[NEED INFO] Problems playing Sims 4 on the 16" MacBook Pro

[cebart73]

I don't know if my issue belongs here or if I should start a new thread, so I'll do both. I haven't played in a while and I don't have the Star Wars pack.

I have everything else though, and I do not and have never had any mods.

I have a new 16" Macbook Pro 2019. 

The game seemed to play fine, but edge scrolling wasn't working. I was turned on, so I went looking for a solution.

I came across a post that said edge scrolling doesn't work in work in windowed mode. I always play in fullscreen, so I didn't think this was the issue.

I went searching in my settings to make sure edge scrolling was turned on (it was), and discovered that the game said I was playing in windowed mode, when I was really playing in fullscreen mode.

SO, I tried changing it to fullscreen mode about 50 times, fiddling with the settings each time. Nothing works. I keeps reverting to Windowed mode 1,600x1,200 no matter what I do. And even though it always says its in Windowed mode 1,600x1,200--sometimes it appears as if its in fullscreen, and sometimes it actually is in windowed mode. But it always says it's in windowed mode no matter what's going on on screen.

And yes, I tried the option/command F command (or whatever the right buttons are), and yes, that will take the game into fullscreen mode after a lot of bizarre black flickering, but the game still thinks its in windowed mode, so edge scrolling still doesn't work.

And yes, I've also tried the factory reset option which has helped some people. AND I've even tried going into Options.ini like some troubleshooting instructions directed, and I changed the number after fullscreen from 0 to 1. That still didn't help.

The issue persists. At this point, I don't know what else to do. I've tried everything, and I cannot get edge scrolling to work at all because the game refuses to come out of windowed mode, or it refuses to recognize that it IS in fullscreen mode and instantly reverts back to windowed mode no matter what I do.

It's very frustrating since I bought the Knitting pack and I have yet to be able to play with it at all! And I'm not gonna buy the Star Wars pack or any future expansion, etc. if I can no longer use edge scrolling while playing on my laptop! 

[cebart73]

I haven't played in a while and I don't have the Star Wars pack. I have everything else though, and I do not and have never had any mods. I have a new 16" Macbook Pro 2019. 

The game seemed to play fine, but edge scrolling wasn't working. Edge scrolling was turned on, but it still wouldn't work,  so I went looking for a solution.

I came across a post that said edge scrolling doesn't work in work in windowed mode. I always play in fullscreen, so I didn't think this was the issue.

I went searching in my settings to make sure edge scrolling was turned on (it was), and discovered that the game said I was playing in windowed mode, when I was really playing in fullscreen mode.

SO, I tried changing it to fullscreen mode about 50 times, fiddling with the settings each time. Nothing works. I keeps reverting to Windowed mode 1,600x1,200 no matter what I do. And even though it always says its in Windowed mode 1,600x1,200--sometimes it appears as if its in fullscreen, and sometimes it actually is in windowed mode. But it always says it's in windowed mode no matter what's going on on screen.

And yes, I tried the option/command F command (or whatever the right buttons are), and yes, that will take the game into fullscreen mode after a lot of bizarre black flickering, but the game still thinks its in windowed mode, so edge scrolling still doesn't work.

And yes, I've also tried the factory reset option which has helped some people. AND I've even tried going into Options.ini like some troubleshooting instructions directed, and I changed the number after fullscreen from 0 to 1. That still didn't help.

The issue persists. At this point, I don't know what else to do. I've tried everything, and I cannot get edge scrolling to work at all because the game refuses to come out of windowed mode, or it refuses to recognize that it IS in fullscreen mode and instantly reverts back to windowed mode no matter what I do.

It's very frustrating since I bought the Knitting pack and I have yet to be able to play with it at all! And I'm not gonna buy the Star Wars pack or any future expansion, etc. if I can no longer use edge scrolling while playing on my laptop! 

[Bluebellflora]

@cebart73

At this point there probably isn't much you can do but try the suggestions in the opening post from other users.

[pureneon]

@Bluebellflora Thought I'd post again to +1 the Big Sur "fix". Gameplay has been smooth so far after 3+ hours.

[pureneon]

Hi @cebart73, I haven't read any other threads relating to the issue but I thought I'd reply with how I fixed this happening for me.

When in windowed mode, did you happen to click this button (the green expand button) by any chance? I've found that this can mess it up and have been able to reverse it by reverting it back to windowed (via OS) and then changing back to fullscreen via the game.

[mattwomsley]

Having the same issues. 

