Making mods for Dominions II. [Basic editing/modding discussion.]

[Mortifer]

Originally posted by PDF:
And anyway the best "modding tools" are *no* tools, but external data files (text for all units/rules/script stuff, gif or other for gfx, wav/mp3 for sound/music, etc...).

That is a good idea as well, dbase files to edit the pretenders/units/nation etc. Also we could just link the gfx files to the units. Voila its lot more simple for the devs, but a bit harder for the modders. Of course good modders cant be bothered by that.

The key is that we need the ability to edit pretenders/nations/units...its up to the devs, that how. An additional spell etc. editor would be a great addidtion indeed, but it is not that neccesary.

[ September 28, 2003, 13:21: Message edited by: Mortifer ]

[Aristoteles]

Hrm, one more thing. We need a 'mod launcher' or something like that, if that will be possible.
Example: We modify the game files, but all of those could be placed in a new directory! We could choose out, that what mod to play with that way, without overwriting the game files themselves.

[Zerger]

I love to mod with database files! Its the real oldschool type of modding.
Btw I agree with Aristoteles. A mod loader would be excellent. I dont think that it will be hard to script.

[Pocus]

The fact is that a vast majority of players like the *possibility* of modding a game. Not for them, but for the 0.01 % of players which will try to modify the game. The debate of open games versus closed ones has been raging for years, but very few people still think that he has to be proven that mods are good for a games, and for the studio behind it(just go to game sites like gamedev.net ,gamasutra.com, the newsGroups on game design, etc., nobody would dare pretends that modding is bad for a game!). Just think Half Life and Counter strike (FPS), Neverwinter night (RPG) big fan community, which led to tremendous increase in selling (more than 4000 fan modules and universes have been done, with more and more player attracted), Civilization I, II, III (I think it has not to be proven that the huge fan communities helped these games be so 'persistent' on a market which is rather transient.

Often it has nothing to do with game balancing. Thats just that you cant have a game witch cover all topics and sub genres of a given genre. Be it Middle Earth or Melnibonee, you have nation names and definitions which are not covered by the actual dominions game. The point of the modder here would be to design scenarios which are more faifthful to the world they are working one. It has nothing to do with the scheme of reaping Illwinter of their good work.

The thing most needed is perhaps the ability to modify unit stats, create new ones, and add them to a nation.
Modding of a nation too goes with that.

[ September 28, 2003, 13:40: Message edited by: Pocus ]

[Zerger]

Originally posted by Pocus:
Just think Half Life and Counter strike (FPS), Neverwinter night (RPG) big fan community, which led to tremendous increase in selling (more than 4000 fan modules and universes have been done, with more and more player attracted), Civilization I, II, III (I think it has not to be proven that the huge fan communities helped these games be so 'persistent' on a market which is rather transient.

How true.

[Mortifer]

Aye, I am also sure that the ability of modding will increase the # of the sold copies.
As Pocus said, modding is attracting more and more people, also its fun to play in different game worlds, and not just in the original.

PS.
More than 100 replies in the thread alrady!

[ September 28, 2003, 14:02: Message edited by: Mortifer ]

[MStavros]

/me vote for modding tools of course.

What do we need?
Unit editor, race(nation)editor, god(pretender) editor, hero editor.
All other editing tools are just +++ for us.

[ September 28, 2003, 15:42: Message edited by: MStavros ]