How to Drastically Reduce Loading Times

If you have a lot of mods and CC installed (let’s be honest, that’s practically all of us) and you are frustrated by long loading times just to reach the main menu, you should immediately turn off the Mods list on startup.

The game has to take time to generate this list dynamically every time you start the game, and the more packages and script files you have installed, the longer it takes to do this. This is a completely separate process from actually loading the objects and CAS items, and also completely unnecessary once you know how mod installation works.

This has unfortunately contributed to the myth that some people continue to spread that merging your mod files is a good idea, since the list takes less time to write one filename instead of hundreds or thousands. DO NOT under any circumstance merge your mod files! Not only can this break your mods and make it nearly impossible to correctly update them following patches, but all of the benefit can be achieved just by skipping this list.

To stop seeing this list, simply uncheck the box in the lower left corner the next time the window comes up, or click the “View Custom Content” button in the Other tab of your Game Options menu, and watch your loading times decrease immensely!

If you for any reason need to see this list again, you can always trigger it by clicking the “View Custom Content” button in the Other tab of your Game Options menu.

A video guide and explanation on this topic by TwistedMexi is avilable on YouTube:
Stop Merging Your CC!

It is often recommended to people, be it for performance or for organization, that they should merge their CC. Unfortunately, merging CC will deliver neither, and in fact can cause issues of its own.

When CC is merged, it is often easy to forget what original files once constituted the merged file. This can be especially problematic when performing a 50/50, or when a batch fix is needed. S4S cannot always fix merged packages, nor can it always recover the original files from the merger.

It is also a fairly common occurrence that mod files end up merged as well, which itself can cause a whole host of problems, from breaking the mod in question, to causing mods you had thought you removed to remain, among other issues. The short version is NEVER merge mods together, it can break them!

It is an unfortunately common myth that merging CC decreases load times. It appears to work simply because less files to load for the “Show At Startup” message makes it load faster in general. To achieve the same effect without merging your files, simply disable the Show At Startup option as explained above.

Lag is often the symptom of a bigger problem rather than its own issue. For that reason, it can occur as a result of numerous other issues, such as:

• Broken mods and CC: the number one cause for lag is outdated and broken mods/CC, as the error logging can cause a massive performance hit.
• Lots of mods/CC: the game has to load these files, and having a lot of them can cause lag. As explained above, merging CC does not significantly help.
• Lots of Screenshots, Tray Files or Saves: loading lots of files can cause performance hits. Move these to your Desktop or back them up regularly.
• Old saves, saves with lots of Sims, or Sims with lots of relationships: keeping around old “data” can cause lag and save bloat.
• Lots of items in inventories, cluttered homes or lots: excessive clutter can cause performance hits as well.
• Sims: having a lot of Sims on lots or in your household can cause simulation lag.
• Background processes: having other programs open, especially ones like Google Chrome which eat a lot of RAM, can cause lag.
• Custom recipes: Mods that add custom recipes to your game are often causing immense lag when clicking on the fridge/oven to start preparing food.

If you wish to reduce game lag, you’ll need to first find out and then tackle the cause for it. It can also be a combination of several causes. Go through the list above and have a look at our other guides, such as “How to 50/50” and “How to Folder Refresh & Game Repair“.

Scarlet’s Mods List will help you find and update any broken or outdated mods you might have.