@LozzerM-W Adding the -w to the command line forces the game to launch in windowed mode, rather than fullscreen. It's interesting that doing so helps. Do you have an external graphics card or something similar plugged in? If so, I'm curious what it is. And please try unplugging it and then playing. Let me know how it goes either way.
Hi
Yep - confusing to me too. It’s a relatively up to date and powerful desktop PC. No, there is no external graphics card or anything. The only external thing is that the monitor, keyboard and mouse are channelled through a docking station (so I can plug laptops in to use the monitor, keyboard etc.) - I didn’t bypass that, but its never proved a problem in the past and I restarted system a number of times. I will give it a go and try without windowed mode.
The problem did not start at any obvious time (for example, immediately after adding SIMS University), and also did not seem to coincide with a windows update.
@LozzerM-W Your dxdiag lists "DisplayLink USB Device" as the first display device, meaning it was driving your monitor at the time you ran the dxdiag. This might not have anything to do with Sims 4—the dedicated graphics card might take over when you launch the game. But if not, it could explain the white screen and freezing.
The easy way to check is to look at the config file. Open Documents\Electronic Arts\The Sims 4, open the file labeled config.log, copy the information between "Graphics device info" (about 25 lines down) and "Options" (about 40 lines down), and paste it into a reply. That will show what the game makes of your card. Please look at this file before you disconnect anything, as the file is overwritten each time you launch the game.
Once you've copied the info from config.log (or you can just put the file on your desktop for later reference; the game will create a new one), please test with the monitor connected directly to the graphics card. Then copy the same info from config.log and paste it here. It would also be useful to see another dxdiag with the docking station disconnected.
P.S. I've split your posts into their own thread, since your issue seems quite different than that of the original poster. If that person comes back, it will be easier not to have info from them and you mixed into the same thread.
Thanks for the guidance. I will give that a go on he weekend when I have a bit more time, and post it here.
