Comment Re:I think Valve is a little confused... (Score 1) 167
I think they do get it much better than most... mod teams aren't getting it.
The problem Valve has reiterated time and time again is that the current batch of mods are trying to be AAA games. So they take an eternity to release and update, they care more about art assets than core gameplay, and they dont prototype in public, so no communities evolve around an idea/concept. They noted this trend fairly shortly after the HL2 SDK was released.
If you look at the one mod that has done great things under teh source engine, its garrysmod... . Someone mentioned Little Big Planet, well Garrysmod is a lot like that except with far more flexibility. In fact this may even be an avenue for someone like yourself, msimm, to get into prototypeing gamemodes... it has lots of GUI and lua implemented if you want to go the high-level coding route.
What made garrysmod a success; constant releases... sometimes multiple times per month even now that its a steam-distributed-costs-money-game. Shortly after the SDK was released, Gmod started out doing one thing very crudely, letting you use the 'manipulator' weapon from HL2 SP, it evolved into a complex sandbox gamemode. It has progressively added functions over the last year or two, and now has a huge and creative community, which feed off of Garrysmod and take it in new directions.
So i think mod teams need to better exploit their situation... like TFC, CS, DoD, NS and now Gmod, release(d) frequently, prototype in public, get as much real world feedback and let your game evolve and reflect this input.
The problem Valve has reiterated time and time again is that the current batch of mods are trying to be AAA games. So they take an eternity to release and update, they care more about art assets than core gameplay, and they dont prototype in public, so no communities evolve around an idea/concept. They noted this trend fairly shortly after the HL2 SDK was released.
If you look at the one mod that has done great things under teh source engine, its garrysmod... . Someone mentioned Little Big Planet, well Garrysmod is a lot like that except with far more flexibility. In fact this may even be an avenue for someone like yourself, msimm, to get into prototypeing gamemodes... it has lots of GUI and lua implemented if you want to go the high-level coding route.
What made garrysmod a success; constant releases... sometimes multiple times per month even now that its a steam-distributed-costs-money-game. Shortly after the SDK was released, Gmod started out doing one thing very crudely, letting you use the 'manipulator' weapon from HL2 SP, it evolved into a complex sandbox gamemode. It has progressively added functions over the last year or two, and now has a huge and creative community, which feed off of Garrysmod and take it in new directions.
So i think mod teams need to better exploit their situation... like TFC, CS, DoD, NS and now Gmod, release(d) frequently, prototype in public, get as much real world feedback and let your game evolve and reflect this input.
