CAN'T MOVE PACKS
Hello , I've been a long time Sims 3 player and I wanted to move my packs and saves from my old laptop to my new PC. I thought I could just download the game and sign into my EA account, but I noticed none of my expansion packs were there. I can't figure out how to move them, please help me. Thank you![Current Issue] Sims 3 Store world can't register/install
Overview This guide is for registering and installing standalone worlds from the Sims 3 Store, specifically those bought with money. That list includes Dragon Valley, Hidden Springs, Monte Vista, Roaring Heights, and sometimes Barnacle Bay. If you bought a Store world with SimPoints and it's not appearing in your purchase history on the Store site, please contact EA customer support and request that the SimPoints from the failed purchase be added back to your account. How to register a Store world jump to: My code doesn't work jump to: I can't install the world When you purchase a standalone Sims 3 world from Origin or the EA App, you should receive an email confirmation from EA. If you don't see this, check your spam filter. This email should include one product code per item, as shown here in the blacked-out red box: IMPORTANT: Some players have reported finding their product codes on ea.com, under Account Settings > Order History, so please look there as well. If you never received this email and it's not in your spam folder, please contact EA customer support. https://help.ea.com/en/customer-care/ You'll want the live chat option, not email, so you can explain the issue to a real person in real time. If you don't see the live chat option, try again in a private browsing window (or another browser), and continue as a guest rather than signing in. Otherwise, go to this site: https://store.thesims3.com/ Sign in with the same email address and password that you use for other EA sites, scroll to the bottom of the page, and click "Redeem a Code." Enter the code you've received, and the world should appear in your account. You can then download it from your purchase history (Store > My Store Account > Purchase History) or its product page. https://store.thesims3.com/worldProductDetail.html?categoryId=12642 ↑ My code doesn't work If you are sure you've never used this code, but the Store site tells you it's invalid or already been redeemed, you'll need to contact EA customer support to ask for a refund. https://help.ea.com/en/customer-care/ I strongly recommend using live chat rather than email. If you don't see the option, change the location in your browser window to U.S. or U.K., or choose a slightly different category of issue. Or use a private browsing window, or a different browser, and continue as a guest rather than signing in. If EA support doesn't help, please say so in this thread. If support does help, please post anyway letting me know what world(s) caused the issue so we can look for patterns. ↑ I can't install the world If you're getting the "there are no packages to install" error, please see this post: Re: Sims 3 Launcher "There are no packages to install" | EA Forums - 11190163 The standard way to download a world is to go to its product page or open your purchase history (Store > My Store Account > Purchase History), then click the Download button. If this isn't working for you, try a different browser. Firefox generally works best with the Store site. It is generally unnecessary to sign into the launcher before attempting to download or install Store content. However, this has helped some players, so it's worth trying. Mac users only: if you see an Error Downloading Content {0}, please repair the game in Origin, restart your computer, and try again. If the world still won't download properly, try a clean Sims 3 user folder. Rename the existing "The Sims 3" folder in Documents > Electronic Arts, open the launcher to create a new folder, and try to download only that world. If it works, you can move the downloaded world from the new Sims 3 folder to the old one you renamed, trash the new folder, and change the old one's name back to "The Sims 3." Downloaded Store items are found in the Downloads subfolder and have the extension .Sims3Pack. Be sure to delete any older downloads of the world before moving over the fresh copy. If the world downloads properly but doesn't install, please try a clean Sims 3 user folder as well. Rename the existing "The Sims 3" folder in Documents > Electronic Arts, open the launcher to create a new folder, download only that world, and try to install it. If this works, you can install the rest of your Store content into that folder, then move over your saves and any other files you'd like to keep. Please see this guide for a list. If reinstalling all of your Store content would be a burden, or you're confused about another part of this process, please ask for further help in this thread. ↑[Current Issue] Sims 3 "serious error" when loading save
