Successful Mod Team Tips

This page talks about mod teams are created - what they are, how they are formed, and how they can be run. Though there is no catchall formula on just how to make a mod team, this page should give you some ideas about what works and what doesn’t.

What is a Mod Team?

In the simplest sense, a mod team is one or more developers who create a mod. But a better way to look at it is that a mod team is a collection of skills that come together to create a mod. Coding, mapping, modeling, and of course ideas and vision. Though one person rarely creates a MOD on his or her own, it can and is done. Why doesn’t it happen that often? Simply put, making a mod is a lot of work that takes a variety of skills. Usually a team of developers contributes their skills towards the final project.

What Makes a MOD Team?

What are the basic roles that must be filled to make a mod?

Communications and Work Flow

How to keep everyone talking and working together smoothly so everyone is on the same track.

Before the Day of Defeat mod “went official” with Valve, the team of 8 people involved worked exclusively with instant messaging and IRC for communications. In fact the team developed like this for over a year before finally meeting face to face. --Holtt

Success, Collaboration and Teamwork

Good mods don’t usually happen by accident or from the work of mediocre and uninspired people. Before we get into what goes wrong with mods and mod teams, let’s talk about what goes right. What’s worked and what’s been successful.

Teamwork > Talent

"Talent wins games, but teamwork and intelligence wins championships."

Michael Jordan

It’s hard to make a good mod without talent. But it’s about impossible without teamwork.

You're far better off working with people who can work as part of a team than people who have skills, but horrible teamwork skills.

Passion, Commitment, Creativity and Drive

Your team must be passionate committed to the cause of creating your mod. They must be passionate about what they do and the mod they are creating. Passion doesn’t mean fanaticism, but it does mean being there when the mod and the team needs the help. It also can mean a strong sense of curiosity and a desire to explore new things.

You might ask why I suggest commitment and passion as hallmarks of a successful team. Mainly because modding is a job that has long hours, probably no monetary reward, and few perks – and you’re not getting paid a thing. In fact you probably have to use your own money to buy software tools, upgrade your computer, and so on. So something has to drive you to keep going.

When the team creating Day of Defeat was still an amateur mod team in its early stages, who was on the team was a bit amorphous and ill defined. But it soon began to gel into a team, as the development got more intense. As Valve’s Kelly Thornton put it, the team ended up being the people who were around and put in the time. If it was midnight and the call went out to test something new, it was the same dedicated handful every time that was there. --Holtt 01:57, 29 Dec 2005 (PST)

Problems, Team Personality, Ego and Other Challenges

The hard and sad fact about mods and mod teams is that most mods fail. They never get beyond the idea stage, or the pre-alpha. There are a number of common themes to what has caused the demise of a lot of mods over the years.

Ego

"A lot of my work has to do with not allowing my characters to have an ego in a way that the stomach doesn't have an ego when it's wanting to throw up. It just does it."

Matthew Barney

Besides apathy and loss of interest, ego and team infighting is perhaps the Things don't always go so well for some mod teams. Some great ideas have vanished because the team members didn't work well together.

The Good and Bad of Personality

Team members will have personalities for better or worse - sometimes for worse. Hidden agendas, bullies, those that either can't give respect, drama queens and non-contributors are a few examples.

You do the work, I'm the Leader/Idea Person

"I GOT A GREAT IDEA FOR A MOD BUT I JUST NEED LEIK MAPPERS N SKINNERS N CODERS N STUFF! OMG EMAIL ME!"

l33tmodderhax0rdude@hotmail.com

This kind of plea for help on a mod is laughable, but actually common. Someone with no actual technical talent in mod development has a "great" idea, and just needs to get basically the entire team to come help. Oh, and they will be the leader and the "idea person".

Who Leads?

"It is very comforting to believe that leaders who do terrible things are, in fact, mad. That way, all we have to do is make sure we don't put psychotics in high places and we've got the problem solved."

Tom Wolfe

Who should lead a mod team, if anyone? How does a MOD team set goals, communicate publicly as one, and generally keep going?

What is Leading Anyway?

Leading is anything that keeps the mod moving forward in a semi-coordinated way towards a shared goal.

Everybody Leads Model

In this model, everyone on the team has an equal voice. It can be successful if everyone both contributes but also most importantly respects the opinions of their team mates. As soon as you begin to resent or dislike the work or opinion of a team mate, you will inevitably begin to see yourself as being superior to them.

IMO, this model works least. Even though this is not a Half Life Mod, Sapphire Scar for Doom 3 had this model. The team started off well, and allot of work was done, but every time some one did not like something a new poll would pop up on the forums, and a massive 5 page talk would spring. Only use this model if you all live near each other, as disruptive ELMM can kill a team, and project. --Amckern 03:45, 29 Dec 2005 (PST)

Nobody Leads or Creative Anarchy Model

Here, the people with the most drive and creativity (those who crank out the most work) lead by default, simply because they are doing stuff. They are making the mod go forward by virtue of their own drive. If they slack off or take a break, others take up the challenge.

A Leader Leads

One person (or a subset of the team) calls the shots and leads the mod development.

Starting a project and building a team

A lot of mods will begin as ambitious projects but will most likely flop this way. For example, you might want a game where you fight with swords and magic, an overambitious mod leader will talk about it for a while and try and get someone to make the models and sounds required and never get the code finished. When this happens you have to start thinking smaller.

It helps to start small. If you want a big total conversion mod start by making a mod that has some of the features you want in it. For example, if you want to make a HL1 MOD that rips off Perfect Dark, start by changing HLDM to have some of the features of that game. Add a 'radar', change the weapon behavior a little and people will see that things are being done. When a potential team member sees your site or moddb profile and sees progress despite the lack of art they will be more impressed.

The above example of the PD ripoff was a real mod that gained many members a month after a small (barely) playable demo of some features was released and went on to be somewhat successful. But you don't have to release every little thing to the public, post some screenshots or other media that shows off your progress.

Niche Mods

A common problem with modifications is having the potential for only a small fanbase. These are the old game remake mods, the Dragon Ball Z mods, the mods based on some obscure movie or show. Recently a mod tribute to Trigun went under due to lack of support, there was plenty of fans of Trigun who wanted to play, but few were actually able to help.

By narrowing your fanbase you narrow your potential team members. People will only work on a mod they will play. Be prepared to fight tooth and nail for the few modders you find in your community as they will be hard to come by.