sims 3 saves stuck in my public documents folder
So I've been playing Sims 3 for a while and used to have everything set up JUST right. OneDrive banished, mods installed, save cleaner on, completely stable game with lots of precautions to keep it that way. BUT a couple months ago my laptop broke and they wiped it. Luckily I was very diligent about regularly uploading my saves & configuration to google drive, so in theory it was fine. I reinstalled directly from my discs (the EA app involved itself somehow as well), put back all the same saves and mods, everything was great. Until, for reasons I don't really know, I logged on one day and my saves weren't showing up. I think OneDrive (which had not been fully purged from this computer yet) was involved somehow, even though I'd uninstalled it, because it would stubbornly try to take over my documents folder. This vanishing, however, was especially weird because my game, saves, mods etc were still there where I'd left them (to my understanding). I eventually figured out that the game had moved itself to my Public Documents folder under the "Public" profile of my computer. Sims 4 had done the same at some point (I'm not sure who'd moved first or if they'd moved together, but neither brought their saves across), the whole EA folder moved with them. I moved all my saves across to the new location and hoped it'd just never be a problem again, but it is because: I don't know WHY this happened, which means I don't know how to prevent it :( Regul Save Cleaner can't clean my saves because they're not where they should be (this is the real reason). There's nothing else in my Public Documents except an empty Blackmagic Design folder which eventually leads to an empty queue folder for DaVinci Resolve. No other files are in there. Does anyone know why this would happen, how to get it to move back, or how to reconfigure Regul Save Cleaner to let me clean my saves again? reddit thread about a similar issue with sims 4I purchased a game serial code, but it does not appear in my library
I purchased and registered a code today, but I’m getting a "Code already used" message, and the game isn't showing up in my library. Is there any way to resolve this? I'm having trouble communicating with customer support due to the language barrier. I’ve already tried clearing the cache, logging out, and restarting the app. The serial code I bought was [definitely] for the full game!!Recovering expansion packs
I purchased physical disks of my Sims 3 expansion packs probably 10+ years ago. The disks came with digital codes that I put on my account via Origin when it was still around. My account in EA shows I own The Sims 3, but not the expansion packs. Any advice for recovering them?
I can't find the GameData folder on my computer (Mac) to download .world files.
I have been trying to locate the place to save .world files on my computer. Everywhere I look tells me to look for the GameData folder found in the application folder of Sims 3. I don't know if it is just my mac or what, but I am unable to locate a plain GameData folder that has just Sunset Valley.world in it, which is where every instruction says to place .world files. I have repaired the game and uninstalled and reinstalled. It is not appearing. Is there anything else I can do? Or is this just a lost cause?
Save file disappeared
When I was saving my game earlier it froze and I had to force close it, I always use "save as" when saving to reduce the size of the save file and I thought that since it didn't finish saving that when I opened the game again it would just set me back to where I was after I last saved, but instead the save file was gone and I have stupidly forgot to back it up. It's not in my saves folder, not in onedrive and not in the recycling bin! Is there any other place it might be/is there a way to restore it or do I just have to curse my luck and start over?
[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 Problems "Connecting"
Every time I have tried to play the Sims 3 recently, it has had problems after launching and I am never able to actually play with my household. I have let it sit for well over half an hour and it still does not connect. I have never had any issues playing on this laptop and I am not sure why this is happening. I tried to use the EA self help, but nothing worked and I can't get past the AI chat-bot to get any actual help. Does anyone have any suggestions on what is wrong or how to fix it?
LP points
I used my LP to finish the hobby my sim was working on since it only had an hour left and I used more LP to finish the store I was building. It said it went through and took my LP but then the game closed out and kept closing out when I clicked on the app and I restarted my phone and clicked the sims app again and it took all my LP and it basically reset what I did so my sim still has an hour doing her hobby and my store still has the same amount of time..so it took my LP and just acted like I didn’t use them…
