From new Command and Conquer and Half-Life campaigns to a full expansion for an RPG classic, these are the top ten mods of the year

It's not often I get to write about Half-Life these days, even if fans are absolutely certain that the threequel is on the way. I still don't think Gabe Newell can count that high, but at least we've got an army of loyal modders to create new experiences for Gordon Freeman to explore. The majority of my gaming time this year has been spent on modded playthroughs, so I anticipated ModDB's annual roundup of the best mods of 2025 with bated breath. We, the players, voted for the top mods of the year, and the results are finally in.

Good news, Half-Life fans. No fewer than half of the top ten mods are for Valve's iconic FPS. Sure, it's a mainstay on our list of the best PC games ever made, but five entries, Jeremy? That's insane. Despite all the great Half-Life mods to release this year, it was a different game that pipped the classic to top spot.

We'll stick to Half-Life for now. Zero Signal, Half-Life: Insecure, Raising the Bar: Retail, Half-Life Extended, and Diffusion were all voted into the top ten mods of the year for 2025. The latter two were third and second on the list, respectively. And those nominations are thoroughly deserved. Diffusion in particular is a total-conversion mod set in its own universe which sees SWAT soldier James Smith explore a mysterious sand processing facility where nothing is as it seems.

My favorite, however, is Half-Life: Insecure, which allows you to play through the events of the Black Mesa incident from the perspective of security officer Andrew Cooper.

However, I'll show some love to the Not Half-Life mods, too. A fun Command and Conquer mod comes in at tenth place. Tiberian Odyssey tells a brand new story set 11 years after the events of Tiberian Sun: Firestorm while also improving graphics, multiplayer, and adding an entirely new soundtrack.

Heroes of Might and Magic 3 also gets some love, with fan-made expansion Horn of the Abyss. This nomination recognizes the 17 years of work that has gone into this mod. Duke Nukem and Quake 2 also appear on the list, but the top spot goes to Golden Gate 2: Goddess Heart, a mod for Gothic 2.

It's a surprise choice for everyone, but Goddess Heart completely overhauls Gothic 2: Night of the Raven. The world of Jharkendar becomes Samoa (a fictional island, not the real country), as Goddess Heart tells the story of Morris explores the dark past of the Hasian cultists.

As an added bonus, Gothic 2 is on sale for until Monday, January 5. You can buy it here. You can also read the full ModDB rankings here.

I certainly didn't expect a Gothic 2 mod to usurp all others to take this crown, but I've got an urge to play it now. Maybe after making my way through the three Half-Life mods I haven't played yet.