In the in-game mod catalog, there are hardly any mods of the significant variety. Most of the rest do the same thing - add a civ, tweak a few numbers, etc. Also, the vast majority of them have under 100 downloads, and the most popular only has 700-800k. I'm pretty sure there are more players than that. What's up with that?
Why are there so few mods?
- Thread starter Double A
- Start date
rocklikeafool
Warmaster
A lot of mods have not been developed, because of the fact that there's no .dll access. I can think of several fantasy mods that are awaiting that. Hopefully, we get access with Gods & Kings.
MisterBoomBoom
King
- Joined
- Nov 10, 2010
- Messages
- 700
People want the easiest install method to try a mod. I see way too many..."go to this file, remove the underscore in this line ...then go here and change that" sort of thing. I HATE having to reinstall the game because a mod F*** it up. Also if a modders doesn't take the time to spell out what it does in the field provided...I'm not bothering to try it.
Users want easy on off mods that don't ravish the game when going back to vanilla.
Few modders make it happen...those that do (Nights ...building made fun ...Iz looking at you) have my loyalty and devout downloads when new updates or civs make their way to the games' browser.
No I do not visit, download and unzip from "other" sites or here for that matter.
Users want easy on off mods that don't ravish the game when going back to vanilla.
Few modders make it happen...those that do (Nights ...building made fun ...Iz looking at you) have my loyalty and devout downloads when new updates or civs make their way to the games' browser.
No I do not visit, download and unzip from "other" sites or here for that matter.
Man, what are you talking about?
First, there are many unique mods out there changing the game in a unusual way which makes me wonder how they did it. I have great respect for those modders - sometimes it seems like they were working harder than the original developers. And if you really want to get a new way to play a civ, I welcome you to check out my Petroleum mod which is introducing the dynamics of diminishing resources to Civilization: http://forums.civfanatics.com/showthread.php?t=417580
Second, of course most of them are only "adding a civ, tweaking a few numbers"! Would you expect the opposite? That with this easy system to upload your mod with some mouseclicks you will only see giant mod packs with professional product values?
Pardon me, but you sound like someone who hasn't tried out many mods...
I'm really curious to know how such a thing could happen with the current modding system
Man, what are you talking about?
First, there are many unique mods out there changing the game in a unusual way which makes me wonder how they did it. I have great respect for those modders - sometimes it seems like they were working harder than the original developers. And if you really want to get a new way to play a civ, I welcome you to check out my Petroleum mod which is introducing the dynamics of diminishing resources to Civilization: http://forums.civfanatics.com/showthread.php?t=417580
Second, of course most of them are only "adding a civ, tweaking a few numbers"! Would you expect the opposite? That with this easy system to upload your mod with some mouseclicks you will only see giant mod packs with professional product values?
Pardon me, but you sound like someone who hasn't tried out many mods...
I did mention the modhub, did I not? I was talking about it, not mods someone has to install in the conventional way. Now I know what the issue is: limited upload limit.
Sure, most of the mods are expected to not do a lot, but the vast majority of them do a poor job and there are many superfluous ones. I come from TWC, where most of the mods there are TCs, so it was kind of strange to not see more of those. But no DLL explains that as well.
MisterBoomBoom
King
- Joined
- Nov 10, 2010
- Messages
- 700
I'm really curious to know how such a thing could happen with the current modding system
I have gotten graphic errors after going from one mod to another.
headcase
Limit 1 Facepalm Per Turn
Clear the cache folder (from My Documents --> My Games), and the modcache folder. If it's till causing problems, delete the mods from the mod folder and verify your files on Steam.
Atwork
Immortal
many of the more prolific modders are still messing around with C4.
jeffah3539
Leviathan
Why are there so few Civ V mods?
1. The in-game mod browser is a pain. There are file size restrictions like Gedemon mentioned. There is limited area to describe your mod and market it. You can't upload images to show off any graphical changes you made or to preview a new map or scenario. It offers no feedback system for modders other than a simple up or down vote. This makes modders not want to use it.
It also has suffered from patches breaking mods and creators not being around anymore to fix those mods afterward. Downloading any older mod runs the risk of it not working. This scares off potential mod users.
