Long before the classic Elder Scrolls III: Morrowind, and the pretty but empty massive world full of non-choices and no consequences that is the highly over-rated Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion, Bethesda Softworks release two other entries in the series. The first one – Arena – was released in 1994 and is celebrating its’ 15th Anniversary. Bethesda released that as a free download some time ago, and you can still grab it here. (be prepared to wrangle with DOSBox if you plan on playing on a modern PC).

The second entry, Elder Scrolls II: Daggerfall, was released on August of 1996, and was simultaneously one of the most innovative and buggiest games ever released. Huge in size and scope, with a massive open world filled with dungeons and towns and loads of optional quests. Sadly it was also released in an absolutely shamefully buggy state, and even after numerous patches it is still possible to spend dozens of hours playing and make one wrong choice and completely destroy your ability to ever complete the game. The game is also a DOS release, meaning you’ll be spending time fiddling with DOSBox. Fortunately there is a guide available here for getting it all set up.

Head to Bethesda Softworks to grab Daggerfall for FREE!

Source and box art: ElderScrolls.com, Image courtesy of Games-Graphics-Nostalgia