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Test Subject
Original Poster
#1 Old 23rd May 2017 at 7:49 PM

This user has the following games installed:

Sims 3, Ambitions, Late Night, Generations, Pets, Showtime, Supernatural, Seasons, University Life, Island Paradise
Default Sims often freeze while walking/running & it takes ages for them to do something!!!!!!!!!!
Hey, guys! Ever since I had The Sims 3, there was always this annoying problem that made my gaming experience a piece of garbage. Before I start explaining the problem itself, I'm gonna list some information about my PC.
OS: Windows 7 Ultimate SP1 32 bit
Processor: Intel(R) Pentium(R) 4 CPU 3.06 GHz
Installed memory(RAM): 2.00 GB
Display adapter: ATI Radeon HD 4650
Installed Sims 3 games: Late Night, Generations, Showtime, Supernatural, University Life.

Ok, now about my problem. As the title specifies, my sims often freeze for a few seconds while walking/running, especially when they approach a door. It seems like nothing or nobody else is frozen, just the sims that are walking/running. While they are frozen, their head moves, which is kind of creepy. Also, it takes ages for them to do something. Once, my sim's bladder was 30 sim-minutes left, the sim was so close to the bathroom, but he peed himself because he was just standing there, and when he started to head for the bathroom, it was too late. It should also be noted that any town or save loads after about 25 minutes.

I tried EVERY possible way of fixing the problem:
- I removed the caches, featured items, all DCBackup items except ccmerged, I also removed all my CC
- I tried programs like 3booter, GameBooster, FPS Limiter, CCCleaner
- I tried reinstalling all my games and playing a fresh new game
- I also have Master Controller, Overwatch and Register; they didn't improve my gaming performance AT ALL
- Resetting everything from cheat box AND from Master Controller didn't help either
- I set all the graphics to Low
- I closed background programs
- I tried playing in Windowed Mode

What should I do??? Please help

I attached a recorded video of my sim freezing at the door.
Attached files:
File Type: rar  Video-2.rar (3.07 MB, 16 downloads) - View custom content
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Mad Poster
#3 Old 23rd May 2017 at 10:39 PM
To expand on that a bit, Win 7 will use up a huge chunk of your RAM just to run itself. That won't leave much at all (if any) for the game to use. There is no solution to this involving mods or game tools, your computer needs more RAM or you need a stronger one on which to play this game.

And to do much of anything else. I've seen 32-bit systems running Win 7 on 2 GB total RAM before. Even web browsers and office type programs, although mostly stable, just don't run smoothly because there aren't enough resources to go around.
Test Subject
Original Poster
#4 Old 24th May 2017 at 6:00 AM
Quote: Originally posted by igazor
To expand on that a bit, Win 7 will use up a huge chunk of your RAM just to run itself. That won't leave much at all (if any) for the game to use. There is no solution to this involving mods or game tools, your computer needs more RAM or you need a stronger one on which to play this game.

And to do much of anything else. I've seen 32-bit systems running Win 7 on 2 GB total RAM before. Even web browsers and office type programs, although mostly stable, just don't run smoothly because there aren't enough resources to go around.


Hi, thank you for the answer. So how much RAM do you recommend me to add?
Test Subject
Original Poster
#6 Old 24th May 2017 at 7:11 AM
Quote: Originally posted by nitromon
Your system seems old, how much "can" you add? You need a min of 6 GB to play on Win 7, 8GB or more is recommended.


It says:
Minimum allowed: 16 MB
Recommended: 3069 MB

Will there be any changes of my gaming experience if I modify the maximum size?
Test Subject
Original Poster
#8 Old 24th May 2017 at 9:03 AM
Quote: Originally posted by nitromon
3GB is the max this motherboard can handle? Sorry, you won't see much improvement with that upgrade. As I've said, 6GB is bare min. (I mean, you will see "some" improvement, but as the game progresses you'll face the same issue.)

Win 7 OS + background processes will use up 1-2GB already, adding a 3rd GB will not help that much. TS3 can use up to 4GB. Win 7 OS start disc caching to the virtual swapfile when you are within 1GB RAM limit, this is why even with 6GB it is bare min, b/c if you have too much processes going you're looking at OS caching when your TS3 is reaching max RAM usage, which will lag the game.

