Side Hustle - Gamemode Hub for Schedule I

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One menu entry for every gamemode. Side Hustle adds a single button to the main menu that lists every installed gamemode mod and launches it straight from the menu - no savegame required. It is the shared hub that gamemode mods plug into.

What it is

Side Hustle is a hub, not a gamemode by itself. On its own it just adds a Side Hustle button to the main menu. Install gamemode mods that build on it and they appear in the list; pick one and it launches immediately in its own self-contained session - gamemodes never load or touch a normal save.

If you installed Side Hustle as a dependency of another mod, there is nothing to do: that mod registers itself and shows up under the Side Hustle entry.

Features

• One menu entry for every gamemode - name, description, author and a Singleplayer / Multiplayer badge, launched from the main menu.
• No savegame - gamemodes run in their own session and never load or alter your saves.
• Singleplayer, host or join - multiplayer gamemodes show a Singleplayer / Host / Join choice.
• Configure before you host - a native-style setup form for the exact player count, a public or private (friends-only) lobby with an optional password, and any settings the gamemode exposes (sliders, toggles, choices, text), all passed to the gamemode at launch.
• Public server browser - browse open lobbies as cards (host, player count, a lock for password-protected ones), filtered per gamemode; bigger lobbies supported with BiggerLobbies.
• Play with anyone, not just friends - Schedule I normally kicks joiners who aren't the host's Steam friends; while you host a Side Hustle gamemode that kick is lifted, so anyone can join your public or password lobbies.
• World gamemodes - gamemodes that need the loaded game world get a throwaway session, outside your save slots, so your real saves are never touched.
• Conflict-free mod sets (optional, the host's choice) - a gamemode can declare which mods it works with. When hosting, you keep your full set ("Current installed mods", default) or run only the gamemode's mods ("Required mods only") in a temporary, isolated profile (after a confirmation listing the changes), switching back when you leave. Nothing in your real Mods folder is ever disabled, renamed, moved or deleted (junctions/hardlinks, no admin), so your mod manager stays in sync.
• Load-order independent API so gamemode mods register whether they load before or after the hub.
• A single setting to hide the entry without uninstalling.

Requirements

• Schedule I (IL2CPP) with MelonLoader 0.7.3+.
• S1API (pulled in as a dependency).
• Optional: Mod Manager & Phone App for the in-game settings UI.
• One or more gamemode mods that use Side Hustle.

Settings

Enabled (default true) - show the Side Hustle menu entry. Editable in the Mod Manager & Phone App UI or UserData/MelonPreferences.cfg under SideHustle_01_Main.

License

MIT. See the included LICENSE.md.

Changelog

All notable changes to Side Hustle are documented here. This project adheres to Semantic Versioning.

[1.6.0] - 2026-07-09

Native bigger lobbies - Side Hustle now raises the co-op player cap on its own.

Added

• Bigger co-op lobbies, built in. Side Hustle now seats far more than the vanilla 4 players by itself (default up to 32), and the host player-count slider opens up to match. No separate lobby mod required.

Changed

• Larger lobbies no longer rely on the external BiggerLobbies mod. If you still run BiggerLobbies, the two cooperate and the higher cap wins.

[1.5.3] - 2026-07-08

A multiplayer-focused update - public lobbies work with anyone, plus host controls, friend invites and smoother mod-set switching.

Added

• Play with anyone, not just friends. Schedule I normally kicks a joining player who isn't on the host's Steam friends list a few seconds after they connect - so public sessions were effectively friends-only. While you host a Side Hustle gamemode that kick is lifted, so friends and non-friends alike can join your public (or password-protected) lobbies. Normal co-op outside Side Hustle is unaffected.
• Kick players. The host can remove a player from the session from the gamemode's UI (a reusable framework control, so any gamemode can offer it).
• Clients can invite friends too. The Steam friend-invite (+) button in the pause-menu lobby panel now shows for everyone in the lobby, not just the host, and works past four seats (with BiggerLobbies).
• A heads-up before a "Required mods only" host restarts the game. Instead of restarting instantly, a short countdown appears (Restart now / Cancel) and restarts on its own when the timer runs out - so the restart is never a surprise.
• Gamemodes can default to "Required mods only". A gamemode can ask the Host form to pre-select the isolated "required mods only" set (the host can still switch it), so a mode that wants everyone on an identical set gets it by default.

Fixed

• "Required mods only" re-hosting is now solid. Hosting a gamemode with only its required mods, returning to the menu, then hosting again now works reliably: each launch builds a fresh isolated profile (a locked leftover can never block it), the gamemode list comes back on its own, and a quick re-host no longer times out.

Changed

• Better connection routing for public lobbies. Public P2P connections now allow all connection routes and warm up Steam's relay, so a join picks the best available path instead of falling back to relay-only.

