Wait, what's happening? I don't have ESO on Steam, so whatever it is wouldn't affect me, but I'm curious.

Per the support page:

Updated 11/09/2016 03:16 PM Published 10/31/2016 01:47 PM
If you had previously purchased The Elder Scrolls Online on Steam and want to link your Steam account to your ESO account, follow the process below:

Check your Steam version of ESO

Before you can link your accounts, you need to ensure you have the right Steam version of ESO installed.

Log into Steam and click the Library button.
Right-click on The Elder Scrolls Online and select Properties
Select the Fichiers locaux tab and check Current Content Build ID at the bottom of the page.
If the version is not "1380321," you will need to delete and reinstall the game first.
If the version is "1380321," you can skip down to the "Link your ESO and Steam accounts in game" step below.
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Uninstall and reinstall your local Steam version of ESO

If you do not have the right version of ESO installed on Steam, you will need to delete and reinstall it.

From the Steam Library, right-click on The Elder Scrolls Online.
Select Delete Local Content to uninstall your current (out of date) version.
Reinstall the game fresh by selecting ESO from the Steam Library again and selecting Install.


Link your ESO and Steam accounts in game

Once you have the correct version of ESO in Steam, you can then link your Steam account to your ESO account.

From the Steam Library, select The Elder Scrolls Online and press Play.
Allow the ESO Launcher to open, download and apply any required updates, and select Play.
From the in-game login screen, select the “I have an existing PC/Mac Elder Scrolls Online account” checkbox.
Input your ESO UserID and password and select Login.
Select Accept on the link confirmation window.
Your Steam account will now be linked with your ESO account! You can now log into the game and play by simply launching the game from your Steam Library.

Note: If your version of The Elder Scrolls Online was not purchased through Steam, you will not be able to link your Steam account to your existing ESO account without purchasing a new copy of the game on the Steam platform first.

I think what I need to do is just download it from Bethesda, and forget about the Steam version. Steam just complicated it unnecessarily.

UrQuan wrote: »

Wait, what's happening? I don't have ESO on Steam, so whatever it is wouldn't affect me, but I'm curious.

I saw discussion about this on the forums, but up until today it never forced me to actually link accounts. I'm pretty sure the original copy I purchased was from Bethesda or Amazon (I do not recollect where). At any regard, I later purchased a version of ESO when it was on sale (though I somewhat regret it since they've got bargain basement prices on the gold version of the game). The big change is that it forces you to link the account. I'm just uninstalling the Steam version as it is creating problems for my use. I will be loading up the standalone version again.

This brings up another account related nuisance. Its actually cheaper for me to go buy a Gold edition that can run on EU and US that will include 4 previous DLC's. Why can't the DLC's carry over between servers? This is something they really ought to just outright change. I'm getting rather annoyed with these kinds of adjustments and I wish Zenimax Online would take notice. There's no need to make the game a hassle. I get it they want to sell things, but find things worthy of selling. The primary reason for a 2nd account is to have more character slots for more potential builds to screw around with, as I'm sure you know @UrQuan. They got more money from me for that, as well as the character expansions and other items I've purchased. I don't like them making it difficult to use what I've paid for though, or double-charging for things I've paid for.