Overview "A serious error has occurred while loading [world name]. It is strongly recommended that you restart the application." This error happens when the game is unable to load the save. There are three known causes, the first more common than the others. The game can't write to the user folder The world the save takes place in isn't installed properly The save is too corrupt to load properly To distinguish among these types of errors, try to load a new save in the same world as the save that threw the error. If it works, you likely have the third issue. If the new save doesn't load, try starting a new save in Sunset Valley. If it works, you likely have the second issue. If it doesn't work, you likely have the first issue. The short version At the moment, this error is usually OneDrive-related, and pausing syncing doesn't help most players. So you may need to stop OneDrive from touching your files at all. Please see this section of the guide for further information, under the spoiler: How to get rid of OneDrive Workarounds 1. The game can't write to the user folder jump to: OneDrive-related issues jump to: antivirus-related issues jump to: other causes When loading a save, the game needs to copy the save data into Documents > Electronic Arts > The Sims 3 > CurrentGame. If it cannot, it typically throws the "serious error." Common causes of this block are OneDrive, an overly protective antivirus, and other assorted permissions issues. OneDrive Currently, the most common cause of the "serious error" is OneDrive blocking access to Documents and therefore preventing Sims 3 from writing to the user folder inside. This is only possible if your Windows account's Documents directory is inside the OneDrive folder. (Your computer will have several Documents folders, but only one is the directory.) To find the location, search in Windows for Command Prompt, open it, and enter this command: reg query "HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Explorer\Shell Folders" /v "Personal" If the file path includes OneDrive, that may be the problem. (Otherwise, see the Antivirus and Other sections below.) For possible OneDrive issues, try pausing syncing. This is not a proper fix, but it's a useful test and interim workaround. To see the option, right-click the cloud icon in the lower-right corner of the screen, or it may be hidden in the Tray (^ icon). If this doesn't help, or you'd like a permanent fix, you may need to move your Documents folder out of OneDrive. If you don't want to do this, or you'd rather test first, an alternative is to create a new admin Windows account and try playing there. Make it local—don't link it to your Microsoft account or any email address—and OneDrive will not be in the picture. If you can load a new save in the new account, it's fine to keep playing there. Or you can get rid of OneDrive entirely: If getting rid of OneDrive doesn't help, please create a new admin Windows account and try playing there, as described immediately above the spoiler. Antivirus An overly protective antivirus can block a program's access to Documents and everything inside. To find out whether this is the cause of the error, try disabling the antivirus, temporarily of course. If it fixes the issue, set an exception for TS3.exe (for an EA App install) or TS3W.exe (with the W, for a Steam install or a disc install that doesn't require the EA App). You may not see the .exe extension, but that's fine, it's the same file. The default location is one of these, depending on the install type: C:\Program Files\EA Games\The Sims 3\Game\Bin C:\Program Files (x86)\Steam\steamapps\common\The Sims 3\Game\Bin C:\Program Files (x86)\Electronic Arts\The Sims 3\Game\Bin If you don't know how to set an exception, google "set exception [antivirus name]" to find a guide. Or see this article for a few examples: https://crinrict.com/blog/2020/10/add-exceptions-to-anti-virus-programs.html Other Causes The Documents directory could be in an unusable location. Or permissions could be broken on the Documents directory, or a folder inside. For more information, expand the