"Collections" is a Nexus Mods feature that allows you to download and install an entire list of mods through a streamlined process. That way, you can install several mods at once, or even replicate an entire mod setup with relative ease. In contrast to traditional "mod packs", the mods in a collection are not bundled together in an archive, but rather downloaded from the original source or mod page. The mods downloaded through a collection are still receiving an increase to the download counter, and the mod authors of these mods are rewarded through our mod rewards programme - if they're opted into it.
The collections feature is available to both Free and Premium users of our site. Anyone can create a collection and the flow for that is identical for everyone.
Premium users, who through their membership subscription are already contributing to the upkeep of our site, are able to queue the download and installation of an entire collection of mods - an experience we could describe as “as close to a one-click installation as possible”.
Free users on the other hand, while also having full access to collections, need to click and open the download page for every mod in a collection they want to download manually. That way, free users are not simply bypassing the mod author’s page along with our entire revenue stream, as we’re still able to serve them ads via the file download page. The free user experience is therefore a bit like downloading mods in a traditional mod list, with the added convenience of being directed to the exact file, as well as still getting all the automatic conflict resolution benefits through Vortex.
See also: Collections introduction videos.
Using Vortex, someone can build a mod list/mod setup locally on their machine, and then export a meta file with all the information about the mods/files/conflict resolutions etc. and upload it to the site. We refer to this on the site as a "collection".
A user can then add this meta file from the site to our mod manager Vortex and Vortex will fetch all the download links for the mods, download them (i.e. the mod authors still get the unique downloads for that new user), and install the mods the same way the original user (the curator of that mod list) has them installed (including conflict resolution) on their end.
The outcome being the replication of a whole mod setup without much hassle and without whole "mod packs" (i.e. the actual mods zipped up together into an archive) being redistributed and thus mod authors losing out on downloads and donation points.
Care is also being taken that the mods are previewed while they're downloaded, so users still see the descriptions of the mods they're downloading and they can view the whole mod page.
The following describes terms used as part of the collection project that you may not be familiar with.
| Phrase | Meaning |
|---|---|
| Curator | This refers to the user who creates and maintains a collection. We use this title to ensure a distinction between a "Mod Author" (a user who creates and shares mod content) and "Collection Curator" (a user who compiles lists and metadata referencing mods). |
| Mod Pack | A mod pack is considered to be a single downloadable file that contains many mods. Collections are not mod packs, this is an important distinction. |
| Collection | A list of mods and associated metadata used to share a modding setup between players. |
| Revision | Each time a collection is edited a new revision of that collection is created. Revisions are numbered incrementally each time they are published. |
| Draft | This refers to a revision that has been added to a collection page but isn't currently visible to anyone except the curator. |
| Published | This refers to a revision that has been made available to all users by the curator. |
| Listed | This means the collection is published and visible to everyone and appears in the list of collections for the given game. |
| Unlisted | This means the collection is published but not listed with all the collections for a given game. Instead, users will need the direct link to the collection to download it. |
| External Mod | A mod file that is not available on Nexus Mods. |
| Bundled content | Content which is included alongside the mod lists and metadata in a collection. |