can't play families [ Edited ]

[ciannajae]

I have had this problem for over a week with the Sims 4. I can go into build mode, but when I want to open a household it won't let me play a household. I try to click on a family to play and none of them open. It sits on the loading screen and just spins and never opens. I can build on lots and apartments, but nothing else.

[puzzlezaddict · Accepted solution]

@ciannajae  Please move your entire Sims 4 folder out of Documents\Electronic Arts and onto your desktop.  When you launch the game, a clean folder will spawn with no content.  Don't add anything to the folder yet; just see whether you can get far enough to start a new save and play in live mode for a bit.  Let me know either way.

If you have the same problem in a clean folder, please run a dxdiag and attach it to a post.

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

[puzzlezaddict]

@ciannajae  Do you happen to have a Mac?  Try repairing the game in Origin: open your game library, right-click on the Sims 4 icon, and select Repair.

[ciannajae]

I have a PC not a Mac.

[ciannajae]

I am repairing the game right now so hopefully it will work! Thank you

[ciannajae]

@puzzlezaddict didn't work

[puzzlezaddict · Accepted solution]

@ciannajae  Please move your entire Sims 4 folder out of Documents\Electronic Arts and onto your desktop.  When you launch the game, a clean folder will spawn with no content.  Don't add anything to the folder yet; just see whether you can get far enough to start a new save and play in live mode for a bit.  Let me know either way.

If you have the same problem in a clean folder, please run a dxdiag and attach it to a post.

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

[ciannajae]

Hi! When I moved it out of the electronic arts folder and on to my desk top I was able to play the game perfectly! How can I get it to be like that on my folder with all of my saves, mods, and cc??

Thanks for the help!

[puzzlezaddict]

@ciannajae  You can move over your content in batches, testing each time to see whether the game still works.  Test your mods first, and if you get the same error as before, split the mods into smaller groups and retest.  You may have one or more mods that need to be updated or just deleted.

Once you've gone through your mods, you can add your custom content and test, then your saves last.  The other files are mostly disposible and will regenerate as needed.  In case you're curious, here's a list of all the files in your Sims 4 folder, with descriptions of what they are and whether you'd want to preserve them:

https://sims4.crinrict.com/eng/2014/09/user-files-explained/

[ciannajae]

I tried this and it seems that the new save file I made is the only one that works. My last save game still won't open the families.

[puzzlezaddict]

@ciannajae  So you can't play any of the households in your old save?  How large is the save file, and how large are the backups?  This guide to restoring a backup (the manual method) shows how to find them:

https://sims4.crinrict.com/eng/2014/09/save-games/#wiederherstellen

You can also try loading a backup version of your old save, especially if the newest version is bloated in size compared to the others.  Let me know if it is—you may have this issue:

https://answers.ea.com/t5/Bug-Reports/CURRENT-ISSUE-Game-Freeze-Extended-Loading-Times-Save-Game/m-p...

Even if you don't though, loading a backup may still help.