Debugging the Sims 3

During the past few years being a part of the gaming community on Hive, I've tried several times to do a Legacy Challenge in the Sims 3.

The Legacy Challenge is simple: start a lonely Sim, purchase the largest block of land, build a shack with the few measly dollars you have remaining, then work to expand your home and family over time. While you're doing this you have a set of rules for determining your "heir" who will continue this family rags-to-riches story until, at last, you have a Generation Ten Sim on your hands!

I think I made it to generation three in my best playthrough, before my game crashed so hard it caused my savefile to completely vanish.

The Sims 3 is a buggy mess — even when using NRAAS mods like I've always done — and that's putting it mildly.

I decided to install the Sims 3 onto my brand new PC when I first got it and tried out starting a new Legacy Challenge, and my Founder sim hadn't even met her soulmate yet, hadn't been alive for an in-game week yet, when the game started playing up with invisible sims all over the damned place. I was really hoping that a fresh install on a fresh harddrive on a fresh computer would really just work, but alas.

I uninstalled it in a fit. XD

Then, today I reinstalled it. Because I'm a glutton for punishment.

Today is the day that I try and work this out once and for all! I will install every mod I can find, every patch, every THING, until I can at last do just one measly playthrough and get this Legacy Challenge completed once and for all!

First of all, here are the list of Important mods I've grabbed:

I normally grab NRAAS's Story Progression too but due to its aggressive-and-unwanted-matchmaking-all-single-Sims even when fine-tuned, I decided to stick with default.

Then I hopped into the files and increased RAM allocation to 4gb up from its measly 2. I could go higher, but being a 32bit game there's no point. I also allocated more VRAM.

And then, even though I don't believe it really matters, I forced this ancient game to recognise my modern graphics card.

(and, of course, I plan to launch the game without the annoying launcher in the background. AND, OF COURSE, I've capped fps to 60 since there's no fps cap in-game)

(I have image scaling on due to using a 4K monitor and wanting to actually see my otherwise tiny UI)

I also chose to not install: Into the Future, Island Paradise, or University Life.

There's more located at the following Steam Guide: https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?l=brazilian&id=1131162350.

But a few of the things there didn't seem relevant to me or I had already done in another manner. Hopefully this list of stuff may help others in the future. If you know of another mod/patch/thing that I've missed, please for the love of god tell meeeeeee so I can try it. (No point getting AwesomeMod — am already using a core mod)

Now I'm going to start a playthrough. The difference between this playthrough and all my others ones is simply previously I've only used NRAAS and capped my fps. This attempt has a LOTTTTT more going on to hopefully fix things.

If you start seeing Sims 3 posts in a week or so, you'll know that I'm cautiously optimistic about my progress. If you don't see any future Sims 3 posts, then you'll know this game, even when modded/fixed/patched, is a hot piece of garbage.

Until next time! 🔥dumpster fire emoji🔥

_{Fingers crossed really tightly.}

_{All screenshots in this post are courtesy of me, @kaelci.}