Got a problem in your Fallout game? Post it right here, in this thread. First post is a problem which I solved. I can't tell you all how ecstatic this makes me.
FALLOUT 3 CRASH TO DESKTOP WHOA #1
So this is a bit of troubleshooting for those who might also have this same problem. It's about a very specific CTD I I kept having: crashes at Megaton's gate. Urgh. Maybe the solution below will also take care of all the random CTDs I keep having... usually they'll occur anywhere form a half-hour or later into playtime.
Go into the main Fallout 3 folder and right-click on FalloutLauncher. Maybe you'll need to left-click and then right-click. There should be a large panel which pops up. Select Properties, and then the Compatibility tab.
Select "Run This Compatibility Mode For" and then choose whichever operating system in the scroll-bar. I've got Windows 8. Click Apply, Click OK.
That is all. I've walked my character in and out of Megaton like seven times now.
Your random CTDs might be the multi core bug in Fallout 3. When the game was being made, multi core cpus were still being invented. So it was made for the old-fashioned single-core cpus. But by the time the game was released, multi core cpus were a thing, and the game often crashed on them. This might fix it.
Open up the fallout.ini file in: My Documents\My Games\Fallout3
Find the following lines, and change the values to these. If they don't exist, paste them in:
bUseThreadedAI=1
iNumHWThreads=2
This will limit the game to 2 cores and prevent the engine bug from causing the game to freeze.
If it still crashes, try setting it to iNumHWThreads=1
I had the multicore bug too and got it fixed, as well as the Windows LIVE thing. Thankfully, when I installed Fallout 3 on my backup computer I got it to work without hickups
Good you got it sorted, Renee. I've never had anything work by doing what you did so I'm glad to see it work for once
The only fix which helped me, when I was having lots of CTDs in FO3, was to place the New Vegas (yes, New Vegas!) anti crash file in the FO3 folder. CTDs ever since have become extremely rare. I've tried all other possible fixes, even some of those mentioned above, but none of them worked. It's good that we post different solutions / fixes here, because what may work for someone, may not work for someone else.
Rosa: Thank you. I also did check out the multi-core processor .ini fix, but my FALLOUT.ini file already has the appropriate lines added in. I think because I have that Unofficial patch (I forget its full name) this already made those changes.
mirocu: Yes the Games For Windows Live nonsense is what plagued me back in 2016 when I was trying to get Fallout 3 on my PC. That was extremely aggravating, and I don't think Steam (which is where I got F03) even mentioned having to deal with GFWL. In my opinion Steam should put a warning in BIG BOLD LETTERS right up front about this. It's only because I've become somewhat of a pro at PC crises that I did not immediately try to get my money back. Right Lopov?
Polov: Wow, that's very unusual. I already do have an anti-crash dll file installed, but not from New Vegas. Maybe now I will try removing this .dll file, because maybe my game is fine with the Compatibility fix stated in the OP.
It is very true that everyone's game seems to be different. Even with consoles, you'll have one group of people claiming their game is broken to unplayability, and an entirely different experience from another group.
Something else you can add to the list that causes unexplained CTDs is using Gysnc. I did not realize I had my Gsync turned on, and was having CTDs at random. Then once I realized it, I set the game to run on a fixed refresh rate, and that fixed it. It is the standard problem of Bethesda's games being made to only run at 60 fps. Going over that breaks the games.
Ha I don't know what Gsync is. I wonder if I have that activated. I don't think I do. I would remember that term since it's an obvious play in Vsync. My game is capped at 60, but I don't think I use Gsync.... I've got something else influencing framerates.
G-sync is a relatively new monitor technology. I wrote about it in the Gaming Technomancy topic somewhere around here. http://chorrol.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=5904. It basically replaces V-Sync, by automatically changing your monitor's refresh rate to match whatever your video card is putting out at that very instant. So it goes up and down dynamically, and that dramatically reduces stuttering, which is typically caused by the video card being unable to keep up with the 60 fps that V-sync demands it run at.
But it also means that the video card can run as fast as it wants to as well, which can mean frame rates of up to 144. On most games that just means they look really good. But Bethesda's games have their internal timing locked into 60 fps. If you go over that, it breaks the games. I forgot that.
I just cannot seem to get this game to run with mods anymore. I played through the intro without mods just fine, but when I added the unofficial patch and Fallout3 redesigned, it crashes like every 15-20 minutes! I checked all of the things in this thread and added the New Vegas anti crash file Lopov mentioned, but it just will not cooperate! I’m at a loss as it’s never given me this much trouble before.
