Bloons TD 6 (BTD6), Ninja Kiwi’s wildly popular tower defense game, is addictive enough on its own. But for many players, the real fun begins when the community gets involved. Thanks to mods, you can add new towers, heroes, game modes, and quality-of-life features that stretch the game far beyond its vanilla limits.
At the heart of this thriving ecosystem lies MelonLoader, the universal mod loader for Unity games. Whether you’re brand new to mods or curious about developing your own, this guide takes you step-by-step through the world of BTD6 modding.
What Is MelonLoader?
MelonLoader is a universal mod loader for Unity-based games, including BTD6. Instead of manually editing game files, MelonLoader injects itself into the game at launch. This allows mods—written as .dll
files—to run alongside the game without permanently altering core files.
Why does this matter?
- Safety & Stability: You can add or remove mods without risking permanent damage to the game.
- Flexibility: Supports everything from small quality-of-life tweaks to full-on new towers and bosses.
- Compatibility: Built for Unity’s Il2Cpp compilation system, which is normally difficult to mod.
When paired with the BTD6 Mod Helper, MelonLoader becomes the backbone of the entire modding scene. The Mod Helper provides an accessible framework, API, and in-game tools that make mods easier to create, install, and manage.
Getting Started: Installation Guide
Before diving in, you’ll need:
- A legitimate copy of BTD6 (Steam or Epic Games).
- Windows or Linux — macOS, Android, and iOS modding are not supported.
- Prerequisites installed:
- .NET 6 Runtime
- Microsoft Visual C++ Redistributables
Step 1: Install MelonLoader
- Download the official installer from lemonloader.com/melonloader.
- Point it to your BTD6 executable.
- Run the installer — it automatically sets up everything (including
Mods
andPlugins
folders).
💡 Tip: You can also check the main project hub at lemonloader.com for updates, Android loader information, and additional support.
Step 2: Add the BTD6 Mod Helper
- Download the latest
Btd6ModHelper.dll
. - Place it inside the new
Mods
folder.
Step 3: Launch BTD6
When you start the game, you’ll see a console window that logs mod activity. This is normal and incredibly useful for debugging.
✅ At this point, you’re ready to start adding mods!
Exploring the BTD6 Modding Ecosystem
The BTD6 community is active, creative, and constantly pushing the limits of what’s possible. Here’s what you can expect:
Types of Mods
- New Towers & Heroes: Custom designs with fresh upgrade paths.
- New Bloons & Bosses: Unique challenges, harder bosses, and creative bloon types.
- Gameplay Tweaks: Faster fire rates, economy rebalances, or completely new game modes.
- Quality-of-Life (QoL): Interface improvements, hotkey changes, and other convenience features.
Where to Find Mods
- BTD6 Mods Discord – The central hub for modding.
- GitHub repositories – Many modders host their projects here.
- In-game Mod Browser (via Mod Helper) – A curated library directly inside BTD6.
Troubleshooting & Common Issues
Even with a smooth installer, modding sometimes requires patience.
- Game won’t launch?
- Check if .NET 6 and Visual C++ are installed.
- Add an antivirus exception for your BTD6 directory.
- “Could not load file or assembly…” errors?
- Ensure
Btd6ModHelper.dll
is in theMods
folder. - Re-run the MelonLoader installer.
- Ensure
- After updates, mods stop working.
- This is normal. Wait for mod authors to update their work to match the new BTD6 version.
- Want to uninstall mods?
- Delete the
MelonLoader
,Mods
,Plugins
, andUserData
folders, plus any.dll
files MelonLoader added to the root game directory.
- Delete the
Staying Safe While Modding
⚠️ Important: Ninja Kiwi does not officially support modding. Mods can trigger anti-cheat if used in online leaderboards.
Tips for staying safe:
- Use a separate “alt” account for modded gameplay.
- Stick to trusted sources:
- MelonLoader official download
- LemonLoader homepage
- GitHub releases and the official Mod Browser.
- Avoid mods that claim to give “free premium content” or anything tied to microtransactions.
Going Beyond: Making Your Own Mods
If you’re inspired to create mods, you’ll need:
- Visual Studio or Rider (C# IDEs).
- The BTD6 Mod Helper developer docs.
- Familiarity with Unity’s systems and C#.
Great starting point: BTD6 Mod Helper GitHub Pages
From there, you can build anything—from small tweaks to massive content expansions.
Final Thoughts
MelonLoader isn’t just a tool—it’s the gateway to a constantly evolving, community-driven expansion of BTD6. Whether you just want to try new towers or dive into mod development, the modding scene offers endless replayability.
If vanilla BTD6 is the base game, mods are the infinite sandbox that keeps the fun going.
👉 So go ahead: grab the installer from lemonloader.com/melonloader, check the project hub at lemonloader.com, install the Mod Helper, and start exploring the incredible creativity of the BTD6 community.