Divisor on 3/2/2006 at 05:32

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Kingers seems to be very angry with us at the moment, he doesn't allow us to use his storyline. Which, in fact, doesn't bother us much, since we are starting from scratch storylinewise.

Gingerbread Man on 3/2/2006 at 06:12

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Here is the BEST way to start talking about a mod:

"Hey guys, we just finished this mod for (game). Check it out."

The closer you can get to that ideal, the better.

Obviously you can't just pop up with a finished product 99% of the time, but even when you want to fill open positions or just keep interest alive in the target community in general you have to a) play everything close to your vest and b) actually have something noteworthy to show.

If you don't, then you're going to kill nearly all enthusiasm people might have had in what you're doing.

Other tips:

No one is interested in the minutae of the mod's development except you. Daily updates as to what so-and-so scribbled on a napkin serve only to demystify the work and make your audience really, really bored.

For every ten screenshots you want to show off, throw nine of them away and show the tenth. That pile of crates might look great to you, but to everyone else it's really stupid.

Do not listen to your friends' opinions that your mod will be the best thing ever. We've all seen the horrible, tone-deaf fat idiots on American Idol who are auditioning because all their friends say they sing real good. We've all seen the unstoppable tide of misproportioned, unimaginative, shit yaoi scribbled on lined paper and posted on some circlejerk of mediocrity masquerading as an Artists' Community where every comment is fawning and every username is violently gay.

Mods that start with building a public website are not ready to have a (http://mep.beyondunreal.com/mymod.html) public website. Online work requires things like private forums and ftps, but if you feel like no one is going to be interested unless you've made a website they can look at then they probably wouldn't be interested anyway -- because what are you going to put on that website? See the preceding three tips for advice about that.

The bottom line is that nearly all mods are disbanded before they produce anything to show anyone. So why would you want to have to swallow more pride than necessary if yours tanks? Work diligently, work quietly, be persistent and be humble.

The only people who think an unreleased mod is great are the people working on it. Everyone else is waiting to see. And they don't need to see work-in-progress until after the mod has been released and all that stuff becomes interesting.

sparhawk on 3/2/2006 at 07:57

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:eek: You mean he does NOT allow you to reuse the "Thief: Dark Project" story line? WOW! What a bitch! :ebil:



I agree with most of what you wrote there, but I don't agree with the releasing work-in-progress bit. It depends on what the WIP really is. If it is a proof of concept it can be intersting. If it shows that you actually made some progress it can also be intersting. After all, there are a lot of mods where you don't even know they are still alive, because no updates are posted. On the other hand, if your WIP is more the "I need to learn the editor" variety, then it is pointless to post it. I can see hundreds of such map screenshot by just looking in the newbie section or on tutorial sites.
The point is: Release only material that actually shows you created something worthwhile watching, and it certainly doesn't help to do this on a hourly basis.

sparhawk on 3/2/2006 at 11:36

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Just in case: This was meant as sarcasm, because a.) I know that he couldn't prevent it, and b.) the storyline was not exctly THAT creative to being with. :)

OrbWeaver on 3/2/2006 at 13:24

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Their (http://people.freenet.de/klopap/uc2/about.html) new team page seems to think different.