goattechLAUNCHER
in development · the cli works, the gui is next

rust and java,
side by side.

goattech launcher is a minecraft launcher built as a fork of horizon (mit). it puts the horizon rust engine and ordinary java instances in one home - fabric and quilt mods from modrinth, imports from the launchers you already have, and every instance keeping its own runtime, mods and saves.

view on github read the honest status

two engines, one home

01

most launchers only do java. horizon only does rust. this one keeps both in the same instances list - pick per instance, switch whenever.

rust horizon engine

the horizon client: minecraft java edition 26.3 rewritten in rust, checked against vanilla by upstream's differential harnesses. runs as its own instance type here.

native clienthorizon engineupstream does the engine work

java the game you know

vanilla, fabric or quilt - chosen once per instance, in the instance. no separate loader sections, no shared global java: each instance gets the runtime its version needs.

vanillafabricquiltforge + neoforge: not yet, shown not hidden

your game stays yours

02

the rules the launcher plays by, copied from its own design notes.

01isolated instancesevery instance keeps its own version, runtime, mods, configs and saves. nothing mixes with your other instances - or with the official launcher's files.
02mods from modrinthbrowse and install straight into an instance. only mods matching that instance's loader and version are offered, and downloads are checked against modrinth's checksums before they land.
03imports that never movebringing instances from prism, the modrinth app or a pack file copies - it never overwrites an existing instance and never modifies the source launcher. an unsupported pack is refused with the reason stated, before anything downloads.
04icons and bannersper-instance art, saved inside the instance folder and carried by its export. files are checked and resized locally - nothing is uploaded. no art picked? the default plate fills in.
05labels, not silenceold versions are labeled untested instead of hidden. forge and neoforge show as unavailable instead of silently dropping your pack. the launcher's answer to "can it" is allowed to be "not yet".

where it actually is

03 · 2026-10-30

no download button on this page, on purpose. here's the real state.

works today

the cli creates java and fabric instances end to end
installs mods from modrinth, checksums verified
imports instances from other launchers
322 library tests pass

not done yet

the gui passes cargo check but the full app hasn't had a real run
no installers, no releases - nothing to download yet
forge and neoforge aren't supported (tracked upstream)
the fork trails upstream horizon - catching up is active work

want it anyway? build from source: github.com/GoatTech-42/goattech-launcher · when real builds ship they'll be on github releases, verified before install.

where the gui is headed

04

concept designs for the app - fictional data, not shipped ui. the look is the launcher's own: black and white, dark by default, status you can read without colour.

a fork, credit where it's due

goattech launcher is a fork of horizon (mit). the rust engine - the hard part - is upstream's work, and the fork keeps its attribution and stays in sync with it. what this fork adds is the other half: ordinary java instances with fabric, quilt, modrinth and imports, in the same home. not an official minecraft product; you need your own copy of minecraft: java edition.

github ↗