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Test Subject
Original Poster
#1 Old 25th Jul 2014 at 1:14 AM
Default The Sims 3 Complete Collection "Not Responding" after Intro
Hello,

I just recently installed the Sims 2 Complete Collection since it's on Origin for free! WOO! Nostalgia! I installed it on my Windows 8.1 laptop (which usually gives me a complete fit over anything Sims related) and it installed and played great without having to make any compatibility changes, graphics card updates, etc. My little sister wanted it on her Windows 7 laptop (which has successfully played Sims 3) so I installed but have run into some trouble.

The game will launch and you will go through the intro just fine, as soon as it gets to the loading screen that says "The Sims - Fun with Pets" it stops responding. I have to ctrl + alt + delete in order to end the task and get out of the program. It actually takes pressing ctrl + alt + delete SEVERAL times before it will respond.

What I have done:

1) First I updated my graphics driver (did not work)
2) Second, I ran as administrator (did not work)
3) Third, I ran in Compatibility Mode for Windows XP Service Pack 2 - recommended settings (did not work)
4) Fourthly, I ran in Compatibility Mode for Windows Vista Service Pack 2 (did not work)

I have read a lot of forum posts about Windows 7 and the Sims 2 but nothing makes sense yet and a lot of the issues are still unresolved. I'm not sure what else to do. I would like to just install the base game and see if that works but since I downloaded the full game from Origin I don't believe they can be separated.

My sister's rig's specs are

Windows 7 Home Premium 64-bit
Pentium(R) Dual-Core CPU T4500 @ 2.30GHz
3 GB RAM
Mobile Intel(R) 4 Series Express Chipset Family Graphics

Let me know if you need anymore details.


Thank you!

xcftw
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Instructor
#2 Old 25th Jul 2014 at 3:51 AM
On my windows 7 laptop when I installed AL & FT
it did this...
what I did is launch the game with volume on, the music helps me know when the loading screen
is responsive, it stops when it is not. and when it freezes,
I open task manager, keep the frozen screen minimized
and run as admin on the game to open another launcher like when it shows the little box wih all the eps and stuff
and it will kick the frozen game in the butt and continue to load.
This is the only thing that worked for me so,

if anyone has a better way it'd be nice to know

Peace, Harmony & Balance... Libra is Love..
Test Subject
#3 Old 25th Jul 2014 at 3:51 AM
When I first tried to play I ran into the same problem as you.
What worked for me was updating my game.
I went to origin and right clicked the Sims 2 and picked check for update.
Once it was updated I was finally able to load the game.
Lab Assistant
#4 Old 25th Jul 2014 at 7:28 PM Last edited by GothLoliZombie : 25th Jul 2014 at 7:33 PM. Reason: Small clarification
I'm having the same problem! It just goes to the loading screen, which says "Fun with Pets" and sits there forever. I have to Ctrl-Alt-Delete, and Task Manager said "Not Responding", and end task, which comes up as "Mansion and Garden Stuff", then the error is for EP09.

Quote: Originally posted by Bekkiie
When I first tried to play I ran into the same problem as you.
What worked for me was updating my game.
I went to origin and right clicked the Sims 2 and picked check for update.
Once it was updated I was finally able to load the game.


I tried this, but it didn't help. I also tried "Repair Game" with Origin and running the game as admin, but no dice. I'm also wondering if this is a problem- no launcher comes up when I click the shortcut. This is the first time I've gotten a digital copy of any Sims game, so perhaps that's normal?

~Welcome to the Satellite of Love...~

Née whiterider
retired moderator
#5 Old 25th Jul 2014 at 7:30 PM
How patient have y'all been being? Because it will take a while for the game to create your user files. With the strength of your machines, I'd probably not assume it had crashed unless you'd waited at least ten minutes.

What I lack in decorum, I make up for with an absence of tact.
Undead Molten Llama
#6 Old 25th Jul 2014 at 7:41 PM
^This, definitely. The first time you play, the game has to set everything up. It can take a while, especially on slower machines. Be patient. Don't assume because it goes "Not Responding" that it will stay that way. My (non-UC) does that while loading, too. Just wait and I'll bet that, eventually, it will move on with the load.

I'm mostly found on (and mostly upload to) Tumblr these days because, alas, there are only 24 hours in a day.
Muh Simblr! | An index of my downloads on Tumblr.
Lab Assistant
#7 Old 25th Jul 2014 at 7:42 PM
Quote: Originally posted by Nysha
How patient have y'all been being? Because it will take a while for the game to create your user files. With the strength of your machines, I'd probably not assume it had crashed unless you'd waited at least ten minutes.


Well now don't I feel silly. I waited about 5 minutes, and it worked for me.

~Welcome to the Satellite of Love...~

Test Subject
Original Poster
#8 Old 26th Jul 2014 at 12:25 AM
UPDATE!

I waited for probably 10 minutes max the first time and then waited 2 - 3 minutes each time following. I had already done a disk cleanup and ran Malwarebytes to ensure the PC was clean but had not ran a disk defrag because it should do that on it's own every Saturday. I had posted here last night, then gave the laptop back to my sister and told her to run a defrag while she was asleep. This morning she launched the Sims 2, completely forgot about it, and when she went back to the computer she found it fully loaded! It's running great. We went to town and when we got back she loaded it again and it loaded much quicker.

I so apologize for jumping the gun. I had seen so many similar posts that were unresolved but maybe no one had responded with "all I had to do was wait." Hopefully more people with this issue see this thread. I personally had never had to wait so long for the Sims. The laptop didn't even take that long to load the Sims 3 so when it took so long and kept going "Not Responding" I was sure something had to be wrong.

Super glad all is well and my sister is LOVING the game. Again, sorry for jumping the gun but I really hope more people see this thread.


xcftw

P.S. I feel SO silly too since I am not a noob with computers or any of the Sims games. ):
Undead Molten Llama
#9 Old 26th Jul 2014 at 1:27 AM
Don't feel silly. I think I read somewhere that, even though the game is old, it will load more slowly than newer games will on newer machines with newer operating systems because the game was never designed to be compatible with newer machines/OSs, so it takes a bit more work for the newer OSs to "read" the game. So, it's kind of counterintuitive. Also, I think most people who see the "Not Responding" thing will think that something is wrong. I did the first time I saw it, which was when I was running the game on a Windows 7 machine, but I took a "wait a bit and see" approach, and sure enough it moved on eventually.

I'm glad your sister is happy and has a fully-functioning game. Just be aware that if you load up on the CC those "Not Responding" times will be back and they'll be longer. Just wait. Unless you get a message that says the game has crashed, it hasn't actually done so. My all-EPs/SPs (but not UC) game with about 7GB of CC takes about 15 minutes to load to neighborhood view, and part of that time is always spent with the window showing as "Not Responding."

I'm mostly found on (and mostly upload to) Tumblr these days because, alas, there are only 24 hours in a day.
Muh Simblr! | An index of my downloads on Tumblr.
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