Currently, the place you need to create a Mods folder is: Documents/Electronic Arts/The Sims 3/ and here you create your Mods folder. Now we will get on to the actual installing of mods. Package file you have downloaded will go in a folder called ‘Mods’. This folder will not be there to start with, as you have to create it yourself.
Yes you have to create it. In Documents/electroniquearts/sims3 create a folder named Mods.-In that Mods folder create another folder named Packages. Check Packages Folder: Your Documents Electronic Arts The Sims 3 Mods Packages folder should have two files inside it: NoBuildSparkles.package, and nointro.package Note: The picture shows them with a little green plumbbob icon, and 'Sims3 Package' under Type.
DCBackup, ccmerged.package and Your Premium Content Items
AKA Fix Your Premium Content
Having troubles with your Premium Content? Do your sims reset when they try to use the Spell Book? Are you unable to place your Sauna? Is your Multi-Tab 6000 not working properly? Do your sims not receive moodlets when using premium content objects? Does your wood fire oven have no interactions? If so, you’re not alone. But I have good news for you. The vast majority of issues with Premium Content can be easily fixed without the need of any mods.
This tutorial is available in Dutch, thanks to Libby. SimsExpressie – Fix bij niet werkend Premium Materiaal
For Missing Accessory/Missing Resource issues (missing Megaphone, missing Cauldron spoon, missing Charles the Chicken, big white boxes when using premium content etc.), see: Premium Content: Missing Accessories
The DCBackup Folder
Back before there was Premium Content, it was perfectly safe to delete everything in the DCBackup folder without care. This folder merely stores a package format back up of all content you install via the launcher. Keeping this folder empty means you will clear up some extra hard drive space (which is probably only important for people with SSDs). As far as I know, it also means your custom content will not be packaged with your lots and sims, though I have never personally confirmed this.
After EA released the spell book premium content object, which had a custom skill and moodlet, gone were the days of simply hitting Ctrl+A in the DCBackup folder, and then delete. There is now a very important package file stored in your DCBackup folder: the ccmerged.package file. This is where EA stores all custom moodlets, skills, ingredient data, plant data and recipes relating to Premium Content you’ve installed. If you delete this package file, the game will not be able to load your store moodlets, and objects that grant custom moodlets, such as the Deep Fryer and Fountain of Youth, will not work properly. Moreover, if you delete this file, you will encounter all kinds of issues including: the spell book reset issue, being unable to place the sauna, no interactions on the wood fire oven, deep fryer, ice cream maker, teppanyaki grill etc. Please note that the game does re-create the ccmerged.package when you delete it, but it is empty, and this empty ccmerged.package will cause most premium content objects to malfunction.
So, what does this mean? This means you should not delete the ccmerged.package in your DCBackup folder. It also means that you can fix nearly all Premium Content item “bugs” without any mods at all. You can still safely delete everything else in the DCBackup Folder.
So, maybe now you’re thinking, Help! I already deleted my ccmerged.package. Don’t worry, we can get your ccmerged.package back, though it will require a little bit of effort.
Restoring Your ccmerged.package
Who should use this method?
Anyone who installs premium content from the Sims 3 Store can use this method to repair their ccmerged.package. Even if you have never deleted anything in your DCBackup folder, your ccmerged.package may have somehow become corrupt or incomplete if the Launcher had trouble merging the information. Errors with the Deep Fryer and Ice Cream Maker, the sauna, moodlets, sims resetting, sims not gaining gambling skill, being unable to use the wood fire oven/teppanyaki grill/etc., are all linked to the ccmerged.package. This is probably also why the store development team is not able to reproduce the errors: their ccmerged.package is complete. It’s also why the SimGurus may simply tell you to re-install the object.
If you arehaving a Missing Resource/Missing Accessory issue (missing Megaphone, missing Cauldron spoon, missing Charles the Chicken, big white boxes when using premium content, etc.), see: Premium Content: Missing Accessories
How to Restore Your ccmerged.package
If you’ve already deleted your ccmerged.package, you’re going to have to get it back somehow. This is easy to do, especially if you back up your Store downloads (you DO back up your Store downloads, don’t you?). To do this, we will use the “factory reset” method (re-name “The Sims 3” folder) to create a fresh game environment. Then we will install all Premium Content, and move the resulting ccmerged.package to our old The Sims 3 folder. See detailed steps below.
1. Go to DocumentsElectronic Arts and re-name the folder called “The Sims 3” to something else. For Example: The Sims 3.old (All of your current content is store in this folder and it will not be lost in the process.)