Is Fallout 3 Redesigned a mod? If so, I know you might not want to hear this, but maybe try disabling that and see how it goes.
I must say, Fallout 3 is my most unstable game, so you're definitely not alone. Skyrim is most stable.
Hmm, well if it only affects faces, that can't be the culprit, but I'd still try disabling it. I could live without prettier faces for a short duration, I look at myself in the mirror every day after all. Yeah, I'd turn that off. Go in and out of Megaton's cells, back into the Wasteland, travel on foot for awhile, and so on. Go for a half hour, then an hour. If CTDs still occur, then it's something else, which is Ooouf, definitely not fun.
Is that the only mod you've got? Like I said in my story thread, I recently had a CTD every time my character walked from Fort Independence to the Wasteland (inside to outside, in other words). I tracked the culprit down to Mart's Mutant Mod. Bummer, but I'll live.
I don't think that the UOP is the issue, so I'd try disabling that Redesigned Mod. I've never used the Slower Item Degradation Mod either, so I can't be of much help here. Are you running the GOTY version?
I had the GOG version as well and I've been using UOP since forever and didn't notice that it'd cause CTDs. In my case problems were other mods and some unsolved conflicts between them, I guess. But as I said, the NV Anti-crash file made the game work like a charm again.
I agree... it can't be UOP. I use that as well.
I dunno. I do not use the Unofficial Patches because in my experience they caused as many bugs as the removed. But everyone's mileage varies on that.
^ See, that was my experience with Skryim. There were three main unofficial patches for awhile, then all the sudden the new patch came out, and it was an all-in-one patch, rather than 3 parts. I forget its name. But everyone started using it, so I did too. And it really crushed my game for awhile! Going in and out of cells in Windhelm was absolutely brutal, whereas before the patch, my Skyrim was mostly flawless. Even after I removed the patch, I had to go back to an earlier save, because that patch got baked into my save and it was still messing stuff up. Grr...
I hate to ask this one, but what about hardware? What sort of video card have you got Khajiit? Dedicated, or integrated? Sorry, that's rather intrusive. Weaker cards / hardware can be a source of crashes, though.
It might be Windows 10. It does not always play nice with older applications.
I have seen suggestions that you play it in Compatability mode for Windows XP, run it in Windowed mode, and run it as an administrator.
Good luck.
Ok so did a clean reinstall of F3 and it’s doing fine. Played through the intro and got outside to the first series of blasted buildings in Springvale and saved. Later tonight I’ll add back some mods and see how it goes.
You haven't truly experienced Fallout, until you've installed and reinstalled it a few times prior to playing.
... You haven't experienced Fallout yet, until you've had to figure out what Games For Windows Live is, and you'll need to disable it just to start your game. Maybe GOG disables this automatically when you buy Fallout 3. Steam does not.
OH! Khajiit, have you installed Archive Invalidation yet? https://www.nexusmods.com/fallout3/mods/944. Without that utility funny things can happen to some mod-added textures.
Ok well I guess I was doing something wrong before. I added back all of the mods I had earlier and a couple more and was able to play for a good couple hours today before having to stop to get ready for work. No crashes at all.
Awesome, good to hear. Now post some pictures!
*Shrugs*
Hey, I tried.
I just ran into a brick wall with the Gog version of Fallout 3. I am in the basement of Smith Casey's Garage. When I click on the door to Vault 112 the game crashes. I have spent the last few hours trying to find a workaround. I already tried removing all my mods, no luck. I tried going back to my save from the tutorial exit, and going straight to the garage and trying the door, no luck.
I tried using the console to simply skip the quests tied up with the vault. I can use the console to get into Tranquility Lane. But when I finish that, the game crashes again. Because when you complete it you go back to Vault 112.
So I tried skipping Tranquility Lane as well, and using the console to advance the quests. That works ok. Until Dad.
I think I have narrowed it down to Dad who is causing the CTD. Dad is in Vault 112 and the game crashes. He is also in Tranquility Lane, but as a Dog, so different actor. Game works. When I use the player.placeatme to spawn him, the game crashes.
I am not sure what about Dad crashes the game. There are multiple versions of him, which makes things confusing. Most of them are for different stages of the Tutorial. Only one seems to be for when you are an adult and finally discover him outside the Vault. That is the version I (and the game) are trying to spawn.
