Re: will the game recognize my GPU

by puzzlezaddict
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will the game recognize my GPU

★★ Novice

I'm interested in buying the sims 3 through Origin, I have this GPU; AMD Radeon R9 200 Series 

how do I know if the game will recognize and support my GPU, as I heard some newer GPU's are not supported by the game.

Message 1 of 10 (1,935 Views)

Accepted Solution

Re: will the game recognize my GPU

[ Edited ]

@Loose_Fox  Thanks for the info.  You need to edit two files, graphicscards.sgr and graphicsrules.sgr, both located inside the game's program files.  For an Origin install, unless you changed the install location, the files will be in the default path:

 

Program files (x86)\Origin Games\The Sims 3\Game\Bin

 

For anyone else reading, these instructions are specific to the original poster's card.  If you'd like help getting your own card recognized, please create your own thread and post the first 40 lines of your deviceconfig, found in Documents\Electronic Arts\The Sims 3.

 

 

Spoiler

First, open graphicscards.sgr, and right at the top is the list of AMD cards, starting with this:

 

vendor "ATI" 0x1002
card 0x6798 "AMD Radeon HD 7900 Series"
card 0x6799 "AMD Radeon HD 7900 Series"
card 0x679a "AMD Radeon HD 7900 Series"

 

under the vendor "ATI" line, create a new line and add this:

 

card 0x6810 "AMD Radeon R9 200 Series"

(with the proper spaces before the word card).

Save, quit, and open graphicsrules.sgr.  Hit crtl-F and search for 29?0, which will take you to these lines:

 

elseif (match("${cardVendor}", "ATI"))
if (match("${cardName}", "*HD 29?0*") or match("${cardName}", "*HD 36?0*") or match("${cardName}", "*HD 38?0*") or match("${cardName}"

[etc.]

 

Change the HD 29?0 to R9 200 , but don't touch anything else, not even the asterisks.  This will classify your card as uber.  Depending on performance, you may need to turn down some of the in-game settings to high; it's impossible to say without knowing your specific model of GPU.

 

Still within graphicsrules.sgr, go back to the top, and look for this, 8-10 lines down:

 

if ($textureMemory == 0)
seti textureMemory 32
setb textureMemorySizeOK false

 

Change the 32 to a 1024, and put a # and a space in front of setb, so that the lines look like this:

 

if ($textureMemory == 0)
seti textureMemory 1024
# setb textureMemorySizeOK false

(While your card may have more than 1 GB of VRAM, the game can only use 800 MB.)  Save, quit, launch the game, and check deviceconfig again.  You should now see a [Found: 1, Matched: 1] value next to your card's name.

By the way, it's a good idea to check your in-game framerates as well.  If they're consistently too high or fluctuate wildly, you'll need to use an outside tool to cap them.  This is necessary to protect the health of your card; it's also pretty straightforward most of the time.

 

To see your fps, open the cheats console (crtl-shift-C) and enter "fps on" without quotes.  A number will appear in the upper right corner of your screen, and it should never go above the refresh rate of your monitor.  ("fps off" makes the number go away.)  For AMD cards, RivaTuner Statistics Server works very well; since you have an Origin install, be sure to use TS3.exe to create the profile.  Let me know if you need help with the setup.

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

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

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Message 6 of 10 (1,777 Views)

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Re: will the game recognize my GPU

@Loose_Fox   Your card isn't in TS3's database (I just looked), but that doesn't mean you couldn't add it.  All it takes is copying and pasting a couple of lines in the correct files; I could write those lines out for you if I knew the device ID of your card.

 

But it's not usually necessary to add a modern card to the database—the game will run fine most of the time on an unrecognized card.  There does seem to be a minor improvement in performance with many cards, but it's not clear whether that's only subjective.

 

If you happen to be on a Mac and are running Catalina, the game won't install at all, regardless of your graphics card, because Sims 3 is 32-bit, and Catalina is 64-bit only.  There's an update coming for the Mac version of the game, but you might want to wait to buy it until that happens.

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

I don't work for EA. I'm just trying to help fellow players with their games.
Message 2 of 10 (1,920 Views)

Re: will the game recognize my GPU

★★ Novice

Thank you for the response!

How do I check my device ID so that you could help me with your solution?

