Modrix vs Zephyr

Modrix is a game mod manager with graphical, terminal and command-line frontends built over one shared engine. It is presented as an open-source alternative to Vortex and has built-in support for 86 games, with additional games available through a community plugin registry. A browser extension passes Nexus Mods download links and session cookies to Modrix so it can download and stage files without a Nexus API key. On Linux, the project describes Steam and Proton as first-class options and says Modrix usually detects Steam-installed games for a one-click add-and-switch action. Deployment uses hardlinks where possible, backs up files before overwriting, journals changes for crash recovery and supports reversing deployments. Modrix surfaces conflicts between enabled mods and offers rules and per-file overrides to resolve them. The CLI supports scripting and JSON output, and an MCP server exposes engine functions as tools for agents. The project states that it has zero telemetry and that Lua game plugins are sandboxed. It is GPL-2.0-only and costs nothing.

Zephyr is a free desktop mod manager for browsing and installing mods, then switching between game mod profiles. It supports about 200 games out of the box and combines Thunderstore and CurseForge browsing in one search. Mods are deployed by copying them, and users can share a profile code or link so friends can reproduce a setup. Optional cloud sync requires signing in with Discord and enabling the feature. Zephyr also includes an Archipelago multiworld randomizer with Python bundled, a BepInEx configuration editor, and gamepad navigation throughout the interface. Customization includes seven themes, custom fonts and colors, and seven language options. The app is available for Windows, macOS, and Linux, and is distributed under the GPL-3.0 license. The maker says that without sign-in, personal data stays on the device and mod metadata requests are anonymous. With cloud sync enabled, profile archives and metadata are stored with the maker's hosting provider in France. The Windows build is not code-signed and the macOS build is not notarized.