relevant spoiler below. Move Documents to a new location: Broken permissions: ↑ 2. The world the save uses isn't installed properly If you can load a new save in a different world, but not in the world in which your main save takes place, that world is probably not properly installed. For Sunset Valley or a world that comes with an expansion (e.g. Twinbrook, Bridgeport), please clear the EA App's cache: https://help.ea.com/en/help/faq/clear-cache-to-fix-problems-with-your-games/ and repair the game: open the EA App game library, and select Sims 3 > Manage > Repair. For a Store (e.g. Riverview, Dragon Valley) or custom (player-created) world, first uninstall it through the launcher's Installed Content tab. Then open Documents > Electronic Arts > The Sims 3 > InstalledWorlds and make sure the .world file for the world you removed is no longer present. If it is, delete it. Open Downloads, in the same Sims 3 folder, and delete the .Sims3Pack file for the world. You can reuse it if necessary, but installing with a new copy is more reliable. Finally, download a fresh copy of the world, install it, and try to start a new save in that world. If it works, the world is now installed correctly, and you can test your main save again. ↑ 3. The save is too corrupt to load properly If you can load a new save in the same world, but your main save throws the "serious error," that save may be too broken to use, but there are a couple of steps you can try. First, open Documents > Electronic Arts > The Sims 3 > Saves, and you'll see a folder with your save name plus another folder with the same name and a .backup extension. For example, you might see SunsetValley.sims3 and SunsetValley.sims3.backup. Rename the save and delete the .backup extension (e.g. SunsetValley1.sims3), and the save will be available to load from the Main Menu. If you can load the backup save, it could still be corrupt enough to be unusable later. So as soon as it loads, use "save as" to rename the save so that your backup is preserved in case you need it later. I would also strongly recommend seeking out mods, specifically NRaas ErrorTrap, Overwatch, and MasterController, to try to repair any corruption. ET and OW do their work in the background, with no need for player input; MC does nothing unless you use it to issue a command. Once the save loads, let the game clock run for a few sim-minutes, then click City Hall and select NRaas > MasterController > Town Options > Reset Everything. This may take a few minutes, depending on the speed of your computer and the complexity of the save. When it's done, wait a few more sim-minutes, then "save as," quit, reload the game, and continue playing. If you cannot load the backup save, start a new save in the same world, pick a premade household, play for a few sim-minutes, save your progress, and quit. Open the folder for your backup save, right-click the .nhd file for the world the save takes place in, and select Copy. Open the folder for the new save you just created and delete the .nhd file for that world. Right-click and Paste the .nhd file from your backup save. Then try to load the "new" save. The thumbnail at the Main Menu won't update, but if you can load the save, you'll see your previous save, not the new one. If your sims have traveled to other worlds in the previous save, and you would like to preserve that progress, you'll need to copy over the .nhd files from those worlds as well, and the TravelDB.package file. But please test first with only the homeworld's .nhd file. I would recommend the same mods as above in this case as well. Saves that are almost too corrupt to load won't last much longer without help. ↑ If you need further help with this issue, please post in this thread. State which of the three problems you have, from the list at the beginning of this guide, and what troubleshooting steps you've tried already. ↑Sims 3 won't open as well as the launcher itself?
I purchased Sims 3 from the EA app a few hours ago along with almost every single expansion and add-on available to me, but when I try to play from the EA app, it won't launch. The EA app minimizes for a second and then reopens? Nothing is different. There's no Sims 3 file in my Electronic Arts folder, so I know it's not even launching, but I don't know what to do! I uninstalled/reinstalled, repaired game files, uninstalled it and reinstalled it on a different drive, and restarted my PC. Any suggestions are appreciated!
[FAQ] Lost and broken DVDs and missing serial codes - What to do ?
