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Mod Loader/Install on macOS

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Getting started

Mod Loader lets you install Dressmaker mods and manage them from the game's Options menu. The macOS download includes an installer and the files it needs.

Before you start

  1. Install Dressmaker through Steam. Start it once, then close it.
  2. Download Mod Loader for macOS.
  3. Quit Steam completely using Steam > Quit Steam. Closing its window isn't enough: Steam needs to be closed while the installer changes the game's launch options.

On an Apple Silicon Mac, the installer starts the Intel version of Dressmaker through Rosetta. If macOS asks you to install Rosetta, follow its prompt.

Install Mod Loader

  1. Double-click the downloaded ZIP in Finder to extract it.
  2. Open the extracted folder. Keep everything in it together, including the mod and games folders.
  3. Right-click Install_Dressmaker_Mods.command and choose Open. Follow the instructions in the Terminal window.
  4. Once the installer finishes, open Steam and start Dressmaker from your library.
  5. Open Options in the game. If you see Mod Manager, the loader is working.

You only need to run the installer when installing or updating the loader. After that, start Dressmaker through Steam as usual.

Install mods

Download a Dressmaker mod and leave its ZIP intact. In the game, open Options > Mod Manager > Install/Update Mod, choose the ZIP, and check the preview before confirming. Restart Dressmaker to load it.

Mod Manager also accepts supported plugin ZIPs and DLLs. Check the mod author's requirements: a plugin that uses Windows-only files may not work on a Mac. See Install a mod for manual installation.

Game installed on another drive

If the installer cannot find Dressmaker, open Steam and choose Dressmaker > Manage > Browse local files. Note the folder containing Dressmaker.app, then quit Steam again.

Open Terminal in the extracted Mod Loader folder and run this command, replacing the example path with your game folder: 

GAME_DIR="/Volumes/My Drive/SteamLibrary/steamapps/common/Dressmaker" ./install-bepinex-macos.sh --game games/dressmaker.conf install

Keep the quotes around the path, especially if it contains spaces. Choose the folder containing Dressmaker.app, not the app itself.

Update Mod Loader

Download the newer macOS ZIP. Use Install/Update Mod in the game to update the loader DLL, then restart. If the release also updates BepInEx or the startup files, close Dressmaker and Steam and run the new macOS installer instead.

Common problems

macOS won't open the installer

Try right-clicking the command file and choosing Open. If macOS still blocks it, check System Settings > Privacy & Security for an option to allow that file. Only allow an installer you downloaded from a source you trust.

The installer says files are missing

Extract the whole ZIP again. The installer needs the other files beside it; copying just Install_Dressmaker_Mods.command to the Desktop won't work. Check that mod/BepInEx/plugins/DressmakerMods.dll exists inside the extracted folder.

The game starts, but there's no Mod Manager

Quit Dressmaker and Steam, then run the installer again. Open Steam afterward and launch the game from your library. If it still starts without mods, check for BepInEx/LogOutput.log in the game folder and include it when asking for help. See Troubleshooting.

Remove Mod Loader

  1. Close Dressmaker.
  2. In the extracted macOS download, right-click Uninstall_Dressmaker_Mods.command and choose Open. Keep uninstall-dressmaker-mods.sh beside it.
  3. Check the game folder shown, then type yes. If asked for a folder, use the one containing Dressmaker.app.
  4. In Steam, open Dressmaker > Properties > General. Remove the loader's launch-dressmaker.sh command from Launch Options. Keep any unrelated options you use.

The uninstaller moves the loader files into a dated Threadbox-uninstall folder inside the game folder. It keeps saves, mods, and settings, but BepInEx plugins will stop loading. To undo the uninstall, close the game, copy the backup contents into the game folder, and run the installer to set up Steam again.

Back up your saves before playing without mods used by your dresses. Keeping a mod's files does not make its content available while the loader is removed.

Back to the Mod Loader guide

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