Re: The Sims 4 crashing on Windows 11 - Steam edition

I think I attached it, although I'm not sure if it will work as I did try attatch a crash file to my original post and it wasn't there after posting

My PC has an app to monitor temperatures, it has a few sensors for each componant so I'll try say these in the simplest way I can (the numbers are in celcius)

The GPU sensors average out at about 50, don't go above 60 or under 40

The motherboard averages at 35, nothing above 50 and nothing below 20

The processor averages at 40, nothing above 45

I've tried to see if temp may have been the problem before but everything I've seen said it should be able to get up to 70/80 before I have any real problems, so max 50 between all my sensors doesn't seem bad

I did try blowing a fan on the PC to see if that changed anything whilst trying to fix the problem myself, which brought the temp down about 10 average for all the sensors, which made no difference at all to the crashing issue

@mj561256  Those temperatures are all fine.  The graphics card will throttle a little when above 70º, but it's not really a problem until it hits 80, or the hot spot gets into the 90s.  The processor can run comfortably in the low 90s as well, and other components should be perfectly fine up to at least 70; the exact temperature at which heat becomes a problem will vary depending on the component and the sensor.  Point is, it sounds like this isn't the issue.

Your dxdiag shows that Sims 4 is crashing due to an access violation, which is, unfortunately, an extremely generic error.  Causes range from mods and custom content to in-game bugs to interference from third-party software.  So troubleshooting this error can be a bit of a guessing game.

On that note, please try playing in a clean user folder.  Move the entire Sims 4 folder out of Documents > Electronic Arts and onto your desktop, and when you launch the game, a clean folder will spawn with no content.  (Your saves and other content will be intact in the folder you moved but temporarily not read by the game.)  Don't add anything to the new folder yet; just start a new save in one of the base game worlds and see whether it crashes.

If you do get another crash, please try playing in a clean boot:

https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/topic/how-to-perform-a-clean-boot-in-windows-da2f9573-6eec-00ad-2f8a-a97a1807f3dd

The one service you need to leave enabled is the EABackgroundService, which the EA App needs in order to run.  Disable everything else as described.  When you reboot, go through the Task Manager's background processes list shutting down everything that doesn't absolutely need to be running, for example any Asus support software is extraneous here.  In particular, make sure to disable Asus Aura, a component of which has also been crashing.  It might be bundled into ArmouryCrate rather than being a standalone app, but either way, it shouldn't be running during this test.

If you accidentally kill the wrong process and it doesn't restart on its own, you can simply reboot your computer, so don't worry about shutting down something essential.

If you get another crash, please repeat the test, except this time, play while your computer is offline.  You can put Steam and the EA App in offline mode after signing in, then disconnect your computer from the internet before pressing Play.  Some people report that their Steam-owned DLC doesn't load while offline, but that's fine for the purposes of this test.

Please continue to run a new save in a clean user folder, at least until the game stops crashing.  Then you can start adding things back, both your content and the programs disabled in the clean boot, and see what makes Sims 4 crash again.

I tried doing as described but when I turned all the extraneous programmes off, the game wouldn't load at all

I assumed it may be because I bought the game through Steam - So left Steam on as well as the EA App - However it still wouldn't load at all 

I tried turning the WIFI off like you said - Still the Sims wouldn't open

I tried opening Spore as a test to see if it was just the Sims and Spore DID open, I'm not sure what to make of that honestly. Turning everything off broke only the Sims 4

When I noticed the Sims 3 had all of my packs when opened via steam specifically, I tried opening the Sims 4 via steam and it did then load (idk if that means my EA launcher may be a problem? This may all be unnecessary information but I'm adding it just in case 😭)

But it's still crashing. I'm unsure if I followed the instructions right. I tried turning just the armourycrate that you mentioned to see if that was the problem quickly and tried turning everything off and neither worked really. The game wouldn't launch without the Internet on AT ALL (presumably because I bought it on steam, launching on EA)

@mj561256  There's an issue with launching Sims 4 through Steam while the computer is offline, but I wasn't sure it was a significant problem when you first posted, and I also wasn't sure that it applied if you signed into Steam and the EA App while online before putting the launchers in offline mode.  At any rate, I'd like to see a new dxdiag since it's been a while since the last one.

Please also look for any errors that happen at the same time as a game crash.  (You can skip the clean boot and going offline.)  Hit Windows key-R and enter "perfmon /rel" without quotes, and you'll see a chart of errors and updates with a column for each day.  Look for an error with a timestamp that matches, within a couple of minutes, of the most recent Sims 4 crash, and if you find one, double-click its name and you'll see more info.  Copy that info and paste it here.

Source
The Sims™ 4

Summary
Stopped working

Date
‎02/‎04/‎2023 15:31

Status
Report sent

Description
Faulting Application Path: C:\Program Files (x86)\Steam\steamapps\common\The Sims 4\Game\Bin\TS4_x64.exe

Problem signature
Problem Event Name: APPCRASH
Application Name: TS4_x64.exe
Application Version: 1.96.397.1020
Application Timestamp: 641cec17
Fault Module Name: TS4_x64.exe
Fault Module Version: 1.96.397.1020
Fault Module Timestamp: 641cec17
Exception Code: c0000005
Exception Offset: 00000000010bbd69
OS Version: 10.0.22621.2.0.0.768.101
Locale ID: 2057
Additional Information 1: 1461
Additional Information 2: 146119b401efe2fa4f2e2ce95dc18a63
Additional Information 3: a981
Additional Information 4: a98159638401eb69f46b53dd1198cb52

Extra information about the problem
Bucket ID: 78f12e7ef9c54c09392157724c72976f (1810824673600116591)

@mj561256  Unfortunately, this and the errors in your dxdiag are just more access violations, which are too generic to be much use.  The simplest interventions didn't help, but there are a couple more intrusive ones to try.

First, try playing in a new admin Windows account.  Make it a local account, as in, don't sign into Microsoft, and don't sync with any other services you normally use.  You'll be able to sign into Steam and the EA App and launch Sims 4 without reinstalling anything, but your saves and other user content won't be available.  That's fine for the purposes of this test and can be addressed later if necessary.  And of course don't install any mods or custom content during this test.

If you get another crash, please do a clean uninstall and reinstall of Sims 4 and the EA App.  (You don't need to uninstall Steam.)  Use the new admin account for this process.  Start with Sims 4:

• Put aside your Sims 4 folder in Documents\Electronic Arts and rename it to something that doesn't include the words "Sims 4."
• Download Revo Uninstaller (the free version is fine) from here.
• Launch Revo, select Sims 4 from the list, and click Uninstall.
• Once the game is uninstalled, select "Moderate" under "scanning modes," and click Scan.
• Review the list, in case there's something you want to save; otherwise, click Select All, and then Delete.
• Close Revo, and restart your computer.

Uninstall the EA App with Revo as well.  I don't have instructions for that at the moment, but the process should be straightforward.  Restart again when you're done.

Install the EA App, and before installing Sims 4, change the Steam install directory to a new folder that you create for just this purpose.  Install Sims 4 into that folder, then try again to play, still with no mods or cc or previous saves or anything else you normally use.