Tips for New Modders

Introduction

I've been in the modding community for a long time. I'm not a technical expert or a programming genius but I've been around long enough to have experienced a variety of projects. Anyone can do that and some of anyone can cite how to mod successfully but how many can produce an article out of it? From what I've seen of modding sites, too few is the answer.

So I've decided to write this article - it is intended to be a direct and concise source for newcomers in avoiding the pitfalls that I often witness.

Chances are if you're reading this then you've been linked to here or stumbled upon it and believe it's worth reading. Thus, I really hope this saves you time and gets you on your way. Let's begin.

The Bob example

Let's make a hypothetical situation where someone plays a game and really wants to produce something for it, simply because they like the idea of doing so. They feel they have something to add, some sort of new experience that could be created.

They realise that if they want to match the quality and quantity of the developers that produced the game then they're going to need help because naturally at this point it's far too much work for them, both in scope and their limited experience. It's likely that they're ambitious, determined and excited - all of these are great attributes but are not guaranteed to result in success and need to be kept in moderation.

So they go to a forum and post for help with the aim of assembling a team of people to create it.

The post typically goes as follows:


I'm now going to describe every problem that I can find that exists at this point, both in the post and the status of the project.

1. Post length and style

("This is my amazing mod so join plz kk thx")

The posts are often either very short or far too long, with either next to zero information or an entire design document (usually detailing only the story) encompassing a dozen pages. This absolutely needs to be balanced, or at least with a summary followed by design documentation. This allows viewers to quickly find out about the project and to optionally read more if they want to.

Poor grammar, layout and spelling (I didn't put any in my example for clarity's sake) often turns away people - it's not professional and can be an indication of the inexperienced nature and attitude of the poster. After all, if they don't take the time to make their post presentable, what else on the project will they do the same to?

Summary: Take time to make your post presentable and ensure there is a decent amount of information included, at least with a summary.

2. Content

("There will be 50 full levels, 20 new units and even more!")

There is always a ridiculous amount of content planned out, the scope is always vast because the producer, in their desire to be great and match the developer, wants to create a lengthy, epic story and time for gamers to play. That's a decent benchmark to aim for but it's unpractical.

One rule of games development that I've come across is to START SMALL. The classic example is of iD software - they didn't start out attempting to create Quake or Doom. Not even Wolfenstein 3D. They actually began with basic platform games such as Commander Keen! (If you've never heard of it, go google for it and prepare to be surprised)

I've seen the rule broken countless times in the modding community. It is quite natural - modders really want to match the developer's experience but it is often too much, too soon for the majority of newcomers. Foresight for future stories and projects is great, it's good and simply fun to plan ahead, but this is commonly at the expense of the practical ability to produce the mod first.

So there needs to be a realistic amount of content, even if it means cutting short the scope of the story and content. If you're aiming to match the campaigns of a real time strategy game, consider producing only the first quarter of it. This allows you to focus on a more tight, well crafted mod than a bulky, overblown one. You need to allow yourself extra time for problems that may occur.

This is a very hard point to understand - it's THE single most major and common problem that I see occurring in new projects. The best recommendation is to create a demo of some sort, a scaled-down production of a small section of the mod. For example, with the Bob example he should create the first full level. This proves that he has the dedication, time and skill to create it and allows potential new team members to see the ability of the producer.

Summary: Scale down your project (ESPECIALLY if it your first) in plot, content and general ambition.

3. Unorganised priorities

("Don't worry, I can do everything at once")

The producer always intends to get his dream team of everyone to produce everything at once which is never going to happen. All of the extras such as voice acting, music and a website are not critical to the project and should not be attempted at this early stage.

There needs to be a basic plan of objectives. This is dependent on the project and the original game, at the most basic it is the following:

• Initial Design: The primary design of the mod such as basic concepts (What it's about, what it will play like, etc), design documentation, dialog script and level design.
• Core Work: All of the functional content of the game. For an RTS mod campaign this would be all of the levels.
• Extras: Voice acting, music, website, etc.
• Release: Final fully tested mod, final website with final version of mod.

It's easy to fall into the trap of only working on the 'fun' parts of a mod, such as artwork and design material, but if you want to effectively finish the mod this leads to an unorganised production that's all over the place.

Summary: Prioritise and organise your workload and stick to it.

4. A reliance on others

("I can't program so I NEED programmers, otherwise the project will fail.")

Since the producer doesn't have skills in programming, art, sound or music, they rely on others to provide it for them and the project. At this point in the project it's a ridiculous extreme and creates several problems:

• The producer is relying on finding ALL of those people to create such content. This means spending time finding and recruiting such people.
• The producer is relying on those people actually PRODUCING such content. The work is likely done for free and in their own spare time, based on their belief that it will be worth it and the mod will be finished. People will usually tell you that they'll do the work but through either their fault or circumstances (e.g. school \ work \ real life getting in the way) they may not do so.
• The producer is relying on those people living up to their STANDARDS. If they're far beyond the producers, why are they necessarily going to bother with the project? If they're far beneath the producers, why should the producer bother with them in the first place?

