Reason why I cannot link ESO account to Steam?

TheAstaroath

I've suddenly became rich on Steam today via selling the new PUBG loot crates and wanted to spend my hard-earned money on ESO, and to my horror I discovered that you are permanently barred from linking your ESO account to Steam if you originally had redeemed your activation key through the official website instead of Steam.

Now, don't get me wrong, that was basically a huge mistake on my part and my part alone for not originally doing it or even searching about it prior, but my original thought was that I didn't want Steam and its stupid overlay and other features to constantly interfere with my every other game, and especially ESO, so I opted to redeem it on ESO's site. BUT, there are many other games and/or apps I own on Steam, that DO allow you to link your account afterwards even though you originally played these games through their respective launchers, namely Spiral Knights, Dungeons & Dragons Online, Neverwinter, Star Trek Online, EVE Online, Defiance, Dragon Quest, Dark Souls Prepare to Die Edition (originally on Windows Live), the twitch.tv app etc etc etc.

What I need though is, an EXPLANATION as to why I am not possible to do this simple transition. PC is a seperate gaming platform, exactly like PS4 and Xbox One are their own seperate platforms, and to split PC into the ESO Launcher category and the ESO Steam category is not only preposterous, but borderline mentally defective. Unless of course Zenimax is keen on forcing you to buy the SAME GAME TWICE just for a few extra dollars/euros/insert-any-other-irl-currency-here, which immediately shows a predatory corporate nature based solely on plain greed instead of a friendly seller-customer relationship.

I totally understand that when you provide any kind of product/service you are expected to make money off of it, but to SPLIT an ENTIRE community playing the SAME game on the SAME platform just for the sake of money is a sacrilege at best.

JamuThatsWho

I don't know the exact reason, but here:

https://help.elderscrollsonline.com/app/answers/detail/a_id/36517/~/can-i-link-my-existing-elder-scrolls-online-account-to-my-steam-account?

Nestor

For all Steam adds to the game, you can just link the game to your Steam Account. But, as you say, you have to deal with the Steam overlay, launching steam before you can launch the game etc. Steam itself offers nothing to the ESO experience, heck, I don't even think you can see your ESO Achievements in Steam.

As for the account, can you link your bank account at Chase with your account at Wells Fargo so that if you deposit your money in one, it is available in the other? That is the same reason you cannot link accounts.

Anyway, you can link the game, which I think is really what you want.

ZOS_JordanH wrote: »

Greetings, all. If you already own ESO, you can add it to your Steam library as a Non-Steam Game. To do this, players should go to the "Games" option within Steam and select "Add Non-Steam Game to My Library." Players should then select the checkbox next to "The Elder Scrolls Online" and click "Add Selected Programs."

Not sure if this will help you or not, but this applies to a game you bought on Steam and how you can link it here. Not sure what that does for you.

https://help.elderscrollsonline.com/app/answers/detail/a_id/36517/~/can-i-link-my-existing-elder-scrolls-online-account-to-my-steam-account?

Rosveen

TheAstaroath wrote: »

I totally understand that when you provide any kind of product/service you are expected to make money off of it, but to SPLIT an ENTIRE community playing the SAME game on the SAME platform just for the sake of money is a sacrilege at best.

They didn't split any community. We're all playing on the same servers.

Could it have something to do with the fact that Steam gets a cut from any game sold through it, and they would get nothing if they just transferred accounts created elsewhere?

TheAstaroath

JamuThatsWho wrote: »

I don't know the exact reason, but here:

https://help.elderscrollsonline.com/app/answers/detail/a_id/36517/~/can-i-link-my-existing-elder-scrolls-online-account-to-my-steam-account?

Yes, this is exactly what I read and was left speechless, moments before posting my thread. When I originally decided I would redeem my ESO activation key on elderscrollsonline.com instead of Steam, I did it mainly for three reasons:

1) I already had an account, where I had participated in the first Open Beta of the game, some days before the official launch, and knew that I would be awarded with the Imgakin Monkey Non-Combat Pet.

2) I installed ESO on my external 1 TB-sized SSD, whereas my Steam library is located on my mere 200 GB C:/. It was a matter of space, and I didn't want to move my entire library to my SSD.

3) As I stated above, I didn't want Steam and its stupid overlay and other features to constantly interfere with ESO. Plus, I hadn't searched it prior, and was confident that the transition would be available if I ever needed it.

Now, I can't help but feel cheated on. I forced myself to play and make progress in PUBG, a game I do enjoy but rarely play, with the intent to use the money I made off of selling its crates in the Steam market to ultimately buy stuff in ESO, and now I'm left with money I cannot and do not want to spend anywhere else.

TheAstaroath

Nestor wrote: »

ZOS_JordanH wrote: »

Greetings, all. If you already own ESO, you can add it to your Steam library as a Non-Steam Game. To do this, players should go to the "Games" option within Steam and select "Add Non-Steam Game to My Library." Players should then select the checkbox next to "The Elder Scrolls Online" and click "Add Selected Programs."

Not sure if this will help you or not, but this applies to a game you bought on Steam and how you can link it here. Not sure what that does for you.

