Re: Sims 3 screen flickering

by monkeysoup11
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Original Post

Accepted Solution

Sims 3 screen flickering

★★★ Novice

I've been playing the Sims 3 forever and I recently downloaded it to my new PC. I had been playing for about a month when all of a sudden yesterday my top half of the screen started flickering pretty badly. It doesn't happen when it's in windowed mode but I honestly can't take playing like that anymore. I'm 99.9% it isn't my custom content or my mods and it probably has something to do with my graphics but I have no clue about any of that. Any help would be appreciated 😊

Message 1 of 19 (32,128 Views)

Accepted Solution

Re: Sims 3 screen flickering

@monkeysoup11  Alright, I see a couple of things here.  The first might not be directly related to TS3, but it's worth addressing anyway—your computer has tried and failed to update Windows at least ten times recently.  You really should let it do so.  The update might take a while, especially if you've skipped one, so be prepared to wait.

 

You're right that you're probably having graphics issues.  Your computer has only an integrated card, and not a particulary powerful one at that.  I don't know which packs you have installed, but I'd expect your card to struggle with Pets, Seasons, ITF and IP.  How well it would run the other EPs would depend on your graphics settings and your playstyle.

 

It should also be noted that with only 6 GB of RAM, you shouldn't try to run anything while playing TS3.  The game can only use ~3.5 GB memory by itself, but Windows will need at least 1.5 GB as well.  If you're online or playing music or anything that requires any significant memory, you're running the risk of hitting your computer's RAM limit.

 

You'll also need to make sure your computer isn't overheating; HP isn't known for the effectiveness of its cooling systems.

 

To protect your card, you'll need to lower your graphics settings, particularly water and high detail lots.  I have a strong dedicated card and keep these at "mirror only" and 2, respectively.  You may need to experiment with lowering the other settings as well.

 

Playing in windowed mode will also help.  If you can't stand the typical window and user interface size, you could look into Windowed Borderless Gaming.

 

https://westechsolutions.net/sites/WindowedBorderlessGaming/

 

An integrated card like yours isn't capable of throwing high frame rates, so an outside fps limiter wouldn't normally be necessary.  But you might try using one like RivaTuner Statistics Server (free download) to see whether it can address the flickering, especially if windowed mode isn't enough.  RTSS needs to be running in the background, but it takes up hardly any resources, and it might help here.

 

Ultimately, though, your computer really isn't built for running even a moderately demanding game like TS3.  Unfortunately, you might not be able to get a satisfactory experience playing on this system, no matter what you do.

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I don't work for EA. I'm just trying to help fellow players with their games.

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Message 6 of 19 (32,018 Views)

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Re: Sims 3 screen flickering

@monkeysoup11  It would be really helpful if you could run a dxdiag and attach it here (use the "browse" button).  The cause of the flickering, and what to do about it, will depend on your hardware.

 

https://help.ea.com/en-us/help/pc/how-to-gather-dxdiag-information/

——————————————————————————————————————————

I don't work for EA. I'm just trying to help fellow players with their games.
Message 2 of 19 (32,054 Views)

Re: Sims 3 screen flickering

★★★ Novice
I ran the dxdiag but it doesn't seem to let me upload it
Message 3 of 19 (32,045 Views)

Re: Sims 3 screen flickering

@monkeysoup11  When you're typing a response, you should see a Browse button right below the text field and above the Preview and Submit buttons.  Clicking Browse should let you navigate to whatever file you'd like to upload.  A dxdiag shouldn't take up too much data; people upload them all the time.  But if there's something wrong with the file itself, you can always trash it and run another one.

——————————————————————————————————————————

I don't work for EA. I'm just trying to help fellow players with their games.
Message 4 of 19 (32,035 Views)

Re: Sims 3 screen flickering

★★★ Novice

Here ya go 

Message 5 of 19 (32,032 Views)

Re: Sims 3 screen flickering

@monkeysoup11  Alright, I see a couple of things here.  The first might not be directly related to TS3, but it's worth addressing anyway—your computer has tried and failed to update Windows at least ten times recently.  You really should let it do so.  The update might take a while, especially if you've skipped one, so be prepared to wait.

 

You're right that you're probably having graphics issues.  Your computer has only an integrated card, and not a particulary powerful one at that.  I don't know which packs you have installed, but I'd expect your card to struggle with Pets, Seasons, ITF and IP.  How well it would run the other EPs would depend on your graphics settings and your playstyle.

 

It should also be noted that with only 6 GB of RAM, you shouldn't try to run anything while playing TS3.  The game can only use ~3.5 GB memory by itself, but Windows will need at least 1.5 GB as well.  If you're online or playing music or anything that requires any significant memory, you're running the risk of hitting your computer's RAM limit.

 

You'll also need to make sure your computer isn't overheating; HP isn't known for the effectiveness of its cooling systems.

 

To protect your card, you'll need to lower your graphics settings, particularly water and high detail lots.  I have a strong dedicated card and keep these at "mirror only" and 2, respectively.  You may need to experiment with lowering the other settings as well.

 

Playing in windowed mode will also help.  If you can't stand the typical window and user interface size, you could look into Windowed Borderless Gaming.

 

https://westechsolutions.net/sites/WindowedBorderlessGaming/

 

An integrated card like yours isn't capable of throwing high frame rates, so an outside fps limiter wouldn't normally be necessary.  But you might try using one like RivaTuner Statistics Server (free download) to see whether it can address the flickering, especially if windowed mode isn't enough.  RTSS needs to be running in the background, but it takes up hardly any resources, and it might help here.

 

Ultimately, though, your computer really isn't built for running even a moderately demanding game like TS3.  Unfortunately, you might not be able to get a satisfactory experience playing on this system, no matter what you do.

——————————————————————————————————————————

I don't work for EA. I'm just trying to help fellow players with their games.
Message 6 of 19 (32,019 Views)

Re: Sims 3 screen flickering

★★★ Novice
Thank you for all of that information! I will definitely see to it that my windows get upgraded.
Message 7 of 19 (32,013 Views)

Re: Sims 3 screen flickering

★★★ Newbie
@monkeysoup11 has anyone fixed this problem
Message 8 of 19 (26,606 Views)

Re: Sims 3 screen flickering

@Deleciam30  Some people have fixed the issue, although it can also be stubbornly persistent.  How to do so depends on the specs of your computer, and it's worth checking a few other details as well.  So please run a dxdiag and attach the results to a post.

 

https://help.ea.com/en-us/help/pc/how-to-gather-dxdiag-information/

 

Please also check your in-game frame rates.  Open the cheats console (crtl-shift-C) and enter "fps on" without quotes.  A number will appear in the upper right corner of the screen; let me know what it is, or rather, the range you see while you play.  ("fps off" makes the number go away.)  If it's too high, or if it fluctuates too much, there are a few steps you can take to bring it under control, depending on your graphics card.

——————————————————————————————————————————

I don't work for EA. I'm just trying to help fellow players with their games.
Message 9 of 19 (26,595 Views)

Re: Sims 3 screen flickering

★★★ Newbie

Hi I had the same issue but I solved it by going to options at the bottom while on the game and on the graphics settings you will see an option called edge smoothing slide that bar to high click the tick at the bottom and no more flickering let me know how you get on all the best becks xx

Message 10 of 19 (26,130 Views)