Tag: Graphics Issues

Problems with The Sims 4 on Macs with AMD Vega GPUs

Published on by BluebellFlora1 Comment

The September patch seems to be wreaking havoc on Macs with AMD Vega GPUs. Users have reported crashing, glitched graphics and system lockups when trying to play the game. The affected Macs are:

  • 2017 iMac Pro.
  • 2018 15″ MacBook Pros. Not all these models will have Vega GPUs, it was an option at point of sale.
  • 2019 15″ MacBook Pros. This was the last model before Apple changed to 16″ screens. Not all these models will have Vega GPUs, it was an option at point of sale.
  • 2019 21″ iMac 4K. Not all these models will have Vega GPUs, it was an option at point of sale.
  • 2019 27″ iMac 5K. Not all these models will have Vega GPUs, it was an option at point of sale.

You can check to see which GPU your Mac has by clicking on the Apple in the menu bar then About This Mac. For 15″ MacBook Pros click System Report then look in Graphics/Displays you will have an integrated Intel chip and a dedicated AMD GPU.

There are currently three separate threads at Answers HQ which users are posting in:

If you are experiencing this on a Mac with Vega graphics, please head to the relevant thread and click the all important Me Too button in the first post. The more Me Toos, the more likely QA are to look at it.

No concrete workaround yet although lowering your settings to all low does seem to help. Try also switching to the Sims 3 camera if you are using the Sims 4 camera.

Issues playing The Sims 4 on 16″ MacBook Pros

Published on by BluebellFlora2 Comments

Update 24.09.20 – joho1144 has posted a fix on the Answers HQ thread. Disable automatic graphics switching in System Preferences > Energy Saver. It seems as if the Mac is switching to the integrated Intel chip whilst the game is loaded when it should only be using the dedicated AMD GPU.

Seen quite a few posts now from Sims players with the 2019 16″ MacBook Pro whose games either crash constantly or have dreadful graphics with appalling screen tearing. The Config.log files are showing that the AMD Radeon Pro 5300M and 5500M are now supported but there are still issues. Symptoms may be:

  • Screen tearing
  • Game crashing, especially when trying to load a household
  • Flooring disappears and the terrain is visible
  • Black lines and patches in the game window

There are a few things that have worked for users and definitely worth trying:

  • Disable iCloud Drive in System Preferences
  • Disable Retina display in the in-game graphics options
  • Enable Vertical Sync in the in-game graphics options

You could also try toggling between fullscreen and windowed mode by holding down CMD, CTRL and F.

We have a thread running at Answers HQ for these issues too, please take the time to post your problem and click the Me Too button in the opening post so EA see it 🙂