Hello, I've got this fantastic game through last winter gift: So far I've finished the first Fallout so the obvious step was playing the next chapter :)
I've downloaded and installed all the suggested mods that were on the sticky, in this order:

- Game
- Latest unofficial patch
- Latest Restoration mod, default settings.
- Hi-Res patch to game directory
- Latest sfall 3.2.7

Then I made a backup of "ddraw.ini" and "f2_res.ini", opened both and modified these lines:

ddraw.ini:
Mode=5
GraphicsWidth=1680
GraphicsHeight=1050

f2_res.ini:
GRAPHICS_MODE=2
SCALE_2X=1
SCR_WIDTH=1680
SCR_HEIGHT=1050
COLOUR_BITS=16
REFRESH_RATE=60
WINDOWED=1

The game runs flawlessly if I maintain the focus on it (e.g. no alt tabbing, no windows key and so on.) else I get some strange sound issues. It's hard to describe but it's unbearable...

I've tested it with 2 different machines, same results:

Core2 quad q6600 2.4 GHZ
4 GB ram
Nvidia 8800 GT
USB audio (Plantronics headset)
Win7 x64, latest patches.

Core2 duo 2.6 GHZ
3 GB ram
Nvidia 9600 GT
Realtek Audio
Win 7, latest patches.

I've tried to change video mode, basic, dx7, dx9, full screen, windowed but no results.
It's a really game-breaking issue because I can't switch out to do other things, I have to restart the game...

Thanks again for your attention.
Bye

PS: english is not my main language so please forgive me for any errors.

Have you tried running the game in compatibility mode for Windows XP, yet? Newer Windows versions handle sound differently, so maybe this enables you switching out of game and back without the glitch.

In my experience it's often better to start the game with FALLOUT2.EXE in compatibility mode for Windows XP SP3.
Go to your game's directory (e.g. C:\GOG-Games\Fallout 2) and right-click FALLOUT2.EXE => Preferences => Compatibility tab.

Hi, thanks for your reply, I will try it soon and let you know.
I want to say that after alt tabbing the sound is corrupted, especially on world map but it's "restored" when:

- Press ESC button
- Move mouse to outer edges
- Move mouse to bottom bar
- NPC dialog starts
- Randomly move the mouse (lol)


Edit: I tried compatibility mode but the game won't start, see picture below.

Mhh the sound issues should be resolved by the new gog installer..
Do any of the links bellow help you out?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T7NKEEhDrhI
http://www.gog.com/forum/fallout_series/fallout_2_no_music_1/page1

Thanks to you too, I have no missing sound or music, everything works good but the very moment that I switch tabs or press windows key to desktop and return to game then the sound issues appear.
I suspect it's related to the mouse pointer but I don't have any proof.

It might also be connected to a focus variable, as focus is often connected with the mouse pointer. When you tab out, the game "looses" the mouse and focus, which might cause a problem in sound processing. But maybe it's also tied to the presence of multiple cores.
While the game is running, open the Task Manager (Ctrl+Alt+Del), look for your running programs, right-click the game and change CPU affinity so, that only one CPU is selected (uncheck all the others). Apply the setting and resume playing and get rid of the sound glitch. Now check if it appears again when you alt tab out of the game.
Unfortunately processor affinity isn't saved, so you have to do this every time you start the game or write a special batch file/script to start the game on only one processor.

Hello.
Wikia has installation instructions for Restoration Project:
http://falloutmods.wikia.com/wiki/F2RP_Technical_Info
Someone should ask Rysa to edit the list, because installing both is a mistake.

Now, I tried to see which cores are used for the game and to my surprise it was set to always use #0 and no others, so it's single core anyway.
I will try a fresh install and will install only RP, no high res patch or sfall.
I will let you know if it will work.

Thanks for your help so far :)

Edit: so far the game is perfect, I can alt tab as many times as I wish. I will try with the other computer.
This time I edited manually the f2_res.ini without using config tool --> manually edit --> save to game folder, changed resolution inside ddraw.ini and f2_res.ini
Now I have the game and RP Project, nothing else.

I think that too many files messed up the game, in the end lesser was better.

Edit #2: Tested on other pc, I have only some sound issues on travel map and combat (end of turn) but it's less annoying than before. In the end I can't complain more, it's an old game and maybe it has some compatibility issues.

Thanks for the feedback. I'm glad it works. Have fun, it's a good old classic!

I wished to credit almabrds too because he gave the same solution but your post was the last in my view.
Anyway I hope to enjoy more this game as I did with F1.