G3M vs HFW Mod Manager
G3M
github.com
HFW Mod Manager
hfw-mm.gitbook.ioSide by side
| Figure | G3M | HFW Mod Manager |
|---|---|---|
| Price from | Free | Free |
| Free plan | Yes | Yes |
| Free trial | — | — |
| Open source | — | — |
| Windows | Yes | Yes |
| macOS | Yes | — |
| Linux | Yes | Yes |
| Plans published | 1 | 1 |
| Spec score · Mod managers | 8.8 (#3) | 8.2 (#22) |
| Spec score · Game Mod Managers | 8.8 (#4) | 8.2 (#19) |
| Mod profiles | Yes | Yes |
| Mod source access | built-in | manual import |
| Purpose | G3M is a desktop manager for GameMaker mods that can browse, install, organize, and launch supported games with mods. | HFW Mod Manager simplifies managing and packing mods for supported Decima-engine games through a graphical interface. |
| Support | The project links to community help on Discord and Telegram. | The listing directs users to its Discord server for quicker support. |
| Supported games | Built-in game entries cover DELTARUNE, DELTARUNE Demo, UNDERTALE, UNDERTALE Yellow, Pizza Tower, Sugary Spire, and FRICKBEARS3, and users can add custom games. | The page lists Horizon Forbidden West, Death Stranding 2, and Horizon Zero Dawn Remastered as supported games, with Horizon Zero Dawn Remastered marked W.I.P. |
| Supported platforms | multi-platform | multi-platform |
Plans
In their own words
G3M
G3M is a free, open-source desktop manager for GameMaker mods. It can browse supported GameBanana games and install mods from GameBanana, external URLs, local archives, or one-click links. Built-in game entries include DELTARUNE, DELTARUNE Demo, UNDERTALE, UNDERTALE Yellow, Pizza Tower, Sugary Spire, and FRICKBEARS3; users can also add custom games through its Game Manager.
Multiple library profiles can hold separate active mod selections and settings. The Mod Editor combines patches, file replacements, and archive contents, while other tools create and apply patches, merge patch sets, compare files, export diff reports, and convert supported formats. Supported games can launch directly or through Steam where available; Linux users can use PortProton for compatible Windows games. Its Catalog includes themes and plugins, including tools for DELTARUNE saves and custom save folders. Downloads are available for Windows, Linux, and macOS on x86_64 and ARM64 computers. The project states that normal launch mode restores game files after the game closes.
HFW Mod Manager
HFW Mod Manager is a free graphical tool for managing and packing mods for supported Decima-engine games. The listed games are Horizon Forbidden West, Death Stranding 2, and Horizon Zero Dawn Remastered, which is marked as a work in progress. Users can add mod folders or ZIP files by drag and drop, choose variations, preview them with metadata, and pack enabled mods. Named presets save mod lists, and packing follows list order so later entries can override earlier ones. The manager can detect a known game directory and check game-version compatibility. Supported archive formats include .zip, .rar, .7z, .gaia, .forbidden, and .hfwz. Other features include hair patching, batch hair patching, and experimental face-shading fixes for custom face meshes. The Cauldron tab offers asset export, streaming-file building, and animation conversion; some functions require HFW Tools or DS2 Tools. The app is built natively for Windows. Windows users extract the ZIP into its own folder and launch HFW_MM.exe; it is not installed locally. Linux use requires adding it to Steam and running it with Proton 10.0-4 or newer.