TS3 Clean Start for Steam and Origin (PC only)

That's right, it's 2019 and I'm here to bring you a life-changing Sims 3 mod. Please read the full description!

If you've been playing Sims 3 for a while, you've inevitably run into problems getting the game to launch or load, and subsequently found the advice to delete the cache files. Ever since then, you've probably gotten used to going in and cleaning out those files when the game gets finicky, or even making it part of your routine every. single. time. you launch the game. At least, that's what I was doing.

Restrictions:

This .cmd file was designed to automatically purge your unnecessary cache files, which lessens the inevitable savegame bloat and helps reduce load times. The file as-is ONLY works for Steam on PC. Big thanks to mrcnlbyrk, who told me how to redeem my CD Keys in Origin. There is now an Origin version! It doesn't matter where your game is installed, but the program assumes your "Electronic Arts" folder is under your user profile, which is the default on Windows. It should look something like this: "[your username]\My Documents\Electronic Arts\The Sims 3" This program absolutely will not work on Mac, sorry.

I've had a few people express interest in a version for an out-of-box game. I'm going to look into this as soon as I can find my CD copy (and an external CD drive...), but for now I have uploaded a version that only cleans out the files and does not open a launcher. You will have to manually launch the game after running the NoLaunch .cmd. If you have Steam or Origin installed, please read the instructions below to choose which version is best for you.

The attached images are the entirety of the code for this file. No more, no less. I know how scary it is to use new program files, so I want this to be as transparent as possible. You can use your favorite text reader program to open and check it yourself. I use Notepad++, and regular Notepad is another great option.

Installation/how it works:

Step 0: Make sure you have Steam or Origin running!

1. Extract the file from the .7z. You'll see a single file called "CleanStartSims3Steam.cmd" or "CleanStartSims3Origin.cmd"
2. Navigate to wherever you installed your game and put the .cmd into the "\game\Bin" folder with all the .exe files. (TS3.exe, Sims3Launcher.exe, etc.)
3. Double-click the Clean Start .cmd

At this point the .cmd will automatically delete the following items:

• CasPartCache.package

• compositorCache.package

• scriptCache.package

• simCompositorCache.package

• socialCache.package

• FeaturedItems

• WorldCaches

AND, if they exist:

• in DCCache: missingdeps.idx and dcc.ent

• in Downloads: everything ending in ".bin"

• in SIgsCache: everything ending in ".bin"

• in SavedSims: Downloadedsims.index

• IGACache

• in Thumbnails: everything ending in ".package" and every associated thumbnail (thumb_*.png)

If you're using the Origin or Steam versions, it will then pull up the TS3 Launcher. This may take a couple minutes! Essentially, it just presses the "Run game" button you normally use through Steam or Origin, and the Launcher takes its own sweet time to pop up. This does not affect your game files in any way. In order to get it to work, you must run the .cmd directly. It can be run from the folder where you installed it, or from a shortcut placed anywhere on the computer. If you don't want the .cmd to pull up a launcher, see below.

4. Hit the "play" button in the Launcher. The game will create new, clean cache files.

For people who don't want to use this .cmd as a launcher: The game creating new cache files has absolutely nothing to do with the .cmd itself. If you'd prefer, you can download the file labeled "NoLauncher" and run it just to clean out your folders. This alternative simply removes the "run game" line from the end. The Steam and Origin versions are only tied to the game's launcher because it makes it so much easier and more convenient to remember to delete the junk files.

An additional note:



I put this together from the perspective of someone who does a lot of modding, so I prioritized clearing out redundant/broken images over these load times. I've added versions that do not delete the thumbnails (check out the "NoThumbs" versions on the download page). If you'd rather not wait for the game to repopulate the images every time you launch CAS (understandable), download one of those.

If you'd rather edit it yourself, right-click the .cmd, hit "edit" or open it in an editing program, and delete the lines:

cd "%USERPROFILE%\My Documents\Electronic Arts\The Sims 3\Thumbnails"
del /f /q *.package
del /f /q thumb_*.png

Then just hit "save" and the edits are complete! Thank you for the comment jwofles.

Uninstallation:

If you decide you don't want to use it, just delete the "CleanStartSims3.cmd" and start the game however you normally start it. Running this program is exactly like going in and manually deleting all the caches and junk files, just faster and more convenient.

I've been running the game through this .cmd for months now, so I can vouch for it wholeheartedly.

Optional prettification:

This is an addition by my roommate, who likes to have things look organized and pretty. If you'd like your icon to look this this:



instead of this:



here's how:

Right click the shortcut and go to properties. Under the shortcut tab, click change icon. Browse to your sims EXEs. Choose one of them or Sims3.ico, and hit OK.

These instructions are also included in the body of the program.