[st.patrik]

Originally posted by Bard of Prey:
On the subject of whether to include 'moddability' or not in the first place, I think all the relevant arguments have already been made (and re-made, etc.). I will say that, from a publisher/developer point of view, modding only enhances the value of your product. It not only increases the initial appeal (it's a very nice thing to have on your list of features these days), but it greatly extends the lifespan of the product. Even well-designed programs benefit from the ability to be constantly refreshed by the input of new ideas (in fact, I'd say that they benefit even more than poorly-designed products that mods just can't save in the long run... I'll refrain from giving examples here... ).

From a player perspective, it's a win-win situation. If you're happy with the vanilla game, you can happily keep playing it as long as you like, and there's no need for you to even be aware that mods exist, secure in the knowledge that (for technical reasons) the vast majority of MP games will be played with the unmodded game anyway. If you have a hankering for a game with a different 'theme', but the same basic gameplay, then you can try out some mods, or build your own. The argument that the very existence of mods 'makes MP more difficult' is completely specious... it does no such thing. In fact, the opposite is true... the existence of MP makes modding more difficult, since odds are that the community as a whole will not want the same mod running, thus most MP games (at least those where you play large numbers of people, or total strangers) will have to be with the unmodded game. If there's a relatively simple means of installing mods, and of reverting to the default settings, then both needs are satisfied quite easily.

very well put