You did the right thing and turned all those mods off. So next thing I would try is going on UESP. See if others have encountered this horrible glitch.
Another option is to see if GoG has its own Fallout forums, and if others have seen this as well.
Other people have had this over the years. No one has offered up a solution.
I tried an experiment just now. I started a new game from scratch, COC'ed to Smith Casey's Garage, and I was able to enter Vault 112 with no CTD.
When I tried going back before to an earlier save, it was to one at the tutorial exit. I think that save was made on my original version of Fallout 3 (the one I bought on cd back in the day). I am now playing on the Gog version with the same saves. So maybe there is an incompatibility between saves from the original version and the Gog version? I have had no problem opening other saves from the original version and playing them. But I never tried doing the Main Quest with them either. I don't think so however, as some of the other people who wrote about this same issue online had it years before the Gog version of the game came out.
So now I have to decide if I really want to do the MQ, or start completely over with these new saves.
I dug up one of Hecate's old saves from about 5 years ago, and she was able to get into Vault 112 with no trouble. So I don't think this is an original vs. Gog version issue. It must be just some glitch in January's original game. I was also able to spawn Dad in her game with no trouble as well.
Having Daddy Issues really is annoying...
That's so weird. Why would the GrandOldGames version be any different from the disc or even Steam? I can see maybe there's some differences in the way the game loads from desktop, or the way it installs. But this is something which Beth wrote and it should be the same in all versions?
See, now I am glad I got my disc drive swapped instead of trying the GOG version of Oblivion. Anyway at this point I would also be asking that same question: do I want to start over from scratch? For me, this leads to a second question. "How much do I love this game?"
Back when I was newer to PC gaming (2015 or so) I had some problems in Oblivion which required me to go to a much earlier save. Like, hundreds of saves in the past. I thought it over for awhile and then decided to just go for it. Because that's how much I love OB. And I think others with ginormous games (Decrepit, Acadian, etc.) have had to go back to earlier game saves.
I appreciate this thread. Renee helped me with modding my FO3 game on my first go, and it made it pretty dang easy.
So as many of you know, I was having issues with the GOG version of Fallout3. This morning while having my morning coffee, I reinstalled it, took Subbies advice and ran it in compatibility mode. It still gave me an error message, but then it launched just fine (with some noticeable awkwardness with the controller, but not unplayable). I’ll try adding a few mods later.
What did the error message say?
https://www.gog.com/forum/fallout_series/fallout_3goty_crashes_at_launch_in_windows_10 It looks like an old .ini file was to blame with this person's issue, and deleting it solved the issue. Other people are chiming in that the NV No Crash Fix solved it for them, and another that it was save files from a previous version of the game.
I ought to just leave well enough alone, but deleting the .ini files in the my games folder didn’t stop the error message, but the game seems to launch ok.
For your information, the error message reads as follows:
Fallout3
Bethesda
This app can’t run because it causes security or performance issues on Windows. A new version may be available. Check with your software provider for an updated version that runs on this version of Windows.
But it does run. I played through the entire intro just yesterday morning.
Cool, well if the game runs, I guess don't worry about it for now. I understand about error messages though. They make me nervous, too.
It is my turn to have Fallout 3 issues again. I started up a new playthrough as Blood Raven today. But I have been getting CTDs like crazy. Sometimes it is when I try to load a save. Sometimes it is just at random points in the game. I never seems get more than 5-10 minutes without a CTD.
I have gone through a ton of fix attempts. I tried that Windows 10 fix I linked to last page. That did nothing. I think because it is for the Steam version of the game, and I have the Gog version. I made sure I was using a fixed refresh, had v-sync on. I put in compatability mode for Windows XP, ran it as administrator, etc... No joy.
My last gasp has been to install New Vegas Anti Crash, and run it in borderless windowed mode thanks to the mod https://www.nexusmods.com/fallout3/mods/25118.
So far this seems to be working. I started it up and let it sit running for about 40 minutes without a crash. So fingers crossed that one of those two things fixed it.
Edit: And it just did it again. Sigh.
I was about to ask Windows 10? But you've already thought of that.
Last time you played (as Jan, as I recall) were you using the Steam version but now it's Grand Old Games version. Have you ever used GoG before (not that it should matter, but maybe it does)?
Also, is this a Brand new game, as in, starting over from scratch with everything? Hmm, I guess a better question: Are you using the same mod-set from last season? Is there anything new?