Lost/broken DVD but still have the serial code With your serial code, you are eligible for the download version of your game. You can download it through Origin and redeem your code. Instructions on how to do this can be found here: Redeem Your Serial Code in Origin Make sure to uninstall the DVD version and install the download version instead. Finding your Registration / Serial Code If you still have the game on your computer you can follow these steps to find your serial code from your registry (PC only). Credits of to Carl's Sims 3 Guide You need to be signed in as an Administrator first. Windows may require your permission to open the Registry Editor and if so, just click on yes. Press the Windows key on your keyboard and type regedit in the search bar and press Enter. Click on 'File' at the top left of the window that opens then click on Export. Choose a location and name for the file as this will be your backup registry file. Click Save. This backup is created just as a precaution. Now to find your serial codes for each specific EP or SP installed on your computer: Expand the HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE folder. Expand the SOFTWARE folder (Wow6432Node for 64 bit systems) Expand the Electronic Arts folder. Expand the Sims folder Expand the EP or SP you need the code for Click on ergc and in the box to the right under 'Data' you will see the code Write it down somewhere save Repeat above steps for each EP --------------------- Instructions for Macs can be found here: Finding your serial key using Terminal ------------------- Finding the code on Origin If you registered the game on thesims3.com OR bought it on Origin, the serial code can be found in the myGames tab on the Origin client. Download the client from here http://origin.com/download, log in with your data and go to the MyGames tab. Hover over the game and find the i. The product code listed there is your serial number (it can be different from your original one if the game was bought before Origin came out) No access to the serial code If you lost your serial code and don't have the game installed on an old computer, you need to contact Customer Support. They can be found here: https://help.ea.com/contact-us You have the option to contact them by mail, phone or Live Chat. Make sure you have a game, a category and a platform selected for the options to become available. For Live Chat, make sure to choose US as your country. If you registered your game to your account, it should be easy to get the code. If not, they'll give you a new code if you can proof that you own the game. See this: Obtaining a Replacement Registration Code ------------------------------------ Did this FAQ help you with your issue ? If so, please consider pressing the XP button[Read First] Running Sims 3 in Windows
Note: Anchors don't work in replies, only the original post. If you see your issue in the index of a reply and don't want to scroll, use ctrl-F to search for the keyword(s). Overview Contrary to popular belief, Sims 3 is not all that difficult to set up and run properly. This guide covers basic concepts, common issues, standard troubleshooting, and some frequently-asked questions. For any questions or problems not addressed here, feel free to start your own thread. Index Suggested hardware for Sims 3 Best practices Limiting in-game framerates Getting your graphics card recognized Common errors, EA App Common errors, Sims 3 Missing content [DLC] Sims 3 Store issues Performance (basic troubleshooting, rebuilding your user folder, performance improvements) Clean-uninstalling Sims 3 Managing OneDrive Mods and custom content (installing, content doesn't load, best practices) FAQs Suggested hardware for Sims 3 EA's published minimum and recommended requirements reflect the state of the base game in 2009, and the hardware that existed at the time. If you'd like my (personal, subjective) suggestions for what hardware to consider when buying a new computer, please see the first FAQ here. If you already have a computer, there's no harm in trying to run the game on it. As long as the system isn't overheating, you won't do any damage. However, performance is best on a system with relatively strong graphics. This is generally what you'd need to run the game on ultra graphics settings, minus the two (water and high-detail lots) that should be turned down to lower the stress on the game engine: Nvidia GTX 960 or 1050 ti or higher, or 1650 or higher, or any RTX card AMD RX 570 or higher, or 5500 or 6400 or higher, or anything newer Intel Arc graphics, even integrated, are probably fine, but I don't currently have much data These can probably handle high or high-ultra settings: Nvidia GTX 950, 1050, possibly a GT 1030 AMD RX 550, 560, 5300 AMD (integrated) RX Vega 7 or higher in a 4000-series CPU or newer AMD (integrated) 660M or higher Intel (integrated) Xe Graphics with 80 or 96 EUs If you have a borderline GPU and have tested Sims 