I just downloaded the CAW Betta program, and the download went as smooth as silk, but when I try and run the installed program, I get the following error message:

"The current version of The Sims 3 does not match the current version of The Sims 3 Create a World Tool - Beta: Please patch the game to continue."

My game version is 2.3.33.003002. That IS the most recent game version out there, is it not?

Thats the WA EP right? I think you need the base game updated to.

Yes, I do have World Adventures. However, I was not aware that I also needed to update the base game separately... I mean, since World Adventures it built upon and is thus part of the base game, wouldn't it make sense that an update to WA also be an update to the base game?

Stupidly as it may sound, you have to update to both patches, 1.8 AND 2.3 .

Go figures what on earth EA has on its figurative head. :-P

Huh. Okay, I just downloaded and updated my base game to 1.8.25, but as I was doing so, it said that my game was already at that version, and it asked if I want to "update" anyway. I said yes, and did. When I go to CAW, the same error message shows. Huh?

What exactly do you mean by downloaded and updated your base game? Do you mean you uninstalled and re-installed your game, then patched base game to 1.8.25? Downloading is bringing something from the internet to your computer. Uploading is bringing something from the computer to the internet. Putting a piece of software on your computer via disc is installing. I'm sorry to be nit-picky, but if a person doesn't use the proper terms, the rest of us have no idea what they're talking about.

I would do the following:
Back up all necessary game files.
Completely uninstall the game and expansion pack.
Install game.
Update with latest patch.
Install expansion pack.
Update with latest patch for that.

Now try running C-A-W. If it doesn't work, uninstall and reinstall it. Perhaps for some reason it isn't properly picking up the version info for the game.

Okay, sorry if I was confusing. But first of all, I want to clarify that my Sims 3 game and the World Adventures expansion pack are not newly bought. They are used; I bought them from GameStop. (If I knew that I would always have all this trouble by not being able to download anything from thesims3.com -- the game came without a serial code, and I have already tried to call GameStop and ask them for one, with no luck -- I would have spent the extra cash to buy a brand spankin' new base game and WA EP.) So, as it is, I feel like a pirate, surfing the web to download updates and whatnot; this is how, if your wondering, I downloaded CAW in the first place.

So, with that out of the way, this is what I did:

1) Searched for in google, found, and downloaded the file Sims3_1.8.25.003002_from_1.7.9.002002

2) Double clicked, clicked Run, and was greeted with the message,

"The current version of The Sims 3 does not match the current version of The Sims 3 Create a World Tool - Beta: Please patch the game to continue."
"The setup has detected that version 1.8.25 of The Sims 3 is already installed.

This setup updates The Sims 3 to the same version that is already installed, therefore this update is not needed.

Do you want to install the update anyway?"

2) I clicked yes.

3) It "updated" (put in quotations because like the message said, the update version was already installed) and then it told me that the update is complete, and I clicked finish.

4) I went to my desktop, double clicked on The Sims™ 3 Create a World Tool - Beta, and was greeted with the same error message as before, stating, "

5) I clicked ok, as it was the only thing I could do.

Hope this clarifies things!

I understand. Things like this are one of the biggest pains in the backside when it comes to PC games. Criminy, you could have picked up a brand new copy of TS3 online for anywhere from $20 to $30. I even saw some at Costco one day for $20. A lot of retail stores still have them at ridiculously high prices but the internet is by far the best barometer for what a person should be paying for something like that. Live and learn, I guess. Goodness knows I've done my share of that.

So, if you don't have a code at all, you had to download a pirated version of the game to be able to play it then, because no code means no installation on your computer. When you got the game, what did it come with? It should have been in a DVD case with a small manual, and the code would be on that manual.

If you have no code, of course GameStop couldn't provide one. EA is the only place that can give a person a new registration code. You need to call them and explain the situation.

It's experiences like this that assure I only buy used games from sources I can rely on, and generally speaking I only buy used platform games. I may wait a good long while on a game for my PC just so I can get it at a price I can afford, but most of the time used games just don't work out.

Okay, I can't do this anymore; you seem like a nice person, and I don't want to lie to you anymore. Besides, even though its across the internet and thus totally impersonal, I feel like a total duche lying to another fellow person who's kind enough to take their time out of their day to help my sorry ass out.

I am deeply sorry. I did not buy a used version, I didn't buy anything at all. I pirated the thing. That is why my serial code works while installing, but it does not work on thesims3.com website.

Well then my advise is to go out and buy a copy, such a version is not worth the hassle and you'll miss out on all the great things such as new eps new updates etc. Anyway this thread will likely be locked soon so good luck!