The Elder Scrolls II: Daggerfall: 4 Open Source Clones Compared
Daggerfall Unity is the only actively maintained, fully playable option here, with cross-platform support (Windows/Linux/macOS) without emulation, high-resolution and widescreen rendering alongside optional retro display modes, and an active mod-creator community; it requires a free copy of DOS Daggerfall via Steam to supply its original assets. Daggerfall.NET and opendf are both listed as unplayable — the former's development has halted, and the latter, while still active, provides no further detail beyond needing the original Daggerfall data files. XL Engine is a multi-game engine — its config note lists Dagger, Dark, Blood, and Outlaws as supported games, not just Daggerfall — that's only semi-playable and whose own development has halted.
Comparison table
Availability
- Status
- Playable
- Platforms
- Linux, Windows, OSX
- Play in browser
- No
- Mobile
- No
Project health
- Development status
- Active
- Last updated
- 1d ago
- Stars
- 3,496
- Contributors
- 97
- License
- MIT
- Engine
- Unity
Compatibility
- Requires original assets
- YesRequires a free copy of DOS Daggerfall (available on Steam) to provide game assets such as textures, models, and sound effects.
- Modding support
- YesExtensive mod support with hundreds of mods available; active mod creator community on Nexus Mods.
Availability
- Status
- Semi-playable
- Platforms
- Linux, Windows
- Play in browser
- No
- Mobile
- No
Project health
- Development status
- Halted
- Last updated
- 6y ago
- Stars
- 194
- Contributors
- 7
- License
- MIT
- Engine
- SDL2
Compatibility
- Requires original assets
- YesRequires game data paths configured for Dagger, Dark, Blood, or Outlaws games in XLEngine.conf.
- Modding support
- —
Availability
- Status
- Unplayable
- Platforms
- Linux
- Play in browser
- No
- Mobile
- No
Project health
- Development status
- Active
- Last updated
- 13d ago
- Stars
- 78
- Contributors
- 3
- License
- GPL-3.0
- Engine
- SDL2
Compatibility
- Requires original assets
- YesRequires original Daggerfall game data files to run.
- Modding support
- —
Availability
- Status
- Unplayable
- Platforms
- Windows
- Play in browser
- No
- Mobile
- No
Project health
- Development status
- Halted
- Last updated
- 13y ago
- Stars
- 10
- Contributors
- 1
- License
- —
- Engine
- —
Compatibility
- Requires original assets
- —
- Modding support
- —
| Title | Daggerfall Unity | XL Engine | opendf | Daggerfall.NET |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Status | Playable | Semi-playable | Unplayable | Unplayable |
| Platforms | Linux, Windows, OSX | Linux, Windows | Linux | Windows |
| Play in browser | No | No | No | No |
| Mobile | No | No | No | No |
| Project health | ||||
| Development status | Active | Halted | Active | Halted |
| Last updated | 1d ago | 6y ago | 13d ago | 13y ago |
| Stars | 3,496 | 194 | 78 | 10 |
| Contributors | 97 | 7 | 3 | 1 |
| License | MIT | MIT | GPL-3.0 | — |
| Engine | Unity | SDL2 | SDL2 | — |
| Compatibility | ||||
| Requires original assets | YesRequires a free copy of DOS Daggerfall (available on Steam) to provide game assets such as textures, models, and sound effects. | YesRequires game data paths configured for Dagger, Dark, Blood, or Outlaws games in XLEngine.conf. | YesRequires original Daggerfall game data files to run. | — |
| Modding support | YesExtensive mod support with hundreds of mods available; active mod creator community on Nexus Mods. | — | — | — |
| Preview | | | |
Frequently asked questions
Are the The Elder Scrolls II: Daggerfall clones on this page open source?
Yes — every clone catalogued here is an open-source project. Availability, license, and development-status details for each one are listed in the comparison table above.
What license do these The Elder Scrolls II: Daggerfall clones use?
Daggerfall Unity and XL Engine (MIT); opendf (GPL-3.0).
Do I need to own the original The Elder Scrolls II: Daggerfall to play these clones?
Daggerfall Unity, XL Engine, and opendf require original game assets to play.
Which The Elder Scrolls II: Daggerfall clone is the most actively maintained?
Daggerfall Unity and opendf are currently under active development, based on recent commit activity. See the "Development status" row above for every clone's current status.
See the full write-up for each clone, or go back to The Elder Scrolls II: Daggerfall.