How to install older versions of Hero Seige using Steam

Hero Seige has change drastically since it's release in 2014, but every so often I like to return to the times of 2016 where the game was a wave based progression. I'm repurposing a guide for Beat Saber downgrading, as the method is simple for the most part. I always read in reviews how people loved, or miss the old Hero Seige so I hope to somehow reignite their passion by sharing a method to return to those times.

Have not tested multiplayer and do not know how it will act to join old versions of the game. Does not seem to work, but honestly would not suggest trying as I don't believe the servers exist for the older versions anymore.

(Copy pasted from Beat Saber Guide.)

In February 2020, Valve released a Steam Client update that arbitrarily prevents downloading older versions of games from the Steam Console. Fortunately, ways to circumvent this exist. The most popular way is Depot Downloader, however we will specifically focus on the built-in Steam Console downloader as it does not require you to provide your Steam credentials, is a simple patch, and easy to use.

Download SteamDepotDownpatcher.exe: https://github.com/fifty-six/zig.SteamManifestPatcher/releases
(you might have to click "save anyway" if you are using Microsoft Edge)

Run the program once. If everything is good, you should see "Wrote the patch to memory" at the end. You can then press ENTER to close the window.

⚠️ Running the program is required everytime you freshly (re)start Steam if you wish to download older versions, so keep it around and check back here for any updates. If you are getting the "Manifest not available" error when trying to downgrade, that means you have not yet run the patcher in the current session. Steam must be running in order for the patcher to work as no files on your disk are modified, only the running process memory.

This is an unfortunate requirement as Valve no longer officially allows downgrading thanks to the checks introduced in February 2020. You run the program at your own risk.

In order to downgrade we first need to know what version we want to install. Version numbers (1.0.0, 1.1.0 etc.) are not used in the Steam database, so we have to refer to dates and Manifest IDs instead.

There are 766 manifests, updates, for HeroSeige over the last 7 years. To encompass the majority of readers this will be limited to the start of seasons along with the first release.

• The release of season 10 was warned not to work on Mac.
  
• Season 6 was a Halloween Event.
  
• Season 4 was a Christmas Event.

Two methods to access Steam console
press Win+R, then input steam://open/console and press OK.

Right click on your Steam desktop shortcut, click properties and add -console after Steam target address.

If done correctly, you should see 'Console' tab after your Steam username on the client.

Now that we are in the Steam Console, we can start the download of the version you have chosen.
The example included will be for Season 1, however the only variable that needs to change would be the Manifest ID, the other two numbers are static in this case. They relate to the app ID, and the depot ID.

This will begin the download. You will not see this visible besides maybe in task manager. Don't fret over it, as it is downloading.

Keep note of the folder path after the words "Depot download complete". That is where the downloaded files are.

Any messages besides these are debug messages, don't worry about them.

If you are getting the "Manifest not available" error, please check Section 0 of this guide!

Now that the download is complete, perform the following:

• Copy the resulting path you got in the console and paste it into the Windows Explorer's address bar (example above). *
  
• You can now select and copy the files.
  
• Go up the directory tree, back to steamapps. Then open common -> HeroSeige.
  Now paste the downloaded folders into the directory, accepting the overwrite prompt.

You have now downgraded the game. Everything should now be playable.

* This is the entire installation of the game at the time of that version (and not just the update's changes). Do NOT run the EXE from the "depot_269211" folder directly. It will not work and you will be redirected to the main HeroSeige directory and exe in steamapps\common which probably still has the latest version.

I personally found this guide to be complex but if my guide does not work for you, this guide should.

https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2353930763

Hyperlinked earlier, but the beat saber guide this is pretty much just a copy paste of except with Hero Seige information.
https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=1805934840

If people need help, I'll try to answer questions in the comments.