Fallout 3 Guide

Fallout 3 is an immersive Post Apocalyptic Role Playing Game where humanity struggles to survive in a radioactive, mutated wasteland of the United States. Following suite with Bethseda's previous Elder Scrolls titles, they explore a Sci-Fi genre and upgrade the same engine used in Elder Scrolls: Oblivion while retaining our favorite Role Playing aspects to keep us playing for 100's of hours.

Naturally I wanted to see if Fallout 3 would run in Linux. Follow my guide and lets see if it will run for you as well...

Follow my step-by-step guide on installing, configuring and optimizing Fallout 3 in Linux with PlayOnLinux.

Note: This guide applies to the Retail version of Fallout 3. Other versions may require additional steps.

Tips & Specs:

To learn more about PlayOnLinux and Wine configuration, see the online manual: PlayOnLinux Explained

Mint 16 32-bit
PlayOnLinux: 4.2.2
Wine: 1.7.15

Installing Wine

Click Tools
Select "Manage Wine Versions"

Look for the Wine Version: 1.7.15
Note: Try using stable Wine 1.8 and 1.8-staging

Select it
Click the arrow pointing to the right

Click Next

Downloading Wine

Extracting

Downloading Gecko

Installed

Also try newer Wine 1.7.28 for better results

Wine 1.7.15 is installed and you can close this window

PlayOnLinux Setup

Launch PlayOnLinux
click Install

Click "Install a non-listed program"

Click Next

Select "Install a program in a new virtual drive"
Click Next

Name your virtual drive: fallout3
Click Next

Check all three options:

• Use another version of Wine
• Configure Wine
• Install some libraries

Click Next

Select Wine 1.7.15 (or newer 1.7.28)
Click Next

Note: If you are running a 64-bit system, PlayOnLinux will prompt if you want to use a 64-bit or 32-bit virtual drive.
Always select 32-bit virtual drive.

Configure Wine

Applications Tab
Windows Verion: Windows 7
Click Apply

Graphics Tab
Check "Automatically capture the mouse in full-screen windows"
Check "Emulate a virtual desktop"
Desktop Size: 1024x768
Click OK

Installing Packages

Check the following packages:

• POL_Install_corefonts
• POL_Install_cc580
• POL_Install_dxfullsetup
• POL_Install_msvc80
• POL_Install_quartz
• POL_Install_vcrun2005

Click Next

Installing Fallout 3

Click "Select another file"
Click Next

Click Browse

Navigate to your Retail DVD
Select "Setup.exe"
Click Open

Click Next


Click Next


Check "I accept the terms of the license agreement"
Click Next


Click Next


Click Install


Installing


Uncheck both options
Click Finish

PlayOnLinux Shortcut

Select "FalloutLauncher.exe"
Click Next

Name your shortcut: Fallout 3
Click Next

Select "I don't want to make another shortcut"
Click Next

Configure PlayOnLinux

Back to PlayOnLinux
Click Configure

General Tab
Wine Version: 1.7.15
Note: Click the + to download other versions of Wine. Click the down-arrow to select other versions of Wine

Display Tab
Direct Draw Renderer: opengl
Video memory size: The amount of memory on your video card
Offscreen rendering mode: fbo

Installing Patch

Go to: Fallout 3 1.7 English Patch

Download 1.7 patch
Save it on your Desktop
Click Save

Back to PlayOnLinux Configure

Miscellaneous Tab
Click "Run a .exe file in this virtual drive"

Navigate to your desktop
Select "Fallout3_1.7_English_US.exe
Click Open

Click OK

Installing

Note: When the patch is done the Fallout 3 Launcher will automatically launch

First Launch

Hardware Detect

Click Options

Select Aspect Ratio

Select Resolution
Note: Select the same resolution as your Linux desktop for the game to appear full-screen
Click OK

Click Play and the game should crash.