2019 16” pro

AMD Radeon Pro 5500M 

8gb graphics

I have tried:

moving the folder out of documents

Repairing the game through origin

Restarting origin and computer

turning iCloud off

lowering In game graphics

Turning off origin when in game

uninstalling the game and it's add ons and reinstalling it all 

when I have tried to build mode a new file it now just crashes 

[joho1144]

I never post anywhere, but since I’m so excited to have possibly found a solution that could help some of you, I wanted to share it immediately. I was on the verge of losing it with Apple, since I upgraded my Macbook Pro 2015 (nothing wrong with it) to get the new 16" with 64GB memory -5600AMD Radeon, I was eager to see the new graphics, performance and fps.  Instead the game continued crashing and performed progressively worse and then even my MBP itself began crashing. 

Let me preface by saying, I don't think the problem has anything to do with EA or the game etc. I do believe there is an issue with the AMD drivers and the "dynamic switching" /power *& Battery performance settings. My own conspiracy theory is that in order to satisfy some of the loud and overheating issues on these new laptops, there may be some limitations in the power management out of the box settings (and possibly behind the scenes) or settings that are incompatible with the radeon 5600, so it automatically fails over to the Intel gpu as soon as there's an issue. Note: This is based on my own unsolicited and unsubstantiated investigation, so basically. a gut feeling. :D The following are the things I tried and ultimately fixed my issues:

• The OS:  Upgraded to Big Sur based on Bluebellflora's advise (I don't believe this had anything to do with my particular issue), but I don't mind the interface after all, so I kept it) 
• The GPUs:  My MBP has dual GPUs: "discrete" gpu AMD Radeon 5600 and the "integrated" GPU Intel UHD Graphics 630 (if you need to confirm whether you have dual graphics cards, go to the apple logo on the top left hand side and select about this Mac, then select system report/graphics)
• The 1st. Fix attempt: From system Preferences/Battery/Battery and Power Adapter, I unchecked all items there, to test and disabled automatic graphics switching, to keep MBP from reverting to the Integrated GPU . This didn’t work. Despite the graphics switching remaining unchecked (disabled), the computer was still switching to the Integrated GPU
• The Program needed: I finally found a program called gfxCardStatus (vetted as safe and stable), which allowed for the user to select the desired GPU
• The Actual Fix: As soon as I selected “discrete only” in the new program, the performance improvement was significant, not just graphics, but also the amount of time it took for the system to launch (I do use CC). The game has been working without any lags, crashes or strange object behaviors, I witnessed before. 
• The quality of the graphics is incredible, even when my game options are all set to high; I could probably select Ultra, but since I still have troubleshooting ptsd, I will NOT be rocking the boat anytime soon :P

This may not apply to you or solve your issues, but I was thankful for any troubleshooting guidance people posted, even if it didn’t work.  Good luck! If anything changes, I will update accordingly. Fingers crossed, nothing changes. (See attached screenshot of gfxCardStatus for your reference) Cheers!

[Bluebellflora]

@joho1144 

Wow, if that's the issue it really needs fixing. Something has gone awry with the OS and game recognising it requires more oomph. Can you check in Activity Monitor to see if it's switching whilst the game is loaded? https://support.apple.com/en-gb/HT202053

Also great that gfxCardStatus is still working, I don't think it has been updated in years.

I've merged your post into the ongoing 16" MacBook Pro thread so the others active in this thread can try the workaround. The iMacs and iMac Pros with current Vega issues don't have integrated and dedicated GPUs.

Thanks for posting! Hopefully others will see and report back too

Edit - just wanted to add, have you contacted Apple about the dedicated card toggle not sticking?

[kbee907]

@joho1144 

You are a genius!!! After patrolling this page for days on end, your solution for me worked! I had tried everything everyone suggested 30+ plus times. You get a BIG thank you from me!! I also never post anywhere either but this is necessary as I have spent countless hours trying to fix my game.

What I did and I HOPE this works for other people- I went to system preferences/battery/battery and power adapter and unchecked the automatic graphics switching box. Mine does work for some reason and doesn't revert back. But if your does revert, I would download the program they are talking about. I loaded up the game and switched all my settings for the highest and best possible graphics capable to test it, because this brand new laptop ~should~ be able to handle it!! I went into a household and spun the camera around for 5 minutes straight in all different directions. It did NOT produce the spinning wheel, glitch, freeze, crash, or anything. Which it would have before in the first 10 seconds of loading in. It's running as smooth as ever now. I will continue to play, and if something goes wrong again I will report back. But, no news is good news. I really do hope this works for everyone else because I just about pulled my hair out. 

Thank you again @joho1144

[Bluebellflora]

@kbee907

Great! If you get the chance could you re-enable automatic graphics switching, open Activity Monitor then load the game and see if you can see it switching between the integrated and dedicated card?