Missing DLL errors

steam_api64.dll

This file is not a system component: supplied with the game by steam. Restore it from the source that installed it rather than downloading a replacement.

Do not download this DLL on its own

Searching for a missing DLL by name leads to sites that hand you that single file. It is one of the oldest and most effective malware delivery methods there is, and a system DLL from an unknown source is indistinguishable from a deliberately modified one. There is never a legitimate reason to obtain a runtime component that way.

What it is

The 64-bit Steam API library. Like its 32-bit counterpart it is not a system component: it lives inside each game folder and Steam installs it with the game.

Where you see it: A game failing to launch after an interrupted update, or after antivirus quarantined a file it did not recognise.

In Steam, right-click the game, choose Properties, Installed Files, then Verify integrity of game files. Check your antivirus quarantine too. This error is also extremely common with unauthorised copies, which is why so many sites offer the file directly, and downloading a replacement steam_api64.dll is one of the most reliable ways to infect a machine.

Why there is nothing to download here

There is no verified download we can offer for this one, because installing a file is not the fix. The steps above are what actually resolves it. That distinction matters: the sites ranking for this file name are selling a download that would not have helped even if it were safe.

Other files from the same runtime