Where are they now? mod projects of past & present

[Blackbird_SR-71]

everyone brings a good point. i sometimes was looking foward to some mods but they never materialized. i was looking foward to Stragegize and its new features. 10 dollars the mod was a fluke to attract people.

 

[sourboy]

A lot of it is educational. I know I dropped a few scenarios before I finally half-completed one that was actually released here. There were too many things I was unable to do, and so the project became more work then play. Naturally I have learned more and so the process is becoming rather easy, but I still run into walls. Research alone can be a big issue.

I agree with the community aspect as well. When you envision something, many others may pull you off track during the process - or cause such a debate or discussion that the process completely halts. By the time things are moving again, you almost have to reorganize to remember where you left off - which is boring and tedious. Best bet is to listen to suggestions, but only have 2-3 people working on a project.

Life gets in the way, interest in Civ or modding is lost, user interest in the project appears to be lost, someone else releases something too close to what you were making, or files are lost. I try to keep most of my work on the boards here so others could pick it up if it comes to one of the above, but more people rather give input then actual assistance.

 

[sourboy]

preview threads for mods and scenarios generally suggest that they will never get completed.

why is this?

You know what it might be, for those of us who have created some larger scale projects, we can quickly tell you how tedious and stressful it can be at times when things aren't going well. I know I posted a preview back when I was modding a unit to be a Sniper because I was excited that it was almost finished. What bothered me was the mass number of people who replied with 'do this, do that, I don't like this' or whatever. I mean most responses were good, but it only takes a few borderline or bad ones to get to you. Can't please all the people all the time - and I could see how someone working on a complete mod could get discouraged after months of hard work by a few people who have even the slightest criticisms, especially if they were working alone.

 

[tjedge1]

I posted a preview tread over a year ago, and have worked hard on my mod. The main reason I started the preview thread was to get others involved in helping gather information or giving tips. For the most part I create the mod and make the final say so, and I'm not up for discussing a whole lot till the beta is ready. That's how it shold be done. I've done themajority of ethe work and research myself and had help with map desighn and graphix from many, but the details fall to me to decide. My preview pictures are just to attract people so when the mod is ready someone will actually download it. I am sure no mod is like mine and probably never would be. If I hadn't taken so long with the idea stages, it would have ended up as just another fantasy mod.

 

[El Justo]

it's not as if 'preview threads' are completely useless. the diligent cfc'ers who start them and post their neat ideas and who actually finish the mods/scenarios are to be applauded. no doubt.

however, for every one of these threads (successful ones), there's 20 that don't get finished for whatever reasons.

there is one method of C&C collaboration that should be noted and that is individual correspondence by PM. i have had huge amounts of success w/ this in the past. you're able to be candid, prescise and explicit in PMs. not only that, but a neat relationship is built in the process.

 

[Master Kodama]

I have yet to start a preview thread of my mod, though I've mentioned it in passing a couple times, and I probably won't start a preview thread until I'm damnfrickin' near completion. For me personally, I think this is the best way to work it. Otherwise, I'd get bogged down in the discussion and not get any work done on it. There are certainly those who would prefer to post early and/or often, and I'm sure it works for some people, and more power to them. I do have a fellow collaborator, but luckily for me I don't even have to PM him, he's one of my flatmates

So maybe there won't be a huge following for my mod or sense of success in a joint effort, but hopefully I can hype it when the time is right and maybe some people will enjoy it. I'm enjoying working on it, and I think that's just as important, if not moreso.

 

[The Omega]

I think it's because most people who are able to spend countless hours simply micromanaging workers can't seem to have an attention span to make a mod.

 

[WildWeazel]

And don't forget Battle for New York! It practically died when school started back up because kulade disappeared and I didn't have time for it myself, but resurrected it a few weeks ago and plan to stick with it until I can get a beta release, and hopefully win the help of some graphic artists. (I tried in August to make a single-frame flic and never did get it right )

btw, if you're really curious you can check out the link in my sig, but that's about 3 months old so don't expect much...

