Game wont load - unsure why? Hello all, I know that "Crashing" is a common thread but I've tried almost everything on the help and FAQ threads and still don't know what's up. The problem is that when I try to load the game I see the splash screen then nothing. I've used various methods to load the game ie: from my desktop shortcut and from programs\EA games\Sims2. Any advice would be gratefully received. Here is the info from my Dxdiag: 1. Processor: Intel(R) Pentium(R) 4 CPU 3.00GHz (2 CPUs) 2. Memory: 1536MB RAM 3. Operating System: MS Window XP Professional (5.1, Build 2600) 4. Hard disc free space C: 51.1GB Total on C is 74.5GB 5. Hard disc free space D: 253GB Total on D is 298GB 6. DirectX Version: DirectX 9.0c (4.09.0000.0904) 7. Display Adapter: All-in-wonder 9800 Series 8. Display Driver Name - ati2dvag.dll Version 6.14.0010.6698 (English) Date: 18/05/2007 11:57:53 9. Approx Total Video Memory: 128.0 MB 10. Game Details: TS2 and all EPs plus Family Fun and Fashion. Only hack installed in Merola's painting. (which was removed prior to FFS & Fashion being installed) 11. Nature of problem: The story so far, am playing on PC with TS2 and have all EP's, however because I had not experienced many (if any) of the problems reported I stopped installing the patches as they were released. I recently purchased the H&M fashion stuff pack so thought it best to patch prior to playing. Because I always follow Mirelly's guides all is not lost, but I would like to understand what I have done wrong so that I don't go there again. After waiting so long to install the patches I became impatient to get it all done and I without thinking I installed the patches out of order Pets, OFB, Seasons. Not sure if this is relevant but want to paint the whole picture. I then installed the latest video driver. Followed by the Family Fun Stuff. I tested the game and all seemed to be working okay. I played a while then closed without saving. Then I applied the FFS patch. I tested again and it all worked. I then installed the Fashion Stuff Pack and when I went to test, the game wouldn't load. Sorry this is so long winded but I took the advice of "the more detail the better" literally. I wonder if the issue is to do with the Fashion Stuff pack? Any suggestions. thanks in advance.
Oh crikey. Just dragged meself out of bed ... gotta think about this. Thanks for so much detail, but so much needs some thinking about. Family Fun Stuff My instinct is to say put it on ebay and don't try to install it ... it was badly bugged when first released ... I don't have it on my PC and wouldn't take it as a gift ) It really does look like to me as though something got broke as a result of patching out of sequence, though why this has had a delayed effect would have to be classified as a mystery. Assuming that you have a safe copy of the game files prior to the installation of H&M Fashion Stuff and Family Fun Stuff packs. First I would fully uninstall the game (the manual uninstall). Then reinstall and apply each patch all in the original release order until you get back to your original installation status. (Obviously this will require leaving out FFS stuff pack which would normally install between NL and OFB if my memory is right). You can then restore your saved games and check the game still works ... :fingers_crossed: H&M seems not to be problematic and should install without error after that. Like I said, get rid of FFS though if you want to risk it, you could try adding it again and hope for the best ... (In theory it should not cause your saved games a problem if you were to install -- and patch -- FFS in the reinstall sequence. You had all the EPs so your saved games are already as fully modified as possible. If you really want FFS it's worth trying that, though the reinstall might fail to work and the task would have to be redone from the beginning.) Just some final thoughts/questions. By game not loading do you mean that the game fails to start up and reach the Neighborhood Chooser? Or that saved games (neighborhoods) will not load. Also describe the nature of the failure (crash to desktop, Windows message, game program just hangs up and stop responding, etc.) Be aware that the game will need the Seasons EP disc and be launched from the Seasons desktop shortcut (or Start >> EA Games >> The Sims 2 Seasons) after installing H&M Fashion Stuff. PS Before you do anything else try rebooting your PC. A total failure to start a Directx dependent game can occur if the graphics card has shut down unexpectedly. Only a reboot will fix this. LOL Trust me to think of the KISS (Keep It Simple Stupid) solution after thinking of all the com-diddley-cated ones )
Seems to be working now but ... Thanks so much for your advice. I had my suspicions about Family Fun Stuff, which was why I had it for so long before installing it. I'd forgotten it was buggy and got greedy for new items. Funnily enough it was given to me as a gift. I'll uninstall it. When I say that my game is crashing, I mean that after clicking on the shortcut (or any other start up method) the Sims Seasons graphic appears on the screen, then nothing. Because my machine is getting slower and slower I thought it was normal but the game didn't load. No error message, nothing to indicate that I'd even tried to open the game. I tried 6 or 7 more times each with the same result. I tried it again after rebooting my machine a couple of times and while it was slow the game eventually loaded. I think this is a sign that I need to rebuild my PC and that means a clean install. Thanks for the link, I'm going to need it. Thanks again
Ok... just had the same problem, this is the second time its happened to me and the solution was easy, all I needed to do was delete the cache files and all is well again They're found in C:\Documents and Settings\...\My Documents\EA Games\The Sims 2 The files to delete are Groups.cache and Accessory.cache Don't worry, these files get regenerated when the game loads so it won't do any damage when you delete them.
