Hello there,
my saved Sims 3 game keeps crashing while on the loading screen you get after you pick your saved game.

I tried all kinds of things to fix it (suggestions from this page and others), but nothing helped. I did not update my system, any drivers nor the game, neither did I install something. All I did was save my game on the computer, shut it down, took the computer to another room to reboot it a couple of minutes later and start the game again. Ever since then, the error occurs - without any error message.
The only thing I noticed being different is that I noticed the couple of times before the first crash happened, the game took much longer to save than usually.

What I tried so far to fix it is the following: I deleted all cache files, thumbnails and custom content (also in the DCCache folder). I started a completely new game and when I saved it and loaded it again it worked just fine. I also uninstalled and reinstalled the game with all add-ons I have and I tried running it on another computer. I booted it from Origin, the launcher and the TS3W.exe. I tweaked the options.ini and used CCleaner. Additionally, I did the DEP tweaks (I got an error message, though, when I tried adding "Sims3Launcher" saying I can't deactivate the DEP for it - I read somewhere else that it is normal to get that message, though). I tried to replace the files in my new game with my old ones. And lastly, I also tried the ErrorTrap but nothing happened (even though, here, I am not quite sure whether I used it correctly). I tried all things listed in your (still helpful ) FAQ (last edited on 5 January 2014).

Whatever I tried, I always got the same problem: The game crashes at the loading screen and I get an error message saying that the game does not work anymore.

Nothing has changed system-wise. I use Windows 10 and I have ran The Sims 3 on this computer and system for months now.
I do not have any old save from the game and I also did not move my family to the bin.

The last crash-free version I played the game on is the exact same I have now. I own the base game, world adventures, late night, generations, seasons, student life, showtime, high end stuff, outdoor stuff and 70/80/90s stuff. And my version is 1.69.43.024017.

Unfortunately, my best guess is that my save file is simply broken. I tried to find out whether it is, but I could not. I installed the Crash Log Analyzer from your page, but could not open it unfortunately. And I tried the Dashboard tool, but no file had a colourful background.

I would be so grateful if anyone could help me as I have invested so much time in my family.

(DCCache was your Sims3pack CC. I hope you are able to replace them.)

Yes, the save does sound corrupt. There should be one in the saved game folder with the same name and the .backup extension. That is the old save from before your most recent one. If it is there, you can remove .backup from the file name and see if that runs. (Not sure if you have already looked for it or not since it isn't an actual save anymore until the extension is changed.)

Error Trap just goes in your packages folder. It will try to spot and fix errors that cause crashing. It's fully automatic while you are loading a game. If you put it into the same setup where you had other .package CC working, you used it properly. If it didn't help, then it sounds as though your best bet is to hope the .backup is there and working.

Thank you so much for your help!

I did try your suggestion, I had not heard of that option before. But unfortunately, it did not work. Such a shame! I think the previous file was corrupted as well. I remember that saving took unusually long the last two or three times I saved.

In which folder exactly would I have to put ErrorTrap?

And are there any tools around with which I could fix that corrupted .nhd file?

Read http://simswiki.info/wiki.php?title...Setup_and_Files

If you've never had .package CC, there is a blue Download link about halfway down the page. Unzip that folder into your Documents Sims 3 folder. (Exactly as it tells you to in the article.)

Test it. It comes with nointro and nobuildsparkles. If the intro doesn't play and you don't see sparkles when building, you've got it set up properly.

Error Trap goes in the Packages folder (or a subfolder of Packages that you can make yourself) where the other two test mods are. (and you can remove them after you make sure they work.)

And I'm sorry, but I don't know of any tool that will edit that corrupted neighborhood, although if you had enough skill you might be able to poke around in it with something like S3PE and see what you can find. Or someone else might know of one that I don't.

I'm afraid that ErrorTrap, as helpful as it is, is probably not going to do any good on a game that refuses to load. The saved game and mods typically have to load first before ET can have a chance to kick in. Though of course it's worth a try if all else fails.

Sorry if this is way too simple, but you mentioned being on Patch 1.69. That means you are presented with your collection of EP/SPs on the Launcher every time you start up. That screen is now notorious for forgetting one's checkboxed choices in between game sessions. Is it possible you are trying to load up a game that has "seen" one or more EPs without those EPs being selected for use? That can certainly cause a saved, ongoing game to crash at loadup.