Who has been brave and complete reinstalled?

[rachaelstar713]

How many people out there have been brave enough to reinstall and remove all traces of custom content?

Tonight I took the plunge and reinstalled everything and got rid of all of my custom content on my machine. I wasn't having issues with it but felt I was holding onto so much stuff as I had 10 GB of custom content that I couldn't part with.

I confess I am addicted to downloading CC. So who is with me and confessing to their addition?

[jenieusa]

Everytime i switch worlds...i switch CC....and if something goes funky...its a simple matter of delete all files in the DCCache folder
and DCBackup folder...start up game...save...back out and restart.....

To start a vanilla came all you have to do you ...well... delete or move to s safe place....ALL files in the Sims 3 folder(making it completely empty)...and start game...
theres no reason to reinstall everything...thats just insain!!

[rachaelstar713]

Oh the reinstall part was not related to my CC, but because something become corrupted during my showtime install which spurred the reinstall. But thanks for the reply; I deleted my back up copies too. Felt it was time for a fresh start anyways and will try to stick to only downloaded what I love and not just everything in site b/c I can. :)

[jenieusa]

When you install a new sp or ex(or patch)....its a GOOD idea...to empty out the SIMS 3 folder...move everything to a safe place...yep making it
empty....install what you have....start game...make sure its "OK"....then...delete anything new in the SIMS 3 folder....and move your other
stuff back....

I have been doing this for...well years now...and have never had to reinstall do to a mishap with installing something new or a patch...

[lisfyre]

I've done complete reinstall's 4 times since The Sims 3 was launched (I got my game on launch day). First time was when I installed WA, it worked alright but the next day, I had problems playing so I started all over again, no loss really since there wasn't much 3rd party CC out there yet. The 2nd time was not my fault, I had a virus wipe my drive and had to get a new one. The 3rd time was after I installed Ambitions, again, it worked well but the next day I had problems launching the game. The 4th was just after the Pets patch. I haven't done it since but it isn't a new practice for me... I used to do it in Sims 2 all the time as well.

Before the Pets patch, I had 12GB of 3rd party and Store CC. Currently, I have 8GB and growing. I am addicted to CC.

Having said that, I have 4 different game folders that I switch out to every so often.

The Sims 3 Vanilla - just Base + WA, AMB, LN, GEN - strictly for building, no 3rd party or Store CC
The Sims 3 EAStore - just Base + WA, AMB, LN, GEN - again just for building with Store CC only
The Sims 3 Legacy - Base + WA, AMB, LN, GEN - for legacy games only includes 3rd party and Store CC and player made CAW Worlds
The Sims 3 Play - Base +WA, AMB, LN, GEN - for play and contests/challenges only includes 3rd party and Store CC and player made CAW Worlds

And obviously to play any of these, I just rename it to The Sims 3 and start my game, then rename it back to what it was when I finish playing so I know which is which... so as not to confuse my addled little brain ;P

[Vault boy]

Done a few times before I realized that it was the CC that came along with some sims I got from the Exchange were the ones who kept on messing up my game.

Other than that, I did it once on my old computer (I gave up after witnessing that what was messing up the game was the fact the old computer's capabilities weren't able to handle LN) :cry:

[DigitalSympathies]

I've done it around 30 times since the game's release. Usually whenever a patch, expansion, or corruption screws everything up. Or when I need disk space.

[Eternila]

I've done it around 2 times:
1st when installing an EP completely broke my game, and I had to reinstall.
2nd when I wanted to get the HQ mod working for me :D

[Lisen801]

Well, I've messed with alot of CC, downloaded alot and checked and tested my own creations many, many times
and installed all the expansions and SP's and Store stuff and never reinstalled the game since the game's release.
But...
I've never downloaded anything from the exchange and I'm always install new expansions, stuffpacks and patches without
all CC's and mods. I also regulary delete the cachfiles after installation of something.
It works for me....

/Lisen

[~MadameButterfly~]

In the 3 years I've been playing, or so, I've never done a reinstall. (I don't think I can't count the time that the base game ate my old computer when it first came out.)

[rachaelstar713]

This is my first reinstall since the games came out and I'm pretty nervous about not having any of my CC left on the PC. However that means I can just download new items that I love and not go on a spree like I have in the past.

[DigitalSympathies]

@rachaelstar713 - You can always take the Mods and Downloads folders, move them to your desktop, and reinstall if you want to keep your CC. And even then, maybe if you want to keep your saves, move them too. If you wanna keep any lots or sims, now's the time to save them to the launcher and back them up.

