The Sims 4 - Low FPS (Lagging) Issues since December 2019 Update

[BoyCarat17]

Hello, I need major help! I've been binge playing The Sims 4 since last year with a normal FPS! However... ever since the Discover University update and my game crashed once, the FPS that my Sims game used to have suddenly dropped and continuously lagged. I attempted using the solutions that EA Help on Twitter told me and other Youtube How-To videos, but it just won't work. Even without the internet connection, the low FPS / lagging issues continued affecting my game this year and slowly lost my interest playing it. 

Anyone please give me any suggestive tips or solutions that I could help get my Sims 4 game back in normal FPS / game performance.

[puzzlezaddict]

@BoyCarat17  Please test in a clean user data folder while playing with your computer completely offline, just to set a baseline.  Move your entire Sims 4 folder out of Documents\Electronic Arts and onto your desktop, and when you launch the game, a clean folder will spawn the next time you launch the game.  Don't add anything to it; just start a new save and see how it runs in live mode.  Let me know what kind of fps you see, and what graphics settings you're using.

Please also run a dxdiag, upload it to a free filesharing site, and link it here.  This site's virus scanner is currently not working and blocking all uploads, although you can still embed a photo or screenshot within the post itself.  The dxdiag is too long to copy and paste into a reply though.

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

[CGrant56]

@BoyCarat17 

Do you have Eco Lifestyle installed?  And are you playing a long term save that predates DU or EL?

[BoyCarat17]

I currently don't have Eco Lifestyle to this day, and I have some long term saves? What's DU and EL?

[BoyCarat17]

Which free filesharing sit do you mean?

[puzzlezaddict]

@BoyCarat17  The virus scanner on this site is back up, so you can just attach the dxdiag to a post here.

Did playing in a clean Sims 4 folder make a difference?  You don't have to get rid of your content permanently; the point is to test without it temporarily, just to see whether it makes any difference.

DU is Discover University, and EL is Eco Lifestyle.

[BoyCarat17]

Here's the DxDiag file here. And oh! You mean I should check out my TS4 game without the tray files, save files, mod files and everything else? I'll try your solution and give you an update about it.

[puzzlezaddict]

@BoyCarat17  Yes, it's always helpful to see how the game runs in a clean folder.  Rather than moving subfolders or other files around though, it's more efficient and also more thorough to move the entire Sims 4 folder somewhere else and let the game generate a new one.  That way you'll be sure that none of your existing content is affecting the game.

However, your dxdiag shows a problem with your dedicated graphics card.  I'm not sure whether the game is using the dedicated card or defaulting to the integrated chip—with the card not working properly, the chip can step in.  But the integrated chip is a lot slower, which would account for your much lower framerates in-game.

The first thing to do is to update the drivers for both GPUs.  You can find the ones specifically for your laptop here:

https://pcsupport.lenovo.com/us/en/products/laptops-and-netbooks/300-series/320-15ikb-type-81bg-81bt...

Download and install the Intel driver first, restart your computer, then download and install the Nvidia driver.  Restart again before testing the game.  If you still see low fps, please run a new dxdiag, so I can see whether there are any new errors.

Please also copy and paste the first 40 or so lines of config.log into a post (use a spoiler tag, and you can stop where the "Options" section starts).  The file is in Documents\Electronic Arts\The Sims 4; please use the new one, from the new Sims 4 folder that the game will create when you move the old folder.

[BoyCarat17]

Here's the new dxdiag file here because my game started off normal until it slowly reverts back to low FPS as it progressed with my gameplay. Also, I can't see the config.log file in my Sims 4 folder.

[puzzlezaddict]

@BoyCarat17  There has to be a config file somewhere: the game will write to it, or generate a new one, each time it launches.  You could try searching your hard drive for "config" without quotes, and look for anything in a Sims 4 folder; just use the newest copy, which should have a time stamp from when you last opened the game.

Your new dxdiag shows the same issue with the graphics card as the old one.  So it's a good idea to do a clean uninstall and reinstall of the driver for the Nvidia card.  (The Intel chip is probably fine.)  Download Display Driver Uninstaller from here:

https://www.wagnardsoft.com/forums/viewtopic.php?f=5&t=3282

You can get a fresh copy of the Nvidia driver from the same Lenovo download page as before.

Next, take your computer completely offline—disable wifi and/or pull the ethernet cord—and double-click the DDU.exe.  Take note of where the file will land, and click Extract.  If it's easier, you can copy the path and then paste it into the address bar in a File Explorer window.  Open the folder and then launch Display Driver Uninstaller.exe, and you'll get a message that you're not in Safe Mode.  Click OK, then go to Options and enable Safe Mode dialog.  Here's a screenshot of what your options should look like; make sure the box in red is checked:

Close options, and the DDU, and then open the DDU.exe again.  For launch options, choose "Safe Mode (Recommended)," and then click Reboot to Safe Mode (you'll need your password, so find it before rebooting).  Once you login, you'll see this:

In the blue box, choose GPU, then Nvidia if it's not already showing.  Then click Clean and Restart (red box).

Once your computer has rebooted, now back in normal mode, run the driver install .exe in custom mode.  Select "perform a clean installation" and install ONLY the GPU driver and the PHYSX software.

Reboot again, go back online, and see whether the game works normally.  If not, let me know.  The next step would be hardware monitoring, to see how the card and other components are performing in real time.  This is a lot simpler than it sounds—you just download an app and let it log.  But it's worth trying the above first.