Downloaded Sims No Longer Appearing In Bin

[timtammmtum]

This issue has just recently occurred, unfortunately. My sims used to all appear in the bin but suddenly all but a few sims have fully disappeared. I have tried multiple things such as regenerating a new SavedSims folder, clearing cache, etc. It also appears that sims downloaded through the Launcher no longer appear at all in the game. It says in the Launcher that they’re successfully installed (I even tried re-installing them but no luck), but when I go into the bin they are nowhere to be found. 

Thanks to to anyone that can be of help!

[puzzlezaddict · Accepted solution]

@timtammmtum  Right, so it sounds like something in your Sims 3 game folder is corrupt.  You'll need to rebuilt your content in a clean folder.  There is a way to try to save some of your installed sims rather than having to start from scratch, but if you already have the downloads, then it's probably just easier to install them fresh.  It's safer too, as in, you're likely getting rid of the corruption that's causing your current issue.  (Your saves will be fine; you can transfer those later, after you confirm that your new game folder is working.)

Pull your entire TS3 folder out of Documents\EA and onto your desktop.  Open the launcher to create a clean folder, then place just one Sims3Pack in Downloads and install it.  (Or download it fresh, your choice.)  Launch the game, start a new save, and see whether that installed sim is there.  If so, quit (no need to save your progress), install a few more sims, and check to make sure they show up as well.  It's best to install no more than six packs at a time, fewer if they're large files, as the launcher doesn't do well when processing a lot of data at once.  That's a common cause of corrupted installed content.

Be sure to delete the five cache files in your game folder each time you install a new batch of sims.  These files should be deleted whenever you add or remove content from your game folder, and on a regular basis regardless of what else you do.  For reference, they are:

• CASPartCache.package
• compositorCache.package
• scriptCache.package
• simCompositorCache.package
• socialCache.package

Once you've installed all the Sims3Packs you want, you can start copying the rest of your content from your old game folder to your new one.  Again, do so in batches, maybe one folder at a time, testing along the way.  Do your saves last, after you're sure everything else works.  One note to keep in mind:  You don't need anything in DCBackup other than ccmerged.package unless you want to upload your sims to the Exchange and you want your custom content to stick to them.  Otherwise, those files are extraneous and can (should) be deleted.  The exception is ccmerged, which is necessary for your store premium content to work.  But you can transfer ccmerged from your old folder to your new one along with the rest of your store content.

Here's a list of everything you'll find in your game folder, along with explanations of what they are and what you might want to keep:

https://sims3.crinrict.com/en/2011/01/faq-user-files.html

[puzzlezaddict]

@timtammmtum  The two main causes of downloaded content not appearing in-game are a corrupt file in the TS3 game folder, and the game using a different folder entirely.  The second one is easier to fix, so check your computer for extra folders.  A popular place for them to land is OneDrive (iCloud on a Mac), and often it's necessary to disable cloud storage, or at the very least automatic syncing, to force TS3 to use the Documents folder on the hard drive.

In Windows, you can search your system for "deviceconfig"—each game folder will have exactly one.  (This doesn't work in macOS though.)  The last modified date on the deviceconfig will tell you when TS3 last opened using that game folder, so you can confirm which folder is currently being read.

If the issue isn't multiple folders, you might have to sort through your custom content, and perhaps reinstall some or all of it.  The first thing to do though is to check whether the files are still present in your old copy of SavedSims (these are sim templates accessible through the CAS bin) and Library (saved households and builds).  Even if they don't show up in-game right now, you might be able to salvage the sims themselves instead of needing to start over.  Let me know either way, so I can give more specific instructions.  The Library entries are labeled with random strings of characters, but you should be able to tell if you have more or less the correct number of files, or at least if you have more than you see in-game.

[timtammmtum]

Thanks for the reply! I tried reinstalling as I checked everything else you suggested and it works perfectly fine, but unfortunately only those select few 9 or 10 sims keep showing up every time I open the game. I even tried reinstalling the sims I had previously installed through the launcher and the game didn’t recognize them at all. 

Edit: When I attempt to uninstall the sims I tried to previously reinstall through the Launcher, all of them fail but one of the only ones that shows up in game. It’s strange because the Launcher told me it successfully installed them but the game fails to recognize and the Launcher fails to uninstall them.

[puzzlezaddict · Accepted solution]

@timtammmtum  Right, so it sounds like something in your Sims 3 game folder is corrupt.  You'll need to rebuilt your content in a clean folder.  There is a way to try to save some of your installed sims rather than having to start from scratch, but if you already have the downloads, then it's probably just easier to install them fresh.  It's safer too, as in, you're likely getting rid of the corruption that's causing your current issue.  (Your saves will be fine; you can transfer those later, after you confirm that your new game folder is working.)

Pull your entire TS3 folder out of Documents\EA and onto your desktop.  Open the launcher to create a clean folder, then place just one Sims3Pack in Downloads and install it.  (Or download it fresh, your choice.)  Launch the game, start a new save, and see whether that installed sim is there.  If so, quit (no need to save your progress), install a few more sims, and check to make sure they show up as well.  It's best to install no more than six packs at a time, fewer if they're large files, as the launcher doesn't do well when processing a lot of data at once.  That's a common cause of corrupted installed content.

Be sure to delete the five cache files in your game folder each time you install a new batch of sims.  These files should be deleted whenever you add or remove content from your game folder, and on a regular basis regardless of what else you do.  For reference, they are:

• CASPartCache.package
• compositorCache.package
• scriptCache.package
• simCompositorCache.package
• socialCache.package

Once you've installed all the Sims3Packs you want, you can start copying the rest of your content from your old game folder to your new one.  Again, do so in batches, maybe one folder at a time, testing along the way.  Do your saves last, after you're sure everything else works.  One note to keep in mind:  You don't need anything in DCBackup other than ccmerged.package unless you want to upload your sims to the Exchange and you want your custom content to stick to them.  Otherwise, those files are extraneous and can (should) be deleted.  The exception is ccmerged, which is necessary for your store premium content to work.  But you can transfer ccmerged from your old folder to your new one along with the rest of your store content.

Here's a list of everything you'll find in your game folder, along with explanations of what they are and what you might want to keep:

https://sims3.crinrict.com/en/2011/01/faq-user-files.html

[timtammmtum]

Sorry for the late reply, but after following everything you said, my game is back up and running! Thanks again!