Actually, 40 minutes of play might be about what you can expect. Vicious and Cho's game... with both of their games I'll save & reload (assuming I remember to) after a half-hour or so, due to Fallout 3's memory issues, and solely to avoid the dreaded crash which I know is going to come. That's as good as it gets.
I feel it’s past time for Fallout3 to receive the remaster treatment. BGS has paid so much attention to Skyrim, but meanwhile the games that saved and elevated their company (Morrowind, Oblivion, Fallout3) barely run on modern machines. I’m not even advocating for graphics improvements or any extra stuff. Just fixes that will let them run more smoothly on current PCs. I really don’t understand why this hasn’t happened yet.
I reinstalled Fallout 3 (using the Gog version), I think I had the Gog version the last time I played. But I am not sure if I installed it before I went to Windows 10 or after. So maybe that had something to do with it.
In any case, I just did a test while I took a bath. I started a new character, ran through the opening childhood bits up until Amata tells you that your father left and Jonas is dead. I left her standing there in the bedroom while I took a bath and puttered around. I came back over an hour later, and it was still running. So it looks like that did the trick.
Now I will just have to start adding back mods, and see if one of them is what is causing the crash.
I have spent all day fighting with Fallout 3. As soon as I started adding mods, it started crashing again. I went through all the 'standard' tweaks: updated my video drivers, reinstalled the game, set it to run as administrator and in compatability mode for Windows XP, ran it in a window, used New Vegas Anti Crash, etc... I even tried a couple of the Windows 10 fix mods, that have you put a d3d.dll file in your base Fallout folder.
What finally seems to have worked is the https://www.nexusmods.com/fallout3/mods/24913 mod. It does a lot of things, the main one being downgrading the game to the previous version (which worked better with mods). It also removes the Games for Windows Lives stuff, makes the executable large address aware, fixes a mod limit bug, and more. It works with both the Gog and Steam versions of the game.
If you are using FOSE, don't start the game with the fose launcher file after installing this (It won't let you if you try). Instead start it with Fallout3.exe, and it will automatically use FOSE if you have it.
So far so good with this. I hope I am not jinxing it by talking about it.
Wow, that took full 'SubRosaTech' mode to fix! I sure hope it works.
I hope it works for you. There are so many Fallout 3 CTD fixes on Nexus, none of them really work 100%, from what I've found some of them don't work at all.
Ugh, ok, so I’m testing mods and playing a bit while I’m doing so (which I guess is my first mistake). The character I’m currently running has finished the first chapter of Moira’s quest and I noticed that the Unofficial Patch wasn’t activated, so I activated it. Now certain NPCs are running around in their underwear! It was definitely the UP that caused this, so I loaded a new character from the auto save point just before stepping out into the wasteland and it seems to work just fine. I’m so confused.
Too much skooma will do it to you.
Sorry, not constructive but couldn't resist! So funny!!
This is one of the reasons I do not use the Unofficial Patches in any Bethesda game. I have found they always cause new bugs, even if they fix old ones.
All these years (especially when the official forums were opened) whenver a n00b player would ask "which mods should I get?" the answer usually started with UOP. So this is my first time hearing anybody say avoid them.
Come and think of it though, I never installed any unofficial patches for Fallout 3.
Supposedly this can be fixed by simply loading your save game with all of the mods turned off, then saving the game, then turning all of the mods back on and reloading the save. Will try and report back tomorrow.
I don't remember the bugs the UOPs caused anymore. It was a long time since I used any of them. Now when I come across a specific bug, I just fix it, simple as that. I don't need more headaches.
That's so crazy though, Khajiit. All those people suddenly lost their clothes due to just that one change! WTF.
Just downloaded New Vegas from GoG. Finally, got this game on PC. So where should I start?
Whoa, Ultra High Quality, that's what NV puts my computer at, sweet. GoG gave me all the DLC too: Caravan Pack, Dead Money, Honest Hearts, heck yes. I cannot wait to mod this fricking game. And roll my first toon. Maybe I'll transfer Linda Hand's game over from Xbox!
Anyway, where do I start? Like is there any unofficial (or even official) patches I should get? Oooh, script extender?
There is an NVSE script extender.
You probably need to do the old multi core CPU fix for Fallout 3 with NV as well, where you edit the .ini files.
There is also a NV Stutter Remover. If you need the latter for Fallout 3, you probably need it for New Vegas as well. There is also a New Vegas Anti-Crash mod. But it is not compatible with the New Vegas Stutter Remover. So use one or the other.