I'm using PC and those are my specs:
My specs.png

Message 3 of 10 (1,914 Views)

Re: will the game recognize my GPU

@Loose_Fox  There are a few different ways to check, but there's no point in doing so until you have the game installed, since you'll be editing two of the installed program files.  Launch it once, just to make sure it's working, then go into Documents\Electronic Arts\The Sims 3, open the file called deviceconfig, and copy the information under "Graphics device info," from about 25 to 40 lines down.  This will list the card's device ID, as well as confirm that the game is using the correct card rather than the chip integrated into the processor.

 

Another way to find your device ID is to run a dxdiag and look under "Display Devices," near the top of the saved file.  The "device key" (six lines down) has the relevant information.  It will look something like this:

 

Device Key: Enum\PCI\VEN_1002&DEV_67EF&SUBSYS_0179106B&REV_C0

 

where (in my case) 1002 means AMD, 67EF corresponds to my model of card, and the other stuff probably refers to the manufacturer of the card.

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

I don't work for EA. I'm just trying to help fellow players with their games.
Message 4 of 10 (1,907 Views)

Re: will the game recognize my GPU

★★ Novice

OK I bought the game and installed it, I ran it once ad got a message that my graphic card is not recognized.

That's the text from my deviceconfig:

=== Application info ===
Name:            Sims3
Version:         
Build:           Release
=== Rating info ===
GPU: 5 GPU Memory: 1 CPU: 4 RAM: 4 CPU Speed: 4008 Threading: 3
Adjusted CPU: 4944 RAM: 16336 Adjusted RAM: 15824 Cores: 4
=== Machine info ===
OS version:      Windows 8  6.2.9200 
OS prod type:    0
OS major ver:    6
OS minor ver:    2
OS SP major ver: 0
OS SP minor ver: 0
OS is 64Bit: 1
CPU:             GenuineIntel
    Brand:       Intel(R) Core(TM) i7-6700K CPU @ 4.00GHz
    Family:      6
    Model:       14
    Cores:       4
    HT:          1
    x64:         0
Memory:          16336MB
Free memory:     11782MB
User:            IDOV
Computer:        IDOV
=== Graphics device info ===
Number:          0
Name (driver):   AMD Radeon R9 200 Series
Name (database): AMD Radeon R9 200 Series [Found: 0, Matched: 0]
Vendor:          ATI
Chipset:         Vendor: 1002, Device: 6810, Board: 22721458, Chipset: 0000
Driver:          aticfx32.dll, Version: 26.20.13031.20012, GUID: D7B71EE2-2B50-11CF-C439-9530BBC2D735
Driver version:  20012
Monitor:         \\.\DISPLAY1
Texture memory:  32MB <<OVERRIDE>>
Vertex program:  3.0
Pixel program:   3.0
Hardware TnL:    1
=== Options ===
AnimationSmoothing 1
LightingQuality 2
GeneralReflections 1
TextureQuality 2
VisualEffects 3
TerrainQuality 3
EdgeSmoothing 1
ObjectHiding 0
AspectRatio 0
ForceSquarePixels 1
SimQuality 2
TreeQuality 4
DrawDistance 3
MaxActiveLots 2
NumMaxActiveLotOptions 6
AdvancedRendering 1
AudioQuality 3
AudiOopsutputMode 1
VoiceLevel 255
SoundFXLevel 255
MusicLevel 255
AmbientLevel 255
FocusMute 1
VoiceMute 0
SoundFXMute 0
MusicMute 0
AmbientMute 0
EdgeScrolling 1
EdgeScrollingWarning 1
SupressOpportunityDialogs 0
SuppressOpportunityDialogsWarningProducts 0
SimWhileMinimized 0
TwelveHourClock 0
ShowPlacementGrid 0
AutonomyLevel 2
DisableAutonomyForSelectedSim 0
PetAutonomyLevel 2
AgingInterval 2
EnableAging 1
EnableTutorial 0
EnableIntroTutorial 1
EnableTombResets 1
EnableInGameStore 0
EnableTelemetry 1
EnableMemories 2
AgingStageLengthBaby 3
AgingStageLengthToddler 7
AgingStageLengthChild 7
AgingStageLengthTeen 14
AgingStageLengthYoungAdult 21
