How to optimize fallout 3 for windows 7, 8, 8.1, and 10

Step 1: Run as Administartor
Go to your Fallout 3 install folder within Steam.
Default location: C:\Program Files (x86)\Steam\steamapps\common\Fallout 3 goty.
Right click the Fallout 3 application file and select Properties.
Select the Compatibility tab and tick the Run this program as an administrator box.

Step 2: Run fallout 3 in compatibility mode
Go to your Fallout 3 install folder within Steam.
Default location: C:\Program Files (x86)\Steam\steamapps\common\Fallout 3 goty.
Right click the Fallout 3 application file and select Properties.
Select the Compatibility Tab and check the box that says Run this program in compatibility mode for:.
Check the drop down box and troubleshoot with different Windows versions.
Optionally, you can try compatibility with Windows XP SP3 .
Click Apply and OK

Step 3: Edit your Fallout.ini file
Open your My Documents folder.
Under My Games, open the Fallout 3 folder and select the fallout.ini file.
In the fallout.ini file, find the following line: bUseThreadedAI=0.
Change this line to read: bUseThreadedAI=1.
Add another line after it that reads: iNumHWThreads=2.
Run the game.

A pain in the ass to fix, but ultimatly a very good game 8.5/10