Author Topic: Reinstalled custom world and getting "serious error" message. (Read 6416 times)

Dragonfruit · « **on:** August 05, 2015, 11:57:44 AM »

Hi! I'm having a strange issue with the custom world I built with CAW. I apologize for the length of this post but I figure the more info I can give, the better chances someone might be able to help me.

Over a week ago, I downloaded a ton of new patterns and installed them through the launcher, because patterns shouldn't be converted to packages. Otherwise, I convert what I can to packages and merge them (everything but patterns, store items, worlds, and hair only because I have issues with merged/converted hair not showing in game). I was getting the overload crash in the launcher so I googled how to fix that and I read to delete what's in the DCCache folder. Maybe I misread the instruction and I was supposed to delete the DCBackup, but anyway, everything installed through the launcher was uninstalled as expected. No big deal. I reinstalled everything since it wasn't a lot of stuff.

I opened my saved game, where my family had just returned from Isla Paradiso thanks to Twallan's Traveler mod, but my family was greyed out and I received the "serious error - cannot load saved game." I'd traveled many times without issue with this family and they'd safely returned this time and been saved in my home world. I figured it had gotten corrupted randomly but that's no big deal since I have a million backups. I worked on this custom world for two years and had been playing for a year - I was very careful with it.

My backups with my family still vacationing in Isla Paradiso play beautifully and without issue. When my family's vacation time is up, when I force them home, or when I try to edit the home world from Isla Paradiso, I receive the serious error message and I'm sent back to the main menu. None of my backup saves from July 2015 to June 2014 will load in this world. When attempting to load some of my earliest saves from 2014, I receive the "It may have been saved with expansion pack data that is no longer present" message, and since all expansion packs are installed and functioning properly, the game must not be able to find the world.

I can create a new game in this reinstalled world and play just fine. My family can travel and do anything without issue. Only a save game prior to reinstallation of this world gives a serious error message.

I've shut down my antivirus Webroot, MalwareBytes, and disconnected from the internet.

I've reinstalled the same world several times to no effect. I have exported a fresh version from CAW and installed that. Same results - I can make a new save but can't load any old save.

I've deleted the five caches and world caches, done a factory reset, uninstalled and reinstalled all of my expansion packs.

I've created multiple dummy saves with the reinstalled world and replaced just the meta file, and tried replacing the DAT, meta, and travel files. I've tried replacing the NHD file. I found a recommendation to delete "script files and version tag" along with replacing the meta file but I'm not sure if that meant the cache files or something else, so I did not attempt that.

I've tried using the same installed world file from previous backups of my entire TS3 folders.

I've tried loading the old saves with ONLY the custom world installed, no other CC or mods. My mods are all current and I'm fully patched to 1.67 and store patch 2.2. My Origin account is patched.

The issue is obviously with the original world file I installed. The game must not be able to find it, but the file name appears to be the same. I must have made a mistake somewhere reinstalling the world but I've exhausted my limited knowledge. Is there anything I could try that I haven't? Again, I've been trying to fix my save for over a week, so I may have forgotten to mention something I tried, but I'm willing to try things multiple times to save my world. I've put three years into it and have been very careful with saving and backups.

I play my gave through NVIDIA GeForce Experience and am able to play flawlessly at maxed settings across the board with my GeForce GTX 750 Ti.

Thank you SO MUCH for taking the time to read this and trying to help me out. I must've made a mistake or overlooked something but I'm at the point where I need a fresh pair of eyes and mind to tackle this.

Post limit won't allow me to post my entire DxDiag results, but the system and display portions:

DxDiag results:

Spoiler (click to show/hide)

MrsFlynn · « **Reply #1 on:** August 05, 2015, 01:27:51 PM »

Hi DragonFruit,

If you have a current working backup of the saved-game Go in, save the game using Save As, and give it a new name. That should help.

If your previous save won't/can't open. Try this:

1. Either copy the meta.data file from an existing working save or start a new game, go into Edit Town and Save As, give it a new name and quit the game, then copy the meta.data file from the new game. [For Example:]

Documents > Electronic Arts > The Sims 3 > Saves > MF-MS01.sims3 - look in the saved game folder for meta.data

Note: Adding a new meta.data file may change your loading screen. But you can fix that once the game is loaded by saving the game - Save As, with a new name.

2. Paste the meta.data file into your current game save folder. Then try playing it.

3. Play a few minutes to make sure game is working okay. Then use Save As (for example) SV-S1.

4. You should now have a current working Save game.

Hope this helps,

MrsFlynn

Reference Link:
http://simswiki.info/wiki.php?title=Game_Help:TS3_Load_Issues#A_Serious_Error_has_occurred_error

Dragonfruit · « **Reply #2 on:** August 05, 2015, 01:51:09 PM »

Hi! Thanks so much for your reply!

Replacing the meta.data file didn't work. Bummer.

MrsFlynn · « **Reply #3 on:** August 05, 2015, 09:49:41 PM »

We might have something else that might help. Hubby got the Serious Error message the other day while he was playing Sims 3.

We couldn't remember what he did to fix it. It was a simple fix too. I showed him the Simswiki.info page and the photo of the problem on that page. And bling he remembered.

If you have your Electronic Arts folder open in Windows Explorer close it and try running the game again.

As having your EA folder open in the background will cause the Serious Error message to pop up.

Hope this helps,

MrsFlynn

Dragonfruit · « **Reply #4 on:** August 06, 2015, 10:11:48 AM »

Thanks again! I tried getting my sims back to my home world a few times after ensuring Windows Explorer is closed and no luck.

