Steam opens door for paid mods to enter Steam Workshop, starting with Skyrim
Steam Workshop has allowed content creators to make money by contributing items to games, but now Valve is about to let them sell their mod work, too.
Steam Workshop has been offering new avenues of revenue for content creators, offering money for those that have contributed weapons, maps, and items. Now Valve is opening up a new path for contributors, allowing mod creators to put their work on Steam for sale.
Mod creators will be able to list a price for their work on Steam Workshop. Any work purchased will see that money go directly to the mod creators. Anything purchased will be available to play immediately. Valve is kicking the feature off with The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim, with other games set to be added soon.
Steam Workshop has brought in over $57 million for content creators, with mods providing the newest way for them to make a few bucks. Of course, free mods will still be available, for those that want to maintain the purity of the modding community.
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replyOzzie Mejia posted a new article, Steam opens door for paid mods to enter Steam Workshop, starting with Skyrim
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Ok, all, what do we think of this and the potential implications?
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Items, yes. But this is the first time that mods, something that has traditionally been free in PC circles, will now be available for purchase directly from the mod makers.
The example I'm falling back on is, what happens when something like this comes to Cities: Skylines? That's a $20 investment off the bat, but what if all of those games mods suddenly start to cost money? Does that change how you approach the game? Do you hesitate to pick up mods at that point?-
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Cities: Skylines explicitly said you can't charge for mods that use their code (which is the majority of mods right now):
http://www.reddit.com/r/CitiesSkylinesModding/comments/2zxym9/wip_more_beautification_water_props_terraforming/cpns44o -
I think paid mods is a great thing, especially in the case of Skyrim. I've been using the same mods for almost 4 years now, and I'd gladly support mod developers as long as its at a reasonable price. It's also worth noting that Facepunch Studios basically exists today in its current form because they were able to sell Garry's Mod (which still sells tons of copies).
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I think it would be interesting if the game developers got a cut (the post suggests they don't), because then there's an extra incentive to build in mod support. I'm sure this would enable some sort of bad behaviour, but I don't know what.
I don't like the idea of seeing mods split up like mobile apps, with a limited "free edition" and a paid "full edition". Also, currently I can usually download a Fallout/TES mod and then make changes to it myself -- but if it's a paid mod, I'm less sure what I'm allowed to do or who I can share it with. -
Let the price gouging commence. Without vetting for quality this could turn into the Windows App Store pretty quickly.
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The owner of the mod can file a DMCA takedown request.
There have been a few cases in the past with DOTA2 and CS:GO cosmetics where a mod maker stole some art, threw it on an item and submitted it to the workshop for profit.
The only difference there is that Valve chooses which items make it in to the game. Right now there doesn't seem to be any approval process for having a mod added to the workshop. Valve also doesn't seem to be doing any sort of QA on these either.
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I'd be willing to pay if it did two very, very important things
1) Combined the most popular mods and installed them without issue (including ENB) so I don't have to worry about configuring anything
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2) Maintained updates that were made to the package to keep compatibility and such so I don't start up a game and it either tells me a mod I had used last session isn't working or just crashes to desktop. -
Popcorn is in the microwave.
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Interestingly, they also have a "pay what you want" which I think is a nice way to be able to donate to modders:
http://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=429374670&searchtext=
Some mods just take code and asset from the games though, which I think gets into some legal gray areas when you start charging.-
Where do you see a "pay what you want" option? lol
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That's technically NOT pay what you want. lol It's pay what you want above this certain amount.
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Presumably this is worked out behind the scenes since the publisher/dev has to sign up for the workshop for it to be available anyway. My guess is they get a cut.
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Yeah, I don't understand this either. It has to be against some kind of EULA.
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Some of the stuff available for games like Skyrim are so massive, that the work involved in making them must be herculean. I would love to be able to compensate people for their effort.
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I think this damages the mod community. Crap mods will go up for sale first in a kind of flood. The really good ones will be the ones people wouldn't mind throwing a few bucks at, but it means you have to only release your mod on Steam if you want any money or they could just get it from free from the usual places. Those crap mod authors won't even give that point a second thought before posting their mods.
We don't need more pay walls. I'd be in favor for built-in donate buttons if anything.-
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A few months back I read a blog post from a CS:GO map maker who was lucky enough to have his map included in a recent operation. Every map maker that has their map included in an operation gets a cut of the ticket sales. This guy was able to put the money he got from ticket sales towards living expenses while he was still in college.
People love to paint Valve as the bad guy for putting up these pay walls but they don't realise how the income generated for the content creators can help improve their lives.