2. Start the Launcher. The Launcher will now re-build all necessary files to run the game.
3. Move your backed up premium content sims3packs into DocumentsElectronic ArtsThe Sims 3Downloads . If you did not back up your downloads (tsk tsk), you will need to re-download your premium content items. You only need your premium content items. Note: You can use the World sims3packs (Hidden Springs/Lunar Lakes/Lucky Palms/Monte Vista/Aurora Skies/Midnight Hollow) to install Premium Content items that came with the worlds.
4. You may need to restart your launcher to see the now full Downloads tab. Otherwise, click on the Downloads tab and install the premium content items via the Sims 3 Launcher.
- Optional Step: You may now wish to test your premium content before moving your ccmerged.package. Simply launch the game and try to use your premium content objects. If they work, your ccmerged.package is good and you can continue to Step 5.
5. Close the Launcher. Find the ccmerged.package in DocumentsElectronic ArtsThe Sims 3DCBackup and copy this file to the DCBackup folder in your old The Sims 3 folder (The Sims 3.old). If you still have a ccmerged.package in your old DCBackup folder, choose replace.
- Important: Do not rename the ccmerged.package.
6. Re-name or delete the current “The Sims 3” folder in DocumentsElectronic Arts
7. Re-name your old The Sims 3 folder (In this example: The Sims 3.old) to The Sims 3
8. Go to DocumentsElectronic ArtsThe Sims 3 and delete the scriptcache.package.
9. Start your game and test your premium content items. If they all work perfectly, YAY!
10. If your premium content items are still not working properly, there are few possible reasons for this:
- You may have an out of date premium content mod. This would have to be a mod that alters premium content moodlets, skills ingredients, plants, or recipes, In other words, a mod that alters a resource in the ccmerged.package.
- You may have an older copy of the ccmerged somewhere in your Sims 3 folder, such as in your Mods folder, or somewhere else.
- You may have some other package, or corruption in your Sims 3 folder which is causing the ccmerged not to be loaded properly. I highly recommend using the Optional Step in Step 4. Test your objects in the clean Sims 3 folder and make sure they are working before you move the ccmerged to your original Sims 3 folder.
You can also try the following:
- Download the ccmerged.zip below and unzip it to DocumentsElectronic ArtsThe Sims 3DCBackup
- Alternatively: Place a copy of ccmerged.package in your ModsPackages folder. NOTE: This requires Mods framework.
- I do not recommend keeping your ccmerged.package anywhere except in the DCBackup, as otherwise you must remember to update the package every time you install new Premium Content.
- If you installed your premium content as package files, place the ccmerged.packaged in ModsOverrides.
- Also, try reading the “It Sill Doesn’t Work!” section.
You can achieve the same results by uninstalling the your premium content through the launcher and then re-installing.However, I personally think using a clean Sims 3 Folder is easiest. The launcher is very clunky to use, and if you have many objects installed via the launcher, it will be difficult, if not impossible, to properly uninstall all premium content objects through the launcher. Simply re-creating the ccmerged.package by using a factory reset and re-installing the objects is a very quick, safe and easy way to get a working ccmerged.package, especially if you back up your downloads.
Q: It Still Doesn’t Work!
If your Premium Content still isn’t working properly, consider the following:
- Do you have any old premium content fixes/mods or an old ccmerged.package somewhere in your Mods folder or The Sims 3 folder? Try removing the old fixes and see if it that helps.
- Tip: Remove your mods folder and start the game. Load up a test world and test the object. If your object works without the Mods folder, then you have an outdated mod or ccmerged.package somewhere.
- Did you skip a step? Don’t skip steps! The best method to fix your premium content is to use an empty Sims 3 folder, so you can be sure that you didn’t miss uninstalling any of your Premium Content before you re-install.
- Try launching the game and testing the content before you go back to your old Sims 3 folder. If the content works, then you have something in your old Sims 3 folder that is breaking your object. If the content doesn’t work, then your launcher is not properly creating the ccmerged.package for some reason.
- You can use my ccmerged.package, provided below, if your launcher is not building the ccmerged.package properly, or if you’re too lazy to fix your own ccmerged.
- Make sure you delete the scriptcache.package, or the game might not pick up the changes in the ccmerged.package.
- Finally, just to remind you, if you installed your premium content items as package files (this does not apply if you install through the launcher), you must keep an updated version of the ccmerged.package in ModsOverrides.
Q: I have all Premium Content from the Store. Do I really need to install everything?
