About
The Legend of Dragoon is a 1999/2000 Japanese role-playing game developed and published by Sony Computer Entertainment Japan for the PlayStation. Set in the fantasy world of Endiness, it follows Dart Feld and a party of companions wielding the ancient power of the Dragoons to stop a global catastrophe.
Severed Chains is a community PC engine port maintained by Legendofdragoon.org that re-implements the game in Java 21, supplying the player's own NTSC-U PS1 disc data as the game content. The port brings the classic JRPG to modern hardware with substantial quality-of-life upgrades including 60 FPS combat, 4K resolution support, true widescreen rendering, and full controller remapping— while preserving the original Addition combat system and FMV sequences.
Identity
Launch
- Binary
- launch
- Needs files
-
- Legend of Dragoon NTSC-U (North American) PS1 disc images, all 4 discs, placed in the isos/ folder (ISO or BIN)
Runtime
- Runs as
- Native Linux
- Proton
- not needed
⚙ Setup notes
About: Severed Chains is a fan-made PC engine port of the 2000 PlayStation RPG The Legend of Dragoon, developed by the Legendofdragoon.org modding community (lead: Monoxide). The 3.x line adds a major graphics overhaul (4K, 60 FPS, widescreen). The engine is updated frequently, so always grab the latest build.
Engine: The engine is Java-based (Java 21). You do not need to install a JRE yourself — the included launch script downloads the correct Java runtime on first run (needs an internet connection), then launches the game.
Setup: An official, detailed Steam Deck setup guide is maintained — follow it closely. Extract the build, drop your disc images in the isos folder, then run the launch script.
Display: Enhancements include 60 FPS gameplay, 4K rendering, true widescreen, and full controller support.
Discs: Supply your own legal Legend of Dragoon disc images. The project currently supports the NA (North American / NTSC-U) region only — PAL and NTSC-J discs are not supported at this time. All four discs go in the isos folder.
Install: Right-click the launch script in Desktop Mode and "Add to Steam" (run the first-time setup in Desktop Mode where the file picker is reliable).
The one thing to know
Supply your own copy: You must provide your own legal Legend of Dragoon disc images. The project supports the NA / NTSC-U region only at this time — PAL and NTSC-J discs do not work. ISO or BIN formats are accepted; place all four discs in the isos folder.
Java: Java-based engine (Java 21). You do not need to install a JRE yourself — the launch script auto-downloads Java on first run (internet connection required), so the first launch takes a while as it downloads Java and unpacks assets. Do not place the game in a read-only/Program Files location and do not run it as administrator.
Binary: The launcher is the launch shell script (launch.bat on Windows). Right-click it in Desktop Mode and "Add to Steam" rather than pointing Steam at a Java executable.
Setup: Do the initial setup in Desktop Mode where the file picker is reliably available.
Update: Download the latest build from the project site — the engine is updated frequently and newer builds improve compatibility and performance.
Community guides
Write-ups and threads from people who got this (or a similar) game running. deckport links to them — it doesn't reproduce them.
- legendofdragoon Severed Chains — official project site and downloads (Legendofdragoon.org) ↗
- legendofdragoon Severed Chains — official Steam Deck setup guide ↗
- legendofdragoon Severed Chains — general setup guide (launch script, isos folder, NA region) ↗
- github Severed Chains — source, releases and README (GitHub) ↗
Get the artwork
deckport never hosts game images. Open this game on SteamGridDB, pick
the cover / hero / logo / icon you like, and drop them into the
game folder under .deckport-art/ before you push it to the
Deck. The importer files them under the right names automatically.
Run it on your Deck
Two files: the one-time importer (deckport.py) in your
Deck's home folder, and this game's install helper. Copy the game
into ~/Games and run the helper with Steam closed — it
writes the recipe (binary, launch options)
and registers the shortcut with artwork.