What actually costs money?
Separate the open-source toolkit from agent usage, asset generation and repeated attempts.
The toolkit and the services are different
Universal Modder is MIT-licensed. That does not make agent subscriptions, model API calls or cloud asset generation free.
Use your provider dashboard to check current terms, included usage and pricing. We have not measured a complete run, so there is no claimed per-mod price on this site.
Track four cost buckets
Record agent usage, generated assets, retries and optional infrastructure separately. Buying the game and acquiring any required commercial tools are additional costs.
A finished sprite may require several attempts. Record failed attempts as well as the final accepted asset.
Set a stop condition
Before the agent starts, decide how many generation attempts you allow and what spending needs your approval. Build mechanics with placeholder assets first.
Ask for an estimate before each paid asset generation. Check actual bills afterwards; an estimate is not an invoice.
Compare version-sensitive instructions with the current upstream documentation.
Upstream documentation ↗