What makes a Mod "Great?" <A study>

[chapel]

What really makes a mod "Great?" Is it the awesome models, or those spectacular textures, or is it the maps that look real? What would you guys define as a great Mod, and why? What makes you download a mod, or even think about playing it?

This isnt a simple subject, because alot of people have different views and oppinions on this, but I think that we can get a good feel for it from your views.

 

[chapel]

For me, its the detail they have put into it, the fact that they put their time into it and the ideas that formed it. I just dont download mods for any reason, I look at it, read about it, and decide after some time if it is worth my while.

I think gfx are important, but arent the end all. Gameplay is the biggest thing, but again it all depends. Another important fact, is what kind of community has formed about the mod, is it a mature community, or a bunch of people that are elitists and make it unenjoyable for everyone else.

 

[synth]

The most important thing about a mod is how well it can immerse you into the game and keep you wanting more. Most of the time this is done by good gameplay. You don't see graphics as a really important thing - many people play outdated games with old graphics but they still enjoy them because the gameplay itself is good.

 

[Javert]

My Treatise on what makes a good Mod.
*Disclaimer*: I am by no means omniscient. Feel free to criticize or expand, but with good taste and acceptable intelligence.

1) A good team that can work and communicate with each other. Without strong leadership and members able to do their part, the mod is doomed at the start. The most important position in my opinion is the coder. It is the most technically demanded (therefore rare) yet most important job. Naturally, the "idea man" is usually the coder, but not always.

2) Novelty. However, not in an extreme sense. A counter-terrorist versus terrorist mod can still suceed in the Half-Life world, however it needs to separate from other mods that have established themselves. I like to define it as "the sparkle". A failure of novelty leads to a small player-base.
2a)The player-base is very fickle. In today's technology, one can download a mod in half an hour, play for an hour, and delete in half a minute. Novelty is not only attention-grabbing, but keeps the player wanting to play Mod A, and not just delete Mod A because he gets the same kicks out of Mod B.

3)A good fanbase. It's development is crucial and dependent upon the opening months even before release. Some ways of expanding the fanbase:
a)Advertising - The best way is posting media and releasing them on news sites. If fansites allow it, forum posting and IRC announcements work too. However, advertising is difficult because it creates the first impression.
a1)If the first impression is good, then the player will come. If it is mediocre, the player will ignore it. I may as well state this again: FIRST IMPRESSION IS VERY IMPORTANT!.
b)Forums - The mod team should always establish a prescence in the forums, replying to questions in a constructive manner, welcoming newcomers, and addressing issues professionally. (The retraction of the mod team can happen only once success is achieved, but we're not there yet.)
c)An aurora of hype must always be sustained. Release media, tidbits, info, interviews, juicy stuff every now and then to get people pumped.
d)Good mods have expandability, where fans are allowed to get an fgd and make models, skins, and maps for it.

4)A good website. This literally makes or break the mod, for it combines first impression, novelty, and the ability for the player to become comfortable and not get lost in the site. If the site's confusing, the player will be turned off. If the site looks good, loads fast, simplistic to navigate, then the player is bought. Of course, contact info is always nice too.

5)Play-testing the mod is crucial, because nothing hurts than a couple of bugs ruining the first impression or frustrating players in general. I'm sure one can come up with several mods that openings were marred by bugs and crashes.
5a)Play-testing does not stop at mod release, gameplay must always be refined. Read around the forums. The success of the mod is its willingness to adapt and change to player preferences.
5b)One must satisfy the player's needs, which may include troubleshooting and help. Calling them "noob" does not help (frankly, I can't imagine any self-respectable person calling anyone that, but I digress).

