September 2021
@puzzlezaddict I actually have had two accounts merged years ago. This was never a problem on my old laptop when installing my games.
I just installed my drivers and opened this new laptop today so the list of Windows updates was long. I downloaded the Reliability Monitor file and attached it as that was much easier, I hope that was okay.
I use Norton. I have the Sims and Origin set as Allowed on the Firewall so that shouldn't be an issue.
September 2021 - last edited September 2021
@puzzlezaddictI don't know if this helps at all but this was in my Reliability report loads for my Sims 3 Launcher. Perhaps that was more the problem than just Origin as I also tried to load the game through my Razer Cortex and Nvidia with the same results, just opening and closing their application. In addition, I contacted EA support again who looked at my msinfo and said they saw something about my QT5Core. I ran a system file checker that now comes back with no errors and I can see I have the file, however the game is still not loading.
Problem Event Name: CLR20r3
Problem Signature 01: sims3launcher.exe
Problem Signature 02: 1.0.0.0
Problem Signature 03: 568d485b
Problem Signature 04: Sims3Launcher
Problem Signature 05: 1.0.0.0
Problem Signature 06: 568d485b
Problem Signature 07: 93b
Problem Signature 08: 129
Problem Signature 09: System.DllNotFoundException
OS Version: 10.0.19042.2.0.0.768.101
Locale ID: 1033
September 2021 - last edited September 2021
@itstoriduh @pixiedust222 and @gre3nleaf I've merged all your posts into one thread because you all have the same error, not only that Sims 3 won't open but the CLR20r3-related crash of the launcher .exe. In case anyone's curious, CLR = common language runtime, i.e. .NET, and 20r3 is Framework 3.5.
For the two of you that haven't tried it yet, please uninstall and reinstall .NET 3.5; I'll repost what I wrote earlier in this thread:
Please uninstall (if already installed) and reinstall .NET Framework 3.5. Hit Windows key-R, enter "appwiz.cpl" without quotes, and in the window that appears, click "Turn Windows features on or off." .NET 3.5 will be right at the top. If the box next to it is filled in, it's already installed; click it to uninstall, wait for it to finish, and restart your computer. Then repeat the above, except click the box to install the framework, then restart. If .NET 3.5 is not currently installed, just install it and restart.
If that doesn't help, and @itstoriduh I know it didn't help, please try uninstalling and reinstalling VC++ 2005 x86, which Sims 3 uses. Your Reliability Monitor report lists a few different attempts to reconfigure this runtime, and Microsoft released an update for it this year. Sims 3's installer would necessarily include a much older version, and it's possible that either the game isn't compatible with the newer version or that a fully updated Windows isn't compatible with the older version. Either way, it's easy to test.
Hit Windows key-i, select Apps, scroll down to the Microsoft Visual C++ 2005 Redistributable, click on it (it's the x86 version but won't specify), and select Uninstall. Don't touch any other versions, including 2005 x64 if you happen to have it. Then install the newest one from Microsoft:
https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/download/details.aspx?id=26347
You only need the x86 version, not the other two. Restart your computer and try to play.
If the launcher won't open, please repeat the above, but this time, instead of using the updated runtime from Microsoft, install the older version that came with Sims 3. Open the installer within the game's program files, by default located here:
Program Files (x86)\Origin Games\The Sims 3\__Installer\vc\vc2005sp1\redist
Right-click on vcredist_x86.exe and select "Run as administrator." Once it's installed, restart your computer and try to play.
September 2021
September 2021
I've tried running as administrator, running in compatibility mode, uninstalling and reinstalling Sims 3 AND Origin, nothing works. My Sims 3 Launcher won't open.
This is on a brand new SSD drive, with total reformat, so no old info to potentially be causing issues. I have used Revo Uninstaller each time that I have uninstalled Origin or Sims 3 during my attempts to get it operating.
Video Card is a NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1660.
Processor is an AMD Ryzen 5 3600X 6-Core Processor
Memory 16288MB RAMM
not even 10% of my 2 TB SSD is in use
During download of the game it keeps running out of download time and stopping, even though it is not done downloading . I have to pause it and restart it when it does this. I have it set to No Limit for download rate, not sure if that matters or not.
September 2021
@EcthalionMCB Please run a dxdiag and attach it to a post.
https://help.ea.com/en/help/pc/how-to-gather-dxdiag-information/
Please also let me know whether you've ever had two EA/Origin accounts merged.
September 2021
@itstoriduh Have you tried uninstalling and reinstalling the VC++ 2010 runtimes? Your Reliability Monitor reports show a few updates of those too, and while one is normal when you install Origin, more than one can indicate a problem. Same approach as before, but you need both x86 and x64:
2010 x86: https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/download/details.aspx?id=8328
2010 x64: https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/download/details.aspx?id=13523
If that doesn't help, I'm wondering whether the game itself works and only the launcher is the issue. You can bypass the launcher by renaming a few .exe files. First, make sure Origin is closed, not just X'd out, as in, check the Task Manager's background processes list for anything Origin-related. Open the game's Bin folder, by default located here:
Program Files (x86)\Origin Games\The Sims 4\Game\Bin
In order, rename these files:
Sims3Launcher.exe -> Sims3Launcher-old.exe
TS3.exe -> Sims3Launcher.exe
TS3W.exe -> TS3.exe
Open your Origin game library and press Play, and see whether the game loads. You wouldn't see the launcher, just a black screen followed by the intro. And of course you can undo the above changes whenever you want.
If you get an error when trying to rename the files, please post a screenshot.