There is a Fallout Mod Manger that works on both FO3 and NV as well.
The Gog version comes with the game's .exe already patched to be able to use 4gb. But there is a 4GB patch you should get from the Nexus anyway, as it has compatibility fixes for the script extender and other things.
There is a version of MCM for New Vegas - the Mod Configuration Menu. Its not necessary. But you might have mods that make use of it.
Same with UIO - User Interface Organizer. A few mods need it to work.
Great, that's awesome, especially the .ini stuff and 4GB info. That didn't occur to me.
How often does NV crash? Fallout 3 crashes (for me) more often than Oblivion, and waaay more often than Skyrim or Morrowind. My FO3 CTDs about every half hour, like clockwork. Literally, if I get roughly half hour into the game (especially exteriors) and I remember to, I'll just go ahead and save/exit/reload, because I know it's gonna crash anyway. And I'm okay with that. As long as it's not crashing every 2 or 3 mins, I'm okay.
Could be because of a weather mod I've got, and I believe this is so because weather mods do affect the outdoors, of course. Everything else in my FO3 is rather light. I don't use a stutter remover, haven't got any extensive texture mods, and frames are capped at 60. Anti-crash stuff doesn't help; I've tried a few fixes over the years. So I believe the half-hour CTD phenomenon has something to do with optimization? Something like that.
I don't plan on modding New Vegas too extensively (no really...), maybe a few little touches like a Blanket mod for sleeping, so what's a mostly-vanilla game like?
I think how often a game crashes often just comes down to a matter of luck, or what might seem like luck because the reasons for the crashes are often so complex that we just can never understand them. We all have different computers, with different hardware in them, sometimes different operating systems, and we run the games with different settings, and with different mods. So I think one's mileage varys a lot game by game.
For me New Vegas is usually more stable than Fallout 3, but less than Oblivion or Skyrim. OTOH, Morroblivion has often given me endless nightmares. But I also have fewer mods for New Vegas, and spend less time playing it than FO3.
I recently reinstalled Fallout 3 from scratch with the Gog version and had endless troubles with random CTDs. Look back through this thread about a page and you will find it. I eventually fixed it with the Fallout Anniversary Patcher, which rolls the game back by a version. You might try that with your Fallout 3.
True, all PCs are a bit different, especially gaming PCs.
Morroblivion sounds like just getting it to run is an adventure in itself. Well in any event, sounds like New Vegas could be more solid than FO3. I won't be installing weather mods into the Mojave. For Maryland/Virginia/DC, it's just wrong not to see some rain, but inclement weather is not as frequent in the desert.
I went back and read your troubles. That's crazy your FO3 crashed so much in the beginning, and that's even before modifications.
I followed this framework when I installed NV and it made crashing almost non-existent. I personally didn't follow it to a T, and stopped short of anything that affected gameplay balance. But the utilities and tweaks alone are 100% worth it.
https://vivanewvegas.moddinglinked.com/intro.html
Very noice, thanks Kane.
Game is installed but I haven't messed with anything yet. I will, though.
It's a fun game! I enjoyed it way more than Fallout 3.
Right after speaking to Doc Mitchell (NV) the game freezes. This is literally right after he sends us off, and the door's right there. Game just freezes.
It did this on the very first day I started the game, good thing I save often! And this was before I did anything at all. No mods. No script extender, nothing.
I followed that guide you linked, Kane. Did maybe half of the things on that list before I stopped because I don't fully understand everything I'm doing. Anyway, that made no differnece! Still crashes just after speaking to Doc. Installed script extender. Still crashes after sspeaking to Doc Mitchell.
I press Alt + tab so I can see the desktop and there's a weird window which popped up. It's black & white text. Full of a bunch of info, but nothing to do with errors. No idea what to do!
I never ran across this one, so I am not sure what the culprit is. The most famous bug involving Doc Mitchell is of his head starting to spin in a circle when you are creating your character.
I just did a quick search, and see a lot of posts about people having crashes as soon as they leave Doc Mitchell's house. It seems that turning down the graphics options might fix it. Once you get past that area, save the game, turn things back up, and it often seems to work.
GOOD! Phew, thanks! If there's a lot of others who've had this prob that's a good thing because it's well-documented. I didn't even bother to google this time, because we've got several here who've seen a lot in Fallout 3 and New Vegs, so thanks.
