3 ms·

It's always surprised me that game mods tend to be developed behind closed doors. Why don't they follow common open source development processes? Is there a c

by Athas 4y ago

It's always surprised me that game mods tend to be developed behind closed doors. Why don't they follow common open source development processes? Is there a cultural or perhaps technical reason why open development doesn't work for mods? (The one in TFA is an exception of course.)

bloqs 4y ago
Because so much of it is done by the young and inexperienced who don't want their thing ripped off despite usually ripping off others etc
poisonborz 4y ago
Maybe because games as a genre are really different from the tools most open source communities are centered around? Games contain a lot of art (subjective, made by a few/single persons), lot of authority is needed to hold it together, and the product is mostly not something to be refined for years but a one-big-release affair which is would only be used/played with for a limited time. The same way how you couldn't open source a poem or a book - the most you can do is be very community-based, like how most modders - akin to indie game developers - do. Are there any major open source game development besides maybe OpenTTD or Spring (which are more like frameworks and less of a games themselves)?
h2odragon 4y ago
Mods are often open source, but: You're creating, but your creation is totally dependent on the copyrighted work of someone else, and usually can't even be seen without it. "derivative works" bite that way. The audience has already paid for the base game and there's not likely to be ways they can donate to you even if they wanted to. This is being worked on but still not quite there yet. Lots of the games customers feel they've paid enough already; which adds tot he usual "entitled user" problems. People making mods tend to be non programmers passionate about an idea they had and wanting to make it happen even if they have to learn new things and extend themselves beyond their comfort zone. The social aspects of software development that encourage FOSS structures haven't occurred to them yet. Many will feel they're not "real" developers, this isn't "real" software, and thus those concerns don't apply to them or their work. Since having a "mod community" is popular, many game publishers want to have one. They often have no idea how to foster a community and allow their inner demons to come out in their efforts to do so. If a mod scene has politics before the game is released, bail.
- simion314 4y ago
  This is not true, most mods are not open source, most mods created by developers might be though, usually this will mention that they are open , might even have "open" in their name and most of the time are a reaction to some shitty modder that does not accept contributions.

by Athas 4y ago

bloqs 4y ago

Because so much of it is done by the young and inexperienced who don't want their thing ripped off despite usually ripping off others etc

poisonborz 4y ago

Maybe because games as a genre are really different from the tools most open source communities are centered around? Games contain a lot of art (subjective, made by a few/single persons), lot of authority is needed to hold it together, and the product is mostly not something to be refined for years but a one-big-release affair which is would only be used/played with for a limited time. The same way how you couldn't open source a poem or a book - the most you can do is be very community-based, like how most modders - akin to indie game developers - do. Are there any major open source game development besides maybe OpenTTD or Spring (which are more like frameworks and less of a games themselves)?

h2odragon 4y ago

Mods are often open source, but: You're creating, but your creation is totally dependent on the copyrighted work of someone else, and usually can't even be seen without it. "derivative works" bite that way. The audience has already paid for the base game and there's not likely to be ways they can donate to you even if they wanted to. This is being worked on but still not quite there yet. Lots of the games customers feel they've paid enough already; which adds tot he usual "entitled user" problems. People making mods tend to be non programmers passionate about an idea they had and wanting to make it happen even if they have to learn new things and extend themselves beyond their comfort zone. The social aspects of software development that encourage FOSS structures haven't occurred to them yet. Many will feel they're not "real" developers, this isn't "real" software, and thus those concerns don't apply to them or their work. Since having a "mod community" is popular, many game publishers want to have one. They often have no idea how to foster a community and allow their inner demons to come out in their efforts to do so. If a mod scene has politics before the game is released, bail.

simion314 4y ago
This is not true, most mods are not open source, most mods created by developers might be though, usually this will mention that they are open , might even have "open" in their name and most of the time are a reaction to some shitty modder that does not accept contributions.