Windows Live dll

Go to: http://www.dll-files.com/dllindex/dll-files.shtml?xlive
Click "Download zip-file"

Navigate to your desktop
Click Save

Double-click the zip file and open in Archive Manager

Select xlive.dll
Click Extract

Navigate to: /home/username/.PlayOnLinux/wineprefix/fallout3/drive_c/windows/system32/
Note: enter your "login" in place of "username"
Click Extract

If it asks to overwrite, click Yes

Launch Fallout 3

Back to PlayOnLinux
Select Fallout 3
Click Run

Fallout 3 Launcher
Click Play

Optimization

Click Settings

Click Display

Use the slider to gain performance in Fallout 3
Slide right to increase view of objects
Slide left to decrease view of objects

Conclusion:
Fallout 3 ran pretty smoothly on my GeForce 550 Ti. A few stutters here and there and "touchy" mouse behavior in the dialog boxes. But really good frame rates outside in the streaming world of Fallout. Experiment with newer versions of Wine 1.7.28

IMPORTANT!
If Fallout 3 crashes every once in a while, its because of the in-game music. Go to the Fallout 3 game folder and rename the music folder. This will disable in-game music, but will also protect your game from crashing.

 

One of the guides I've been waiting for! Once my Box is back up I'll give her a go... several of your guides will get my attention once I'm CPU fit again!

 

Please let me know if you have any problems with it.
Fallout 3 uses a script, but there is still some tweaking that needs to be done after wards.

 

Lest I could do big guy! ":O}

 

High Res Screenshots:

 

In Mint 15/ PlayonLinux fallout three is no longer offered...sigh..

 

That must be a bug!

You can always manual install it!
Just make sure to use the version of Wine in this guide and the Libraries too.

 

I'm tired...Will try that tomorrow! Thanks Boo!

 

Look at this: Fallout 3 on WineHQ
No more Fallout 3 listed on WineHQ!!??
What is the deal? Was there a lawsuit or something?

 

Do you know which library's are needed?

 

scroll up:

• d3dx9
• corefonts
• directx9
• cc580
• vcrun2005

 

Tomorrow...I'm all installed out for today! LOL

(Rebuilt my Debain install...)

 

Look at this: Fallout 3 on WineHQ
No more Fallout 3 listed on WineHQ!!??
What is the deal? Was there a lawsuit or something?

I don't see that there is no more FO3...I'm missing something...?

 

Fallout 3 is back!
AND! I "Think " that I have 32 bit librarys working in Debain

 

Debain failed...again! ":O}
But now I'm back in Mint 15 (Ububtu) and Fall out 3 is gone. So I guess games come and go with various versions of POL...who do they think they are...WINE? ":O}

No doubt due to POL dependence on WINE...? OK some I have some doubt!

Boo feel free to delete posts you feel clutter you Guides. I'll try a manual install and post here my results Using POL 4.2.1 and what ever wine seems to work today":O}

Have you tried to install multi-versions of POL, can that be done?

 

I keep failing... I've tried to install manually from disk, But it says it's finished and closes the install without looking for a second disk. When I try from my ripped game folder it simply crashes.

I'm going to try and re-rip in case I missed something, been a while since I ripped the files.

 

I think you have to install the Debian version of PlayOnLinux...
http://www.playonlinux.com/en/download.html

Running the .DEB file should install it just fine!

I don't think PlayOnLinux would be happy with another version of PlayOnLinux at the same time.

 

Unfortunately I used the Debian Software manager to install POL. it and Steam install just fine... But.... Every move I make to install Components meets with a message that this is a bad file, it fails to install Direct X 9, and warns against using such subversive software!
So I tried installing wine with synaptic package manager... (as you suggest here) Then reinstalled POL. This is how I got POL to stop giving me the missing 32 bit library message and it installed Stream for me. I also had to install Xterm(?) for POL.

Steam behaves wonderfully looks great! but can't play a single game I install. wants little things like Direct X 9C, which POL fails when trying to install it.

To bad multiple versions of POL might solve a few problems.

 

Wow, that is not cool!
You have to install Wine alone before installing PlayOnLinux. That is a requirement.... not that its documented anywhere.
Ironically I always ended up doing that anyways.
PlayOnLinux will use the initial Wine install for setting up the default virtual drive.
From there on you can start installing new versions of Wine through PlayOnLInux.

 

Yeah, it gets rid of the 32 bit warnnin when using POL and Steam, but leaves everything else still unusable....Can't install POL components...DX 9, Core-fonts etc....