinstall the Intel driver > restart > reinstall the Nvidia driver > restart, all while offline.  Then go back online and test the game.

    I will say that what you've described sounds exactly like a current issue with HP gaming laptops and Sims 4 that has very different fixes.  The graphics driver crashes do need to be addressed first, but if you still can't play, try one of these workarounds:


    None of these works for everyone, but something almost always does, so keep trying the workarounds until you find one that lets you play.

  • happiihaden118's avatar
    happiihaden118
    New Rookie
    20 days ago

    Updated my drivers, didn't work at first. But then used the 3rd forum you suggested and it worked!! Tysm 

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