 

[Dease]

Ah, you just can't forget about the CFC user's mod
I think it probably set the record for the fastest growing thread, IIRC it got 10 pages in less than 3 days...
Oh well, it was...interesting, while it lasted
It's also the perfect example of the "diluting" effect el justo mentioned

 

[utahjazz7]

Ah, you just can't forget about the CFC user's mod
I think it probably set the record for the fastest growing thread, IIRC it got 10 pages in less than 3 days...
Oh well, it was...interesting, while it lasted
It's also the perfect example of the "diluting" effect el justo mentioned

I got sucked in on that one. I didn't say a lot, if anything, in the actaul thread itself, but I was really interested in it. I was actually planning on making a nice UU and leaderhead for "my" civilization. Then, it turned into a mod with the Kool-Aid Man and Dancing Bananas.

Wow, what a way to spend my 1000th post. I had been saving it for something special, and this is what I end up with. Geesh!

 

[The Last Conformist]

Ah, you just can't forget about the CFC user's mod
I think it probably set the record for the fastest growing thread, IIRC it got 10 pages in less than 3 days...

You don't much go to OT, do you?

 

[PCHighway]

I recall reading in a Dragonlance game manual (obscure reference here, stick with me) that, when calculating how long a gnomish invention will take to build, it makes no difference how many gnomes you have, and "if you have ever worked with gnomes, you will know why".

I concur . The differing opinions of so many people often lead to stagnancy in a MOD project. There are some benefits however, which I think I'll point out.

The first is the obvious; a mod project creates a stepping stone. If there is enough cause for something, but no 'product' for the cause, then something needs to start making headway. When LotM first started out, it wasn't LotM at all, it was supposed to be a place where fans of LotR shared ideas on implementing it in Civ3. The MOD wasn't even possible when LotM wa started, and wouldn't be for some time (until C3C). There were no Mod plans in the first LotM thread. Their were a couple of other LotR mod projects before LotM was started, first was Eclipse, who was a bit selfish in the regard that he didn't want anyone to mess with his MOD. The MOD became outdated soon after, and we were looking for a new one. Balrog intended to start a project and created a thread, months later he disappeared and basically no headway was made. The idea with LotM was to start making headway, so someone could take those ideas and implement them. It didn't work that way, unfortunately.

Second is that a preview thread is an archive. It does not require one person to build. All who participate in the discussion have some idea on how the MOD could go down, and therefore could pickup if the compiler disappeared. This happened in LotM when Celeborn got very busy. If the makers PC crashed and all the information was lost, as Yoda Power's was, it usually spells the end of a MOD. My PC crashed about three months ago, causing all the work on LotM (and my wonderful music downloads ) to be lost. It took a while to get back up to speed, but I was able to do so quicker than someone would without a preview thread.

Third, is drive. I don't know if it is so much a preview thread as it is a collaboration. When my PC crashed, I never would have dreamed of not starting LotM over. Far too many people, including myself, had devoted time and effort to the MOD. So it acts as a sort of support group. It almost works as a lobby group would. You have a bunch of people with a united purpose working to one end.

I think both ideas have their benefits and down sides. While it is true that a MOD similar to LotM could be created by one person, I doubt it would happen. There have been 2 big LotR Mods and numerous (I think 3 or 4) scenarios made on LotR. Neither of the MODs stuck, and I think they didn't stick for reasons that a group of people could alleviate. One MOD stopped when the maker left. Another stopped because the maker had a very strong opinion of a single Modder, that didn't seem to reflect the varied opinions of the LotR/Civ3 world.

A MOD team will likely represent the wills of many people, and can be more accurate to the wants of many people, as it is basically a reflection of many people. However it is in constant danger of becoming too much of an ideal instead of a reality. Embryodead mentioned that he has been working on WH for over two years, he worked on it silently and in the background. The only evidence he was doing it was when he was releasing his great units as a precursor. Some Mod projects, such as LotM, have been in existence only half that time. But because it has been out in the open, it seems like it is as old as dirt. The biggest problem is that people look at a MOD thread as a promise. People come to think it is owed to them, which is fine, if they've worked on it. I've had many people come into LotM and nudge us to get it done ASAP. Some of these people have spent time on making units or graphics for us, and I always take what they say as a sign that I need to get rolling. But some people come in and pretty much demand the MOD be finished within the week.