[kiatyn]

I had to reinstall two times - on my destop, after the hard drive failed. I realized at the at time I had too much CC and got rid of almost all of it. Except for the hair for my male sims. Yes, I have 1.3 gigs of hair. :D What can I say? I like pretty boys. :)( and men!) :)

[HarVee]

Seems about every 5 weeks I'm doing another reinstall because something gets fucked up beyond repair. I'll tell ya, If I didn't know better, I'd say that The Sims 3 feels more like I'm at work, than playing a 'fun' game.

[Foxhounder]

Once so far after I noticed a strange slow-down that clearing the caches, removing CC and starting a new town didn't clear. Thankfully reinstalling everything did fix that problem.

I clear all CC with every patch and check what's been updated each time so that stops me from letting my Mods folder from getting too big. I play Sims 3 pretty infrequently so I don't miss the CC I delete permanently that much, I just check on this site and see what interesting new additions there are when I do decide to play again. :report:

[rachaelstar713]

@rachaelstar713 - You can always take the Mods and Downloads folders, move them to your desktop, and reinstall if you want to keep your CC. And even then, maybe if you want to keep your saves, move them too. If you wanna keep any lots or sims, now's the time to save them to the launcher and back them up.

I decided to start over with my download process. My issues arised when I installed showtime thus began my two day struggle of reinstalling and uninstalling. Think I jacked something up with my patching. So getting ready to start reinstall number 7 of two days.

[LadyKombucha]

I've had to reinstall about 5-6 times, but never because of CC. i've just had the most terrible bad luck with computers. they kept breaking on me :(

[Volvenom]

I only did reinstall for Pets, after that I made 2 folders just like lisfyre. Sims3pack and packagefiles.

And obviously to play any of these, I just rename it to The Sims 3 and start my game, then rename it back to what it was when I finish playing so I know which is which... so as not to confuse my addled little brain ;P

Pets with all the CC suddenly in need of updates I just had to really clean up the mess. Thanks for that EA.

[CeJaye]

I hold onto Custom Content like a hoarder, so it's nice to just delete everything and go back to basics, and then very slowly start adding stuff back in.

I've done a total reinstall four times, in the last three years.

[SommarBlomma]

Every tims I get a new EP or SP, I remove all CC, savegames, and deinstall EPs and SPs, and then install everything again, to have a clean game, and then I install and test updated versions of the mods I use, and if they work fine, I install al my CC again (I keep CC organized in a folder out of the game, to install from there every time). So, I actually did it a few times.

[aeval99]

I do a complete re-install every other pack. I do put most of my cc back (eventually), after going through it and getting rid of things that I don't use much (or can't remember what it is). I almost always test out the new pack with a vanilla game, just to make sure everything is working properly...well, as EA intended, anyway ;)

I've done this since the Sims 1 days.

[lisfyre]

Just to clarify, other than getting sets/items from the Store at the official Sims 3 site, I never, ever and won't ever ever get anything from the Exchange. I did that once in Sims 2, the viruses were unbelievable. I ended up getting a new drive while playing Sims 2, just like in Sims 3 but the latest one wasn't from 3rd party CC. Ever since then, I have not even visited the TS3 Exchange. I won't do it for CAW worlds. My go to site for CAW worlds are Sims Crossing and Awesims. My 3rd party CC shopping sites are TSR, MTS, All About Style, BPS, Sims Crossing, Awesims, LivingSims, AkiSimA, GoS, ClubCrimsyn, B5Studio, PinkRabbit and Blacky's. There are smaller sites but those are my main go to's for daily shopping.

[Save_the_whales]

There was a time when I had to manually uninstall the game, like go into the computer's registry, several times because I really screwed up with it. I usually uninstall and reinstall when new EPs roll around. But I would never actually get rid of my custom content I can't play the game without it

[Marky Boy]

I reinstalled the game completely yesterday, because I originally wanted to have my sim raid all the tombs and do all the adventures because EA has borked the adventure board since Late Night was released.

Unfortunately, I realised that I cannot live without the CC that I made for myself, such as the shirt and bodywarmer that I smuggled from Pets then put a Hollister logo on it (the only reason why I'd get that EP), so I was like screw this and ended up reinstalling LN and Generations and patching back to the latest version... which is where I started

Wasted about an hour I could have spent raiding tombs :faceslap: