
This post is now out of date. Please click link below for updated post.
Original post content follows. This will be left in place as it contains general steps that might still be useful to someone trying to patch the old Bethesda web version or CD and Anthology versions.
Daggerfall is now available on Steam! This is great news for the community and should help Daggerfall Unity reach more players than ever.
Unfortunately, the Steam release does not include Bethesda’s own final patch for Daggerfall, and it’s structured in a way that does not include all game files in correct place to work with Daggerfall Unity out of the box.
I’m committed to better supporting the Steam version in a future release of Daggerfall Unity. In the meantime, you should use the recommended method to install DFU, especially on platforms other than Windows. If you use the recommended method, you can totally skip this whole article and just follow the steps in that link.
But if you absolutely must use the Steam release, here are the minimum steps get up and running with Steam and DFU. Even if you only plan on playing the DOS version from Steam, steps 1 through 3 will show you how patch game for a better DOS experience. Unpatched, the version currently on Steam is the buggiest version available.
These steps are for Windows only, although the same basic process applies for other platforms where the unpatched DOS version is installed.
Step 1 – Install Daggerfall with Steam
This part is easy – visit the Steam page below and install Daggerfall like you would any other Steam game.
https://store.steampowered.com/app/1812390/The_Elder_Scrolls_II_Daggerfall/
Step 2 – Download Patch
As Bethesda does not include their own final patch with Steam release, you’ll need to install this manually for best DOS experience and compatibility with Daggerfall Unity. The official 1.07.213 patch is still available from UESP on page below. Download DAG213.EXE and keep it handy.
https://en.uesp.net/wiki/Daggerfall:Files#Official_Patches_and_Utilities
Step 3 – Apply Patch
Find Daggerfall in your Steam Library then right-click > Manage > Browse local files

This will open the location Steam installed Daggerfall on your PC, which could be a different path to below. Wherever you have it installed, the folder contents should look like this.

Double-click to enter the DF folder, then the DAGGER folder. Copy DAG213.EXE patch downloaded earlier and paste into the DF/DAGGER folder. This folder should look like below.

Now go back to the parent folder The Elder Scrolls Daggerfall and enter the DOSBox-0.74 folder. Double-click DOSBox.exe to open DOSBox application.

From here, we have to do a little work in command line. Type mount C: ../DF exactly as shown below then press Enter.
Do not change these commands or substitute drive letters. Type them exactly as shown below.

You should see a message saying Drive C is mounted like below.

We now have to go into the correct folder and run the patch.
- Type C: then press Enter
- Type cd DAGGER then press Enter
- Type DAG213.EXE then press Enter

When prompted to update, press Y key to apply patch.

When prompted to fix maps, press Y key to apply patch.

You should see the update is successful and can now close DOSBox window.

Step 4 – Copy VID Files
The Steam release is a medium install, while Daggerfall Unity requires a full install. To complete this process, we need to copy all .VID files into the correct place.
First go back The Elder Scrolls Daggerfall parent folder. Then navigate into DF/DFCD/DAGGERFALL/ARENA2 folder. Locate and select the ANIM0000.VID through ANIM0015.VID and DAG2.VID files as shown below. It helps to sort by Type and look for all “VID File” types.

Right-click > Copy selected files or press Ctrl+C to copy.
Now navigate back to The Elder Scrolls Daggerfall parent folder and into DF/DAGGER/ARENA2 folder. Right-click > Paste or Ctrl+V to paste the copied files into this folder.
They should be copied into DF/DAGGER/ARENA2 folder as below. Double-check that ANIM0000.VID through ANIM000015.VID and DAG2.VID are all present.

We now have everything ready to install Daggerfall Unity.
Step 5 – Download Daggerfall Unity
If you haven’t already, go to the Releases page and download latest version of Daggerfall Unity. Downloads are below the Assets foldout as shown.
When downloading for Windows, it is highly recommended to use the 64-bit version unless you have a very old PC that does not support 64-bit.

Unzip your download somewhere like C:\Games\Daggerfall Unity\0.13.5. It is recommended to unzip into a folder matching the version downloaded.
Double-click DaggerfallUnity.exe to run the game.

Step 6 – Set Correct Path
When prompted by Daggerfall Unity, navigate to above The Elder Scrolls Daggerfall/DF/DAGGER folder. By default this will be in path:
C:\Program Files (x86)\Steam\steamapps\common\The Elder Scrolls Daggerfall\DF\DAGGER
Provided everything was patched and copied correctly, the launcher window will turn green like below. If you are still missing .VID files, jump back to Step 4 and double-check all .VID files were copied into correct folder.

Press OK and continue to set your resolution.

Click Test then OK if you’re happy with resolution setting.
Congratulations! You’re now ready to play Daggerfall Unity.

Step 6 – Find Some Mods
Once you have everything setup, you might like to mod the game. The Daggerfall Unity Nexus page has hundreds of mods available ranging from graphical upgrades to new gameplay experiences.
https://www.nexusmods.com/daggerfallunity
Step 7 – Get Some Help
If you get stuck installing the game or with gameplay in general, ask for help on the Forums or the Lysandus’s Tomb Discord.
If you have issues with a mod, please ask question of the mod author first either on Nexus or their dedicated thread in Released Mods on forums.
Step 8 – Enjoy!
Thank you from everyone at Daggerfall Workshop. We hope you enjoy playing Daggerfall Unity!
Hi
That covers running the game, but not running the game from steam client. Can this guide be updated with other people suggestions (in steam comments for example) on running daggerfall unity directly from steam?
Also if there is a solution for Steam on Linux for above I’ll take it as well, currently I’m running Daggerfall Unity from random game shortcut in Steam with recommended DaggerfallGameFiles,
running directly from steam with time saved (and maybe even steam cloud) would be so awesome.
Best regards
Hey there. 🙂 The recommended method is still to use DaggerfallGameFiles for all platforms. I can’t see this changing anytime soon.
https://forums.dfworkshop.net/viewtopic.php?p=27538#p27538
The steps in this article address patching Bethesda’s downlevel Steam release to be compatible with Daggerfall Unity (not to mention making for a better DOS experience post-patch). The same basic steps would apply for Linux – i.e. run DAG213.EXE within DOSBox then copy .VID files into appropriate folder.
At this time, I don’t support adding Daggerfall Unity itself into Steam, or replacing Steam’s Daggerfall version with DFU. Daggerfall Unity should be run from it’s own separate folder. Every new version of DFU should be unzipped into a new folder, and never on top of an old version or mixed in with DOS files.
Thank you for the answer. Yes, the name and location changing solution seems the most common, but it seems there is also a way to use random launching options by just copying the url of daggerfall unity and adding %command% at the end (this seems to avoid dosbox and all other daggerfall from steam files all together and keeps the urls intact)
Hello, just wondering if you’ll be supporting running DFU on SteamDeck (under SteamOS) in future versions? A portable version would be amazing!
Thanks!
Hey there. 🙂 AFAIK people are already running in SteamOS. Check out below topic and jump in you have any questions.
https://forums.dfworkshop.net/viewtopic.php?t=5514
Unfortunately the Steam Deck is not easily available in Australia and I won’t have one to test with for a while. Others in the wider community should be able to assist though. Good luck!
Excellent, ty, other people didn’t explain things nearly enough and you did a great step-by-step!