get Sims 3 working in bottles
sims-3-bottles.md
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Requirements#

  • bottles
  • winetricks

Steps#

  • create a new 32-bit bottles with any wine runner. wait for set up to finish.
  • create a standalone by running flatpak run --command=bottles-cli com.usebottles.bottles standalone -b [bottle name].
  • run source [bottle path, printed by the previous command]/standalone.
  • install deps with winetricks. winetricks vcrun2005 dotnet48 corefonts.
  • configure the bottle.
    • enable DXVK in bottles. Sims 3 bottle > Settings > DXVK, pick any version.
    • enable the wayland driver if needed. HKEY_CURRENT_USER > Software > Wine > Drivers, new string value Graphics with the value wayland,x11.
    • set DPI if you're using fractional scaling. Settings > Advanced Display Settings > Screen Scaling. 96 * 1.25 (for 125%)
  • install the game using the installer.

Caveats#

game crashes on launch with no errors.#

this is an issue with new Alder Lake+ CPUs from Intel. to fix, you must install this patch: https://modthesims.info/d/667734/intel-alder-lake-patch.html. don't forget to move all installer files into the prefix or it won't launch.

high GPU usage#

this is an issue with DXVK. the game can be installed and run without DXVK using wined3d, but on the wayland driver there's a problem with low gamma.

can be worked around by setting the following dxvk config (from here github.com:

d3d9.textureMemory = 1
d3d9.presentInterval = 1
d3d9.maxFrameRate = 60
d3d9.samplerAnisotropy = 16

to apply, create a file in the root of the bottle (where drive_c is), and in Settings > Environment Variables set DXVK_CONFIG_FILE= to the path to the file.

what also can help is dxvk-gplasync-v2.7-1. after switching add dxvk.enableAsync=true to the dxvk config.

poor performance/stutters#

this seems to be related to unroutable sims. to fix, install nraas Overwatch. nraas ErrorTrap and ld's Smooth Patch are also a nice addition.

can't launch the game due to "updates"#

this happens on new wine builds (10.12+?) when using the Launcher and can be bypassed by launching the game directly via TS3(W).exe