Troubleshooting Common Sims 4 Gameplay Bugs

In The Sims 4, nothing can be as frustrating as stumbling upon in-game glitches during gameplay, particularly when you’re dealing with something uncommon that might not yield many results in a simple Google search. Unfortunately, this is something that happens often. Given that The Sims 4 is over a decade old and was one of the early games for PlayStation 4, it’s natural to expect some wear and tear. From time to time, things may start to malfunction or become disorganized.

Thankfully, due to The Sims 4’s widespread popularity, it’s unlikely that you’ll encounter a bug that’s entirely unique to your experience. By now, we have a well-defined set of troubleshooting steps to help you diagnose and resolve issues when the game seems to be acting strangely. Keep reading for the most effective solutions.

Reset your Sim(s)

Occasionally, your Sims might get stuck doing nothing in The Sims 4. To resolve this common problem, you can reset the frozen Sim by accessing the cheat console. On PC, press Ctrl+Shift+C, or on Xbox/Playstation, hold all four shoulder buttons. Then type “ResetSim” followed by the Sim’s name, such as “ResetSim Dina Caliente.” If you’ve enabled cheats (command “testingcheats true”), you can also quickly reset a PC or Mac Sim by pressing Shift while clicking on them and selecting “Reset Sim (Debug).

Restarting a Sim effectively resets their decision-making process by clearing out any conflicting desires or actions they may have accumulated. Imagine if a Sim is being pulled in multiple directions at once, like when several other Sims are vying for their attention simultaneously. This can overwhelm their small digital minds and cause them to freeze up while they attempt to prioritize their tasks. A reset helps clear their mental slate, so to speak.

Clear the cache

Similarly, just like a Sim in The Sims 4 can get cluttered, so too can the game’s cache as a whole. However, you can easily declutter it by deleting the game cache. To do this on your PC or Mac, here’s a simple step-by-step guide:

1. Navigate to Documents > Electronic Arts > The Sims 4.
2. Once you arrive, delete two files: localthumbcache.package and avatarcache.package.

This should help in keeping your game running smoothly!

As a gamer who enjoys The Sims 4 on Xbox or PlayStation, I’ve found that clearing the cache is a breeze compared to doing it on a PC. To do this, make sure you completely power off your console – not just putting it in rest mode. Once turned off, unplug it for an entire minute, which will clear the cache for the whole system. Easy peasy!

Check your mods

Many Sims PC gamers find it hard to envision playing without modifications (mods). However, these very same mods can sometimes lead to complications, often arising when they haven’t been updated regularly. Over a span of 11 years, numerous outdated and abandoned mods have appeared. Unfortunately, it isn’t always straightforward to determine which mod is causing issues, or even if it’s truly a mod that’s responsible for the problems. To help you identify whether a mod is the culprit and narrow down possible suspects, here are some steps to follow:

1. Isolate the problem: First, try to reproduce the issue without using any mods. If the problem persists, move on to step 2.

2. Deactivate mods one-by-one: Start deactivating your mods one at a time and observe if the problem disappears after each activation. Once you find the mod that resolves the issue, you’ve likely identified the source of the problem.

3. Verify the compatibility of your mods: Make sure all your active mods are compatible with each other and with the latest version of The Sims PC game. Incompatible mods can cause unexpected issues and conflicts.

4. Keep your mods updated: Regularly check for updates to your installed mods, as outdated mods can lead to problems in the game.

5. Use a trusted source: Download mods from reputable sites or communities to minimize the risk of encountering abandoned or problematic mods.

By following these steps, you’ll be better equipped to identify and resolve issues related to mods in The Sims PC game.

To begin with, it’s recommended to verify if a mod could be causing issues by turning them off entirely. This can be achieved by navigating to the ‘Other’ settings section in the game, then unchecking the corresponding box.

To fix any potential issues, save your game settings first. Then, shut down the game and restart it to observe its behavior. If the bug no longer appears, it was likely due to one of the mods you have installed. To identify which mod is causing the problem, you can perform a simple test: remove half of your mods from their folder in your Documents, clear the cache, and start the game again. If the issue persists, one of your active mods is the culprit; if not, then one of the inactive ones might be causing the trouble. You can continue to isolate the problem by repeating this process with the potentially affected half or by targeting specific mods you suspect could be the source of the bug.

Repair installation

In some instances when you’re using outdated mods, crucial game files might be missing or corrupted. To tackle this issue, you can utilize the EA app to inspect your installation directory and replace any essential files that are either missing or damaged. Navigate to the main Sims 4 page within the app, click on the ‘Manage’ button located to the left of ‘Play.’ From the dropdown menu, select ‘Repair.’ The EA app will then scan all your base game and DLC files for any irregularities. Keep in mind that this process only checks the game files themselves, not your mods.

Consider culling Sims

In The Sims 4 game, there is a maximum number of Sims it can handle simultaneously. Initially, the total Sim count is limited to 200, but this limit can be removed in the settings if preferred. However, no matter how powerful your computer might be, The Sims 4 will eventually become noticeably slow when you add too many Sims. This includes playing on state-of-the-art gaming equipment like an RTX 4080 and an i9 CPU. In my case, The Sims 4 starts to function sluggishly when the population of my world exceeds 750 or so.

In The Sims 4, it’s designed to avoid issues like sluggishness by occasionally removing families of Sims that haven’t been played. However, you can safeguard a household from being removed by including them in your list of played households. If you find your game is overwhelmed with too many Sims, this could be the root cause of any problems. Moving less important households to the unplayed section will enable the game to discard them if necessary. This is something only players with several hundred Sims in their game need to consider.

Consult the community

the EA forums and Reddit. These platforms have served as primary discussion arenas for The Sims 4 since its release. If your problem isn’t exclusive to your setup, it’s likely that someone else has encountered a similar issue in the past, and you might find helpful advice there.

2025-07-14 14:13