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1Clear out junk files and repair common Windows errors2Fix the driver behind crashes, sound loss and screen glitches3Repair Windows errors before they cause bigger problemsBethesda games are installed on PC through Steam. The old Bethesda.net Launcher is retired and is not available to download, so a former launcher library must be migrated to Steam before its games can be installed. If the game is already in your Steam library, add or select a Steam storage location, then install the game there.
Bethesda specifically says to use an SSD for Starfield and Indiana Jones and the Great Circle. Save transfers are different for each game, and copying a Bethesda save into an existing Steam save can overwrite it, so back up saves before attempting a transfer.
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First, identify which installation path applies
There are two different situations, and treating them as the same can lead to a dead end:
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|---|---|---|
| You already own the game on Steam, or you previously migrated it | Use Steam to choose a library drive and install the game. | The game downloads and installs from Steam like any other Steam title. |
| You still have a library from the Bethesda.net Launcher | Use Bethesda’s current migration instructions to move the eligible PC library to Steam first. | After migration, the game appears in Steam and must be downloaded and installed there. |
Bethesda states that the Bethesda Launcher is not available to download and has not been in use since May 11, 2022. Do not search for an installer, an archived download, or a new Bethesda Launcher account as a workaround. The official status is documented in Bethesda’s launcher download and installation article.
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Bethesda describes Steam as the supported PC destination for the former launcher library. Its support guidance also says PC account information cannot be transferred to a console and that migration is not supported to another PC service. Those are separate from installing a title that you already own on Steam. See Bethesda’s post-migration play instructions, PC-service migration guidance, and console migration guidance for the account-specific rules. Bethesda’s published material does not establish a current deadline or guarantee that every individual legacy account remains eligible indefinitely, so check the live instructions for your account before relying on an old library.
Prepare before starting the download
Confirm the game is in the correct PC library
Open Steam and check Library. A title that has already been migrated should be listed there. If it is absent and you only owned it through the old Bethesda.net Launcher, stop at this point and complete Bethesda’s migration process; reinstalling the retired launcher will not restore the library.
Check the destination drive
Decide whether to use Steam’s primary drive or another drive that you add as a Steam library location. Check the selected drive’s available space in Windows before beginning. The official instructions explain how to add a drive, but they do not publish a universal storage-size requirement for Bethesda games, so use the space figure shown by Steam for the particular title rather than relying on a general estimate.
Use an SSD when Bethesda names it
Bethesda specifically instructs players installing Starfield or Indiana Jones and the Great Circle to choose an SSD. That is a title-specific installation recommendation, not a statement that every Bethesda game requires an SSD. Bethesda does not specify a particular SSD model, capacity, interface, or speed in the cited guidance.
Protect existing saves
If you are moving from a Bethesda installation to a Steam installation, find the entry for the exact game in Bethesda’s game-by-game save migration instructions. The locations shown there are defaults; they can differ when a game was installed on another drive or when the save location was changed. Make a separate backup copy of the existing save folder before copying anything into a Steam installation. Bethesda warns that copying a Bethesda save into an existing Steam save can overwrite the Steam save.
Install a Bethesda game that is already in Steam
Once the title appears in your Steam library, the normal Steam installation flow is the supported route.
- Open the Steam desktop client.
- Select Library and choose the Bethesda game you want to install.
- Select Install.
- When Steam asks where to install it, open the storage-location selector and choose the Steam library on the drive you want to use.
- Confirm the installation and let Steam download the files.
Steam installs to its primary drive by default. If you have not added another library location, the location selector will not offer one. Add the drive first using the procedure below, then return to the game’s Install dialog.
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What to verify after starting
- Read the location shown in the installation confirmation before accepting it.
- For Starfield or Indiana Jones and the Great Circle, confirm that the selected library is on an SSD, as Bethesda recommends.
- Keep the Steam client open until the download completes and the title shows as installed in your Library.
- Launch the game from Steam. A migrated title is installed and played through Steam rather than through the retired Bethesda Launcher.
Add another drive to Steam
Bethesda’s current path for adding an install drive is Steam > Settings > Storage. The drive must be added as a Steam storage location before it can be selected for a new installation.
- Open Steam.
- Choose Steam in the top menu.
- Select Settings.
- Open Storage.
- Use the drive selector and choose Add Drive.
- Select the other drive.
- Select Add.
- Confirm that the new drive appears in the Storage screen.
- Return to the game’s page in Library, select Install, and choose the newly added Steam library when Steam asks for a location.
After the drive appears in Storage, Steam makes that location available for future game installations. You do not need to repeat the add-drive process for every Bethesda title.
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Primary drive versus an added library drive
| Consideration | Primary Steam drive | Added Steam library drive |
|---|---|---|
| Setup | Available by default in Steam. | Must be added under Steam > Settings > Storage. |
| Selection during installation | Steam normally selects it by default. | Choose it in the game’s installation dialog. |
| Capacity planning | Uses free space on the drive that hosts the primary library. | Lets you use free space on another drive. |
| Drive type | Use the type that suits the title and your available capacity. | For Starfield and Indiana Jones and the Great Circle, Bethesda says to choose an SSD. |
Bethesda’s instructions do not establish a single best drive for every game, a universal performance benchmark, or a required SSD specification. Make the decision from the title-specific requirement, the space available, and the drives actually installed in your PC.
Migrate a former Bethesda.net Launcher library to Steam
If your ownership exists only in the retired Bethesda.net Launcher, migration comes before installation. Bethesda’s documented destination is Steam; after a title is migrated, you download and install it through Steam.
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Use the current Bethesda migration guidance
- Open Bethesda’s current support instructions for playing games after the Steam migration: https://help.bethesda.net/app/answers/detail/a_id/55104.
