Lagging

[LoolaHoop87]

Sims 4 ps4... Why is it lagging so badly and taking an extremely long time to load? 

In game I can tell my sims to do something and they'll just stand there for in game hours before doing it or not at all! I've also find that the controls are not working properly switching between sims in my household. Even to the point that the grim paid a visit and I gave him a death flower and he bought the sim back to life after waiting 3 in game hours..?! 😵 Even though it said it on my notification wall. This also happens a lot the notifications will show when the sims haven't even done what it says yet! Help it's annoying me so much! 

[SheriGR]

@LoolaHoop87 Sounds very frustrating and difficult to play and enjoy. I will suggest some things I would try in this case. Please let me know how it goes.

Do you have CC or Mods? Many were broken with the patch (In November?). 

You can remove them and add them back one by one to see if one of them is causing it.

Spoiler

Troubleshooting Mods and CC

• Access the mods from the folder on your game/machine at: Go to Documents > Electronic Arts > The Sims 4 > Mods
• Save a copy of the folder to your desktop before emptying the one in your game so you can re-add from the old folder. 

Make and store a backup before doing anything.

Spoiler

If you have a backup you can roll back to a date/version without the issue if you have a bug/glitch issue come up, or something's missing, etc. and not completely lose your game...

How to back up your game file:

Go to Documents > Electronic Arts > The Sims 4. Right click on the folder "The Sims 4", copy it. This folder is your backup of your game saves, etc. You should save a copy of this folder occasionally in case your game or computer crashes. Save it to an external drive (in case your computer crashes - yes, I've had that happen a number of times also). On an external drive it is safe from that. That way you could add this folder into a fresh install and recover your lost game should you need to.

When/if you need to overwrite the folder (missing content, grave error, bugs, etc.), just go back to Documents > Electronic Arts and drag/paste the "The Sims 4" folder you saved into the "Electronic Arts" folder and tell it to replace (not merge) the current "The Sims 4" folder.

Did you try a game repair?

Open Origin, click 'Game Library' then right-click Sims 4 > Repair Game.

You could also try removing cache afterwords. If these two don't fix it you could save your game and tray files and drop them into a fresh game install. Directions for each below:

• Instructions on deleting the cache correctly: https://sims4.crinrict.com/en/2014/09/delete-cache-files/

Last Resort: Reset the Game

Spoiler

This gives instructions on another method of saving a current backup to use the doing the game reset. I wouldn't go as far as to do the reset unless the other options are not working. but you can try it:

https://sims4.crinrict.com/en/2014/09/resetting-the-game-to-factory-settings-without-reinstalling/

IF the issues may be related to your computer being overwhelmed by the game (did you check to see if your computer has more than enough memory, ram, etc to run the game well?) 
https://www.pcgamesn.com/sims-4/sims-4-recommended-system-requirements-can-you-reticulate-splines

Spoiler

If your computer is being pushed to the limits to run the game, below are some things that may help...

Slow/crashing game:

If you get the game to run (get all minimum requirements up to the minimums) you can do a few things to help it run better (to reduce load times and crashing)... Sims is a bit of a beast if you don't have a gaming computer or a lot of power/memory. Try some of these things to help a bit:

• Move the vast majority of your docs, video, images, etc., to an external drive on your computer (get one that is 2TB or bigger). Just run your computer with it plugged in. (Hint: make sure you have a 2nd matching external drive to back up that drive. I learned this the hard way... when both my computer and my backup drive died a day from each other. Seriously.) This will free up a lot of space for the game to run, plus will protect your files if the computer crashes. Run your game from the files that it installs on your computer. 
• Keep a backup copy of your game on your external drive. See backup creation instructions above.
• Clear off anything that is a large file from your desktop and trash. These slow down the computer.
• Go through and compress and do any efficiency cleanups you can on your computer.
• In the game, before playing, modify your settings to simplify the size and resolution of the running game. Reduce resolution, audio and video/visual/function settings. Be merciless. Clear out some things you will never use that come with the game. Reduce somewhat the 'extras' (people and content). Don't go too crazy with this or you will mess with your community dynamics.
• If you are on a laptop, get a fan to cool it (the kind you sit it on). Give it breaks. Save frequently if the game crashes occasionally. 

 Hope some of this may be useful. Happy gaming!

[crinrict]

Hi @LoolaHoop87 

moving this post to the tech forum