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I see they're also doing bundles:
http://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=429226887
*IF* these are decent curated bundles of quality stuff.... MAYBE, just maybe I'd consider dropping some money if I was assured it would all just work and not have problems vs the wild west method of dealing with mods that usually happens. But, that bundle is half the price of the original game.
And we thought DLC was going to break the industry. gak!-
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And by "comments," you mean the same two or three copied and pasted repeatedly.
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Yeah. It's pretty typical ragespam.
However, I think the pricing is really problematic. This pack of a few items and some gameplay tweaks costs more than the game itself! Also, I'm usually not sure if I like a mod and want to play through the whole game using it until I've messed around with it for several hours at least.-
I think you will see a lot of these mods have a pay version and a free version, to facilitate trying it out.
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I think you'll see this whole thing come crashing down pretty quickly.
People, by and large, are not going to pay for mods. Especially not when just a couple of them cost more than the entire game does during Steam sales.-
That assumes that there won't still be loads of free mods. These things can and will coexist.
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Of course there will be. There's still free games and free software even though both are sold as well.
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Did I miss something or is Bethsoft going to allow this? Because they don't.
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DOH. Get ready to see mods being pulled and put back on for cashola.
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My mod has 151k subs, imma be rich!
http://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=10648-
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Yeah, fast hack i whipped up a couple of days after they released the creation kit. I don't get how its still one of the top 20 highest rated mods on the workshop.
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Or maybe its top 30. Been a while since I checked.
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It's fucking fantastic, that's why it's so popular.
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I don't think I like this idea.
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how much for the realistic horse pussy mod
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Maddogs mom does this for FREE.
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It's not free if it destroys your sense of dignity.
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*sob* It's so true.
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If this had been around 3-4 years ago what would have happened with DayZ? Perhaps they would have just kept making the mod better instead of shifting to the arguably incredibly slow standalone development.
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This is great.
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This is a fucking terrible idea. And attaching it to a game that's 4 years old and already has probably long since seen the peak of modding interest (and effort) makes no sense at all, especially given how many mods already exist for it and the incredible ease of pirating the content (unless they're adding DRM).
They should have waited until Fallout 4 to start this, and launched with it.-
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True, but my point is that it's also established already, both in terms of the audience (who I'd wager will not take to paying for things they already got for free), and the creators (who now have to decide between ignoring this, charging for stuff that was free, or developing new stuff and only charging for that).
If they did this with a brand new title, made a big hubbub about how mod creators could now get paid for their work and all that, I think it might go over okay (minus the potential issues with paying for content that interacts with a game but that the game developer has no ability to test).
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Information on how much money mod authors get out of the deal.
From http://gamasutra.com/view/news/241836/Game_mods_can_now_be_sold_on_the_Steam_Workshop_for_real_money.php :
A Valve representative responded to Gamasutra's request for clarification on revenue splits by highlighting the Skyrim Steam Workshop page, which notes that all revenue from sales of Skyrim Steam Workshop content will be split between Valve, Bethesda and the content creator(s).
People who sell Skyrim content on the Workshop get a 25 percent cut of the revenue, but it seems that the amount a content creator receive is ultimately up to a game's publisher or developer. New supplemental terms for the Steam Workshop legal agreement state that "the percentage of Adjusted Gross Revenue that [content creators] are entitled to receive will be determined by the developer/publisher of the Application" for which they've created content.
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Wonder if they do the thing like Apple App Store where you only get paid at different sales milestones.
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Yup. Saw on reddit that you don't get jack shit until they owe you at least $100. Given the 75% cut Valve/Bethesda are taking, you'd need to make $400 selling the mod before you get paid your $100. Meanwhile, Valve and Bethesda split $300 for doing...what exactly?
I do not understand how anyone can be supporting this blatant exploitative cash grab on their parts. This isn't about helping modders get compensated, it's about a cheap and easy payday for two giant corporation.-
Figured as much. Though from my audit/accounting experience it does make tracking accounts payable and recognizing revenue much easier.
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I believe that's the same cut current steam workshop stuff gets. Steam takes a cut for distributing it on their service (I'd guess around 30%) and Bethesda takes a cut for making the game the mod relies on and the mod tools. Doesn't seem too unreasonable to me.
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While there is some value in Steam's distribution and Bethesda having made the game in the first place, I don't think these ratios are even remotely appropriate.
