Fallout New Vegas on Linux: Notes & Tips

From Retro Media HUB
Game Information
Title Fallout: New Vegas
Year 2010
Developer Obsidian Entertainment, Inc.
Graphics API DirectX 9.0c
Audio API DirectSound3D



Runtime Environment

  • DXVK: 2.7.1
  • Wine / Proton: Wine 9.0 or Proton 9.0
  • Prefix architecture: 64‑bit
  • Winetricks: vcrun2022, arial, fontsmooth=rgb

Mod Organizer 2 on Linux

Mod Organizer 2 (MO2) does not function correctly with Wine 8. Testing has shown that prefixes based on Wine 8 cause issues such as LOOT sorting failures and freezes in the mod information dialog.

DXVK Setup

Proton 9.0‑4 is bundled with DXVK 2.5.x, which is outdated. To update:

  1. Download DXVK 2.7.1 from the official GitHub page.
  2. Extract d3d9.dll library from the x32 folder and place it into the game folder.
  3. DLL override for d3d9 library might be necessary.

Note: Although Valve defaults to Proton Experimental, Proton 9.0‑4 provides a more stable experience. Selecting a fixed version helps avoid potential issues caused by frequent changes in experimental builds, which may introduce instability in future updates.

Mods

Commonly used mods include:

Note: Some mods require the Visual C++ Redistributable.

  • Example: JohnnyGuitar NVSE will crash if vc_redist.x86.exe (vcredist‑2022) is not installed.

Setting Up Mod Organizer 2 with Steam

Mod Organizer 2 (MO2) can be integrated with Steam through the use of a redirector executable. This allows Fallout: New Vegas to be launched directly with MO2 support.

Method 1: Redirector Executable

  1. Download the modorganizer2-linux-installer from GitHub. Only the steam-redirector executable is required.
  2. Rename the original FalloutNVLauncher.exe to preserve access.
  3. Rename the redirector executable (main.exe) to FalloutNVLauncher.exe and place it in the game directory.
  4. Create a folder named modorganizer2 in the same directory as FalloutNV.exe.
  5. Inside this folder, create a file named instance_path.txt.
  6. Add the absolute path to ModOrganizer2.exe in a single line within instance_path.txt.
    • Note: Paths containing spaces may prevent MO2 from opening due to a bug in the redirector.
  7. The original launcher remains accessible from MO2 to access graphical settings.

Method 2: Separate Steam Entry

  1. Add MO2 as a separate game entry in Steam.
  2. Set the MO2 executable as the target.
  3. Use the following launch option to ensure MO2 runs inside the same Proton prefix as Fallout: New Vegas: STEAM_COMPAT_DATA_PATH="/home/deck/.steam/steam/steamapps/compatdata/22380" %command%

Note: These two methods combined allow launching the game through MO2 with moshortcut appended, while also providing direct access to the MO2 interface for mod management.

Restoring 3D Spatial Sound with DSOAL

Fallout: New Vegas was built with DirectSound3D support, but modern Windows versions (Vista and later) removed native hardware acceleration. As a result, positional audio and EAX effects no longer function by default. DSOAL (DirectSound3D OpenAL) restores these features by translating DS3D calls into OpenAL Soft, enabling HRTF (binaural audio) and surround sound.

Installation

  1. Download the latest DSOAL from pcgamingwiki (GitHub repository doesn't provide releases).
  2. Extract the following files into the game’s root folder (where FalloutNV.exe is located):
  * dsound.dll
  * dsoal-aldrv.dll
  * alsoft.ini

Configuration

  • Edit alsoft.ini to enable HRTF filters for headphones.
  • Optional: use included HRTF tables (KEMAR, CIAIR, IRCAM) for different spatial profiles.
  • EAX effects are supported and can be toggled in compatible mods.

Using External HRTF Profiles

It is possible to enhance spatial audio by using custom HRTF profiles from the UT2004‑OpenAL repository on GitHub.

Installation Steps

  1. Download the archive from the UT2004‑OpenAL GitHub repository.
  2. Extract the archive.
  3. Copy the contents of the folder OpenAL-44100Hz into the AppData directory of your Wine/Proton prefix:
    • ~/.wine/drive_c/users/<username>/AppData/Roaming (Wine)
    • ~/.steam/steam/steamapps/compatdata/<gameID>/pfx/drive_c/users/steamuser/AppData/Roaming (Proton)
  1. Remove the alsoft.ini file from the game folder to ensure the new HRTF profiles are loaded correctly.

Notes

  • These HRTF profiles provide different spatialization characteristics (e.g., KEMAR, IRCAM, CIAIR).
  • Removing alsoft.ini avoids conflicts between the game’s local configuration and the global OpenAL Soft settings in the prefix.
  • Profile is loaded automatically by OpenAL Soft once placed in the correct directory.

Tips

  • Frame rate limit: To maintain stability, cap the frame rate at or below 60 FPS.
DXVK_FRAME_RATE=60
  • HUD overlay: Display DXVK version and FPS with:
DXVK_HUD=fps,version,scale=0.8

DLL Overrides in Wine

DLL overrides can be configured either by setting the environment variable WINEDLLOVERRIDES or through the Wine configuration dialog in the Libraries tab. Common libraries such as d3d9 and dsound may require overrides if placed in the game folder, ensuring that Wine loads these libraries instead of the system defaults.

When using WINEDLLOVERRIDES, the variable can be set as follows: 

WINEDLLOVERRIDES=d3d9=n,b;dsound=n,b;

Note: In this context, n indicates native and b indicates builtin. This instructs Wine to load the native library from the game folder if available; otherwise, it will fall back to the builtin library provided by the Wine environment.

New override through the Wine configuration dialog, always Native then builtin!

References

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