8 is the recommended minimum. 3 is not going to make that much of a difference with 2.


Thank you for your informative reply! So what should I do now? What do you recommend me?
Test Subject
Original Poster
#9 Old 24th May 2017 at 9:29 AM
Quote: Originally posted by nitromon
3GB is the max this motherboard can handle? Sorry, you won't see much improvement with that upgrade. As I've said, 6GB is bare min. (I mean, you will see "some" improvement, but as the game progresses you'll face the same issue.)

Win 7 OS + background processes will use up 1-2GB already, adding a 3rd GB will not help that much. TS3 can use up to 4GB. Win 7 OS start disc caching to the virtual swapfile when you are within 1GB RAM limit, this is why even with 6GB it is bare min, b/c if you have too much processes going you're looking at OS caching when your TS3 is reaching max RAM usage, which will lag the game.

8 is the recommended minimum. 3 is not going to make that much of a difference with 2.


Also, will there be any improvement if I install the 64 bit version?
In the Arena
retired moderator
#10 Old 24th May 2017 at 1:13 PM
Quote: Originally posted by colesprouse63
....So what should I do now? What do you recommend me?
Recomendations would very much depends on the size of your budget. And are you aiming to upgrade the old or overhaul your hardware with a new PC?

Having said that, with a PC that old, I would not recommend upgrading it, even if your budget is "unlimited".
Test Subject
Original Poster
#12 Old 24th May 2017 at 4:20 PM
Ok, I will get a new computer. Any recommendations?
Instructor
#13 Old 24th May 2017 at 5:17 PM
Quote: Originally posted by colesprouse63
Ok, I will get a new computer. Any recommendations?


How about Core i9 ??
Instructor
#15 Old 24th May 2017 at 7:32 PM
If budget permits (after decent CPU + dedicated graphics), cram as much RAM as possible into your new system, create a RAM disk as per nitromon, and put as much of the game as possible onto the RAM disk. Fullbuild .package files can be symlinked from the game's installation directories, so theoretically, virtually the entire game can reside on a RAM disk, not just the user folder (although an Origin install of the game might be unsuitable for this setup).

The game is quite responsive when running off a 20GB RAM disk. (Many thanks to @nitromon for his thread on this topic.)

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Test Subject
Original Poster
#16 Old 24th May 2017 at 8:20 PM
Thank you all for the recommendations! <3
Test Subject
Original Poster
#17 Old 26th May 2017 at 9:06 AM
Quote: Originally posted by nitromon
Depending on your budget.

Min recommendation: Meaning it will let you play the game well without really any lags etc... You may have to settle for "medium" graphics setting. But this is a budget saver.
- Intel i3 2.4 GHz+ dual core or AMD equivalent (faster CPU would be better)
- Integrated Intel GPU or AMD equivalent (yes, modern integrated GPU will run the game fine.)
- 6GB of RAM
- Regular HDD, 5400 rpm

Suggested Recommendation: What "most" average users prefer.
- Intel i5 2.4GHz+ quad core or AMD equivalent (turbo usually to 3.2GHz. Quad core guarantees 2 cores dedicated to TS3)
- Dedicated GPU Nvidia level 5 or below, or AMD equivalent (level 5 is like 650,750,850,950,1050, etc...)
- 8GB of RAM (guaranteed not to hit the Winswap limit)
- Regular HDD (pref 7200 RPM)

Highest Gameplay Recommendation: If you got the $$
- Intel i7 2.6Ghz+ quad core or AMD equivalent (turbo at 3.6GHz, hyperthread to 8 cores)
- Dedicated GPU Nvidia level 6+ or AMD equivalent (like 960, 970,980,1060,1070, etc...)
- 16GB+ RAM (utilizing extra RAM for a ramdisk to store TS3 user folder)
- SSD (fast loading)


Hi. Me again. I think i'm going to go with the "average" users recommendation, but I have one more question: how can I make sure that the game won't suddenly crash? I mean a friend of mine has a Intel i3 laptop and after about 15 minutes of gameplay his game crashes. I suppose I need 128 RAM instead of 64 like him.
Test Subject
Original Poster
#19 Old 26th May 2017 at 10:13 AM
Quote: Originally posted by nitromon
Game can crash for various reasons - bad installation, corrupt mods, etc... there's no guarantee the game will not crash. You can reduce crashing by being careful about selecting your custom contents and mods, test them and properly categorizing them. Also install clean up mods and programs such as NRAAS mods and Kuree's cleaner to keep your game clean.