3 on it, more data is always welcome. Feel free to create a new thread sharing your findings. ↑ Best practices Aside from limiting in-game framerates (see below), the best practices are generally very logical: If you get a crash, see whether you can replicate it, and avoid that trigger, or ask for help resolving that specific problem. If you're playing on a laptop, plug it in for best performance. Make sure the system can properly cool itself, which means playing on a hard flat surface, or elevating the laptop; don't block the vents. If you're experimenting with anything that alters how the game works (mods, shadow tweaks, ReShade, etc.), add ONE item at a time, and test it in-game before making any other changes. Use the minimum amount of third-party content you can to achieve the effects you want, and add mods and cc slowly as you go rather than downloading a giant pile of content at once. If you don't need OneDrive, get rid of it or at least exempt your user folder from being synced. OneDrive can delete user data and prevent you from loading a save or saving your progress, among other things. Please see the OneDrive section below. If you're new to using mods or custom content, or tend to run into trouble with your added content, please see the Best practices: mods and cc section below. ↑ Limiting in-game framerates If your computer has a dedicated graphics card, it's critical to limit framerates when running Sims 3. The game has no fps limiter, and even a mid-tier GPU can overwork itself, and possibly overheat, generating fps in the high hundreds or higher. It is probably not necessary to limit fps on an integrated graphics chip, but you may wish to do so to lower your iGPU's workload, and therefore the amount of heat produced by the graphics chip and processor. First, if you don't already know it, find the refresh rate of your monitor. Open Windows Settings > System > Display > Advanced display settings, select the monitor if necessary, and you'll see the refresh rate, in Hertz (Hz), listed below the resolution. Nvidia graphics card jump to: AMD or Intel GPU jump to: Other options For Nvidia graphics cards, the simplest way to cap framerates is through the Nvidia Control Panel. Right-click your desktop, select the Control Panel, then Manage 3D Settings > Program settings, and choose ts3.exe (EA App install) or ts3w.exe (with the W, disc or Steam install). Scroll down to Max Frame Rate, and set it to the refresh rate of your monitor, or lower if you prefer. If you play in fullscreen mode at least some of the time, you may benefit from enabling Vertical sync as well. "On" locks fps to the refresh rate of your monitor or, if the game can't maintain that fps, to a factor of the refresh rate. As an example, for a 144 Hz monitor, you could see 144, 72, or 48 fps. For that reason, "Adaptive" may be the better option: it caps fps at the monitor's refresh rate but doesn't have an effect below that. Feel free to try both and compare performance. To confirm your framerate limit is being respected, load Sims 3, bring up the cheats console (ctrl-shift-C), and enter fps on . An fps counter will appear in the upper-right corner of the screen, and it should never go above the limit you've set. If this limit isn't holding, please try one of the suggestions for AMD or Intel GPUs below. AMD or Intel graphics card Whether you have an AMD or Intel GPU, dedicated or integrated, you can try the driver's built-in control software, but as of this writing, neither is completely reliable. I would instead suggest using RivaTuner Statistics Server, a free and lightweight app: https://www.guru3d.com/download/rtss-rivatuner-statistics-server-download/ Make sure you're clicking the actual download and not an ad. The correct link will say "Download Version x.x.x Final." Unzip the RTSS.zip file (right-click and Extract), and run the installer. You may want to pin RTSS to the task bar for ease of use. Restart your computer, open RTSS again, and click Add in the lower-left corner. Select TS3.exe (EA App install) or TS3W.exe (with the W, disc or Steam install), in [install location]\The Sims 3\Game\Bin. Make sure it's highlighted, then set the Framerate limit (red box) to what you want. You can choose to let RTSS start with Windows (yellow box) or not. RTSS does need to be running while you play, but you can minimize it to the Tray, and it should be minimized when your computer boots. If you only set a framerate limit for Sims 3, RTSS will have no other effect on your system. To confirm your framerate limit is being respected, load Sims 3, bring up the cheats console (ctrl-shift-C), and enter fps on . An fps counter will appear in the upper-right corner of the screen, and it should never go above the limit you've set. If this limit isn't being honored, please try a different fps limiter, or start a new thread and ask for help. Other options Some gaming-related apps, like MSI Afterburner, include a framerate limiter, which