[1.5.0] - 2026-07-03

Added

• Gamemode presets. Gamemodes can now ship named presets (like "Classic Hunt") that show up as a picker at the top of the host setup form. Pick one and it fills in all the settings for you - you can still tweak anything afterwards. The form auto-selects whichever preset best fits your lobby size, a preset can suggest a player count, and one whose headline mechanic isn't finished yet is flagged EXPERIMENTAL so you know what you're getting.
• Name your lobby. The host form has a lobby name field now, and that name (plus the mode you picked) shows on the server-browser cards, so joiners can tell sessions apart at a glance.
• Session-hygiene flags for gamemode authors. A gamemode can opt into a handful of world-cleanup switches instead of reinventing them: skip the new-game intro and character creator, stop vanilla quests from auto-starting (with an allow-list for your own guide quest), block saving for the session so a throwaway world never overwrites a real save, keep NPCs from reacting to gunfire, and turn off vanilla player death when the gamemode runs its own elimination. All opt-in, all off by default.
• A heads-up when versions don't match. When you join a session, Side Hustle compares your build of the gamemode against the host's and warns you - in the log and right on the browser card - if they differ. It's the classic "we're all on different versions" bug, now easy to spot. It only warns; it never stops you joining.

Changed

• Host form polish. Settings can be grouped under section headers, there's a new compact dropdown for one-of-many choices, and the settings list scrolls with a smooth mouse-wheel glide.

[1.4.0] - 2026-06-26

Added

• Host configuration screen. Hosting a multiplayer gamemode now opens a native-style setup form: pick the exact player count (up to the lobby cap), a public or private (friends-only) lobby with an optional password, and any settings the gamemode itself exposes - sliders, toggles, choices and text fields - all handed to the gamemode at launch.
• Restyled server browser. The Join screen lists open lobbies as cards (host, player count, gamemode, and a lock for password-protected lobbies); a locked lobby asks for the password before joining.

Changed

• The mod policy is now a per-session choice on the host form. When you host a gamemode that declares which other mods it works with, the setup form offers "Current installed mods" (the default - keep your full set) or "Required mods only" (run just the gamemode's mods in an isolated profile, after a confirmation listing the changes). Nothing in your real Mods folder is ever renamed, moved or deleted (junctions/hardlinks, no admin needed), so your mod manager stays in sync. Joining a session never changes your mods - that is the host's choice.

[1.3.0] - 2026-06-26

Changed

• Conflict-free mod sets are now fully non-destructive. When a gamemode declares which other mods it works with, Side Hustle launches it in a temporary, isolated profile that loads only those mods - your installed mods are never disabled, renamed, moved or deleted, so your mod manager stays in sync and a normal launch always loads everything. Leaving the gamemode restarts back to your full set. The confirmation still lists exactly what changes before anything happens, and a "Restore my mods" entry returns you to your full set at any time.

[1.2.0] - 2026-06-25

Added

• Conflict-free mod sets. A gamemode can declare which other mods it works with (a mod policy). When you launch it, Side Hustle shows exactly which mods it will pause and enable, then - on your confirmation - launches the gamemode in its own mod set. When you leave the gamemode your normal mods are restored. A "Restore my mods" entry is there if you ever need to put everything back yourself.

[1.1.0] - 2026-06-25

Added

• Multiplayer launch. Multiplayer and hybrid gamemodes now show a Singleplayer / Host / Join choice in the menu. Hosting opens a public lobby (with a player-count picker); bigger lobbies are supported with BiggerLobbies.
• Public server browser. Browse and join open sessions for a gamemode, filtered so each gamemode only lists its own lobbies.
• World gamemodes. Gamemodes that need the actual game world get a throwaway session booted for them, outside your five save slots - your real saves are never created or touched.
• Richer launch context. Gamemodes receive the host/client role, lobby id, player count, host name and the host's settings when they launch.
• Play-mode badge (Singleplayer / Multiplayer / SP + MP) on each gamemode in the list, optional per-gamemode icons, and a recently-played ordering so your last gamemodes appear first.

[1.0.1] - 2026-06-24

Fixed

• The "Side Hustle" menu entry could be added more than once (showing duplicate entries) when the main menu re-initialised during loading. Injection is now idempotent, so exactly one entry appears.

[1.0.0] - 2026-06-24

Initial release.

Added

• A "Side Hustle" entry on the main menu that lists every installed gamemode mod (name, description, author) and launches the selected one without loading a savegame.
• Public, load-order-independent registration API (SideHustle.API.Register with GamemodeDescriptor / LaunchContext) for mods to appear as gamemodes.
• Singleplayer launch flow with a clean return to the menu (LaunchContext.ReturnToHub).
• Multiplayer host/join and a server browser are shown but disabled, ready for a later update.
• Enabled setting (MelonPreferences) to hide the menu entry without uninstalling.