Robin Scott, the founder of modding platform Nexus Mods, has announced he will be stepping down from his management role at the site after 24 years.
In a news post, Scott says that he thinks the decision to step back from managing Nexus Mods is “in both [his] and the community’s best interests”. He says that the “strain” of responsibility for the “behemoth” he’s created has “taken its toll”.
According to Scott, running Nexus Mods for 24 years and having to be “on call” has caused “anxiety and stress-related health issues” for him, and that since he’s been “burning out”, it’s best for him to “step aside and bring in new leadership”.
According to Scott, ownership of Nexus Mods has “changed hands”, but he says the sale “isn’t some corporate ‘exit’ or a backroom deal”. He doesn’t specify who exactly owns the site now, instead referring to “structural updates to the company ownership that we aren’t shouting about”.
Despite this, Scott says the changes are “about long-term stability, not changing the values or direction of the platform”; according to Scott, Nexus Mods will remain “community-first and mod-author-focused”.
He says that from a user perspective, “not a lot” will be changing, and that behind the scenes, he was already beginning to reduce his involvement in the Nexus Mods platform. As such, the site will likely continue to run as it has done for the last few months.
As for Scott himself, he says he won’t be “disappearing” from Nexus Mods altogether. He’ll remain active on the site’s Discord channel, and he’ll also be “working with the team to help guide the overall direction” of Nexus Mods.
Nexus Mods was founded by Scott back in 2001, at which point it was a fansite for The Elder Scrolls III: Morrowind. Over time, it became a modding platform for that game, eventually expanding to encapsulate other games as well.
It hasn’t been without controversy; Scott and Nexus Mods have found themselves in hot water numerous times over their decision to ban certain mods, or, indeed, to allow certain mods. That’s doubtless the kind of back-and-forth Scott wants to escape.
In any case, it’s not clear how Nexus Mods will change in future, but one thing’s for sure: it won’t be changing under Scott’s leadership. Stay tuned for more.
