My sims won't work normally anymore! [ Edited ]

[Mx_Devilyn]

One day I opened my Sims 3 and it wouldn't let me open any of my worlds so I made a new one. When I try to save that one I have a code 16 error, even when I try to save it under a different name, and sometimes it won't let me save it and sometimes it will. My sim, Lidia, will not go to work, she went to work for a few days when I started but now the carpool never shows up even though it says it will come in an hour. It says her work is not in session yet, then when it hits 9 o'clock it says her work day is 1 day away. Her son, Myles, will not go to school and it doesn't even tell me his school bus will come in an hour anymore and it never has. I don't know what is wrong but I tried changing their career clothes and that didn't work and I tried deleting all my mods and saving and going into another town for a half an hour and coming back and that didn't work. A lot of people started showing up invisible and I only know that they are there because someone is talking to them or I see their thought bubble. I don't know what is wrong with my game anymore.

[puzzlezaddict · Accepted solution]

@Mx_Devilyn  There's a lot going on here.  First of all, did you switch saves at the Main Menu?  This is a common way to corrupt the second save you load—some data from the first save still remains and gets superimposed on the second save.  Any time you want to switch saves, you need to quit to desktop in between.

It's also a good idea to delete the five cache files in your Sims 3 user data folder (the one in Documents\Electronic Arts) any time you switch saves, or any time you're having trouble with the game.  They should be deleted regularly anyway too.  While you're troubleshooting this issue, please delete them every time you quit.  For reference, they are:

• CASPartCache.package
• compositorCache.package
• scriptCache.package
• simCompositorCache.package
• socialCache.package

Please reload this problem save, evict your sims in Edit Town and immediately put them back in their house, then use "save as" to rename the save, so you have a backup.  Quit (without saving, as a separate step), delete the cache files, reload, and see whether your sims can go to work and school.

If this doesn't help, repeat the process, except evict the sims, save their house to the in-game bin, bulldoze the lot, and replace the house, then move them back in.

If this doesn't help either, please list the mods you've been using, unless they contain adult content.  (You can just say the creator's name or something else that makes it clear what you're using.)  Please don't link the mods though.  I know you removed them, but some mods cause save corruption, and others have special removal instructions.

[puzzlezaddict · Accepted solution]

@Mx_Devilyn  There's a lot going on here.  First of all, did you switch saves at the Main Menu?  This is a common way to corrupt the second save you load—some data from the first save still remains and gets superimposed on the second save.  Any time you want to switch saves, you need to quit to desktop in between.

It's also a good idea to delete the five cache files in your Sims 3 user data folder (the one in Documents\Electronic Arts) any time you switch saves, or any time you're having trouble with the game.  They should be deleted regularly anyway too.  While you're troubleshooting this issue, please delete them every time you quit.  For reference, they are:

• CASPartCache.package
• compositorCache.package
• scriptCache.package
• simCompositorCache.package
• socialCache.package

Please reload this problem save, evict your sims in Edit Town and immediately put them back in their house, then use "save as" to rename the save, so you have a backup.  Quit (without saving, as a separate step), delete the cache files, reload, and see whether your sims can go to work and school.

If this doesn't help, repeat the process, except evict the sims, save their house to the in-game bin, bulldoze the lot, and replace the house, then move them back in.

If this doesn't help either, please list the mods you've been using, unless they contain adult content.  (You can just say the creator's name or something else that makes it clear what you're using.)  Please don't link the mods though.  I know you removed them, but some mods cause save corruption, and others have special removal instructions.

[Mx_Devilyn]

Unfortunately something is wrong with my laptop, as usual, and it won't turn on but once I get it to work I'll try all of this but I only used <removed> mods, Master Controller, Written Word, and I think one called Traffic. Thank you for the help though.

(CM: Edited to remove name of mod)