An Update From Dark0ne
I started this project back in 2001, in my bedroom, with a 56k modem, an excitement for the upcoming release of Morrowind and with no grand ambitions or intentions. I didn’t set out to build a business, I just wanted to make a place where modders could share their work without worrying it would vanish into the internet either the next time a fansite went offline or a publisher decided they were done with it. That idea grew legs, sprouted arms, and turned into Nexus Mods.
Since then, this site has been my entire adult life. Every single day, for over two decades, I’ve been "on call", whether it was fixing issues, reading feedback, pushing updates, or getting pulled into the latest bit of community drama. It’s been rewarding, sometimes chaotic, often exhausting and always personal. Somewhere along the way, I forgot to step back and breathe, or sleep properly. The dilemma of running a major social network that does not rest!
The strain of being responsible for the behemoth I created has taken its toll. The stress of the job has been a regular source of anxiety and stress-related health issues. I realised that I have been burning out and this started to have an impact on my staff and Nexus Mods as a whole. So, I firmly believe that the best thing for the future of Nexus Mods is for me to step aside and bring in new leadership to steer the business forward with renewed energy to make Nexus Mods the modding community we all truly deserve.
One of the biggest reasons I've been doing this for so long is that I've never felt that I truly found someone who really "gets" the modding community the way I do. Finding a new owner who would be able to understand and respect the myriad intricacies of both Nexus Mods as a business and the wider modding community was essential.
After months of meetings, face-to-face talks, and a whole lot of soul searching, I am thrilled to say that I truly believe I have found the exact right people for the task.
So yes, the ownership of Nexus Mods has changed hands, but I want to be clear, this isn’t some corporate “exit” or a backroom deal. This is me doing something I probably should’ve done years ago: taking care of myself. Reclaiming some headspace. And finally letting go of the idea that I have to do everything and be responsible for everything myself.
What changes now?
Honestly, not a lot, at least not from your side of things.
Behind the scenes, I’ve already been stepping back bit by bit. Over the past few years, the team has taken on more of the weight and the site’s been doing better than ever. What’s changing now is simply the formality of it, making sure the right people are in place to guide Nexus Mods into the next era.
That includes some structural updates to the company ownership that we aren’t shouting about, but I want to be transparent: they’re about long-term stability, not changing the values or direction of the platform. Nexus Mods is community-first and mod-author focused, that’s not up for negotiation.
While I am stepping back, it's important to understand that Nexus Mods isn't just about me and hasn't been for a long time. The Nexus Mods you see today has been created by a team of 40 incredibly dedicated people, some of whom have been here for over 9 years. They live and breathe modding, they care deeply, they’re experienced, committed, and they're very much still here. None of that is changing.
So if I can ask one thing, it’s to continue supporting them, the site, and the community they help nurture every day.
In terms of new faces, you’ll also be seeing more of Foledinho (Victor), Rapsak (Marinus) and Taagen (Nikolai), who’ve come on board to lead this next chapter. They’ve got deep roots in gaming, tech, and most importantly, they give a damn; about the site, the community, and the future we’re trying to build here.
Editor's Note: We've added Nikolai to the new owners listed above. He works more in the background, but is still an important part of the team!
They have my complete trust, and I’m incredibly proud to be bringing them onboard.
What about me?
I’m not disappearing. I’ll still be annoying people on the Mod Author Discord, lurking on the forums, and sticking my nose into community matters when I can’t help myself. I’ll also be working with the team to help guide the overall direction of the site, just without needing to be the person who signs off on every little thing and without taking responsibility for any and all things Nexus Mods.
Frankly, that’s a good thing, for me, for the team, and for the future of Nexus Mods.
701 comments
Thanks for the warm welcome! We’re as excited about Nexus Mods’ future as you are. This post was all about Robin, giving him the credit he truly deserves. He built something incredible, creating a culture that’s shaped gaming and modding as we know it. We're here to honor that legacy and carry it forward, but we need to earn your trust.
Now, let’s clear the air on a few things:
Trust takes time.
We're committed to putting control back in the hands of creators, players, and communities. We’ll get back to building now.
Marinus, Nikolai and Victor.