AgingStageLengthAdult 21
AgingStageLengthElder 17
EnableInteractiveLoading 0
AgingStageLengthPuppy 0
AgingStageLengthDogAdult 0
AgingStageLengthDogElder 0
AgingStageLengthKitten 0
AgingStageLengthCatAdult 0
AgingStageLengthCatElder 0
AgingStageLengthFoal 0
AgingStageLengthHorseAdult 0
AgingStageLengthHorseElder 0
LunarCycleLength 3
LunarPhaseLength 0
EnableLunarCycle 1
EnableLunarPhase 0
EnableStoryProgression 1
EnableVampires 0
EnableWerewolves 1
EnablePets 1
EnableCelebrities 1
EnableFairies 1
EnableWitches 1
EnableHorses 1
EnableOptOutCeleb 0
ReceiveConnectTNS 0
ReceivedDevGift 0
PostFilterFlags 0
RequireLoginBeforeLoad 0
SummerLength 7
FallLength 7
WinterLength 7
SpringLength 7
SummerEnabled 1
FallEnabled 1
WinterEnabled 1
SpringEnabled 1
IsCelcius 0
FogEnabled 1
RainEnabled 1
SnowEnabled 1
HailEnabled 1
InvertHorizontalRotation 0
InvertVerticalRotation 0
VideoCaptureSize 1
VideoCaptureQuality 2
VideoCaptureSound 0
VideoCaptureTime 60
VideoCaptureHideUI 1
=== Default Options ===
AnimationSmoothing 1
LightingQuality 1
GeneralReflections 1
TextureQuality 1
VisualEffects 3
TerrainQuality 3
EdgeSmoothing 0
ObjectHiding 0
AspectRatio 0
ForceSquarePixels 1
SimQuality 1
TreeQuality 3
DrawDistance 3
MaxActiveLots 1
NumMaxActiveLotOptions 6
AdvancedRendering 1
AudioQuality 3
AudiOopsutputMode 1
VoiceLevel 255
SoundFXLevel 255
MusicLevel 255
AmbientLevel 255
FocusMute 1
VoiceMute 0
SoundFXMute 0
MusicMute 0
AmbientMute 0
EdgeScrolling 0
EdgeScrollingWarning 1
SupressOpportunityDialogs 0
SuppressOpportunityDialogsWarningProducts 0
SimWhileMinimized 0
TwelveHourClock 1
ShowPlacementGrid 0
AutonomyLevel 2
DisableAutonomyForSelectedSim 0
PetAutonomyLevel 2
AgingInterval 2
EnableAging 1
EnableTutorial 1
EnableIntroTutorial 1
EnableTombResets 1
EnableInGameStore 1
EnableTelemetry 1
EnableMemories 1
AgingStageLengthBaby 3
AgingStageLengthToddler 7
AgingStageLengthChild 7
AgingStageLengthTeen 14
AgingStageLengthYoungAdult 21
AgingStageLengthAdult 21
AgingStageLengthElder 17
EnableInteractiveLoading 1
AgingStageLengthPuppy 0
AgingStageLengthDogAdult 0
AgingStageLengthDogElder 0
AgingStageLengthKitten 0
AgingStageLengthCatAdult 0
AgingStageLengthCatElder 0
AgingStageLengthFoal 0
AgingStageLengthHorseAdult 0
AgingStageLengthHorseElder 0
LunarCycleLength 3
LunarPhaseLength 0
EnableLunarCycle 1
EnableLunarPhase 0
EnableStoryProgression 1
EnableVampires 1
EnableWerewolves 1
EnablePets 1
EnableCelebrities 1
EnableFairies 1
EnableWitches 1
EnableHorses 1
EnableOptOutCeleb 0
ReceiveConnectTNS 1
ReceivedDevGift 0
PostFilterFlags 0
RequireLoginBeforeLoad 0
SummerLength 7
FallLength 7
WinterLength 7
SpringLength 7
SummerEnabled 1
FallEnabled 1
WinterEnabled 1
SpringEnabled 1
IsCelcius 0
FogEnabled 1
RainEnabled 1
SnowEnabled 1
HailEnabled 1
InvertHorizontalRotation 0
InvertVerticalRotation 0
VideoCaptureSize 1
VideoCaptureQuality 2
VideoCaptureSound 0
VideoCaptureTime 60
VideoCaptureHideUI 1

 

Message 5 of 10 (1,795 Views)

Re: will the game recognize my GPU

[ Edited ]

@Loose_Fox  Thanks for the info.  You need to edit two files, graphicscards.sgr and graphicsrules.sgr, both located inside the game's program files.  For an Origin install, unless you changed the install location, the files will be in the default path:

 

Program files (x86)\Origin Games\The Sims 3\Game\Bin

 

For anyone else reading, these instructions are specific to the original poster's card.  If you'd like help getting your own card recognized, please create your own thread and post the first 40 lines of your deviceconfig, found in Documents\Electronic Arts\The Sims 3.