2. The provided mod tools are a pain to work with. Once you get them working they are very robust but that initial set up is difficult and scares off potential modders. Civ IV modding felt intuitive enough that anybody could get into it. A beginner could start out with simple Worldbuilder editing, then move on to simple XML editing, then on to basic Python scripting, then on to graphics reskins, and etc until eventually they were able to create the massive total conversion mods people love. There was a natural progression and beginner modders could see a path to improve to create the things they wanted to create. Far too many beginner Civ V modders get frustrated early on and end up quitting before they create anything of note. In previous Civs you could learn about basic programming through experimentation in Civ modding but in Civ V it feels like you need to already be a programmer to get anywhere.
3. The building blocks aren't being developed. This ties into point 2. Any massive total conversion mod needs a lot of artwork and code to truly change the feel of the game. Currently there are only a few people making new unit graphics while there are a lot of people in search of new graphics. Creating new graphics isn't a straightforward process and the tutorials that modders have made are either outdated or the process described is incredibly complex and scares off many potential creators. Most massive mods in Civ IV were collaborations between a large number of modders pooling their resources and abilities together to create them while most massive Civ V mods in development are solo projects hampered by the simple fact that it is incredibly difficult for one person to know everything needed to create a great mod.
4. The Civ V community as a whole. As anybody who has observed these forums since Civ V's release can tell you, the game has splintered the Civ community. Many of the great modders from Civ IV have stayed in Civ IV rather than migrating over to a game that they may not like or may not like the modding system for. In addition, the in-game Mod Browser has hurt the modding community by making it difficult to get feedback or inspiration from your customers. It is incredibly frustrating as a modder to post a new mod on the forum and not get any useful feedback on it. It makes it seem like no one cares if you make mods or not. The modding community has evolved from a collaborative process between creators and users (where the distinction was often blurred) to a business-like buyer-seller system (where the only interaction is the act of downloading the mod). I would call it the Wal-Martification of modding. I want to make mods for people who have opinions and thoughts and passions about my work because that is what fuels creativity, not just for nameless download drones who can't be bothered to visit a comment thread or unzip a file because it is too complex.
1. The in-game mod browser is a pain. There are file size restrictions like Gedemon mentioned. There is limited area to describe your mod and market it. You can't upload images to show off any graphical changes you made or to preview a new map or scenario. It offers no feedback system for modders other than a simple up or down vote. This makes modders not want to use it.
It also has suffered from patches breaking mods and creators not being around anymore to fix those mods afterward. Downloading any older mod runs the risk of it not working. This scares off potential mod users.
2. The provided mod tools are a pain to work with. Once you get them working they are very robust but that initial set up is difficult and scares off potential modders. Civ IV modding felt intuitive enough that anybody could get into it. A beginner could start out with simple Worldbuilder editing, then move on to simple XML editing, then on to basic Python scripting, then on to graphics reskins, and etc until eventually they were able to create the massive total conversion mods people love. There was a natural progression and beginner modders could see a path to improve to create the things they wanted to create. Far too many beginner Civ V modders get frustrated early on and end up quitting before they create anything of note. In previous Civs you could learn about basic programming through experimentation in Civ modding but in Civ V it feels like you need to already be a programmer to get anywhere.
3. The building blocks aren't being developed. This ties into point 2. Any massive total conversion mod needs a lot of artwork and code to truly change the feel of the game. Currently there are only a few people making new unit graphics while there are a lot of people in search of new graphics. Creating new graphics isn't a straightforward process and the tutorials that modders have made are either outdated or the process described is incredibly complex and scares off many potential creators. Most massive mods in Civ IV were collaborations between a large number of modders pooling their resources and abilities together to create them while most massive Civ V mods in development are solo projects hampered by the simple fact that it is incredibly difficult for one person to know everything needed to create a great mod.
4. The Civ V community as a whole. As anybody who has observed these forums since Civ V's release can tell you, the game has splintered the Civ community. Many of the great modders from Civ IV have stayed in Civ IV rather than migrating over to a game that they may not like or may not like the modding system for. In addition, the in-game Mod Browser has hurt the modding community by making it difficult to get feedback or inspiration from your customers. It is incredibly frustrating as a modder to post a new mod on the forum and not get any useful feedback on it. It makes it seem like no one cares if you make mods or not. The modding community has evolved from a collaborative process between creators and users (where the distinction was often blurred) to a business-like buyer-seller system (where the only interaction is the act of downloading the mod). I would call it the Wal-Martification of modding. I want to make mods for people who have opinions and thoughts and passions about my work because that is what fuels creativity, not just for nameless download drones who can't be bothered to visit a comment thread or unzip a file because it is too complex.
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