I know it is possible to add it to your Steam Library as a non-Steam game. What is not possible is to link your ESO account with your Steam account, and that is exactly what I find ridiculous. We play on the same servers with the Steam users, and I wanted to use my Steam Wallet to buy stuff in ESO, but now I found out that I am barred from it. If I had known that I would face this problem prior to redeeming my key through ESO's site, of course I would have opted to redeem it through Steam instead. I was under the assumption that even though I redeemed it through ESO's site, I would have the simple option to link the two accounts later on, and would be able to play it from Steam, just as all these other games I mentioned already give you the option to. But no, ESO has to be pompous, cancerous exception to the rule.

aubrey.baconb16_ESO

Pre-Morrowind, I did exactly what you are trying to do.

Pre-Morrowind, I was running the ESO that I bought from ZOS before it's availability on Steam. I bought a second copy of ESO from Steam when it was on offer, $10 or something.

I linked my ESO account with my Steam account when I set up the Steam copy of ESO. I also kept up-to-date the non Steam version, yes that means two versions on my HDD but that's not an issue for me, on rare occasions Steam doesn't work but the direct version does.

When Morrowind was announced I had to decide whether to buy from ZOS or Steam. I bought from ZOS.

When Morrowind was available I downloaded my non-Steam version first, ran it up to the character select screen then closed it. Then I ran the Steam version which downloaded the update, which includes Morrowind, and because I had a ZOS user account with Morrowind enabled, I was able to access Morrowind.

I think that you could do this with all DLC and chapters. You need to buy a base version of ESO on Steam but once that is linked to your ESO account then you can buy all of the DLC and chapters separately direct from ZOS, or from Steam, and all that does is set a flag on your ESO account that says that you have access to the DLC you have bought. The game run through Steam has all of the DLC in the software it is just a case of having access to it through your ESO account.

I believe that this will work with ESO+ subscriptions too.

I don't know how that would work if you already have Morrowind or DLC from ZOS but no Steam equivalent purchase before you try to link your account, but if you're looking to buy the DLC/Chapter afterwards then just buy the lowest priced version of base ESO from Steam, link your accounts and then buy the DLC/Chapter afterwards.

Niobium

TheAstaroath wrote: »

I was under the assumption...

And this is what happens when one assumes things.

Always research before doing something - just because Product A does something, does not in any way mean that Product B will also do the same.

As ZOS hasn't said one way or other why they cannot be linked, there could be any number of reasons on either ZOS's side or Steam's side as to why this hasn't happened.

VizigothAlaric

TheAstaroath wrote: »

I've suddenly became rich on Steam today via selling the new PUBG loot crates and wanted to spend my hard-earned money on ESO, and to my horror I discovered that you are permanently barred from linking your ESO account to Steam if you originally had redeemed your activation key through the official website instead of Steam.

Now, don't get me wrong, that was basically a huge mistake on my part and my part alone for not originally doing it or even searching about it prior, but my original thought was that I didn't want Steam and its stupid overlay and other features to constantly interfere with my every other game, and especially ESO, so I opted to redeem it on ESO's site. BUT, there are many other games and/or apps I own on Steam, that DO allow you to link your account afterwards even though you originally played these games through their respective launchers, namely Spiral Knights, Dungeons & Dragons Online, Neverwinter, Star Trek Online, EVE Online, Defiance, Dragon Quest, Dark Souls Prepare to Die Edition (originally on Windows Live), the twitch.tv app etc etc etc.

What I need though is, an EXPLANATION as to why I am not possible to do this simple transition. PC is a seperate gaming platform, exactly like PS4 and Xbox One are their own seperate platforms, and to split PC into the ESO Launcher category and the ESO Steam category is not only preposterous, but borderline mentally defective. Unless of course Zenimax is keen on forcing you to buy the SAME GAME TWICE just for a few extra dollars/euros/insert-any-other-irl-currency-here, which immediately shows a predatory corporate nature based solely on plain greed instead of a friendly seller-customer relationship.

I totally understand that when you provide any kind of product/service you are expected to make money off of it, but to SPLIT an ENTIRE community playing the SAME game on the SAME platform just for the sake of money is a sacrilege at best.

Now let me give u piece of advice here.

U don't wanna do it.

Cuz u can't have any achievments to show on steam cuz they didnt even made such thing for steam version other then few badges u can earn. And unless u wanna show of or want to see your play time on steam.

Most important thing once i tried to use the original launcher to play eso i realised i don't have eso+ and the dlcs i purchased in game with crowns from using the steam launcher to login to game.

Now here is tricky part i asked them i am having this issues and it turned out it is actually intended. So that means if u are linked your account to steam and purchased anything they are not bound with your original eso account. That means if i have to stop or i wanna stop using steam and instead use the original game launcher i ll have to buy every single dlc and eso+ that i purchased already inclueding morrowind expension which i bought when it came out.

So probally noone really gives a *** about this but this is how this company works, they always tryin to look nice player friendly but at the end after 3 years they basically told me we took your money but we need u to buy again if u wanna use the original launcher without steam. This is how 2 faced they are and how they are tryin to make money.