Mods on Steam
polycounter lvl 18
Thank you Valve. Open Steam for the news.
I've been wanting to try DIPRIP and Zombie Panic
Quick list:
Age of Chivalry features a fast paced first person melee combat system that will take the player to a new level of immersion. Players will be able to take part in sieges, town raids and open war in a story driven game.
D.I.P.R.I.P. is a Half-Life 2 multiplayer total conversion. Gameplay is based on vehicle combat in various post-war environments. Vehicles use multiple weapon mounts which are activated by finding weapons scattered around the battlegrounds.
INSURGENCY: Modern Infantry Combat represents the modern battlefield on the individual and tactical levels.
Synergy is a Half-Life 2 multiplayer modification with multiple gameplay modes, mainly focusing on cooperative play. Get together with friends and fight your way through individual levels or play through campaigns, including Half-Life 2. If you prefer competition, play the Teamplay or Deathmatch game modes.
Zombie Panic: Source is a cooperative survival horror Half-Life 2 Modification, the sequel to the popular Half-Life Modification "Zombie Panic".
I've been wanting to try DIPRIP and Zombie Panic
As a part of our continuing efforts to support the MOD community, we will begin hosting selected MODs directly on Steam starting next week. The first five MODs to ship on steam will be Age of Chivalry, D.I.P.R.I.P., Insurgency, Synergy, and Zombie Panic. As always, owners of any Source game will be able to download and play all of these MODs for free.
Once installed, these MODs will appear in your "My Games" list and will receive automatic updates just like other games on Steam. Also, these MODs now take advantage of Steamworks, which provides stat tracking and tighter integration with the Steam community.
We're excited to see MOD developers get wider recognition for the hard work they have done, and we hope to support more MOD teams in the future.
Quick list:
Age of Chivalry features a fast paced first person melee combat system that will take the player to a new level of immersion. Players will be able to take part in sieges, town raids and open war in a story driven game.
D.I.P.R.I.P. is a Half-Life 2 multiplayer total conversion. Gameplay is based on vehicle combat in various post-war environments. Vehicles use multiple weapon mounts which are activated by finding weapons scattered around the battlegrounds.
INSURGENCY: Modern Infantry Combat represents the modern battlefield on the individual and tactical levels.
Synergy is a Half-Life 2 multiplayer modification with multiple gameplay modes, mainly focusing on cooperative play. Get together with friends and fight your way through individual levels or play through campaigns, including Half-Life 2. If you prefer competition, play the Teamplay or Deathmatch game modes.
Zombie Panic: Source is a cooperative survival horror Half-Life 2 Modification, the sequel to the popular Half-Life Modification "Zombie Panic".
Replies
This is the first time they've offered mods that they have no role in the development or ownership of.
This represents quite a bit of risk and investment on their behalf. I hope it pays off because it's definitely a move in the right direction, and I'm glad they are making it...
So, how much longer until we see Steam provide mod-makers with the ability to directly supervise the sale and maintenance of their own works? This would essentially make Steam a publishing portal for small developers. I am consistently surprised and pleased by Valve's handling of Steam. They always supported and rewarded the mod community. (They've always been one of the best companies for poaching talent from successful mods) But with this step it seems they intend to fully legitimize mod developers, offering them a publishing outlet to peddle their wares.
Now bedroom programmers and artists will have real monetary incentive to work on their pet projects.
That didn't seem to stop Audiosurf, GarrysMod etc
-caseyjones
It's not likely, but it is possible. Especially with how flexible Valve has been in their approach to downloadable content. You are right about the standards, though. Valve would have to release a set list of standards that mod developers would have to abide by. And then they would have to review every submitted mod to make sure that they adhere to those standards. Valve getting a cut wouldn't really be a problem. They already get a cut of commercial titles sold over Steam. I can't really see mod developers complaining about a practice that already applies to commercially supported games.
The proper way to go about this is as such.
1. Valve gets a cut. This is a no brainer, and not really a problem. It's Valve's service, they provide the engine and the commercial outlet, its only fair that they get a cut.
2. Valve charges a flat fee for the submission of pay-for-play mods. (naturally, this would not be required for free-to-play mods) Everytime you submit your mod for consideration, Valve charges you a flat fee to cover their review expenses. If your mod doesn't pass muster, you will have to pay this flat fee again the next time you submit it. This would discourage jokers from spamming Valve with crap mods. There's more incentive to do your own testing and get it right before submitting when money is coming out of your pocket.
3. Make the standards good and hard. The more stringent the standards, the more likely that people will take them seriously. Pay-for-play mods should represent the creme-de-la-creme of the mod scene. They should be polished and regularly supported.
DIPRIP is also a nicely designed mod. It exceeds in satisfying my craving for a vehicular deathmatch game. Nice levels. Steering the vehicles is a bit clunky, but I assume there's a reason for that. I noticed some bugs, but it could have been players hacking.
I'll be playing Age of Chivalry tonight. I hear the melee combat is awesome.
Cheers Casey.
The entire Zombie Panic team was working flat out with minimal sleep to get this release out the door, finally we got it all done. It's awesome to know so many people are enjoying these modifications.
I've got to say though, Age of Chivalry is a hell of a lot of fun, sexual innuendo aside, the sword play is great. I'm yet to try the other mods, but I'm sure I will in time.
It's really good to see valve standing by some of these mods, and promoting them. It was a fantastic bit of news, keeping morale high, and gave us an added bonus to work towards.
Cheers Guys,
Instead, I've been enjoying DIPRIP very much. Only, the latest update from Steam has caused its servers to become laggy. Maybe that will be resolved by tonight. I would like to create a level for it, if I have the time.