 

 

Spoiler

First, open graphicscards.sgr, and right at the top is the list of AMD cards, starting with this:

 

vendor "ATI" 0x1002
card 0x6798 "AMD Radeon HD 7900 Series"
card 0x6799 "AMD Radeon HD 7900 Series"
card 0x679a "AMD Radeon HD 7900 Series"

 

under the vendor "ATI" line, create a new line and add this:

 

card 0x6810 "AMD Radeon R9 200 Series"

(with the proper spaces before the word card).

Save, quit, and open graphicsrules.sgr.  Hit crtl-F and search for 29?0, which will take you to these lines:

 

elseif (match("${cardVendor}", "ATI"))
if (match("${cardName}", "*HD 29?0*") or match("${cardName}", "*HD 36?0*") or match("${cardName}", "*HD 38?0*") or match("${cardName}"

[etc.]

 

Change the HD 29?0 to R9 200 , but don't touch anything else, not even the asterisks.  This will classify your card as uber.  Depending on performance, you may need to turn down some of the in-game settings to high; it's impossible to say without knowing your specific model of GPU.

 

Still within graphicsrules.sgr, go back to the top, and look for this, 8-10 lines down:

 

if ($textureMemory == 0)
seti textureMemory 32
setb textureMemorySizeOK false

 

Change the 32 to a 1024, and put a # and a space in front of setb, so that the lines look like this:

 

if ($textureMemory == 0)
seti textureMemory 1024
# setb textureMemorySizeOK false

(While your card may have more than 1 GB of VRAM, the game can only use 800 MB.)  Save, quit, launch the game, and check deviceconfig again.  You should now see a [Found: 1, Matched: 1] value next to your card's name.

By the way, it's a good idea to check your in-game framerates as well.  If they're consistently too high or fluctuate wildly, you'll need to use an outside tool to cap them.  This is necessary to protect the health of your card; it's also pretty straightforward most of the time.

 

To see your fps, open the cheats console (crtl-shift-C) and enter "fps on" without quotes.  A number will appear in the upper right corner of your screen, and it should never go above the refresh rate of your monitor.  ("fps off" makes the number go away.)  For AMD cards, RivaTuner Statistics Server works very well; since you have an Origin install, be sure to use TS3.exe to create the profile.  Let me know if you need help with the setup.

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

I don't work for EA. I'm just trying to help fellow players with their games.
Message 6 of 10 (1,778 Views)

Re: will the game recognize my GPU

★★ Novice

Thank you so much! it worked the game is recognizing my GPU now.

I checked the fps inside the game with the cheat console. it seems that the numbers are pretty high and can reach 250-300..

If I set in the game options to limit the FPS to 60, would it do the trick?
if not, how do I limit the game fps?

thank you again you are really very helpful and I appreciate your help very much 

Message 7 of 10 (1,753 Views)

Re: will the game recognize my GPU

@Loose_Fox  The in-game setting doesn't do anything most if not all of the time.  You'll need to use an outside tool instead.  For AMD cards, RivaTuner Statistics Server works well.  Install it, create a profile for TS3.exe, manually set the fps limit to 60, and check in-game to make sure it worked.  Please keep in mind that RTSS does need to be running while you play in order for it to work.  But it can just sit in the system tray and not bother you; it also has very low resource use.

 

If you happen to play Sims 4, be sure to close RTSS before launching it, or TS4 may repeatedly crash at the Main Menu.

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

I don't work for EA. I'm just trying to help fellow players with their games.
Message 8 of 10 (1,749 Views)

Re: will the game recognize my GPU

★★ Novice

When I limit my FPS from an app outside the game it causes screen tearing while gameplay. so I decided not to linit the fps, I haven't seen the game getting much more then 200 fps, and I think the GPU can handle it if it makes my game run smoother actually.

Message 9 of 10 (1,708 Views)

Re: will the game recognize my GPU

@Loose_Fox  By not limiting fps, you're risking overworking your graphics card.  It's your choice, but you might want to play with the settings first.  Check whether you have screen tearing in windowed mode, and if not, you can use Windowed Borderless (free download) to get the fullscreen effect.

 

Or you can use AMD's built-in controls alongside the outside tool.  The Catalyst Control Center I have doesn't do a thing for framerates, but maybe enabling one of its settings will get rid of the screen tearing while the outside tool locks down the fps.

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

I don't work for EA. I'm just trying to help fellow players with their games.
Message 10 of 10 (1,691 Views)