Still freezing.
I just tried LOOTing the game, and I did notice the DLC does need to be cleaned. But I went ahead and tried the game after LOOT was done. Game still froze, but I got an error message this time.
Runtime Error!
The application has requested the Runtime to terminate in an unusual way. Please contact application's suppport.. bla bla bla.
I don't know if any of that makes sense to anyone here. Gonna get FNVEdit and see if cleaning DLC 1). is possible and 2). makes any difference.
I made a video of what I'm talking about.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AWiOCcVwDYs.
What it not seen is the mouse cursor, which abruptly POPS onscreen as the game freezes. Probably nobody knows what can be done about this, so I'll post this at other sites as well. But that is what's happening.
One idea I have is to get a manager and turn off all the DLC. Maybe that'll make a diff. But for now I'm done with Fallout today!
I take it you tried lowering the graphics setting Subrosa talked about? I know it sounds weird that would be the issue but it was regarding Bioshock 2.
So you don't even get to the door or go outside. The crashes I was always seeing reported were if people did that.
I suppose you could try running the game in Windowed mode, and see if that changes the crash. I think you can set that in the launcher. The mouse cursor popping up makes me feel like the computer is switching away from the game to give your desktop the focus, but not making it there? I am admittedly grasping at straws. Maybe using Alt+Tab to cycle between windows might bring it back when this happens. I don't know.
mirocu: I didn't change graphics settings because other folks who've had issues are talking about happens after we get outside the door, and as we can see, I never get outside!
SubRosa: Sure I'll try windowed mode. In fact that's exactly what I do: Alt + Tabtabtabtab. That's not shown in the video. But Yeah, I can alt+tab until I get back to desktop.
But yes, that's the feeling I get too. The game's trying to slip out to desktop for some reason. Blea. I have no idea what to do.
This was supposed to be easy! I'm doing everything right!!! So I'll try windowed mode and like I said, I also want to get a manager so I can turn off DLC. See if that makes any difference.
More issues! This time with Fallout 3. All kinds of problems. Black screen on launch is the latest one. Youtube video after patch after "HOW TO FIX" .... I'm getting nowhere.
Screw it, folks. Screw Steam, that is. All of this seems to be Steam's BS. I'm starting over with Grand Old Games. Granted, my copy of New Vegas from GoG is still broken (see video link above). But maybe the GoG version of FO3 will be just fine.
Let you know if I'm successful later. Ciao.
You are just having the worst luck with computers lately. You had better check for gremlins.
Hee hee yah, right? Gremlins.
Thing is, all my other games are fine now: Skyrim, OB, Morrowind, etc. Only FO3 got messed up.
The GOG version initially worked. That is, the basic install from GOG (without mods) worked. Then I began copy/pasting folders and files over from the Steam folder into the folder I just made. Kept starting the game occasionally, making sure it still started. FOSE in the new folder? Everything still starts fine.
Copied all my mods over (Data folder that is) and Hit a snag. The game immediately CTD'd, but that's expected because I haven't finished moving other files & folders over. So I did that. Copied the DirectX9c folder, Edit Scripts, GeMM, ArchiveInvalidationInvalidated! and other folders and files from the Steam folder into the new one. Now the game starts. Menu screen shows up. I try clicking Continue and the game CTDs at that point.
Tried clicking New, as in new game, still CTDs on launch.
Disabled all mods, only the base game + DLC is left. Still CTDs on launch. But at least I made some progress. Something's missing. Just gotta figure what the heck.
`
I suggest downloading the latest version of https://fose.silverlock.org/. I think I had to when I installed the Gog version of Fallout 3, because it did not like the older versions.
You probably need to redo the old multi core CPU fix for Fallout 3, where you edit the .ini files.
Ok, I remembered having some issues with the Gog version of FO3.I went back and found where I talked about it, two years ago. Here is the main post:
****
I have spent all day fighting with Fallout 3. As soon as I started adding mods, it started crashing again. I went through all the 'standard' tweaks: updated my video drivers, reinstalled the game, set it to run as administrator and in compatability mode for Windows XP, ran it in a window, used New Vegas Anti Crash, etc... I even tried a couple of the Windows 10 fix mods, that have you put a d3d.dll file in your base Fallout folder.
What finally seems to have worked is the https://www.nexusmods.com/fallout3/mods/24913 mod. It does a lot of things, the main one being downgrading the game to the previous version (which worked better with mods). It also removes the Games for Windows Live stuff, makes the executable large address aware, fixes a mod limit bug, and more. It works with both the Gog and Steam versions of the game.
