Sims 3 not loading

[Wood Elf]

Hey Guys, Anyone know a solution to the game not loading properly? I tried booting it up through steam and it the launcher it says "An error occurred while trying to load, check the log" or something along those lines. I verified files and reinstalled it, but its giving me the same issue. My PC is on windows 10 and has absolutely ran it before, the only thing I did different was I unchecked a few DLC so it would run smoother.

[Wood Elf]

Also I noticed its creating a blank file in EA games files, so Im not sure what that means.

[marstinson]

To into \Documents\Electronic Arts\The Sims 3 and delete the five *cache.package files in that directory. You should do this anytime you add or remove content (mods and CC included). The game will make new copies the next time you launch.

[HiFive]

Cache files to clear after each play session:

CASPartCache.package
compositorCache.package
scriptCache.package
SimCompositorCache.package
socialcache.package

This is safe to do for only these files. The game will create new ones when you play it again.

[Wood Elf]

Originally posted by marstinson:

To into \Documents\Electronic Arts\The Sims 3 and delete the five *cache.package files in that directory. You should do this anytime you add or remove content (mods and CC included). The game will make new copies the next time you launch.

I tried this and it didnt work :(

[HiFive]

From my files on this topic:

Sims3 - Game Won't Start

https://steamcommunity.com/app/47890/discussions/0/3003298578162250101/

https://steamcommunity.com/app/47890/discussions/0/1488866180600282088/

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From another thread:

Originally posted by cruinne:

First thing to try:

1. Press the Windows key + e which should open File Explorer.
   
2. Open "Documents"
   
3. Open "Electronic Arts"
   
4. There you should find a folder named "The Sims 3". Change it's name to something else - such as "Old The Sims 3".
   
5. See if the game will start up.

If it does, you know that the problem is in your old user files - something corrupt, a bad mod, bad custom content, something.

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And here's an odd fix posted by someone:

I seem to have fixed the problem (although there may still be errors or bugs further on in the game). I am now able to run the game. The solution was to go to the game file under Program Files > Steam > steam > games. There I saw the Sims 3 Icon with a weird looking numerical name. I changed the name to The Sims 3 and now the game is running.

[HiFive]

Also, for me, a lot of my games fail to load because of a corrupted save file. I keep my own sequentially-numbered external save backups for a lot of my older games (including this one), and I'll load an old save and the problem will be fixed. So, you can try going into the Save folder, and remove your most recent save(s) (put it someplace safe just in case this isn't the issue) and see if the problem is fixed.

Hopefully, you have been using the "Save As" button for this game and already have sequentially-numbered saves in the regular game files. Never use the "Save" button for this game. It eventually creates corrupted saves, because it just edits the old save file, instead of replacing it.