Publisher-Approved Paid Modding FAQ


The article is intended to support our Donation Options & Guidelines and provide clarity around some of the points discussed in the Publisher Approved Paid Modding section. 


What is considered DLC or Official Content?

Due to the way content is released for some games, it's not always clear where the line is between a paid mod and official content. 


When we refer to "DLCs" or "Official Content" we are talking about any content that has been officially released by the game developers or publishers. This can sometimes include content created by modders but this may have been commissioned by the game studio and is sold under their official name. Examples include Creation Club content for Skyrim or Content Creator Packs for Cities Skylines. 


Our policy on paid modding content does not apply to DLC/Official content. 


Creation Club vs Verified Creator content for Bethesda games

For Skyrim Special Edition, Fallout 4 and Starfield there is a distinction between "Creation Club" content and mods sold by "Verified Creators" on the platform. The same mod authors may be involved in both pieces of content but the line between official and unofficial varies by the way it was published.


We consider Creation Club content as "official content" - this is in line with Bethesda's stance - and we will therefore treat it like DLC. This also extends to any Creations published by the official Bethesda Game Studios account on their website. You can view the list of mods for Skyrim and Starfield here.


Any other Verified Creator content is considered unofficial and the Publisher-Approved Paid Modding policy will apply to it.


Patches and Translations for Paid Mods - What is acceptable?

To clarify what is and is not acceptable when it comes to compatibility patches, integrations and translations for paid mods we have included some examples below.


Acceptable Examples

  • A free mod on Nexus Mods includes an optional compatibility patch on the page to allow it to work with a paid mod. 

Unacceptable Examples

  • A mod page includes a translation of a paid mod to another language. This should be posted on the paid modding platform.
  • A mod page includes only compatibility patch(es) between a paid mod and any other free mod(s). This content should be posted on either the original mod pages that are being patched OR on the paid modding platform. 
  • A mod page containing a patch hub that includes a mixture of patches for paid and free mod content. The paid mod patches should be posted on either the original mod pages that are being patched OR on the paid modding platform.

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