There was a big question hanging over the launch of Oblivion Remastered: Will mods work? The news from Bethesda support was not good: "Mods are not supported for The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion Remastered." But it looks like "not supported" doesn't mean much to a community that's been taking apart Bethesda games for decades at this point, because mods are already popping up on NexusMods, and yeah, they work.
Bethesda itself hinted at the moddability of Oblivion Remastered even as it denied support: After warning that mods are not w69 slot supported, it added, "If you are experiencing gameplay issues while playing with mods, it's recommended you first try uninstalling your mods, then verify your games files on Steam, or the Xbox App." That's a pretty clear indication that the game will run with mods installed.
Over on Reddit, modders are already tearing into the new code. One redditor wrote that Oblivion Remastered game files can be opened in the old Construction Kit, and while it's not clear (in that thread, at least) just what can be done with it—or even how exactly it's working—the speculation is that the way the game piggybacks Unreal Engine 5 graphics onto the original game logic opens the door to, well, something.
And yes, for the record, I tested an Oblivion Remastered mod to ensure it works—which is to say, PC Gamer's Chris Livingston installed Player Random Conversation System to ensure it works, and then he told me it does. Why he chose to talk to this creepy looking guy I do not know, but the mod installed and ticked over without a hitch, and that's what matters. It's a positive sign that many more mods for the original game will likely follow in short order.
For anyone curious on behalf of a friend, Oblivion Remastered nude mods aren't yet out there, but in what I take as probably the truest sign of confidence in the viability of the mod scene, bets are already being placed. And rest assured: the gooners are on it.
The truth is that, dire words from Bethesda support aside, it only makes sense. Bethesda may not want to deal with the headache of officially supporting Oblivion Remastered mods, but mods, from the useful to the bananas, are an essential part of the Elder Scrolls experience, and core to their longevity. Locking players out of them would be a tremendous misstep, but leaving them to work things out on their own? That's just fine.
