Fallout 3: Downgrade to Games for Windows Live version (Steam and GOG)

 

 

Fallout 3 originally used the Games for Windows Live DRM when it released in 2008, 13 years later in 2021, it was removed, but Bethesda didn't port the achievements over to Steam, so this meant you lost those, when the game switched from GFWL to Steam. So that's why i made this guide, to show how to downgrade the current Steam build (1.7.0.4) to the old one (version 1.7.0.3), so you can get achievements again, while also guiding you to getting GFWL to work. This works on the Steam version and even GOG.

This guide was inspired by this post on the TrueAchievements forum by user Fahrenheit 2036, so credit goes to them, this version of the guide was made to make the downgrade as easy as possible, and also showing how to downgrade the Steam version, as that guide is for GOG, while also including other stuff.

This guide has been made with Windows 10 and 11 in mind, won't guarantee that this will work on other operating systems.

 

Step 1. Installing Games for Windows Live

YOU CAN SKIP THIS IF YOU ALREADY HAVE GFWL INSTALLED 

First you'll need to install GFWL, since it's no longer part of the OS, since Windows 8.

You can get the latest installer here, then copy all the files into an empty folder, on your desktop for example, so it looks like this.

Next, run the gfwlivesetup.exe file, and let it install.

Step 2. Downloading the needed files for the downgrade

 To downgrade the game, you'll need 4 files:

- Fallout 3.exe

-Fallout 3.exe.cat

-Fallout3.exe.cfg 

-FalloutLauncher.exe

The first 3 files are taken from the CD version of the Game of the Year edition, patched to the latest version that was available for CD. The Launcher exe is taken from the GOG version, as it's the older version, plus the CD version of it comes with SecuROM, and thus you'd need to have the CD inserted for it to work, so we'll be using the GOG version of the exe.

Download the zip file with all the needed files here and open the archive. Virustotal scan.

 

Step 3. Installing 

Steam version: Download the GOTY version if you haven't already, then open the folder and create a backup of the Fallout3.exe in the folder, in case something goes wrong, rename it to Fallout3.exe.bak for example (you'll need file name extensions enabled). Then from the archive you downloaded, copy the 4 aforementioned files onto the root of the install. That's it, but don't run the Launcher just yet...

GOG version: Mostly the same as the Steam guide, install the GOG version if you haven't already and open the install folder. However, for the GOG version, you need delete/backup/rename the xlive.dll file, as that's the file that disables Windows Live on that version, then just copy the first 3 files listed from the archive, into the game folder, you don't need to copy the launcher file, as you already have that exact file in the folder.

 

Step 4. Getting the launcher to work.

This may not happen to everyone, so if you haven't run into this issue, you can skip this section.

When you run the FalloutLauncher.exe (NOT Fallout3Launcher.exe, the one that's present in the current Steam version), you might run into this issue:

  

The 'Options' and 'Data files' buttons are greyed out, but most imporantly, the 'Play' button is gone and replaced with 'Install'. This is due to the game not writing a registry telling where the game is installed, so we'll have to change that. I'll give two options, the easy method, and manual method.

 

Easy way: GOG has provided a script to create the registry automatically, you can get it from their support page here, download the zip they provide and open the archive. Copy the .cmd file to your Fallout 3 root, run the file as an administrator, and it will open a Command Prompt, press Y to create the registry, and that's it. But if you don't wanna run this file and instead wanna do it yourself, move onto the next method.

 

Manual method: Open Registry Editor, search for it or press Windows Key + R, and type in regedit. Then go to this location: HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\WOW6432Node\Bethesda Softworks

If there isn't a folder called Fallout3, right click on the Bethesda Softworks folder, hover over 'New', and choose 'Key', then name is Fallout3. Inside that folder, right click on an empty space and again hover over 'New', but this time, choose 'String value' and name it Installed Path, double click on it, and in the 'Value Data' box, paste in your Fallout 3 install location, for example: 

C:\Users\YourName\Documents\GOG installs\Fallout 3\

 

Whichever method you use, the launcher should now look like this:

 Now you can change your settings, enable DLC, and most importantly, start the game.

 

 

Step 5. Signing into Games for Windows Live

Start the game, either from the launcher or directly from the Fallout 3 exe, and if you did everything right, you'll be prompted to sign into Games for Windows Live, so sign in with your Microsoft account, and then you'll be asked to give a CD key, if you don't have one already, I've provided a couple CD keys from my GTA IV and Episodes From Liberty City GFWL disc copies, since Fallout and GTA are "Legacy" titles, so you can use CD keys from any other GFWL Legacy game, though not unlimited times, they will eventually run out of uses (i think). But for now, here they are:

P7RM4-3W6XP-XX9FC-2K3X4-8CXFT

2VYBT-MFRKT-DHVJB-YY89Y-MYV6M

HXRRG-DTMPJ-26828-KQT3P-MD8VM 

If this is your first time using GFWL, it will take some time to download your profile, afterwards, it will sign you in and you can start playing and earning those achievements!

 

Note: If you get this error after putting in the CD key, make sure your password is shorter than 15 characters, and also make sure it doesn't have any special characters, such as % for example.

Step 6 (optional, for Steam users): Tracking playtime

If you're playing the Steam version, and want your playtime tracked, you're gonna have to setup a launch option for the game, so Steam launches the exe directly, instead of the launcher.

On Steam, right click on Fallout 3, or on the game's page, click the cog icon and choose 'Properties'. In the 'General' tab, in the Launch Options box, paste in this line:

"C:\Program Files (x86)\Steam\steamapps\common\Fallout 3 goty\Fallout3.exe" %command%

This will tell Steam to launch the Fallout 3 exe, not the launcher. If your install location is different, obviously change it to the correct one, but keep everything else unchanged. Test if the game will launch and if you can open the Steam overlay.

 

Conclusion

If everything went well, you're now playing the old version of Fallout 3 with Windows Live and can get achievements again. Keep in mind, this means you cannot install FOSE (Fallout Script Extender), as that requires disabling Windows Live, nor can you patch the game with Large Address Awareness, AKA, the 4gb patch. So you'll have to play unmodded. If that's a dealbreaker, then don't do anything mentioned in this guide, instead go here, but this of course means, no achievements.

Feel free to comment if you run into any issues, or just say something nice.