BLOG PIECE: Modding as a hobby versus modding as a career, and the position of the Nexus

[lyravega]

I think Curated Workshops on a wider scale may introduce more problems than they realize.

 

I've been modding for several years now, some small, some big stuff, it doesn't matter. Sometimes I enjoy modding the game more than playing it, so you can easily say that modding is my hobby. But making money out of it? I don't know. I have a "philosophy" where my work (work as in, income source) cannot be my hobby, because if some bad s#*! happens, it'll also affect the fun I get from my hobby in return.

 

Anyway, aside from what I feel about modding, I'm one of those guys who also think that the reason some developers don't support modding is that it may cut to their DLC sales. However, when the publishers smell the (potential) money, they'll be first to endorse the idea further I bet (if they haven't already done so). If they'll also allow free mods to be released on Steam Workshop or Nexus / etc... then I'm kinda OK with it. But if they enforce you to sell your work, so that they can get a cut... Then I'm not OK with it.

 

Here is my two cents about Curated Workshops + Donations: They should also allow people to put Donation links (not just HTML links in description; links like here in Nexus, a built-in feature so to speak), if people want to support the modder, fine, but the mod stays free unless the modder opens a "curated shop". And all donations should go to the modder, not to the publisher or Steam.

 

About your concern; " DRMification and closing down of free and open modding", I feel the same concerns, but a bit more extreme. If you think about this even further, a time may come where we will have to pay in order to get the modding tools, so that we can create mods, and put them to Curated Workshops. Even more money for the greedy (publishers).

 

Apologizes if whatever I said is already known/happened/etc...

Edited March 19, 2015 by lyravega

[RemingtonRyder]

In response to post #23593334. #23594289, #23594569 are all replies on the same post.

I don't much like the idea of paying for mods. Not because I don't think that the mods are worth it, mind, but because it starts us down a slippery slope where something which fixes things that the original developer failed to address is suddenly monetised.

I'd much rather see modders being contracted to produce new official content. There's legal recourse for all involved parties with a contract.

If the revenue helps to put a much-needed patch or two out there (which are needed anyway to support new content) then I can't say I would complain about that.

[enrikiller]

The mere thought of modding being shifted from a free, open and community based thing to a marketed process makes me hold my head in desperation.

 

We've all been here for fun, we're all in it for the enjoyment of creation and modification, I don't think many people have had the intention to make money out of modding, but some have used it as a leverage to enter the game making industry (and that is great!). But paying for mods? That's just asinine.

 

It isn't just about the concept of free content, it's about us PC gamers as a whole. I am a PC gamer because I believe in freedom and in free content provided by users for users. I don't want the developers to regulate what I can and can not do any more than they already do (cease and desist letters to mods aimed to revive old games anyone?). I am not happy with the Steam workshop. I remember back in the day, when 1.5 and 1.6 were the thing, you would download kickass skins and put them on your game. Now you have to PAY for them. It just doesn't sit well with me, and I think I'm not alone.

 

When DICE/EA announced they would drop mod support a star died for me. No more PR, no more rebalance, no more custom servers, no more custom maps. It's all streamlined, centrified and most important of all, MONETIZED.

 

When the free content intended as free content by the authors becomes paid content, things go downhill. This is an issue I am very uncomfortable with, and I hope us as a community can make our voice be heard. That we want things to stay free for all to make, share, edit and use.

 

[Nimboss]

Excellent post Dark0ne!

 

When money is put in as a driving force it always seems to drag out the worst of people, not all but many enough to drag a sordid feeling over it all and make they who had it as a fun hobby or interest to start look elsewhere. We seen that for big online games, why would modding be any different?

 

It will be a compete for money and not quality or joyful innovations, the business model we see penetrates almost any thinking nowadays. Modding has had been a safe place to think out of the box, now it seems some thinks it's time to capitalize and destroy even this part of independent hobby.

 

I hope I'm not a true raven of doom, but instead will be pleasantly surprised by how this outcome to be something great. But I suspect it will not be good, the future will show ...

[chaptermaster21]

In response to post #23594244. #23594439, #23595699 are all replies on the same post.

You can also consider this: if it really takes off and modders starting modding for money who do you think will benefit from this...the developers of course and in the most shady of ways. We all know that gamers have been trying to fight the "dlc fest" that many developers have been doing to milk their games and if modders join with the developers it will be even worse, if we were used to pay for official dlcs now we will be paying for unofficial ones too. Because modding basically is another form of dlc, a free user generated one. When modders charge for their mods then its basically a dlc. I for one will always continue to support free modding and free modding communities such as the nexus, just think of how many mods have we downloaded for skyrim alone and think of how many 5$ you would have paid for all of these if they were paid ones.

[Wymoring]

In response to post #23593334. #23594289, #23594569, #23595764 are all replies on the same post.

I agree with a lot of this. I can definitely see curated workshops becoming a problem for game developers that want to use it for User generated DLC BUT I also see workshops as a solution. When TESO was coming out I was amazed they didn't take the curated workshop approach to funding their game instead of monthly subscription since the TES crowd has a huge modding community behind it and it could work while keeping the game fresh with new gear.

Although I do disagree with "My one and only gripe remains the same; that because you need to own the game on Steam in order to use Steam Workshop it essentially DRMifies modding, limiting it to just Steam's platform"

In relation to Skyrim, when i bought the game at Gamespot I had to upload it on steam so the game can be only played on steam. There's no other platform on pc you can play the game on (to my knowledge). While yes, it's a DRM. I believe a game like Skyrim you should always buy considering it's been 4 years since it's release and it's still one of the most played games on steam, which is a huge feat considering it's single player. Pirating a product like skyrim is wrong considering how this Bethesda team is one that really cares about its community and advocates modding unlike other developers/publishers like EA and Activision.

[nivea]

My biggest issues is with all the stolen content and mods, I hate having to deal with the huge round about way to get them removed off Steam... So now people might get paid for my work too, that is a nice thought.

[Arthmoor]

In response to post #23594324. #23595389, #23595539 are all replies on the same post.

Nope. They're not on the Workshop. There were two restrictions preventing that:

1. File size. Which is no longer a problem.
2. Can't upload ESM files. Which is still impossible.

Should the second restriction get lifted at some point we'll be more than happy to put them back up.

Should curated content become a thing at some point, no, we'd definitely not charge for that because that would be wrong on so many levels. The unofficial patches are a community driven effort with dozens of contributors in so many areas that it just wouldn't be right to attach a price tag to that and expect people to pay for it.

@EvilDeadAsh34: You are in such a small minority it's not even registering :P That said, chances are pretty high that whatever did cause you the problem had little to do with the patches themselves and a lot more to do with other mods you added to the game along with them. And yes, I'd imagine if you HAD paid for them that any system put in place to pay for mods would have no recourse as far as refunds. You can't even get a refund on a game, and I've had at least a couple of game purchases I wanted to get one on and couldn't because digital reasons.

[Stewb]

My viewpoint on modding has not changed to be honest - I make mods for free and have never even bothered my butt about "donations". That said if others want money then go ahead, so long as i'm free to make mods for free I have no cares, but if others want my stuff to make themselves money then no chance would I ever give permission. Do you think we could have an option in the "permissions" setting of a mod to say "Never allowed to use in a monetised mod"?

[chaptermaster21]

In response to post #23596219.

I hear you. Its bad enough that a modder's work might be taken without his/her permission and be distributed to other sites AND won't even be credited as his work. Now people will start earning of off other people's work too. That alone will surely make many modders mad and stops them from sharing their work altogether.