Interceptors

Published June 15, 2007
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If you're going to build a modding system into your game, please make sure you are familiar with the chain of responsibility pattern. Modders should not be overwriting assets in your game folder if they want to reskin something; they should be giving you a handler that redirects requests for the original assets to the replaced assets. That way the mod can be removed, have its priority changed relative to other mods, etc etc, without having to screw around recovering assets from the source media.

Imagine if every aspect of a game - every location, every weapon, every character - were developed as a mod for an empty/vanilla base? And I mean using the full modding mechanism that is eventually released to the gaming public - with an ability to mix and match everything. When releasing, you compile all your mods together into one big one. I think the result would be interesting.

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Comments

Ravuya
That's pretty much how Oblivion/Morrowind work; save games are just "patches" to the base game data, as are mods.
June 15, 2007 02:22 PM
superpig
Except that they're not, at least on Oblivion. Actual scripts are .esp or .esm files, but assets are just raw files dumped into the appropriate folders in /data/. It makes for some fairly hellish conflict resolution at times.
June 15, 2007 08:09 PM
Ravuya
I've never added assets, so I'll take your word for it. That does sound truly hellacious.
June 15, 2007 11:36 PM
remigius
I think Neverwinter Nights (the orignal, don't know about 2) comes quite close to what you're suggesting.

I wrote more, but I got a 500 error posting this and another one posting nothing short of an essay to Kylotan's journal. Spite dictates this'll have to do :p
June 19, 2007 09:13 AM
deja_vu
a base for mods.. what if the actual game was also developed like that.. as a sort of mod.. with subtle difference so that it seems like the main app.. hmmm.. if it has to.. i wonder if that made sense.. :|
July 05, 2007 07:51 AM
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