Game Save wont load (troubleshooting for hours)

[Syrex64]

I have a save file that loads 90% of the green bar then stops. The music and game tips continue to play. No errors messages pop up, it just goes on like this for hours. Newly generated test worlds load fine with and without my mods. Im using a gaming PC with windows ten. Ive read many threads with this same issue, but none of those suggestions have worked for me. So far Ive tried:

Restarting the Pc

Clearing the cashe

Removing the mods folder

Using the back up save file

Renaming the sims 3 folder and after the game generates a new one, put the save file back in the save folder

Downloading/using Save Cleaner to reduce bulk

Ive been playing this save for weeks and I desperately want to keep at it instead of starting a new game. If anyone has a suggestion i havnt listed, Id appreciate it.

[puzzlezaddict · Accepted solution]

@Syrex64  You've already tried pretty much everything I would suggest, and everything I've seen work for other players.  The only other possible approach I can think of is to try to reduce the demands of the game as much as possible while the save is loading; then maybe you'll be able to get into the town long enough to do some repair work.

Generate another clean folder, load to the Main Menu, and set all of your graphics options to the minimum.  (You might have better success in windowed mode as well; you can try it both ways.)  Turn off the hidden object interactive loading screens, and memories as well, although your save probably has too many already.  Quit the game, and copy your backup save into Saves.

When you're ready to try again, take your computer completely offline—pull the ethernet cable and disable wifi.  If you play through Origin, sign in first and then put Origin in offline mode.  You can try loading both with no mods at all and with any NRaas mods you have, with the exception of StoryProgression, which takes more resources to run than the vanilla game.  I don't know if this will work, but there's not much else you can do.

If you do manage to get the town to load, you might be able to salvage the save.  If you have the mod, you can use NRaas MasterController to reset the entire town.  Click on City Hall, NRaas > MC > Town Options > Reset Everything and wait for it to run.  (It'll probably take a while.)  Then use "save as" to rename the save.

Normally this would be the time to quit to desktop, clear your caches, and try reloading again, but first, you might want to save your favorite sims to the bin.  If nothing else, you can place them in a new world and rebuild their lives from there.  They won't retain any relationships with sims not saved to the bin with them, but they should keep those from within their own households.  After you're done, quit without saving, clear your caches, and try to reload.

The fact is, though, that this save may be either too corrupt or too overloaded with data for you to play forward.  Even if you can temporarily get it running again, it sounds like it's not going to be playable for much longer.  The only long-term solution is probably just to grab the sims you want to keep and place them in a completely fresh save.

[puzzlezaddict · Accepted solution]

@Syrex64  You've already tried pretty much everything I would suggest, and everything I've seen work for other players.  The only other possible approach I can think of is to try to reduce the demands of the game as much as possible while the save is loading; then maybe you'll be able to get into the town long enough to do some repair work.

Generate another clean folder, load to the Main Menu, and set all of your graphics options to the minimum.  (You might have better success in windowed mode as well; you can try it both ways.)  Turn off the hidden object interactive loading screens, and memories as well, although your save probably has too many already.  Quit the game, and copy your backup save into Saves.

When you're ready to try again, take your computer completely offline—pull the ethernet cable and disable wifi.  If you play through Origin, sign in first and then put Origin in offline mode.  You can try loading both with no mods at all and with any NRaas mods you have, with the exception of StoryProgression, which takes more resources to run than the vanilla game.  I don't know if this will work, but there's not much else you can do.

If you do manage to get the town to load, you might be able to salvage the save.  If you have the mod, you can use NRaas MasterController to reset the entire town.  Click on City Hall, NRaas > MC > Town Options > Reset Everything and wait for it to run.  (It'll probably take a while.)  Then use "save as" to rename the save.

Normally this would be the time to quit to desktop, clear your caches, and try reloading again, but first, you might want to save your favorite sims to the bin.  If nothing else, you can place them in a new world and rebuild their lives from there.  They won't retain any relationships with sims not saved to the bin with them, but they should keep those from within their own households.  After you're done, quit without saving, clear your caches, and try to reload.

The fact is, though, that this save may be either too corrupt or too overloaded with data for you to play forward.  Even if you can temporarily get it running again, it sounds like it's not going to be playable for much longer.  The only long-term solution is probably just to grab the sims you want to keep and place them in a completely fresh save.

[Syrex64]

Alas, the save is dead. Itll take some time before Im ready to try again. I think using NRAAS to make a cat have alien dna combined with a brief power outage was what did it.