is fine to use with Sims 3. Lazy Duchess's Smooth Patch has an optional fps limiter as well. ↑ Getting your graphics card recognized It's not strictly necessary to get your graphics card recognized. However, if you'd like to do so, there's a utility hosted at NexusMods that adds a number of GPU device IDs to the game's database. Carl's Sims Guide also offers copies of GraphicsCards.sgr and GraphicsRules.sgr that include newer GPUs. Neither covers every card and device ID though, so you may still need to add yours manually. To check your work, launch the game once, then open DeviceConfig.log, inside Documents > Electronic Arts > The Sims 3, and look under Graphics device info, about 25 lines down. The Found and Matched values show whether your GPU is now recognized. If your GPU isn't included, or you'd like help editing the .sgr files yourself, please start your own thread in the tech section (here). Open DeviceConfig.log, copy the lines between Graphics device info (about 25 lines down) and Options (about 40 lines down), and paste them into your post. They'll look like this: === Graphics device info === Number: 0 Name (driver): Radeon Pro 560 Name (database): Radeon Pro 560 [Found: 0, Matched: 0] Vendor: ATI Chipset: Vendor: 1002, Device: 67ef, Board: 0179106b, Chipset: 00c0 Driver: aticfx32.dll, Version: 30.0.13045.18005, GUID: D7B71EE2-24AF-11CF-8E35-8C136FC2D335 Driver version: 18005 Monitor: \\.\DISPLAY1 Texture memory: 32MB <<OVERRIDE>> Vertex program: 3.0 Pixel program: 3.0 Hardware TnL: 1 ↑ Common errors EA App errors You don't have access The title may have been downloaded to your device by another user who owns the game. Please try the suggestions in the first post of this master thread. If they don't help, please provide the info requested in that post. How to Fix the "You don't have access" Error in EA app - '24 | EA Forums - 7536978 Game ownership disabled or deleted We've paused the download because you don't own this title. Please post in this master thread: Why does the EA app display "Games have been removed from your library"? | EA Forums - 7518256 Failed to launch game An error on our end caused the launch to fail. Try again a little later. Please post in this master thread, including the information requested in the accepted solution: [INFO REQUEST] How to Fix "Your Game Failed to Launch" Error in EA app? | EA Forums - 7534716 Installation failed [DLC] The final stages of installation didn't go as planned. Try again in a little bit. This thread addresses a different installation error, but the accepted solution but may help: New Sims 3 expansion: says in-game content, can't install | EA Forums - 8323544 Sims 3 errors Sims 3 doesn't open in Windows 7 Please uninstall and reinstall your VC++ x86 runtime. See the first post of this thread for more information: [Current Issue] Sims 3 doesn't open, Windows 7 | EA Forums - 8323489 Service initialization error or Error during startup This is typically related to missing or leftover registry entries. If you downloaded the game through Steam and have uninstalled any DLC, try reinstalling it. Otherwise, please do a clean uninstall of Sims 3 with Revo Uninstaller (the free version is fine). Please see this guide's clean-uninstall section for more detailed instructions: Clean-uninstalling Sims 3 Serious error A serious error has occurred while loading [world name]. It is strongly recommended that you restart the application. Please see the first post of this thread: [Current Issue] Sims 3 "serious error" when loading save | EA Forums - 8322938 Error 12 This is an out of resources error, usually but not always related to memory. Sims 3 can only use ~3.7 GB RAM (4 GB minus some overhead); this is a mathematical limitation that cannot be overcome. Saving causes a memory spike as well. So if the game is using ~3.5 GB when running your save, you may be unable to save your progress. It is difficult to impossible to recover a save at this point. If you're not interested in spending a lot of time troubleshooting, it may be time to save your sims to the bin and place them in a new save. If you're seeing this error but the game is not going over about 3.2 GB memory use, according to the Task Manager, please create your own thread in the tech section (here) asking for help. Error 16 This error has a few unrelated causes. First, try using "save as" and renaming the save. If that doesn't help, the issue may be OneDrive. Please see the first post of this thread (about a different but often related error) for more information: [Current Issue] Sims 3 "serious error" when loading save | EA Forums - 8322938 ↑ Missing content [DLC] If you're specifically missing a Store world (list of Store worlds), please see the first post of this thread: Sims 3 Store world can't register/install | EA Forums - 11143823 If you're missing expansion or stuff packs, please create your own thread in the tech forum (here). List the packs thare you're missing and how you bought them: directly from EA, on disc, etc. If you bought the content from EA, please also go to ea.com, sign in, open Account Settings > Order History, and state whether your purchases appear there AND the status of the purchases: Completed, Processing, or Failed. ↑ Sims 3 Store issues For missing Sims 3 Store worlds, please see the first post of this thread: Sims 3 Store world can't register/install | EA Forums - 11143823 For other Store issues, please see this guide: [Read First] Sims 3 Store guide | EA Forums - 11157679 ↑[Read First] Sims 3 Store guide
