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Mod Browsing Overhaul Discussion


JustThatKing

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  On 3/12/2025 at 9:42 PM, LummoxJR said:

My stylesheet fixes the mod titles by switching from the Inter font (not suited to this purpose) to a condensed font.

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Yeah, thanks, already using it! I meant the mod titles in the new search tiles (they're very smol, pointless and annoying).

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Hey everyone, head of design at Nexus Mods here - thanks for all the feedback so far.

I wanted to provide some context for the recent search changes. The old search system made switching between content types (e.g., games and mods) difficult, and only the "Mods" category had a results preview. The new quick search improves this by making it easier to browse all content types while allowing you to preview more results.

We designed the new modal to be highly visual. During testing, we experimented with a more compact list view, but most users preferred larger thumbnails, as images are often the key factor when scanning for mods, collections, and especially images. If you're solely focused on mods, it’s easy to forget that users browse other types of content too.

Quality-of-Life Improvements

  • You can now activate search instantly with the `/` hotkey and dismiss it with `Esc` for quick access.
  • Keyboard navigation is coming soon, so you’ll be able to search and browse without a mouse (if that's your thing).
  • Search is now much better at handling inexact queries (e.g., “baldurs gate” without an apostrophe) and includes keyword matching (e.g., “fo3” will return Fallout 3).

The general feedback was very positive in testing and during the closed and open beta periods. It’s been interesting to hear from people saying it’s helped them discover more new mods than they previously would have. I understand that this is a big change visually from what you’re used to - there is some extra functionality to coming where the initial screen will show your recent searches and saved games. This will make the modal feel less empty when first opened.

Why the Colour Changes?

The updated colours are part of a broader design transition. We’re rolling out brand-new pages soon, and these changes help make the experience more seamless when switching between old and new designs.

For those who have been using the site for years, we know big updates can be jarring—I’ve had the same reaction to changes on sites I love! But these updates are necessary to modernise the site’s core architecture, allowing us to build and release new features more efficiently. We really appreciate all your feedback and are excited to keep improving Nexus Mods.

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  On 3/13/2025 at 8:03 AM, mfPixel said:

For those who have been using the site for years, we know big updates can be jarring—I’ve had the same reaction to changes on sites I love!

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...And I started using some of them less and abandoned others completely (at least, that's how it went for me personally).

 

May I also inquire the names of the previous fonts for description, downloads and comments sections, so I can use them or something similar in a personal style?

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One more question: where do all the comments/bugs/files buttons go when I upscale the site to 130+%? (no wait, I found it)

 

So, unsurprisingly the new fonts become actually readable instead of eye sore and dyslexia-inducing (or whatever other name you call the inability to read an uncomfortable font) only at 130% or higher scale (when I turn my screen into a mock-up tablet). That's clearly  not a "we still kept the PC users in mind when designing the new UI" concept 👁️👁️

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  On 3/13/2025 at 1:53 PM, deadpool0600 said:

To be clear, I'm seeing the bulk of us are against the new UI layout and look. We don't want it fixed or a better version, we just want it how it was. 

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There are still to few of us against those 1000+ positive feedback replies, according to the Nexus staff.

Some users even come here to say that they like the new UI more.

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  On 3/13/2025 at 5:15 PM, showler said:

The decision about the colors was made years ago.  It's a remnant from when the site was more focused on a small number of games.

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You mean games that have the highest views/downloads/mod count combined, right?

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  On 3/13/2025 at 1:38 PM, zloybelka said:

May I also inquire the names of the previous fonts for description, downloads and comments sections, so I can use them or something similar in a personal style?

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The previous mod title font was Bebas Neue, a highly condensed all-caps font. The new title font is Inter, a relative of Helvetica or Arial that was already used for most other sans-serif fonts on the site. The only problem with Inter for this purpose is it's way too wide. It works everywhere else, but in titles it looks very wrong.

My stylesheet uses Cabin Condensed, which still refreshes the look with something new, but because it's condensed it works much better in titles. My initial experiments used Saira Condensed, which also looks very nice; it's slightly more condensed and it has a very subtle sci-fi look that feels a little closer to the old Bebas Neue. My stylesheet imports Saira Condensed as well if you want to change the font family.

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