diff --git a/Penumbra/Mods/ModCollection.cs b/Penumbra/Mods/ModCollection.cs
index 6669f414..4c6eea78 100644
--- a/Penumbra/Mods/ModCollection.cs
+++ b/Penumbra/Mods/ModCollection.cs
@@ -64,7 +64,19 @@ namespace Penumbra.Mods
                     continue;
                 }
 
-                var meta = JsonConvert.DeserializeObject< ModMeta >( File.ReadAllText( metaFile.FullName ) );
+                ModMeta meta;
+
+                try
+                {
+                    meta = JsonConvert.DeserializeObject< ModMeta >( File.ReadAllText( metaFile.FullName ) );
+                }
+                catch( Exception e )
+                {
+                    PluginLog.Error( e, "failed to parse mod info, attempting basic load for: {FilePath}", metaFile.FullName );
+                    continue;
+                    
+                    // todo: handle broken mods properly
+                }
 
                 var mod = new ResourceMod
                 {