If you are using FOSE, don't start the game with the fose launcher file after installing this (It won't let you if you try). Instead start it with Fallout3.exe, and it will automatically use FOSE if you have it.
So far so good with this. I hope I am not jinxing it by talking about it.
*****
The main thing is I'm really jonesing to get my story going again!!!!!!!!! Really trying my patience, to be going thru all this right when some chapters are getting written.
Anyway, nice, look at this!
I did try the Anniversary Patcher, but I tried it with the Steam version, not the new GoG. So that'll be something I'll try tomorrow.
And if that don't work, my next idea will be to install everything backwards. Instead of copy-pasting the Data folder first I'll try copying the main folder first, piece by piece, until I find whatever's causing the prob. THEN I'll do the Data folder.
I might just install everything from archives this time, though. That's what I did when I had to rebuild Skyrim back in 2018; I installed everything from the Downloads > Skyrim folder. It's good to go thru everything piece by piece. Getting rid of stuff which has become dead weight, ya know?
Just go GotY from a DISC already, Renee. Forget all the online business
Yeah, but where though? Where can I find a Fallout 3 actual disc??? Which is new, and for PC? -- Anyway, I already rebuilt my game. Took about 4 hours, but it's back. Woo hoo!
I did not need the FO3 Anniversary Patcher. What I did was started all over with the reinstall from GoG.
And then instead of copy/pasting stuff from the old Steam folder into the new GoG-based folder (really bad idea; what was I thinking?) I went to my Downloads folder. I've been in the habit of saving archives from the very beginning; a really good habit. Everything's organized. Went into the Downloads > Utilities folder. Started with FOSE.
My version of FOSE is really old; it's from 2016, and the newest version was released in 2022. However, I read somewhere that if I use the newer version then I'll have to make a bunch of upgrades, because my gamesaves are already extant. They are already based on older software. I would need the Anniversary Patcher if I went that route.
So that's gotta be why my game would instantly black-screen-on-launch. Because that happened after I threw the Patcher in.
Anyway, I installed all the rest of the utilities: FO3 Edit, FOMM, and so on. Next, the Unofficial Patch. Finally, I moved to the mods, starting with Alternate Start folder. Everything was installed from scratch this time, straight from the archives themselves.
Enough talk. Time for some gaming. Miss Vicious, here I come.
Awesome you got it running again!
Don't worry, I already fixed my (latest) prob. I'm just posting my fix for anyone else out there.
Was reinstalling Fallout 3 from GoG and was going crazy, because the black-screen-on-launch happened. Tried a .dll fix. Tried to set FO3 executable as Administrator. Tried setting Compatibility Mode.
Each of these 'fixes', I had to get up from my comfy chair over and over because the game would blackscreen, and then I'd have to get up from my chair to turn off/restart my computer. No mods or utilities installed at all, yet! -- However, at some point I discovered I could run the game in Windowed mode. HMm.
Was about to install the Anniversary Patcher when I just happened to notice that the Full Screen setting in the launcher was set at some resolution I don't use. Ah-ha! It should be 1360 x 768. Bang!! Now the game starts & runs. Phew.
It's just a reminder to myself and others: always check the small, easily-overlooked stuff too.
This is supposed to be a troubleshooting thread but I'm posting another fix. Been playing FO3 for a couple weeks now, three different games/characters. Other day, I realized it's been a while since the game CTD'd, and this includes over an hour of play in some cases.
It's because (and I know this sounds really obvious) I took the time to clean the DLC: Broken Steel, The Pitt.esm, and so on. All these years, all five of Fallout 3's DLC had undeleted references and identical to masters, whatever they're called. When rebuilding FO3 a few weeks back, I made sure to get all of these .esms clean.
I've tried getting this done in the past, unsuccessfully. I think the difference this time is I used an older version of FO3Edit to clean: Version 3.1.2 this time. I'd been using 4_0 in the past, which for whatever reason wasn't getting the job done, so I've been playing dirty all these years. Anyway, in the past my habit while gaming has been to save/exit/reload the game every 20 minutes or so, which was my way of avoiding the sure-to-come CTD. Now my habit's going to change to gaming as long as I can, just to see if a CTD occurs.
Hope this helps.
Sounds great and thanks for reminding us that a little spring cleaning is never out of season
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