Bethesda has a history when it comes to strange expansions for their games. Even before the infamous horse armor from Oblivion, the studio stirred player emotions with another DLC.
What was the horse armor? In short: For The Elder Scrolls 4: Oblivion, a paid DLC was released that added armor for the player’s horse. This luxury cost a hefty €2.50 in 2006.
At a time when microtransactions were not yet common, the decision to charge money for it caused an uproar. You can read more about the horse armor on MeinMMO.
About ten years before Oblivion, the second part of the ESO series was released. This one also featured a strange DLC that only a few players in the US could actually play at launch.
Oblivion only received a comprehensive remaster in 2025 – here’s the trailer:
Who likes exclusive quests?
What was that DLC? The expansion for Daggerfall was included with the game at launch. And it was free. All great, right? No, because only customers of a specific US retailer got access to the new quests.
Only those who purchased Daggerfall at CompUSA or one of its branches received a version of the game with the expansion included. In all other countries or stores, only the base version was available. How the deal between CompUSA and Bethesda came about is unclear.
The DLC contained 16 new quests, which were often considerably more complex than those in the main game. Among them were six missions from the Fighters Guild, five from the Mages Guild, two from the Thieves Guild, one from the Knights Order, and two additional tasks.
Within the quests, there were several storylines and even decisions that players had to make. The 16 new missions were developed by a relatively new and inexperienced employee. His name was Kurt Kuhlmann. He joined Bethesda about five months before the official release of Daggerfall. He was tasked with designing the expansion. He completed his assignment in a short time.
How could one play the DLC? Either you bought your copy of Daggerfall at a CompUSA branch, or you had to have some patience.
The news of the exclusive DLC spread quickly. Many fans expressed frustration, as illustrated by a post from a user that is archived on Google. In it, he recounts that he pre-ordered the game, but this version naturally did not include additional quests.
It took barely a month for the expansion to find its way onto the internet. Now everyone could access it for free. Later, Bethesda reacted and released the DLC themselves without additional costs.
What do you think about the story? Were you there during the release of Daggerfall and experienced the fuss? Feel free to share your experiences in the comments. Who knows if there will ever be a remake of Daggerfall, just like there was for part 4. In the remaster of Oblivion, fans can find some curiosities, just like in the original: A 19-year-old, secret Easter egg from Oblivion has also made it into the remaster and can insult you severely
