Slashdot Mirror

← Back to Stories (view on slashdot.org)

IGF 2006 Announces Mod Category

Posted by Zonk on from the make-something-lucrative dept.

Gamasutra has details on next year's IGF competetion, which will have several worthwhile prizes for "Visual Arts, Audio, Game Design, Technical Excellence, and Best Web Browser Game". They've also opened up a Best Mod Category, and you can vote on which four games will have their mods considered for the competition.

12 comments

  1. Half-Life? by wuie · · Score: 1

    Under the Mod category, most of the games are relatively recent... but then we come to Half-Life. Why is this still bundled in for the competition, especially for the 2006 version? I recall seeing Half-Life already win awards for being friendly to modders, and the same goes with Half-Life mods winning recognition (Counter-Strike comes to mind).

    As much as I love Half-Life, it should be taken off the list to allow other games the chance to shine in the mod spotlight.

  2. Americas Army? by Idolminds · · Score: 1

    Probably a bad idea to have this as a choice. There are no plans to release any mod tools. You cant even make custom maps for it.

  3. Doom 3 deserves to be a category by SnoopJeDi · · Score: 0

    Really. It's an incredible engine with incredible access.

  4. Best upcoming HL2 mod - FLF by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Frontline Force! The HL version has been barely played for some time, but they are coming out with a new one for HL2. Its very team-oriented and fast-paced. Great stuff.

    Check 'em out at Frontline2.com.

    1. Re:Best upcoming HL2 mod - FLF by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Check out the community videos- The show is one of the best I've seen.

  5. but but by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    best mod ever: 4JSNO.669

  6. let me guess... by KillShill · · Score: 1

    no consoles on that list? (what, me read TFA?)

    yes sir, ladies and gentleman. one of the biggest benefits of pc software is that you don't have to get permission to write arbitrary programs or make your own modifications to existing ones.

    eat that consoles, err DRM-crippled entertainment devices.

    it's only slightly off-topic but it really needs to be said. do whatever you wish.

    --
    Science : Proprietary , Knowledge : Open Source
    1. Re:let me guess... by rohlfinator · · Score: 0, Troll

      I'll remember that next time I'm playing Ocarina of Time, Metal Gear Solid, Metroid Prime, or any other high-quality console game that wasn't cobbled together by a kid in his parents' basement.

      Seriously, mods might be a fun diversion, but there are so few that are actually well-designed that it's hardly a significant advantage of PCs. If mods are the biggest advantage to PCs, it's no wonder PC gaming is dying. Counter-Strike is a joke compared to just about every commercial FPS.

    2. Re:let me guess... by DingerX · · Score: 2, Informative

      Hehe... that's what, another +5 Troll?

      BTW, most of everything is garbage. The internet and science fiction writers even managed to cobble together a "law" to that effect.

      Well, CS is still as far as I know the reigning champ of number of users online at any time, and by a great margin.

      Generally, sure, if you want something simple that looks really good and has mass appeal, there's no reason to worry about mods anywhere, and yeah, the console market, with its lack of configuration issues (one vid card, one sound card, one CPU to rule them all, until, of course, they become three or a whole mess of cell processors), DRM'd to hell design, and raving bands who buy the latest game, play it for a few hours, then pass to the next, is much more attractive business-wise than PCs.
      But I wouldn't give mods the short shrift. The major advantage PCs have over game machines is that they are more versatile and PC Gamers should have a streak of the hardcore in them. With a decent game platform, the internet, a vision, proper direction and development, a serious mod group can put out a product that may not be economically viable to the big guys, but that addresses a niche.
      To see this in action, it helps to move beyond the "big titles" to some of the farther corners of the PC gaming world, to the world of Simulation: Flight Sims, Military Sims, Racing Games -- just name a title, and you'll find an active mod community. You want games with a "long tail", you'll find them here: it's not unusual for a group of increasingly insane modmakers to work on a platform 4 or 5 years after release.
      The big titles are taking notice, and are including mod tools in the package: the PC version of BF2 has a map editor, from what I've heard. Will the console version have that?
      I don't think "PC Gaming" will be able to compete with the next generation of consoles, but the PC's greater versatility, the numerous niche groups on the internet, and the crazed fools into PC Simulations all mean that a reasonable market will be there.

    3. Re:let me guess... by rohlfinator · · Score: 1

      Hehe, maybe my previous comment did sound a little too troll-ish. I'm just trying to play the devil's advocate. ;)

      "But I wouldn't give mods the short shrift. The major advantage PCs have over game machines is that they are more versatile and PC Gamers should have a streak of the hardcore in them. With a decent game platform, the internet, a vision, proper direction and development, a serious mod group can put out a product that may not be economically viable to the big guys, but that addresses a niche."

      I agree; mods cater mostly to the hardcore gamers, and for the most part, the average gamer isn't "hardcore". It's cool for average Joe gamer to be able to create his own game, but the majority of the gaming community would rather play a commercially-developed game by a known studio with known talent. Like you said, mods are a niche market, and it's going to take more than that to revive PC gaming.

      I don't really understand what the problem is with consoles and their "DRM'd to hell design". I'm 100% positive that my PC could never run Resident Evil 4, even though it's supposedly several times more powerful than my GameCube. If the "lack of configuration issues" means "better looking and better playing games" than I'll take it. And FWIW, it looks like the next gen of consoles is going to be more heavily focused on customization than the current gen.

  7. Missing Moddable Independent FPSes by MiceHead · · Score: 1
    The poll lists a number of the blockbuster first-person shooters we all know and love...
    • America's Army
    • Battlefield 1942
    • Call of Duty
    • Doom 3
    • Far Cry
    • Half Life and Half Life 2
    • Unreal Tournament 2004
    ...but I think that the Independent Games Festival is missing out by not including independently-developed first-person shooters in the mix. I can think of three off the top of my head:
    • Cube, which allows players to create their own maps.
    • Nexuiz, under GPL, allowing everyone to download the source and modify it.
    • Inago Rage, own indie FPS, which allows players to create environments from within the game.
    I've been pestering people to go and write in their votes for these independent titles . Write in one -- or better, why not write in all three?
    --
    We're indie. We're working on our 14th game.