Reneer Posted January 16, 2017 Share Posted January 16, 2017 (edited) Modding of Bethesda games is currently on a free-only model because when Bethesda tried to create a paid modding program back in April 2015 people complained about the loss of their free stuff. You can find successful paid mod implementations in games such as Team Fortress 2 and Second Life, where content creators have the freedom to release their content for free or ask for payment. Edited January 16, 2017 by Reneer Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fonger Posted January 16, 2017 Share Posted January 16, 2017 . I only wonder, given how talented a group Modders are as a whole, why they refused to accept payment for their hard workmany modders on this side accept donations therefore you have wrong information Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fkemman11 Posted January 16, 2017 Author Share Posted January 16, 2017 . I only wonder, given how talented a group Modders are as a whole, why they refused to accept payment for their hard workmany modders on this side accept donations therefore you have wrong information Yes. Now I have better information. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Perraine Posted January 16, 2017 Share Posted January 16, 2017 The other big problem would be, how much would you charge for mods? hmmm? A flat rate perhaps? $1 per mod? $5 per mod? Considering some people have hundreds of mods installed, that a lot of cash to have to outlay. Plus you'd then have people uploading simple txt files as a "mod" and claiming money for it ... Or perhaps you think a scaling system is better? How would you rank them? Some mods are very popular with several thousand downloads, but that doesn't mean it's better than some other similar mod, that is either newer/older or less heavily "advertised" (say being featured in a Youtube video) And how much would charge say for SkyUI or CBBE for Skyrim? with multiple millions of downloads each? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Reneer Posted January 17, 2017 Share Posted January 17, 2017 (edited) The other big problem would be, how much would you charge for mods? hmmm? A flat rate perhaps? $1 per mod? $5 per mod? Considering some people have hundreds of mods installed, that a lot of cash to have to outlay. Plus you'd then have people uploading simple txt files as a "mod" and claiming money for it ...ÃÃÂ Or perhaps you think a scaling system is better? How would you rank them? Some mods are very popular with several thousand downloads, but that doesn't mean it's better than some other similar mod, that is either newer/older or less heavily "advertised" (say being featured in a Youtube video) And how much would charge say for SkyUI or CBBE for Skyrim? with multiple millions of downloads each? The simple answer to this is that if you don't think a mod is worth $1 or $5 or whatever the mod author charges, you simply don't buy it. No one is forcing you to buy mods in a paid mod system, just as no one would be forcing all mod authors to sell their mods for money. And, again, if someone is selling text files as a mod... No one is forcing you to buy it. It is really that simple. Edited January 17, 2017 by Reneer Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Perraine Posted January 17, 2017 Share Posted January 17, 2017 The other big problem would be, how much would you charge for mods? hmmm? A flat rate perhaps? $1 per mod? $5 per mod? Considering some people have hundreds of mods installed, that a lot of cash to have to outlay. Plus you'd then have people uploading simple txt files as a "mod" and claiming money for it ...ÃÃÂ Or perhaps you think a scaling system is better? How would you rank them? Some mods are very popular with several thousand downloads, but that doesn't mean it's better than some other similar mod, that is either newer/older or less heavily "advertised" (say being featured in a Youtube video) And how much would charge say for SkyUI or CBBE for Skyrim? with multiple millions of downloads each?The simple answer to this is that if you don't think a mod is worth $1 or $5 or whatever the mod author charges, you simply don't buy it. No one is forcing you to buy mods in a paid mod system, just as no one would be forcing all mod authors to sell their mods for money. And, again, if someone is selling text files as a mod... No one is forcing you to buy it. It is really that simple. Aaannnddd the system fails right there, because many people don't want to pay for mods ... so then someone steals the mod, or pays for it but uploads it onto a different site ... or you simply have thousands of entitled 14 year olds whining that xxx mod isn't free like zzz mod. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Reneer Posted January 17, 2017 Share Posted January 17, 2017 Aaannnddd the system fails right there, because many people don't want to pay for mods ... so then someone steals the mod, or pays for it but uploads it onto a different site ... or you simply have thousands of entitled 14 year olds whining that xxx mod isn't free like zzz mod. By that logic no software company should go into business, ever. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Perraine Posted January 17, 2017 Share Posted January 17, 2017 Aaannnddd the system fails right there, because many people don't want to pay for mods ... so then someone steals the mod, or pays for it but uploads it onto a different site ... or you simply have thousands of entitled 14 year olds whining that xxx mod isn't free like zzz mod.By that logic no software company should go into business, ever. First we're not talking about software companies, were talking about members of the general public, making stuff for a game in their spare time with, in many cases, licensed assets taken from the original game or another licensed game and modified ... And the "logic" is why we have DRM, and online activation requirements, and always online requirements, and a store bought disc with SFA on it requiring a 25Gb download just to play the game ... It's called the real world. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BenevolentSpirit Posted January 17, 2017 Share Posted January 17, 2017 I think the main reason for mods being so popular is that you can be sure about not being scammed of your money by buying a horse armor dlc.To me, no mod would be worth spending money on, if it had come to that. Maybe If I was filthy rich, I might reconsiderAlthough I am very aware that many of you are craving to get paid for making mods, but I doupt that even 50% of the people who use mods, would stay for paid mods. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Slostenn Posted January 17, 2017 Share Posted January 17, 2017 The biggest issue with paid mods is that you're suddenly charging for a service that has been free for decades. Most people are accustomed to mods being free, and the concept of needing to pay for mods is still relatively recent. It was especially bad trying to introduce paid mods for Skyrim because that was a case where not only are you dealing with the issue that people are accustomed to free mods in general, you're dealing with the issue that people are suddenly expected to pay for specific mods that they've already been using free of charge for several years. They also dropped it on the community all at once, when they should have done it slowly to give people a chance to adapt. It's like the difference between climbing into a cold swimming pool inch by inch, or just diving in head first. I don't think paid mods are an inherently bad concept, but I think those in support of it need to keep in mind that it is not the same as a new service that will require compensation from day one, it is an existing but previously free service that is changing to require compensation. Even if you do it for a brand new game, this is the case, because this is about modding in general rather than a game by game basis. A great example of this is the Nintendo Switch requiring a subscription fee for online play. I believe most people aren't upset because of the subscription fee itself, they're upset because they have to pay for a service that was previously free. Now, that's an example where they did it with a clean slate; comparing it to Skyrim's paid mods would be like if, for example, they announced that the Wii U's online multiplayer would suddenly begin requiring a subscription fee. In summary, if they do return to the idea (and I think it's very likely that they will), doing it with a clean slate via a new game would be a much, much better idea than trying yet again to introduce it to an existing game. Even with a clean slate, however, most people are still going to need time to adjust, which is why - again - I think it should be done in a gradual process rather than all at once. Start off only selling large scale mods, establish an approval system, try to determine general values for the different types of mods (note I said general, not concrete; obviously it would vary from mod to mod). Those are just a few examples, and there are likely flaws with them and/or better alternatives, but I hope it gets my point across about the process being gradual rather than going all in on day one. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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