diff --git a/soulstruct/__init__.py b/soulstruct/__init__.py
index 0808f477..81234ec5 100644
--- a/soulstruct/__init__.py
+++ b/soulstruct/__init__.py
@@ -1,10 +1,14 @@
 from pathlib import Path
+from pkg_resources import require, DistributionNotFound
 
 from .base.models.flver import FLVER
 from .config import *
 from soulstruct.containers import Binder
 from soulstruct.containers.dcx import DCX
 
-
-with (Path(__file__).parent / "../VERSION").open("r") as _vfp:
-    __version__ = _vfp.read().strip()
+try:
+    soulstruct_pkg = require("soulstruct")
+    __version__ = soulstruct_pkg[0].version
+except DistributionNotFound:
+    with (Path(__file__).parent / "../VERSION").open("r") as _vfp:
+        __version__ = _vfp.read().strip()