IMO, at the very least, 75% should be going to the mod makers. The "risk" on Valve/Bethesda's part is basically nothing, compared to the much more voluminous amount of risk and/or work the mod makers take when developing mods instead of say, developing something else. I just don't think they are in the right here, at all, especially given what they're offering.
Now, if this was them offering support for bug and compatibility testing, making certain that mod creators got updates ahead of time to update their mods, etc, then I can see an argument for them getting a bigger piece of the pie.
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Err..... no. No, individual mod makers are not taking more risk than Valve or Bethesda. Like at all.
Valve and Bethesda also could have devoted the significant resources they spent on the Workshop (Valve) and mod engine support + Workshop (Bethesda) support on other things. So it's categorically not zero risk for Valve or Bethesda. It's an huge investment. -
How much money will the mod makers be spending on support? Probably nothing. Valve will be shouldering the cost of responding to all the support tickets that the paid mods will generate. They are also hosting and developing the platform that is being used to sell these mods.
I don't know of any distribution platform that takes less than a 25% cut of a sale.
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Is that legal?
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Of course. It's just a contract.
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For doing what? Valve assembled over 15 years a platform with around 100 million users. The code and architecture of both Steam and Steam Workshop would take tens of millions of dollars to recreate. The games that mods are being sold for are also millions, if not tens of millions, worth of investment dollars. Having "proper" mod support in a game to take advantage of the Workshop is also a considerable investment that's at least 6 figures if not 7 in scale.
For a user to be able to spend a few days to leverage that level of investment and that large of an investment is pretty spectacular. -
Yeah, Bethesda and Valve bring nothing to the table. No game that allows for easier modding. No giant store front.
JFC. It's as if making a buck in video games is a crime to some of you.-
This thread is more tame than any of the ones going on at reddit. They're all filled with 17 year olds who are livid at the thought of paying for content created by others.
There are some valid concerns that have come up in response to this announcement but it doesn't warrant the rage filled comments people are spewing.-
The attitude is still one of entitlement.
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This awesome. I love it.
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They've already said. They will offer refunds for 24 hours if it's broken. Otherwise, they advise posting about it on the mod's discussion board.
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This is really surprising. I just got home from work and haven't read what the overall reaction is to this. I'm all for supporting people from whom I gain entertainment from but this isn't the right way to do it. It's going to ultimately devalue the overall product and.....well the more I think about it, there's a million things that makes this a mess. Is steam trying to attract people from the MODDB or something? Anyone can make money on using Bethesda's ip? How will they support it? Will there be refunds? Good god..
Sorry, I'm rambling but this is....this is disappointing. It's going to take so much heart and soul out of some of the mods man. The ability to donate would be so much better. I'm really not one for hyperbolic rage but..well this just kind of pisses me off. I guess I'll see how it plays out and give everyone the benefit of the doubt. Shit-
It's going to put so much crap to sift through on the Workshop. So many mods will be born out of profit rather than passion. This is certainly terrible news for the consumer and I'd argue it's going to hurt the mod devs in the long-term. Before we know it, there will DLCs on mods and a shield with a Dr. Pepper logo on it.
Terrible precedent.
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This is great. The content creators can choose to release for free like traditional mods, or make money for their work. That's exactly the way it should work.
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I've calmed down a bit since initially reading it but I maintain this will hurt modding in the long-term. 75% / 25% is really only benefiting Valve/GameDev and charging for a mod will only mean it will be on less computers.
Modding was never a "for profit" thing to begin with - if they wanted to "show appreciation" they would either flip the percentage, replace it with a "Donate" button, or keep it the way it was and promote them on the slider. Let's be realistic, entitled gamers are going to make modder's lives a living hell because of support and any other stupid shit that entitled gamers bitch about. For 25%. Of 10s of dollars. Have you read the Steam forum? What was once a project of passion now becomes a part-time job where you're making 40 cents/hr trying to make YOUR mod work with THAT mod or get an unjustifiable negative review and needless drama. What if someone takes a modders "original" work and uses it in his mod? It's going to complicate things and make it worse for everyone involved.
I swear if EA did this with the 75% / 25% scenario the world would literally split in half. This is nothing but an extended revenue stream for Valve and the Game Studio in which they have to do absolutely nothing (!!) to collect.
...and I would love to see modders get compensated (somehow), just not like this. I understand there's a bunch of game-devs and modders on this forum and have a bunch of empathy for the cohorts. I just see this as nothing but a short-sighted cash grab shrouded in good intentions. I hope I'm overreacting but this just seems like a terrible precedent where the real losers are the gamers & the modders. I hope I'm wrong as fuck.
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