- Follow the account and library-transfer steps shown for your Bethesda account and Steam account. The exact screens and eligibility details are controlled by Bethesda and can change, so use the live instructions rather than a screenshot from an older guide.
- After the transfer is complete, sign in to the Steam account associated with the migration and check Library for the title.
- Install the game through Steam using the location procedure in this guide.
Bethesda says that a migrated title must be downloaded and installed through Steam to play it. Keeping old Bethesda game files on a drive does not replace the Steam installation step.
What migration does not do
- It does not provide a route from a Bethesda PC library to PlayStation or Xbox.
- It does not move the PC account to another PC storefront or service instead of Steam.
- It does not make the retired Bethesda Launcher downloadable again.
- It does not guarantee that saves transfer automatically for every game.
Ownership, account linking, and save data are separate issues. A title can appear in Steam while its existing save still requires the game-specific procedure described below.
Transfer saves safely, one game at a time
There is no single save-transfer recipe for the Bethesda catalog. Bethesda publishes locations and copying instructions by game, and those default locations can change when the game or its saves were moved to another drive.
Safe procedure
- Open Bethesda’s game-by-game save migration article and select the exact title.
- Read the listed default save location and the game’s copying instructions in full.
- Locate the existing Bethesda save folder. If it is not at the default location, check whether the game was installed on another drive or its save location was changed.
- Copy the entire existing save folder to a separate backup location before changing the Steam installation’s files.
- Install and start the Steam version once if the game’s instructions require a Steam save folder to exist, then exit and follow that title’s documented copy steps.
- Before pasting, identify which folder contains the Steam save and which contains the backup. Do not replace a Steam save that you may need later.
- Launch the game and verify that the expected characters, settings, or progress appear.
The exact locations, file names, and whether a manual copy is needed vary by game. Do not use one title’s folder path as a template for another title. Bethesda specifically warns that copying a Bethesda save into an existing Steam game save can overwrite the Steam save, which is why the separate backup is essential.
If the save does not appear
- Recheck that you selected the correct game entry in Bethesda’s save article.
- Confirm that you copied the files from the actual old save location, not merely the default path shown in the article.
- Check that the Steam installation is the same game and edition associated with the save.
- Restore the backup if the Steam save was replaced or the game now starts with unexpected progress.
- Do not delete the backup while troubleshooting; it is the recovery copy.
Choose the right location for common cases
You have one drive and enough free space
Leave the primary Steam drive selected and install normally. There is no reason to add another library simply because the game is published by Bethesda. The important checks are that Steam shows enough free space and, for the two titles named by Bethesda, that the drive is an SSD.
Your primary drive is nearly full
Add a different drive in Steam > Settings > Storage, confirm that it appears, and select it in the game’s installation dialog. This changes the destination for the new installation; it does not establish a universal method for moving every already-installed Bethesda game.
You have an SSD and a hard drive
For Starfield or Indiana Jones and the Great Circle, choose the SSD because Bethesda specifically recommends it. For other Bethesda games, the cited guidance does not impose the same blanket requirement, so choose based on the game’s stated requirements and your available capacity.
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You want to move an installed game after downloading it
Do not infer a manual folder-moving procedure from Bethesda’s save-transfer article. That article explains save locations and copying, not one universal process for relocating installed game files. Use Steam’s own storage-management options when available, and avoid deleting or copying game folders until Steam recognizes the intended library.
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“I cannot find the Bethesda Launcher download”
That is expected. Bethesda’s official statement is, “The Bethesda Launcher is not available to download.” Use Steam for a migrated or Steam-owned title instead of trying to obtain an installer from an unofficial archive.
The old game is not in Steam
Check whether the title was actually migrated to the Steam account currently signed in. If the only ownership record is in the former Bethesda.net Launcher, return to Bethesda’s migration guidance and complete the account/library process before troubleshooting Steam’s installation location.
Steam keeps selecting the wrong drive
Open Steam > Settings > Storage and confirm that the desired drive appears as a Steam library. Start the game’s installation again and select that library in the location selector. Adding a drive alone does not change the destination of an installation already in progress.
The new drive is not offered
Return to Storage, choose Add Drive, select the drive, and choose Add. Confirm that it remains listed before opening the game’s Install dialog. If it is still absent, the Steam client has not registered it as an installation library, so repeating the game installation dialog will not solve the underlying issue.
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Save behavior is game-specific. Use the exact title entry in Bethesda’s save migration instructions, verify the actual old save location, and compare it with the Steam save location specified there. Restore from the backup if you copied the wrong folder or overwrote a Steam save.
You copied a save and lost the Steam progress
Bethesda warns that this can happen. Stop making further copies, preserve the current folder, and restore the separate backup you created before the transfer. Then follow the title-specific instructions again, keeping the original and Steam saves in separate backup folders until the correct result is confirmed.
Checklist before you click Install
- The game is visible in the Steam account that will play it.
- If it came from the former Bethesda.net Launcher, the migration has been completed through Bethesda’s current instructions.
- The intended drive appears under Steam > Settings > Storage.
- The installation dialog shows the intended library, not merely Steam’s default.
- Starfield and Indiana Jones and the Great Circle are being installed to an SSD.
- Any existing saves have a separate backup copy.
- You have read the exact game’s save-transfer instructions before copying files.
Key takeaways
Install Bethesda PC games through Steam, not the retired Bethesda.net Launcher. For a Steam-owned title, add a drive under Steam > Settings > Storage and select that library when you install. A former launcher library must be migrated to Steam first. Use an SSD for Starfield and Indiana Jones and the Great Circle as Bethesda directs, but do not generalize that requirement to every title. Finally, handle saves on a game-by-game basis and keep a backup because a copy can overwrite an existing Steam save.
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