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lina_wxs's avatar
lina_wxs
9 months ago

Unable to start or uninstall Sims4

Hello,

I recently tried to launch The Sims 4 but it did not start and instead showed the following error:

Unable to start:

Initialization error at startup

[135dec40:90f690cf:00000075:495f32a0]

I am using Windows 10 (version 10.0.19045 Build 19045).

After searching through different solutions until now I tried the following things to fix the problem:

  • repair the game
  • run EA App and the Game itself as Administrator
  • running the game in compatibility mode for Windows 8
  • disable Controlled Folder Access in Windows Defender
  • uninstall The Sims 4 via the EA App and afterwards manually deleting the files and directories of Sims 4
  • uninstalling the EA App

Now not only the problem with the error above is present but also the additional problem that I can't uninstall Sims 4 via the EA App or the Programs Settings of Windows.

The entry of the game in the Programs and Apps Settings in Windows is either the Sims 4 logo without a game title or with a bunch of random symbols (e.g. asian letters).

Two exemplary entries are attached to this post.

What reasons could those problems have and how can I uninstall Sims 4 without using the methods I mentioned above to maybe reinstall Sims clean by deleting every file using a tool like CClean?

Thank you in advance for your help!

Best

Lina

pc

1 Reply

  • puzzlezaddict's avatar
    puzzlezaddict
    Hero+
    9 months ago

    @lina_wxs  Try using Revo Uninstaller (the free version is fine) to remove Sims 4.  Before doing so, rename the Sims 4 folder inside Documents > Electronic Arts to something that doesn't include "Sims 4" in the name so Revo doesn't flag it for deletion.  Uninstall the EA App with Revo as well, for good measure.

    If Revo can't "see" Sims 4 at all, then the alternative is to manually delete the folder that contains the game's program files, and use Piriform's CCleaner (the free version is also fine) to delete the associated registry entries and other hidden files.

    If this doesn't help, or you want to try something else before you go through the trouble of reinstalling the game, the steps in the first post of this thread, which is for a related but distinct error, may be useful:

    https://answers.ea.com/t5/Technical-Issues-PC/CURRENT-ISSUE-Sims-4-already-running/m-p/13276380

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