Overview This guide covers how to acquire and download Store content, and how to troubleshoot various associated problems. If you need further help, please create your own thread, in this section of the forum, describing the issue. jump to: SimPoints and standalone worlds jump to: How to purchase items jump to: Getting the most out of your points jump to: Accidental double purchase/double charge jump to: Missing purchased content jump to: How to install Store content jump to: Common errors jump to: Disappearing content jump to: Installing into a clean folder SimPoints and standalone worlds SimPoints can only be purchased through the EA App (Windows), listed as "Sims 3 Currency"; or through Origin (macOS), listed as SimPoints. When you make the purchase, points are automatically added to your account. Make sure you've signed into the same account, by email address, that owns your other Sims 3 content. Please see this thread for further information: Can't Buy SimPoints on Store.TheSims3.com? | EA Forums - 11192014 Some Store worlds can only be purchased with real money (not SimPoints), for example Dragon Valley or Monte Vista. For issues with registering or installing a Store world, please see the first post of this thread: Sims 3 Store world can't register/install | EA Forums - 11143823 ↑ Purchasing Store content How to purchase items Firefox has been the most reliable browser for purchasing or downloading Store content over the years. I would suggest trying it if you run into any trouble with your preferred browser. Sign into the Store (https://store.thesims3.com/) with the same email address and password you use in Origin or the EA App. When you've chosen your items, visit their product pages to purchase. You'll see a Buy Now button on the right side of the screen: If the purchase appears not to go through, wait a minute, sign out of the site and back in, or clear your browser cache. A purchase can appear to hang while completing in the background. ↑ Getting the most out of your points If you haven't already, click the My Page header and look for a blue Redeem Points button. Registering the base game and World Adventures should grant free SimPoints. Sometimes other packs grant free points as well. If the item you're interested in is part of one or more sets, you'll see "Also Part of a Set" below the item name. It's worth clicking this link for two reasons. One is that the set itself is usually cheaper than buying all of its items separately, and sometimes much cheaper if it's ever on sale, so depending on how much of it content you like, you may prefer to buy the entire set rather than one item at a time. The other reason is that if you already own other items in the set, the overall set will usually be cheaper than its original price and may even be free. A green Download button means that you do not yet own the item or set but that you can "buy" it for free. A blue Download button means you already own it. For further reading, please see the Daily Deal rotation master thread, and check out the thread that lists the cheapest way to acquire sets: Daily Deal (DD) 2018 Rotation List and Sales Help | EA Forums - 1821670 Cheapest way to own compilation/sets/venues! | EA Forums - 1857088 ↑ Accidental double purchase/double charge If you've inadvertently purchased the same item twice, or been double-charged, or you were charged points but did not receive the content, please contact EA customer support for help. A support rep can credit the points to your account. Make it clear you need your SimPoints back, not the money you spent on them. Support cannot provide a refund for the money you spent on the points, only the points themselves. I would strongly recommend using live chat rather than email. If you don't see the option, try this link: https://help.ea.com/en/help-contact-us/?product=the-sims-3&topic=missing-game&category=manage-my-account&subcategory=find-missing-game Make sure you're signed into an EA site (this one is fine) before clicking the link and that the location in the lower-right corner of the browser window is set to U.S. or U.K. Missing purchased content Please contact EA customer support, as above. If the issue has to do with a standalone Store world, please see the first post of this thread: Sims 3 Store world can't register/install | EA Forums - 11143823 ↑ Issues installing Store content Please see the next post below.
