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WingedSnek's avatar
WingedSnek
3 years ago

Sims Medieval - Error 16 while trying to save

I migrated my copy of Sims Medieval to my new PC (Windows 11, 64-Bit, 16GM RAM). Unfortunately, every time I try to save I get the Error 16. I can only work around it via using the "Saving As" option every time I want to save the game, thus, resulting in a big amount of save files piling up in the saves folder, which I cannot even delete until I restart my whole PC, even after closing the game, because something seems to block it. The problem are the backups the game creates whenever I save the game. Unfortunately, deleting them does not resolve the problem, because deleting the backup (and not the actual saves) results in the save not being shown in game or the saved progress not being registered by the game. Does anyone have any ideas how to resolve this?

10 Replies

  • mate54's avatar
    mate54
    Hero+
    3 years ago
    @WingedSnek Error Code 16 became prominent in late 2022, as it was caused by changes Microsoft introduced in one of their Windows updates.

    The problem seems to have been fixed for most players since then, so please first check for Windows updates to make sure you have the latest version of Windows 11.
    Press the Windows key + I to open your Settings, on the left select Windows Update, and check for updates.
  • WingedSnek's avatar
    WingedSnek
    3 years ago
    @mate54 I just checked my PC for updates. It's unfortunately up to date, so that's not the problem. Could anything else work?
  • Tremayne4260's avatar
    Tremayne4260
    Hero
    3 years ago

    @WingedSnek , the cause of Error 16 is the game thinks you do not have enough memory/hard drive space to save your game. Where is you game saving data? One Drive or your hard drive?

  • WingedSnek's avatar
    WingedSnek
    3 years ago
    @Tremayne4260 It's on my hard drive, which has 720GB of free space. On my old PC (Windows 10), which only had 1GB of free space left, there were no problems, so I assume it might be a problem with Windows 11.
  • Tremayne4260's avatar
    Tremayne4260
    Hero
    3 years ago

    @WingedSnek , I think it is a Windows 11 error as this error appears to be solved for a time and then crops up again. Have you updated Windows 11 recently?

  • Tremayne4260's avatar
    Tremayne4260
    Hero
    3 years ago

    @WingedSnek , Error 16 relates to not having enough RAM to store your saved game data, which most computers seem to have. Apparently now, the error appears to be caused by Windows itself. Try updating Windows and see if the error goes away.

  • WingedSnek's avatar
    WingedSnek
    3 years ago
    @Tremayne4260 Unfortunately, I am out of updates.The most recent update did not seem to change anything or any of the previous updates, for that matter, since I changed to Windows 11. I assume I just need to wait until one of the system updates might fix the problem.
  • Mayaaleah's avatar
    Mayaaleah
    12 months ago

    Are you still experiencing the problem? I'm in the same situation; my Windows 11 is completely up to date, and I'm getting the error 16 codes every time I try to save, so I can't progress in the game. This is so frustrating.

  • Tremayne4260's avatar
    Tremayne4260
    Hero
    12 months ago

    @Mayaaleah  and @WingedSnek , I am trying to research this issue to see if there are other solutions to try. One suggested going into your TSM saves and try removing the word "backup".

    Ok, found something else to try for Windows 11. It was for Sims 3, but they share the same game architecture. I found this on Reddit.

    The error appears to be related to writing a file in the specific Documents Directory. The person who wrote this said they changed directory and tested several times and it appeared to work. The directory in question is the one where the game stores its saved files and if you use mods, the mods could be found there. Now, you can either store these files on an external drive or your Desktop. Do not use One Drive/the Cloud as this is probably what can cause the error as well as the game doesn't normally read saves well from the Cloud. 

    You will need to change the command prompts to create a symbolic link which will then tell the game where to store and read the saved games from. You'll need to research how to create this symbolic link, but it could be a solution to the error.

    I cannot guarntee this will work, but at least it is something to try. Please let us know if this seems to work.

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