Btw, you don't have to pick 1 of the 3 above. They're just recommendations. You can mix and match whatever you like.


On my computer, I have like 409 mods + some store downloads and the game never crashes. My friend has just a little part of my mods collection and his game crashes if he has installed games like Island Paradise or Seaosns. Without them, the game doesn't crash for him. He has 64 ram instead of 128, so I think that's what causes crashing for him.
Test Subject
Original Poster
#21 Old 26th May 2017 at 5:27 PM
Quote: Originally posted by nitromon
The amount of mods is irrelevant. It is about "which" mods you have. He probably has some "broken" mods or outdated mods. That or his savegame is corrupted. Or there could be a number of things. It is too vague to simply say "it crashed." If you look through this help forum you can see various threads of many many many people who have game crashes for various reasons. If your friend like to, he can post a help request here and we can take a look at his system/game for him.

Also I'm not entirely sure what you mean 64 ram instead of 128. You only need 8GB.


I was talking about the amount of video card RAM. My friend can play without any crashes AND with mods installed if he doesn't have Seasons, Town Life or Island Paradise installed, games that require more than 64 mb of video card. How much amount of video card is the best recommendation to avoid any crashes? I wanna install all expansions and stuff packs(yes, even Katy Perry's Sweet Treats) on my new computer. Thank you for the responses!
Test Subject
Original Poster
#22 Old 26th May 2017 at 5:30 PM
Quote: Originally posted by nitromon
The amount of mods is irrelevant. It is about "which" mods you have. He probably has some "broken" mods or outdated mods. That or his savegame is corrupted. Or there could be a number of things. It is too vague to simply say "it crashed." If you look through this help forum you can see various threads of many many many people who have game crashes for various reasons. If your friend like to, he can post a help request here and we can take a look at his system/game for him.

Also I'm not entirely sure what you mean 64 ram instead of 128. You only need 8GB.


It should also be noted that my friend has only Late Night, Pets and Movie Stuff.
Test Subject
Original Poster
#24 Old 26th May 2017 at 9:31 PM
Quote: Originally posted by nitromon
Video RAM!?!? You need a min of 512MB for video ram! Not 64 or 128! And it is recommended to have 1GB. But even so, vram itself is not guaranteed to crash. I ran TS3 with many expansions before on an Intel 910m, which is really really old. But yes, not having sufficient VRAM could destabilize your game.

But any modern day GPU will come with minimal of 1GB, most with 2GB. Even if you go with the integrated GPU (meaning it is built in with your CPU), the Intel HD can use up to 1.7GB of shared video ram.

Again it is depending on your budget. If money is tight, AMD is the way to go. Otherwise, you might want to consider Intel for CPU and Nvidia for GPU, they're more compatible and less trouble. If you go with Nvidia, the middle number is the quality level, so a 950 is a mid-level card, which comes with 2GB Vram + another 2GB of shared vram, total of 4GB.

If you don't have money for a dedicated GPU like Nvidia or AMD dedicated GPU, Intel HD integrated and AMD integrated GPUs can play Sims 3 pretty well and steady, but they both utilize "shared VRAM," which takes from your RAM. In those cases, make sure you have at least 8GB RAM, b/c at least 1GB will be shared.

If you are buying something modern, within the past 4 yrs or so, you really don't have to worry about this. I haven't heard of 64MB or 128MB GPUs since ... oh... 2000?


Thank you again for everything! You are really a big help to me. ^_^
But will a 32 bit OS run the "average" users recommendation properly? Without any lags or crashes?
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