Making Mods

This page is for people making mods. For installing and ordering mods, see Mods.

How mods work

A mod is a folder in mods\ (next to skate3.exe) that holds only the game files you change, laid out the same way as the game folder. When you press PLAY with mods enabled, the launcher builds mods\.active-game, a copy of the game folder made of hard links (so it takes no extra disk space), swaps in the mods' files, and starts the game with --game_data_root pointing at it. The real game folder is never changed.

mods\
  Retro Shoes\
    mod.json            (optional)
    preview.png         (optional)
    README.txt          (optional)
    data\
      content\
        createacharacter.big

• A game subfolder, or one wrapper folder (which most zips have), works too.
• Mods lower in the load order win when two mods replace the same file.
• Mods can't replace default.xex, default.xexp or the EAWebkit .xex/.xexp files, because the recomp's code is built against exactly those.
• Files must be the Xbox 360 versions. PS3 mods use different formats (.psg instead of .rx2, for example) and won't load.
• Folders whose names start with . or _ are ignored, and mods\skate2 is reserved for Skate 3 Recompiled+ (see below).
• mod.json, README.txt, README.md, LICENSE, CHANGELOG.md, preview.* and thumbnail.* at the root of the mod folder are never linked into the game.

mod.json (format 1)

Every field is optional, and mods without a mod.json still load.

{
  "format": 1,
  "name": "Retro Shoes",
  "version": "1.2.0",
  "author": "skatefan",
  "description": "Brings back the classic shoe colours.",
  "preview": "preview.png",
  "targets": {
    "recomp": "any",
    "min_version": "2.0.2"
  },
  "requires": ["Another Mod Folder Name"],
  "conflicts": ["Some Other Mod"]
}

Field	Meaning
format	Format version. Missing means 0 (a v3.1 mod); 1 is current. A higher number shows a "made for a newer launcher" warning but the mod still loads.
name	Title shown on the Mods page (defaults to the folder name).
version	Shown next to the title, for example v1.2.0.
author	Shown as "by …" on the mod's row.
description	Shown when hovering the mod's title.
preview	An image next to mod.json, shown as a thumbnail on the mod's row. Must stay inside the mod folder.
targets.recomp	"official" (Skate 3 Recomp), "plus" (Skate 3 Recompiled+) or "any".
targets.min_version	Lowest recomp version the mod works with, for example "2.0.2".
requires	Other mods this one needs, by folder name or name.
conflicts	Mods that shouldn't be enabled at the same time, by folder name or name.

When a mod's target or minimum version doesn't match the install, a required mod is missing or disabled, or a conflicting mod is enabled, its row on the Mods page shows a yellow ⚠ line. These are warnings, not blocks: PLAY still works. The full spec is in docs/mod-format.md.

The Modding tools page

Turn on Launcher → Modding tools → Show modding tools and restart the launcher. A Modding tools page appears under Tools. Normal players never see it.

• Start a new mod: type a name and press Create mod folder. It creates mods\<name>\ with a format-1 mod.json, an empty data\ folder and a README.txt, then opens the folder in Explorer.

• Check and package a mod: pick a mod and press Check mod. The launcher checks every file (hashing runs in the background, with Cancel) and lists what it finds:

  	What it means
  ✖ Error	No usable game files; a protected file (default.xex, default.xexp, the EAWebkit files); a link or junction inside the mod; or a path that escapes the mod folder or uses names Windows can't store. Errors block packaging.
  ⚠ Warning	A whole original game archive over 20 MB (ship only what you changed); a file identical to the original in game\ (it does nothing); a PS3 file such as .psg; or a new file that doesn't exist in game\ (probably a wrong path).
  ℹ Info	No mod.json, or one without name/version; no preview image.

  Then fix things with the buttons underneath:

  • Remove identical files deletes the do-nothing copies, after asking. It only ever deletes inside that mod's folder, and it's greyed out while there are errors.
  • Add mod.json writes a format-1 mod.json, or fills in a missing name and version without losing what's there.
  • Package as .zip writes <Name>-<version>.zip to your Desktop with one top-level folder inside, ready to share. It skips junk like Thumbs.db, desktop.ini and .git, and asks before overwriting.

• Create a mod from changed files: for when you edit a copy of the game folder directly. Copy game\ somewhere else, edit the copy, then pick that copy as the work folder, type a mod name and press Compare. The launcher compares every file with your real game\ folder (in the background, with Cancel) and lists what's changed and new, all ticked. Untick anything you don't want and press Create mod. It copies only the ticked files into mods\<name>\ at the right paths, adds a mod.json, and runs Check mod on the result.

  • It never changes the work folder or game\.
  • It refuses the real game\ folder, the mods folder and the recomp folder itself. If you pick a copy of the whole recomp folder, it offers to use the game\ folder inside it.
  • It skips links and junctions, the protected default.xex and EAWebkit files, and junk like Thumbs.db and .git.
  • Unchanged files are left out, and you're warned before creating a mod with more than 50 files or 500 MB.
  • New mods start disabled. Turn them on from the Mods page.

• Test a mod: pick a mod in the Check and package a mod card and press Test mod. The game boots straight to gameplay with only that mod (plus any mods its mod.json lists under requires), even if it's disabled on the Mods page. Your other mods and your Mods page settings aren't changed.

  • Tests boot signed out and skip the intro movies, so your career saves aren't touched.
  • The launcher backs up settings.toml before the test and puts it back when the game closes. If you have unsaved setting changes, it asks whether to save them first.
  • If a required mod isn't installed, it tells you which one and asks before testing without it.
  • If you close the launcher while a test is still running, it asks first. Keep open hides it to the tray (if the tray is on), Close anyway puts your settings back right away, and Cancel does nothing.
  • If the launcher was closed or crashed during a test, it puts your settings back the next time it starts (once the game is closed).

More tools are on the way: a log of which files the game actually reads, and an archive browser for the game's .big files. See Roadmap.

Skate 3 Recompiled+

Skate 3 Recompiled+ is a community fork of the recomp. The launcher detects it (by its mods\skate2 folder or its skate3_skate2_enabled setting) and uses that for targets.recomp warnings. The fork keeps its New San Vanelona data in mods\skate2, so the launcher hides that folder from the Mods page and never changes it, and you can't name a mod skate2.

Sharing mods

• Run Check mod first. It catches the common mistakes below, and Package as .zip builds the zip the right way for you.
• Ship only the files you changed. Don't include whole game archives you didn't modify: that's sharing EA's files, and it makes the mod huge.
• If you zip it yourself, use one top-level folder named after the mod, so Install from .zip… (or dragging the zip onto the Mods page) picks it up cleanly.
• Fill in name, version and author in mod.json, and add a preview.png.