[INFO] How to Register The Sims 3
Purchasing The Sims 3 game and Expansions/Stuff Packs through Origin After purchasing or registering your copy of The Sims 3 through Origin, it takes a little bit more to make sure you get all your content and rewards. To make sure you're getting the most from redeeming your content: First, purchase your copy of The Sims 3. Purchasing The Sims 3, expansion packs, and stuff packs in the Origin Store will auto-register the game to your Origin Account, and will be visible in your My Games library. If you've purchased The Sims 3 through a third-party website and have a game code, redeem your The Sims 3 code in the Origin client by launching the client, opening the Origin menu, and selecting Redeem Product Code. Now, like if you'd purchased The Sims 3 in the Origin Store, your content will be visible in your My Games library. With the latest Origin update, expansion / stuff packs no longer appear as individual tiles in your My Games library. To access them, right-click on the Sims 3 icon and choose view game details. Scroll down and you will see your games there. For more information, see here You can always find your base game key on the Game Detail Page in your Origin client which can be accessed by right-clicking on the game's icon and choosing "view game details." You no longer need game codes for your expansion / stuff packs with the latest update. In order to get your registration rewards, you'll need to log-in to TheSims3.com with the same email address you use for your Origin Account. Note, you do not need to re-register your game at TheSims3.com. New users to TheSims3.com, however, will have to complete an account registration process. After logging in, simply head to this page to download your registration reward. To redeem bonus content, after you've received an email with your 16-digit code, you can follow the email's further instructions, or just head to store.thesims3.com/myAccount.html, making sure to log-in with the same email and details as your Origin Account. Note, codes for bonus content and The Sims 3 Store content are redeemed through TheSims3.com, not through Origin. The Sims 3, expansions, and Stuff Packs can all be redeemed through Origin or TheSims3.com, but once redeemed do not need to be re-registered in the other. After you've checked that your game is in your My Games library, head to TheSims3.com to redeem your bonus content codes or download your registration rewards. Registering The Sims 3 game and Expansions/Stuff Packs to your Origin account via the Sims 3 website If you already own The Sims 3 or any of the Expansion/Stuff Packs, and wish to register them on your Origin account, please follow the steps below. Please note, these are 20 digit codes – if your code has 16 digits, it’s for bonus downloadable content. You can find instructions on how to register 16 digit codes in the next section of this article. 1. Go to http://www.thesims3.com and make an account if you do not already have one. If you have an account, skip to step 3. 2. When making an account, enter your serial code for The Sims 3. 3. Once you are a registered member of the The Sims 3 website, login to your account so that you can then register any other expansion packs or stuff packs that you own to your account. 4. Click on the My Page tab. 5. Then click the My Account tab. 6. Click on Register a Game. 7. Enter the product code for the expansion pack or stuff pack. 8. Click the green Register button. Redeem Bonus Content for The Sims 3: Some expansion packs come with bonus content for players who register their game online. The most common bonus content is where The Sims 3 (base game) and World Adventures will each grant 1,000 Simpoints to a registered player’s account. These are 16 digits codes for bonus content. If your code is a 20 digit code for the base game or an expansion, please see the earlier section of this article. If you do have a 16 digit bonus code to redeem but have not yet registered your game or expansion, you should do so prior to redeeming your bonus code. Go to http://www.thesims3.com and login to your account. Click on the The Store tab in the menu bar at the top of the page. Then click the My Store Account tab. Click on the Green "+" icon sign across from Redeem a Code to expand that section, if it's not expanded already. Enter your 16 digit code for your bonus content. Accept the Digital Services Agreement and the Privacy Policy. Click the green Redeem button.