Can you see where this is going? A good first project shouldn't need anyone other than you. Everything should be a bonus, an extra that can be attached regardless of the core work. It's far easier to get those extras if you've proven you can do the work and aren't wasting people's time.

Summary: Work out what skills you absolutely need and attempt to have them yourself.

5. The producer's role

("I'm busy designing stuff, you guys need to go make the mod for me.")

The first question by some people upon reading the post will be "So what are YOU doing?". It's very easy - I've certainly been guilty of it before - to just want to play the amazing project that is in your head without doing much of the work. It's a natural desire but obviously it is not practical.

Real modding takes dozens and dozens of hours of work, it usually takes months and even years to complete a full project. You need to be able to do the majority of the work, not just to avoid relying on others but because it is YOUR project after all. Story and script design, programming or level making are usually the core areas that a producer should be directly involved in.

Summary: The producer has to lead by example and directly work on the majority of the project.

6. Sworn dedication

("This mod WILL ABSOLUTELY be finished, I swear!")

Swearing to be completely dedicated to a project is very admirable but it is flawed. I've seen it many, many times and I'll likely see it again.

The problem is that the producer remains so zealously dedicated that they get their hopes up and waste their time. It's likely they'll get frustrated and annoyed, both with themselves and others on the team and community.

You should treat modding like you would any other hobby - an enjoyable activity that you do in your spare time. Once it takes up the time of a second job (and feels like one) then I honestly believe you're astray. It's easy to lose motivation or get a new amazing idea for a mod or spend your time on a new game or hobby. Regardless, at this point you should reassess what you're doing.

Do exactly what you enjoy and don't feel bound to a project, it's too easy to stray and lose sight of that. There is absolutely no shame in giving up - provided you haven't severely wasted the time of others of course! This is helped by not promising too much in your original announcement post about the mod.

Summary: Be realistic in completing the mod, don't hesitate in reassessing your work and starting a new.

7. General inexperience

("It's my first time leading a project but I know what I'm doing. I think.")

Since the producer is new to modding, how do people trust that they know they're doing? The answer is that they don't, the producer is typically going off on instinct. They've got an idea, they're running with it and they're trying to complete it as best as they can.

I don't want to come off as too harsh here since everyone starts somewhere, but producer's should avoid being arrogant, they should be open and humble in learning when they make mistakes and take on board suggestions from everyone. Just reading this guide, I hope, is a suitable start and will eventually help them to progress with their project.

Summary: Always be willing to learn and adapt, especially to how projects are created.

The result

After some time, the producer typically either gets frustrated and quits since no one is helping or they remain committed to the production and continues valiantly on, then chances are that after some other period of time they get frustrated and quit. They feel let down and as if the project won't be completed - and they're right. They've been too ambitious and unorganised.

What's the answer? There's no perfect solution, all I've attempted to do in this guide is show common mistakes and mention how to avoid them.

Suggestion summary

I will now re-cap on exactly what the producer should do in the early stages of the project.

1. Step back and plan

First, step back and reassess the mod. If it's ridiculously ambitious, scale back the scope of levels and story so that the quality will be better and more focussed upon.

Create a design document of the mod - the gameplay, levels, features, plot, characters and dialog. If you don't feel like detailing all of these then perhaps you just want to PLAY the mod rather than PRODUCE it. If you wish, create and set some milestones of when you expect to complete certain aspects of the mod. Organise which skills you will need from other team members, essential and optional ones (e.g. programmer and music composer).

2. Initial work

Produce a small demo of work that you can handle yourself. This will be a prototype that you will eventually expand on, such as a single full and complete level. Afterwards, create some evidence of the work - screenshots, a video clip or a fully functional level that others can play for example. This will be key to proving you're hopefully capable of producing and completing the project.

3. Announcement and website

Write a professional forum post with brief but specific details of the mod - an overview of the plot and gameplay - and the evidence of your work and post it. If there is anything you need that's feasible (Website, concept art, etc) then you can request it in the post.

If you desire then you can sort out a website - groups like Samods and Campaign Creations exist to help new modders with a sub domain and a website engine to easily add new content. On them you can update visitors on the status of the project and have a permanent place to show evidence of the mod's work.

Conclusion

From here it's wide open as to how the production progresses. I naturally make it seem very easy but it will take a great deal of effort to reach completion.

Hopefully fun will be experienced on the way, by the producer, the team and those that play the mod.

- Magic