Each Nexus account creator EXPLICITLY agrees to Terms of Service conditions. Those conditions EXPLICITLY state what you can and cannot publish on this PRIVATE business' website.
What the Terms of Service DO NOT apply to:
- How YOU choose to think.
- How YOU choose to interpret the world.
- What content YOU PRIVATELY choose to implement in YOUR games on YOUR own PRIVATE electronic device(s).
That is the end of it.
There is nothing further to litigate within the purview of the relationship between the site, site content, and site account owners. Stop deliberately obfuscating. Stop moving the goalposts because you get a definitive, unequivocal answer you do not agree with. Stop the whataboutisms. Stop the bad faith arguments, the logical fallacies.
In the context of this very basic, boilerplate relationship between you, the Nexus account creator, and Nexus, a PRIVATE business, when it comes to mods:
- What political stance you think the website leans towards is IRRELEVANT.
- What you think is right or wrong is IRRELEVANT.
- What you think is fair or unfair is IRRELEVANT.
You want to know why?
Start reading from the top.
Having said that, I still think every one of the censorship posts should be removed from this comment section. Including mine.
I don't care if Dark0ne built a modding website with gorillions of downloads over two and a half decades, when it comes to subjects outside game modding he's still just a nerd with a computer. And as most other leftists, he clearly lacked the maturity to understand that no ideology is sacred and people have reasons to disagree with things he might see as unquestionable truths in his worldview. These traits make one unfit to lead, even if it's something as inconsequential as a video game modding website.
Although, disagree with him as I might, I do think he should still have a presence in the house he built, as he stated it'd be the case in this very post. But leave the decision making to more leveled, unbiased heads.
Indeed..
and isn't it funny how amongst those people it's ALWAYS "ideological," or "political" or "an agenda," when it doesn't align with THEIR particular interpretation of the status quo.
and isn't it funny how amongst those people it's ALWAYS "ideological," or "political" or "an agenda," when it doesn't align with THEIR particular interpretation of the status quo. "
Myopic takes is kind of their thing LOL
Once again, may I point you to The Paradox of Tollerence: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paradox_of_tolerance
"Accepting other opinions or views,"
Yes, because you and your little playmates are just so very accepting of diversity. Why, you're practically oozing with it, everything you've said here just proclaims to the rooftops how much you embody love and tolerance. /s
Holy Hell !!!
Anyway, I'm done wasting my time with cretins and troglodytes.
Have a nice day.
@the mods and new site owners, please clean up this comment section, and as Zanderat says, mine included.
but mods that turned a white characters skin black werent deleted
same for mods that turned "pride flags" into american flags, which is completely harmless
what is the new stance on these?
Still European, still not taking shit.
"Glad to see more level-headed people speaking up.
There is no "censorship" happening on Nexus Mods.
The moment you create an account on their platform, you agree to their rules and TOS, which includes their File Submission guidelines:
TL:DR - "Don't publish bigoted mods on our platform or we'll have to remove it."
Don't agree with these rules? NexusMods might not be for you then. "
So... rules are staying the same, and you can't post bigoted mods... also, trying to strip the mods your complaining of *their context* to make it sound reasonable makes the whole thing a bad faith complaint.
*edit for missing comments, sorry
why is it bigotry for making a character white but not making one black?
answer the question or dont respond at all
so the website is still bigoted, just with a leftist face. got it. ya Nexus can fall apart, i'm done using them.
why is it bigotry for making a character white but not making one black?
answer the question or dont respond at all"
Because context matters.
Because one is increasing diversity while the other is erasing it.
Because one is actively trying to upset a minority, while the other is not.
If you do not have the ability to engage with the nuance of this conversation, that's kind of a you problem?
Also, YOU KNOW WHY. You just don't like it when a platform looks at your bigotry and says "... oooof. Naa."
This site is about modding though and not about bigotry so you're unlikely to find more information here based on that.
The context is that it's only doing those things on MY COMPUTER. Having a mod making characters white/straight doesn't affect anyone else's version of the game. They still keep the original character.
Why would a community be upset that I can change a character on my computer? I'm not harming that community or forcing them to use the mod.
