A Minecraft mod is a mod that changes the code of the game Minecraft,[1] and it can add additional content, make some changes to features, and make the game run better. Mojang does not provide a loader for modding so the players of the game who are programmers made their own loader. The popularity of mods for the game also helped the game get on the best selling video games list.
The first mods were created for the first version of Minecraft written in Java by decompiling and changing the source code of the game. The first version of the game that has been renamed to Minecraft: Java Edition still has many mods made in this way but more advanced tools are used. Today most mods are using the Fabric or NeoForge to mod recent versions of the game. Both support the use of Mixins which can be used to mod the game,[2][3] but NeoForge does also patch the game to add an API for mod developers.
The other version of the game Minecraft: Bedrock Edition is written in C++ and cannot be modded using the same method so DLL injection is used for modding.[4][5][6] [7]
A mod is not to be confused with an add-on, which does not modify any of the game's code, but rather simply adds new blocks/mechanics.[8]
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