6)To rank what's important in the mod itself, it'd have to be gameplay, graphics, maps. Gameplay is most important, its feel which contributes to both novelty and first impression. You can't please Everyone, neither should it be a goal. Graphics are next since they are the most crucial to the visual senses. Then comes good maps, dependent of course on good graphics. Good maps are the ones everyone comes back to play on (dust, dust, dust). Maps lead to replayability, complemented on gameplay.
6a)Replayability leads to longevity, one of the characteristics defined as the success of the mod. Statistics (fileplanet.com and such) show that mods are always being downloaded. So theoretically, if everyone who downloaded the mod kept playing, a mod like Hostile Intnet would have over 10,000 players (according to fileplanet.com). Of course, it's not the case because replayability is not achieved for the majority of the players.

That's all I can type for now, may type an addendum when I'm more awake. But here are some HL mods everyone knows about, but whose histories make for some worthy case studies to look at.
CS, DoD, NS. In all cases, what started as something small, even pitiful (see their first screenshots) turned to phenomenal successes.

 

[Rupertvdb]

one simple thing...Half Life

or something....

 

[Argyll]

What attracts me to download a mod is two things:

a) Subject appeal. If a mod looks like it is my type of thing, I try it. Even if it is a little rough around the edges visually, it will be the gameplay that makes me play it.

b) Word of mouth. If people are raving about it and recommend it, I try it. Natural Selection is a perfect example: I'm not into Sci-Fi, but so many people said that it was great, I had to try it.

Right now however (pre-liminary stages) for Half-Life 2 Mods, what appeals to me is the quality of work displayed and the concept for the mod. If they have a good, solid, realistic vision then it will be something of interest.

 

[SidewinderX]

For me, although it's overused, it has to have interetsing gameplay.

Either the setting has to be really interesting to me, or there has to be soemthing, be it a game mode, a detail, whatever, that makes me want to keep playing. I played 2 ut2k3 mods recenrlt (frag.ops and jungle warefare) and delted them within an hour because the only game mode that was available was generic deathmatch, and all they had were generic maps and common weaponry.

Yes the were beta version, but if you're gonna release soemthing for people to play, make them want to come back.

That's why I encourage ALL Hl2 mods to have thier main feature(s) in place in some form before making a public release. make me want to come back.

 

[2BlocksShort]

Although a bit of a "newb" (ok a lot :x) from what I have read, and discussed with folks in chatrooms, Javert pretty much hit the nail on the head - so hard and so repeatedly infact that the nail has come through the other side of the wood and fallen onto the floor.

 

[chapel]

The only flaw in Javerts oppinions, and since they are oppinions there arent really any flaws, but anyways. Single player mods have to be viewed differently, because they have a different setup and usually different play styles.

 

[Foxtrot]

Originality, and attention to details. If it is a historic mod claiming to be realistic is damn well better be realistic.

 

[neozero]

I don't know if this is specifically to half-life 2, but I'd say innovation. Look at how Gabe talks about how much he isn't doing with the Source engine, and when you look at it it isn't because those added features aren't infeasible (seeing as he says it would be easy for mod developers to do), but because they aren't neccesary.

I think a great mod (especially for half-life 2 ), would be something that would push the envelop and even make Valve rock back their heads and say "Damn".

 

[FictiousWill]

I could go all psychoanalytical on this one, like I did here, but suffice it to say that a mod must allow players to become adept, but prevent them from becoming masters of the game. The game, is, at its core, a competition. As long as there is a thrill of danger associated with the possibility of loss, then a mod excites and therefore entertains its players. The mod could do this by allowing multiple ways to defeat an enemy, either by brute force or through strategy, resource management or teamwork. Add in the visceral and inherent fun in destroying one's enemies again and again, in varying and unorthodox ways (preferably against overwhelming odds), and you've got the basis of a "good" mod. CS would be the most common cliched posterchild of the above postulation.


btw Chapel, are you "Chapel the Evergreen"? or just Chapel?

 

[chapel]

btw Chapel, are you "Chapel the Evergreen"? or just Chapel?

Just chapel.

Who is Chapel the Evergreen?

 

[FictiousWill]

nevermind. its an anime character.