I’m a beginner in the concept of modding. Can someone help clarify my current knowledge about modding, as some things seem fuzzy or just a mystery to me. And I don’t want to hear the answer ‘there is a low chance of your game getting modded’, as I am just curious about the knowledge in general.
These questions are written in context of wanting my game to havea good modding scene.
Here are some questions. You can try to answer one, few, all of them. And if you think I’m asking the wrong questions then also say it.
Questions about the processing of modding:
Is modding like a spectrum of how much control the dev gives the player?
How to make your game easier to mod for others? Is it to give them the source code or just give unreal project (guessing that is bad as they can make cheats easier as well as make their own game with your code)?
Is the best modding method to do nothing and just have lots of custom events, functions, and variables that are easily described so modders know what to look for an change?
Is this a baisc form of modding for the dev to set parameters exposed outside using JSON files for the player to adjust?
What is a modding kit? is that like a custom game editor something like unreal editor?
what are mod loadders?
In the history of modding, was it less of devs releasing kits and players trying to reverse engineer uncompress the game and mess with it? Is it like scientists understand what each code does? If so what type of program do they use to decompress?
Questions about modding in gaming industry:
For game like Minecraft, terraria, GMOD, roblox, Bethesda games how they get so much modding?
Is Super Mario Maker’s level creator features consider modding?
Do companies ever sue mods or no grounds to sue as not selling the mods? or soo many mods and thus not worth it.
Questions about the modding and hacking:
Does not placing anti cheat in your game makes it easier to mod?
Is hacking and cheating knowledge goes hand in hand with modding knowledge?
Is RAM injection cheating methods because of anti cheats, and if a game has no anticheats then hackers would just normally mod it?
Does mods in multiplayer game need all players to have it, or depends on the game’s architecture? Asking as I played host’s game in GTFO and notices my health was infinite, but I didn’t download any mods, or did the host force download mods into my game?
Is modding like a spectrum of how much control the dev gives the player?
Yes, the more files and tools you make available to the public, the easier it will be to modify.
How to make your game easier to mod for others? Is it to give them the source code or just give unreal project (guessing that is bad as they can make cheats easier as well as make their own game with your code)?
I believe modding tools are often provided publicly to signal that the game is open for modding. This also makes it easier to facilitate modding. If a lot of your resources/scripts are loaded externally, then it is easier for users to swap out and modify those resources. Here are some examples of early modding tools:
Is the best modding method to do nothing and just have lots of custom events, functions, and variables that are easily described so modders know what to look for an change?
That’s one way. As with any software, good documentation helps to encourage communities to customize what you’ve released.
Is this a baisc form of modding for the dev to set parameters exposed outside using JSON files for the player to adjust?
That could be considered an opening for modding, though in cases like this, it’s best to have some way of toggling the mod functionality so that it’s possible to revert back to the original values if needed. But even changing textures or character skins is considered modding.
What is a modding kit? is that like a custom game editor something like unreal editor?
what are mod loadders?
A modding kit is just a piece of software with the tools for modding your game such as custom level creators. Mod loaders are a mod themselves that makes it easy to install and uninstall mods for a particular game.
In the history of modding, was it less of devs releasing kits and players trying to reverse engineer uncompress the game and mess with it? Is it like scientists understand what each code does? If so what type of program do they use to decompress?
Many early 90s PC games were released with a modding kit, I think more games were released with kits than without. It is in the best interest of a game development company to release a moddable game as long as the mods only work with the retail release (not a demo). This means more people are buying the game so they can mod it as they see fit.
For game like Minecraft, terraria, GMOD, roblox, Bethesda games how they get so much modding?
Encouraging a creative community to grow around the game inspires players to make and share their mods with each other. The games you listed are also very popular and fun on their own without mods.
Is Super Mario Maker’s level creator features consider modding?
I think so. I think making any sort of custom content for a game is considered modding including custom levels and skins.
Do companies ever sue mods or no grounds to sue as not selling the mods? or soo many mods and thus not worth it.
Yes, I believe it happens sometimes, usually when the mods are being sold for profit or when they involve copyrighted material. Here’s an article.
Does not placing anti cheat in your game makes it easier to mod?
Yes, anti cheat software is a tool that can detect mods that could give players an unfair advantage. So that would limit the types of mods able to be used in that game. If you have no anti-cheat, then anything goes.
Is hacking and cheating knowledge goes hand in hand with modding knowledge?
I think it can be argued that modding could be a gateway to cheating and hacking. I think it depends on the motivation of the individual and the communities they are in.
Is RAM injection cheating methods because of anti cheats, and if a game has no anticheats then hackers would just normally mod it?
I would assume that would be the case.
Does mods in multiplayer game need all players to have it, or depends on the game’s architecture? Asking as I played host’s game in GTFO and notices my health was infinite, but I didn’t download any mods, or did the host force download mods into my game?
It depends on the game and what the mod does. Usually if the mod is only for cosmetics (textures, skins), it doesn’t matter. But if it adds items or affects gameplay, everyone probably needs to have it. With some games like Lethal Company, there are “Server Side” mods that if the host has it, it affects all players.
There is a lot of interesting history on modding in general. Might be a good idea to just Google around or use the Wikipedia page as a jumping off point to learn more.