The game modding community has actively delved deep into game codes since the rise of computer gaming, which made it easy for players to open and edit files directly. While games and developers aren’t always on the same page about their stance on modding, one thing’s for sure: custom content has made the PC gaming experience a lot less bland.

Tired of a bug that never seems to get fixed? A team of talented modders will solve the issue long before developers patch it out. Unhappy with the lack of clothing options? Artists and modders make the perfect A-team for a coveted fashion collab. For the past two decades, mods seem to always have a solution to any gamer’s dilemma.

But why should you mod? Mods seem to only benefit games and the community––are there any personal benefits to you at all?

Game Mods Are Important For Any Title

Game mods represent any form of player-made content add-ons or changes in the vanilla code. They most commonly come in the form of graphics optimization, which allows you to play with higher-quality renders or completely new aesthetics. Ever felt like giving in-game characters extra baby hairs or a new makeup routine? It’s all possible, thanks to mods!

Beyond aesthetics, however, mods play a crucial role in improving other aspects of gameplay––specifically in extending the game’s life cycle. Any game will eventually come to an end. At one point, you’ll have completed all the achievements, unlocked every hidden quest possible, crafted all the legendary items, spoken to every NPC multiple times, and gone through hundreds of playthroughs. There’s simply nothing left to do––a problem that plagues both game companies and dedicated fans.

That’s where mods come in. A constant stream of content add ons in the form of quests, item packs, and more gives you more chances to play with and explore, extending a game’s playability with ease. Game companies are often concerned with higher-level patches or developing new games, so it’s sometimes up to players to keep the magic alive. Titles like DOOM (1993) and Skyrim (2011) have retained active communities for over a decade for this reason alone. In fact, you can pretty much experience a whole new game with the amount of Skyrim mods available online.

Moreover, as modders directly interact with the game and community on a day-to-day basis, they’re often extremely aware of the existence of bugs and glitches, which some game companies are notorious for leaving alone––for years, even. Leaving a bug unresolved can be game-breaking, so modders who solve these issues are highly valued by any game that acknowledges them.

Modding Adds Value to Your Career

The game industry has a relatively large barrier of entry, which stems from its newness. Because working in gaming is so new, there aren’t many universities where you can directly learn game development. Game devs are usually software developers or something along those lines––but creating an app and a game requires different skill sets.

Moreover, there really is no way to enter the game industry without a certain level of experience. That’s something you have to garner on your own. Like how artists need to learn programs like Photoshop and Autodesk Maya, as a developer or a level designer, you also need to familiarize yourself with engines like Unity and Unreal.

Game modding is a wonderful opportunity to garner the required experience before entering the workforce. It exposes you to the vanilla code and challenges you to make changes to the game files like how real developers would. Apart from hands-on experience with various engines and programs, modding will also help you experience simulated teamwork through joining mod groups and working on collaborative projects together. All the (legal) mods you create can be added to your portfolio, which will help elevate you as a prospective developer, designer, or whatever you choose to be.

Is it Safe to Mod?

There’s historically been a tug-of-war between conservative game companies––with Nintendo being the biggest culprit––and modders. The company has actively pursued violators all over the globe, with one lawsuit after another. Yet there are also more open-minded companies, such as Valve, who have blazed a trail for the Esport industry to thrive by leveraging the foundation built by modders.

For instance, DOTA and Counter-Strike, two PVP-oriented games, were originally mods of Warcraft III and Half-Life, respectively. Today’s Esports scene is dense with competitions revolving around a similar concept: a battlefield where players can battle each other solo or in teams. So while there may sometimes be tension between modders and game companies who strongly protect their IPs, the community has also made huge wins that affected the overarching industry. Ultimately, modders and game companies enjoy a symbiotic relationship, and it’s safe to mod––as long as the game allows it.

There’s a Bright Future Ahead For Modders

The likes of Skyrim, The Sims4, Minecraft, and Roblox have two things in common: they’re successful, and they’re open to mods. Several of the most successful titles in the PC and online game industry have been able to leverage their acceptance of mods as a jumping board to success––and it clearly works. Player-drivenness is a huge selling point for the turn of the century, and with recent commotion over non-fungible tokens (NFTs), which grant ownership to digital assets, mods are expected to become even more important than ever.

While most mods have been free-of-charge, there has been growing interest in purchasing game assets for money––a trend spearheaded by virtual world enthusiasts. Mods are game-changing in the metaverse as they’ll empower various industries to bring one-of-a-kind luxury products into your personal world on the screen. There’s already a digital fashion marketplace, DIGITALAX, for Among Us clothing mods. It’s only a matter of time before the concept of game skins and other content add-ons become player-driven enough to rally a digital economy.

And as a modder, you’ll be in the frontlines of building that virtual world.

References

https://www.gamesradar.com/pokemon-sword-and-shield-sobble-modder-a...
https://www.windowscentral.com/skyrim-ultra-modding-2020
https://www.thegamer.com/the-sims-4-cosmetic-mods/
https://unity.com/
https://www.unrealengine.com/en-US/
https://www.wsj.com/articles/nfts-are-spurring-a-digital-land-grabi...
https://digitalax.xyz/homepage