No, you do not need to install all Premium Content (but if you have backed up all of your store content, it shouldn’t be much of a hassle). You only need to install content that provides custom moodlets, skills, recipes or plants (which is, admittedly, most premium content items). This includes (but may not be limited to):
How To Create A Mods Folder Sims 3
- The Spell Book (Gothique Library)
- The Fountain of Youth (Hidden Springs)
- The Magic Cauldron (More Magic Set)
- The Voodoo doll (More Magic Set)
- The Crystal Ball (More Magic Set)
- The Deep Fryer (Fiesta Set)
- The Ice Cream Maker (Fiesta Set)
- The Hypnotizer (Seeing Stars)
- The MultiTab 6000 (Technophobe No More)
- Blackjack Table (Lucky Simoleon Casino)
- Triple Riches Slots O’Jackpots Slot Machine (Lucky Simoleon Casino)
- Wishing Well (Lucky Palms)
- Chocolate Fountain (Le Cirque Set)
- Massage Table (Sunlit Tides)
- Sauna (Sunlit Tides) — Having a broken ccmerged.package will cause the Sauna to throw errors and be unusable.
- Plants Vs. Zombies Peashooter (Supernatural Limited Edition)
- Basketball Hoop (Level Up Collection)
- Teppanyaki Grill (Itadakimasu! Japanese Inspired Dining)
- Plants Vs. Zombies Sunflower (Stones Throw Greenhouse)
- Pizza Oven (Monte Vista)
- Lemon Tree & Purple Eggplant (Al Fresco Venue)
- Baby Changing Station (Lullabies Set)
- Play pen & Local Motion Walker (Tiny Prodigies Early Learning Center)
- Hot Air Balloon (Aurora Skies)
- Party Statue (University Life Limited edition)
- Large as Life Movie Screen (Le Cinema Plumbob lot)
- Fowl and Feathers Chicken Coop (Country Livin’)
- Double Down Poker and Roulette Bundle
- Dragon Valley – Baby dragons (provide moodlets)
- Duke of Bows Renaissance Faire – Violin skill, Archery moodlets
- Skylight Studio for the Performing Arts (Stiff as a Board, Light as a Feather Dance Collection), Custom Dance Skill & Moodlets
- Business as Usual Bistro (moodlets)
- Surf’s Up Sun & Fun Wave Station (moodlets, hidden surfing skill)
- Milkin’ It Dairy Corral (from Farm Fresh Folk Set, new moodlets)
- The Titanic Toy Machine and the Savvy Seller’s Collection (Midnight Hollow Gold, new moodlets)
- Door of Life And Death (Grim’s Ghastly Manor)
- Quantum Power Pack (Into the Future Limited Edition Bonus)
- Grandpa’s Grove Tractor (Grandpa’s Grove, new moodlets, new ingredients – Oranges)
- Roaring Heights Gold
- Prism Art Studio (Glass blowing)
- Bohemian Garden
- Deliciously Indulgent Bakery
- World of Wonder Carousel Collection
- Brunch at the Old Mill
- Last Venue of Amore
Game Help:Installing Sims 3 Package Files/Setup And Files ...
Q: What if I install new Premium Content that comes with a custom moodlet, skill or recipe?
As long as you do not delete the ccmerged.package, you will be fine. You can install as many new Premium Content Items as you wish, and you should not encounter any problems with your content. The Launcher will merge any new information into your ccmerged.package on its own and you will not have to re-install all your premium content whenever you get something new
That said, I do recommend that you keep a backup copy of your ccmerged.package. In fact, I often back up my entire Sims 3 folder whenever I install new store items.
Where Is My Mods Folder Sims 3
If something goes wrong for some unexpected reason, you may need to repeat this process again. If you had to put your ccmerged.package in your mods folder, you will need to replace that file with the new one when you install new content.
❗ However, if you put your ccmerged.package in the Mods folder, you must update it every time you install new Premium Content,
Q: But I install my store content as package files Or I really don’t want to create a ccmerged.package.
Ok, fine. You can have my ccmerged.package. I update it every time there is a new Premium Content item. Unzip to DocumentsElectronic ArtsThe Sims 3DCBackup
Download ccmerged.zip
This ccmerged.package contains all data for all premium content. Even if you do not own all premium content, you can safely use this package in your own game. It will not cause problems with your game at all. Please see What is the ccmerged? for more information about why you can use this ccmerged.
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Last update: 7 June 2014 for World of Wonder Carousel Collection