As Plotinus points out, a MOD is a labor of love. I am just a part of the LotM crew, and I have spent more time working on this than I have at my job this past year. I'm sure all modders, especially graphic creators, spend equal amounts of time. A MOD team and a single person who makes a MOD is a bit like the difference between a monarchy and a democracy. Sometimes you can have a great mod maker, who pulls the MOD through no matter what. Other times, as has been pointed out, the MOD never gets realized or is based on some ideas which aren't appreciated.

I think a MOD that has multiple creators helping work it out, is more likely to have a higher average of being completed and lasting as an acceptable wrong. Although I could be wrong, there aren't many examples. DyP (RaR) and TAM both started out with their original creators. Both grew into a team of interested modders. I think this is the ideal way to go. Have one guy get the MOD out there, and use that MOD as a base to improve on and talk over.

 

[El Justo]

I got sucked in on that one. I didn't say a lot, if anything, in the actaul thread itself, but I was really interested in it. I was actually planning on making a nice UU and leaderhead for "my" civilization. Then, it turned into a mod with the Kool-Aid Man and Dancing Bananas

that's a perfect example...though it had good intentions, it was veered off course by a distinct difference in what the mod should be.

it's too bad b/c if it hadn't spiraled into the sillyness that it did, it would've been kinda neat (as far as epic games are concerned).

i guess it all boils down to the cfc'er who started the preview thread and whether or not they'll actually finish what they've started. by no means am i knocking the guys who started the CFC User's mod, it's just that these are the facts.

 

[Dom Pedro II]

Well, kulade doesn't seem to be around much anymore, so we could always just cut him out and the other silly ones out and continue as originally planned

 

[Dom Pedro II]

I think we ought to start a new CFC mod but first lay down some critical ground rules to prevent it from getting entirely out of hand like last time... and umm... we should actually find somebody to make it this time...

 

[El Justo]

I think we ought to start a new CFC mod but first lay down some critical ground rules to prevent it from getting entirely out of hand like last time... and umm... we should actually find somebody to make it this time...

heh...you're volunteering?

i couldn't take any lead role but could certainly contribute assuming that the "critical ground rules" are laid out.

 

[El Justo]

IIRC, it was RedAlert who had the reigns to the CFC User's Mod

 

[DJ Bonebraker]

I think we ought to start a new CFC mod but first lay down some critical ground rules to prevent it from getting entirely out of hand like last time... and umm... we should actually find somebody to make it this time...

What?! You mean that I'm not the only one who's still interested in/making units for the CFC Mod? If it counts, thanks to some recent Poser acquisitions, the Arashi Commando (as I originally envisioned her) and Arashi Ninja are almost a reality. I've got almost all the props for the Commando (still need to giver her a short sword), and I still need to do some re-texturing, but aside from that, she's almost ready to go. I also did the Tesla tank a while back for Spetsnaz's Tesla coil wonder.

And I aggree: No banannas, moonites or Kulade men. I think that the farthest out we should allow units to get would be theoretical (i.e. Leonardo DaVinci, steam-punk and cyber-punk type stuff) and maybe some low-power mythological types (minotaurs, neko-mata (cat people), kitsune (fox-people), lycans (wolf-men), etc), but that might even be pushing it slightly.

BTW, anyone know where I can find a good musket-type prop for Poser. I couldn't turn up anything on Renderosity.

 

[El Justo]

And I aggree: No banannas, moonites or Kulade men. I think that the farthest out we should allow units to get would be theoretical (i.e. Leonardo DaVinci, steam-punk and cyber-punk type stuff) and maybe some low-power mythological types (minotaurs, neko-mata (cat people), kitsune (fox-people), lycans (wolf-men), etc), but that might even be pushing it slightly.

definitely no fruit or sugar-water stuff.

IMHO, the mythological units may be pushing the limits but this is just my opinion.

if i had the time, which unfortunately i don't, i'd assemble everything together and weed out all of the non-serious stuff and just start making it (map, civs, units, etc).

i would also frame it so that it would be along the lines of the epic game w/ no alterations to the tech tree. a few resources or wonders wouldn't hurt but to keep it 'simple', at least at first, would probably be the easiest way to go.

 

[Kyriakos]

You could offer some help with my own mod, about the peloponnesian war. It isnt very easy to make a scen with 31 nations all alone!