I can play my Sims on vacation all I want and even have them travel to other worlds from there and back, but I can't seem to load the home world. The error specifically says "can't load HOMEWORLD.sims3: HOMEWORLD.sims30x000000" so does that mean it's a particular file? Again, I can create new games in this custom world, but I can't load any saves from a year's worth of backups. I'm totally stumped.

MrsFlynn · « **Reply #5 on:** August 06, 2015, 12:37:22 PM »

I've heard of players sending their sim on vacation and not being able to get their family back to their homeworld. It's a common travel bug and affects a lot of things in the game.

I can't tell for sure if this will work as it's a tip for Sims can't return home from University. But I figure it's worth a mention.

The easiest solution is to pack up your Sim (aka save to the library) and start a new game with the Sim. This will solve a certain degree of corruption. You won't loose your progress, just the relationships to other Sims, any open opportunities as well as your open wishes.

Crinrict talks about mods that might help and what to do with those mods.

Hopefully this helps,

MrsFlynn

----------
Reference Links:
[ISSUE] Savegame Corruption
http://answers.ea.com/t5/The-Sims-3/ISSUE-Savegame-Corruption/m-p/968290

Sim can’t return home from University
http://sims3.crinrict.com/en/2013/03/sim-cant-return-home-after-graduation.html

Dragonfruit · « **Reply #6 on:** August 06, 2015, 05:18:32 PM »

I don't think it's a matter of the family being unable to return home but rather that the home world won't load. It won't load in dozens of backups, BUT it will make a new game. That's the weirdest thing about my issue. After I reinstalled the world, it's like the game can't find it.

I've just discovered something and I'm not sure if this is related.

I'm using Windows 8.1 and I just noticed that my original saves for some reason have a single space before the world name in the file name. Ex. " WORLD.sims" and Windows autocorrects to remove that space every time I edit the file name or even C+P the original file with the space. This only affects the home world file. I've disabled autocorrect in PC settings but that didn't stop the auto-deleting of that space.

This might be the cause of my issue...

MrsFlynn · « **Reply #7 on:** August 06, 2015, 07:26:40 PM »

A space before the name could definitely be an issue.

MrsFlynn

Dragonfruit · « **Reply #8 on:** August 06, 2015, 08:17:34 PM »

There must be some way outside of Explorer to change a file name. My successful new/dummy saves have that space. This has to be the issue.

Flynn Arrowstarr · « **Reply #9 on:** August 06, 2015, 09:13:05 PM »

Hi, Dragonfruit.

In Create a World, does the world you created have a space in front of the name? If so, is there a way to rename the world in CaW to remove the space? That way future games won't run in to this issue.

As for you current game, I'm not certain of a way to deliberately add a space in front of a file name in Windows Explorer. We're looking to see if we can find a way to do this within Windows, or if there's a utility that can do it, so you can recover your games.

Flynn

Dragonfruit · « **Reply #10 on:** August 06, 2015, 09:36:12 PM »

Hey Flynn! Yes, that's the first thing I did when I realized the space. I renamed the Global Layer, saved, and exported the world. It plays fine so I shouldn't have a future issue with it.

I'm trying to find a way with S3PE to revise the world ID. I'm not very familiar with the program, but I see that the WDET characters are the same in the installed world file, NHD file, and vacation world NHD files. I don't know what those letters mean, but I guess it's good that they are the same? I'm googling furiously tonight.

Flynn Arrowstarr · « **Reply #11 on:** August 06, 2015, 09:43:06 PM »

Quote from: Dragonfruit on August 06, 2015, 08:17:34 PM

There must be some way outside of Explorer to change a file name. My successful new/dummy saves have that space. This has to be the issue.

Hi, Dragonfruit.

I think I found something you can try:

Open Windows Explorer and go to the file/folder that is supposed to have the space in front of it/
Right-click the name and select Rename from the menu.
Move the cursor to the beginning of the name.
Hold down the Alt key and type 255 on the number pad (not the number row) - it will add a space in front of the name.
Press Enter and it should keep the space in front of the filename.

Close Windows Explorer and try the game again and see it you can get your family back to their homeworld.

Quote from: Dragonfruit on August 06, 2015, 09:36:12 PM

Hey Flynn! Yes, that's the first thing I did when I realized the space. I renamed the Global Layer, saved, and exported the world. It plays fine so I shouldn't have a future issue with it.

I'm trying to find a way with S3PE to revise the world ID. I'm not very familiar with the program, but I see that the WDET characters are the same in the installed world file, NHD file, and vacation world NHD files. I don't know what those letters mean, but I guess it's good that they are the same? I'm googling furiously tonight.

I haven't messed much with s3pe, so I probably won't be much help unfortunately. But, try my suggestion above as well on one of the saves that doesn't work. I'm curious to see if that will fix the problem or not.

Hope this helps and happy Simming!

Flynn

Dragonfruit · « **Reply #12 on:** August 06, 2015, 10:28:42 PM »

The alt code idea was genius! I was able to add the space in the file name. Sadly the world still won't load. I tried the trick in several back-up saves and they failed.

The trick didn't make anything worse, though. I'm still able to play the family fine on vacation, but I can't send them home or edit the home world in game. I tried the meta data trick and the NHD/package file trick again. No luck.

This is just super weird. Nothing says .bad and nothing shows up as corrupted in the Dashboard. I've made dozens of backups to prevent this exact thing from happening and still something got messed up. Nothing in the EA folders is locked - I manually unlocked AND downloaded Unlocker. I've exhausted google.

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