How Players Actually Discover Mods: A Data Deep Dive

We looked at discovery data across the in-game mod browser to understand what actually gets a mod installed, versus what just gets it seen.

Featured Placement Isn’t Everything

Featured placement drives the first spike of installs, but search and category browsing account for the majority of installs over a mod's lifetime. Mods with clear titles, accurate tags, and a handful of in-game screenshots consistently outperform higher-production mods with weaker metadata.

For studios curating their own featured rows, the takeaway is simple: surfacing a mod is only half the job. Making it easy to find on its own is what keeps it installing weeks after launch.