Honestly this sounds more like you are exploiting marginalized people as a means to control the behavior of others. It's Orwellian.
Who cares? And also, who says mods should aim for diversity? Is that a requirement we don't see written anywhere, or the site being obviously political and trying to assert their views via censorships?
Who says it's actively trying to do that? Does the site or some minority decide the intentions of the mod author because they feel hurt? And how is it that it's only upsetting when it has to do something with white people and countries or communities not supportive of left wing ideals? Who says appealing to minorities is a must have every time?
When someone uploads a mod or endorses one that doesn't fit into some kind of political views you support, that doesn't automatically make them "bigots". Like it or not, there are people out there with harmless opinions that you won't agree with either way. It doesn't make them any more relevant than your needs for diversity and inclusion and whatnot. Then there are people who just outright don't care about this, they don't have negative views on supporting whatever left wing ideas you have, nor do they endorse it. It doesn't make anyone a bigot. You guys just like to toss that word around and apply it to anyone who isn't "on your side".
Nexus was and might still be one of the most well known sites for being obviously, without any uncertainty, political and it's obvious that they were not even trying to hide that image. The question is mainly concerned about this, because mods that don't fit into these ideals are still completely harmless, and should be allowed on the site... The place is full of nsfw mods of all kinds of categories, and you're gonna be upset about some flags and skin colors?
🟥 🟧 🟨 🟩 🟦 🟪
This is known as the "Paradox of Tolerance".
Also, this story sums up why we don't HAVE TO tolerate any of you:
Back in 2020, a writer named Michael B. Tager wrote a few tweets about his time at a dive bar in his native Baltimore.While he was enjoying an after work beer he noticed the bartender booting out a seemingly quiet patron. This patron was wearing a jacket covered in Nazi symbolism.When Tager asked about why he booted the guy, the bartender, a seasoned pro, said that if you let one Nazi in, slowly they replace the clientele.“You have to nip it in the bud immediately,” he said, as Trager paraphrased. “These guys come in and it's always a nice, polite one. And you serve them because you don't want to cause a scene. And then they become a regular and after a while, they bring a friend. And that dude is cool too.”“And then THEY bring friends and the friends bring friends and they stop being cool and then you realize, oh *****, this is a Nazi bar now,” he continued. ”And it's too late because they're entrenched and if you try to kick them out, they cause a PROBLEM. So you have to shut them down.”
Im sure you'll get over it. Danish society is hella progressive, so they are LESS likely to let the bigotry slip in, not more.
There is no "censorship" happening on Nexus Mods.
The moment you create an account on their platform, you agree to their rules and TOS, which includes their File Submission guidelines:
TL:DR - "Don't publish bigoted mods on our platform or we'll have to remove it."
Don't agree with these rules? NexusMods might not be for you then.
*Chefs Kiss*
You know, you guys are free to start an alt-right "NON WOKE!" hosting website that will let you live out your Not-See dreams, right?
Demanding Nexus give a platform to bigotry and bullying just because a handful of evolutionary drop-outs demand it is a WILD take.
The basic business plan of these techbros is as follows: keep the service going while attempting to gussy up the numbers some more so that they can turn around and sell the thing to the next bidder and make some nice profit. That's it. That's all it is.
(And the ownership will keep changing until the service is run into the ground. If you believe something else, you haven't been around long enough.)
if game have pride/lgbt content - you have to tolerate it even if it shoved dwn the mouth
https://www.gamesindustry.biz/nexus-mods-bans-user-for-spider-man-mod-removing-pride-flags
being user-friendly? what thaty?
So unless you do something to actually PROVE that you won't decide to techbro it up on the Nexus, I recommend people start looking elsewhere for mods.
I totally get your concerns. The purpose of the monetization cheat sheet was to help founders find a balance, not to push greed, but to show how value and retention can work together sustainably, just like they do today on Nexus.
I want to be clear: our focus is on making modding easier for everyone, not locking it behind paywalls or subscription models. We’re committed to keeping NexusMods a place for the community, and actions will speak louder than any promises.
All we ask for is time to prove that we’re here for the long haul.
All we ask for is a bit of time to prove it through our actions.