Inside The Sims 4 folder you copied and marked as a backup there are additional folders which can help you identify the problem file more quickly.
To see which folder contains the troublesome file, copy the folders across to The Sims 4 folder in My Documents one by one.
For example, if you think there could be a problem with a save file:
- Open your backup folder on your Desktop/home screen and copy the saves folder inside it.
- To copy a folder on PC, click it and press Ctrl and C on your keyboard.
- To copy a folder on Mac, click it and press Command and C on your keyboard.
- Go to your Documents.
- Open Electronic Arts.
- Open The Sims 4.
- Paste the folder, and choose the option to replace the existing file.
- To paste a folder on PC, click it and press Ctrl and V on your keyboard.
- To paste a folder on Mac, click it and press Command and V on your keyboard.
- Start The Sims 4 and see if it will load for you now.
- If it loads, the problem is not with one of these copied saves.
- Work through copying the other backup folders across one by one, using the steps above, and testing the game each time.
- If it does not load, the problem is with one of the copied saves.
- Delete the saves folder from the Sims 4 folder in your Documents, then try copying each individual save file over from your backup, testing the game after each one.
- When the game fails to load, that means the most recent file you added is causing the issues. Delete this file both from The Sims 4 folder in your Documents and also from your backup folder.
Check to see if a mod is causing issues
If you’ve tried the steps above to try and identify a problem file and you’re still having issues, it could be a mod you’ve downloaded.
Follow the steps in our mods article to check if any of the custom content in your game is causing problems.
