LucasArts Embraces Game Mod Community 183
An anonymous reader writes "LucasArts has taken a great step in promoting the modification of their titles and supporting the communities that love them! According to this press release, LucasArts has teamed up with LFNetwork to open LucasFiles.com. The site is dedicated to all files that fall in the LucasArts realm." Given competing games like Neverwinter Nights, which have a phenomenal amount of user-created add-ons, this is a very smart move for LucasArts.
CS (Score:5, Insightful)
Re:CS (Score:5, Interesting)
CS-Retail is utterly stupid but, knowing the nature of people who play cs (there are a great many lamers), it's utterly successful as a standalone game.
Re:CS (Score:3, Interesting)
Re:CS (Score:3, Interesting)
Re:CS (Score:2)
Re:CS (Score:4, Insightful)
Nothing suspicious about that at all, people needed the basic to play the mods so they got sold...
Re:CS (Score:1)
Re:CS (Score:2)
Jar-Jar Remodel (Score:5, Funny)
No. of downloads: 8732
Rated: 10 stars
Description: Highly requested! Jar-Jar replaced with a baywatch babe!
This is not a troll, this is a pleade for it to be done
-Foxxz
Re:Jar-Jar Remodel (Score:2)
Does it hold any potential? (Score:2, Insightful)
Re:Does it hold any potential? (Score:1, Interesting)
Re:Does it hold any potential? (Score:3, Funny)
Preemptive PR? (Score:4, Interesting)
Re:Preemptive PR? (Score:1, Informative)
The following is taken from the June 25th news posting (yes, almost 6 months ago):
"Their message requesting the removal of the site is based on the presumption that we are distributing LucasArts own engine on this site. Of course, ScummVM is a fully original work based equally on reverse engineering and original decoding work by many different people in the community, so this request doesn't really affect us."
Later, in their October 17th, State of the Scumm address:
The main issue at the moment is their requirement for a 'non-profit' clause. We need to push this clause to prevent any -direct- profit from being made by selling ScummVM itself (seriously, who would want to anyway? geez
"Hopefully I can knock some sense into them, and convince them that there's nothing wrong with this, otherwise this whole negotiation period - and it's being going on for months - will be pretty pointless. Basically, we need to have their permission to use an Artistic-license style clause."
Finally, in their December 7th update:
"To date, LucasArts has not been able to give us any firm complaints regarding ScummVM, besides some vague claims that if they didn't enforce these conditions on us, it would effectively give up their rights to their own Intellectual Property. We do not believe this, there certainly have not been any documented cases of the GPL leading to such a challenge in the past..."
At least pretend like you're writing a balanced reply.
Re:Preemptive PR? (Score:5, Informative)
- Ender
Leader Type Person,
ScummVM
Anyone remember the SWMA??? (Score:5, Insightful)
I'm thinking particularly of their shutting down the Star Wars Modelling Alliance [surfthe.net], a fan site devoted to developing (surprisingly good) models of Star Wars characters and creatures. The sheer amount of creative work that came out of people using those models was astonishing. In additional to publishing a lot of great freeware models the site would also post some of the "pictures" and "films" that people had made, etc.. Some were complete gems - one that sticks out particularly in my mind involved a few ATSTs rampaging around urban London.
Perhaps there is someone associated with the site here that knows better, but I was always under the impression that their persistent and long-lasting "hardware difficulties" which started shortly after E1 came out boiled down to letters from the legal department at LucasFilm.
It is a real pity that existing law is structured such that market-regulation can be used to crush non-market creativity.
So what does this imply for ScummVM? (Score:5, Informative)
(For anyone who doesn't know, ScummVM [slashdot.org] is a replacement .exe for old games like Day of the Tentacle and Monkey Island; it uses antialiased graphics and hardware MIDI to dramatically improve the picture and sound, and runs on any platform SDL does - unlike the old .exe's that come with the games, which struggle to run on modern machines. LucasArts seem to have mistaken ScummVM with an abandonware site...)
Re:So what does this imply for ScummVM? (Score:5, Informative)
Seriously, I can probably talk about this now the site has been announced. The original 'proposal' from LucasArts to deal with our 'problem', was (this was suggested to us about 7 months ago) to be hosted by 'their upcoming mod site' - what is now known as LucasFiles..
This would apparantly have solved the legal issues they have with us (which they have never really explained or clarified except in vauge terms).
But basically, all LucasFiles is supposed to be is a host for FPS mods. Big whoop. The LucasFiles people didn't want us (I gather), and the whole idea was completely torpedoed when I pointed out that moving from SourceForge would require work on their part - eg, we'd need equivilant services like CVS ecetra.
Anyway. It was suggested, it never worked.
As for sharing technical details, the last time I asked their response was "We're not intrested in doing so at this time, maybe we can discuss it MUCH (their verbal emphisis) later."
- Ender
Head Monkey Wrangler,
ScummVM
Re:So what does this imply for ScummVM? (Score:3, Informative)
Just because LucasArts PR is pushing the game mods aspect of LucasFiles... well that means nothing. Yes, there are mods hosted there... k. There's also a Fan Games section and a Classic LucasArts section. You know that I'd love to put ScummVM up there too... I'm tempted to but I fear the nasty letter of doom. Bah. LucasFiles isnt perfect but its silly of you to fall for marketing.
Jake
jake@mixnmojo.com
designer, lucasfiles.com
channel toadie, #scummvm
Re:So what does this imply for ScummVM? (Score:2)
Re:So what does this imply for ScummVM? (Score:2, Interesting)
Re:So what does this imply for ScummVM? (Score:2)
This particular discussion was in the middle of one of those wonderful "but why can't we do this?" phases. You remember those?
- Ender
ender@scummvm.org
luser, lucasfiles.com
channel founder, #scummvm
Re:So what does this imply for ScummVM? (Score:3, Informative)
The real site is here [sf.net] and this time I'm using Preview.
Re:So what does this imply for ScummVM? (Score:1)
If you omit that in the a href tag, it assumes you are linking to a page on the same site you are currently on.
NWN is not the answer. (Score:2, Troll)
Until they fix the camera angle, I'm sticking with EQ. Above all I need to be able to play w/o contracting chronic nack/back injuries from trying to see what's 15 feet in front of my character all day.
No, Bioware did not deliver on this one folks. They highly restricted the user environment, and there is very little customizability in the game at all(except hot-swappable keys which have been around almost a decade).
Game mods have been been a huge benefit to gamers(Half-life being the best example). But it's going to be someone else that runs with the fantasy genre.
Re:NWN is not the answer. (Score:5, Informative)
There are plenty of user made mods that free the camera, along with tons of other mods that expand and extend the game. The _usermade_ Pool of Radiance mod is better than the recent standalone game!
This is exactly the kind of thing that makes NWN great, and probably why LucasArts is so interested.
Re:NWN is not the answer. (Score:1)
Re:NWN is not the answer. (Score:2)
pool of radiance also had a great story, deepness, great gameplay, great character advancement(from killing 8 kobolds into going to superheroes capable of killing 300+ kobolds at battle) and generally everything the remake lacked.
Re:NWN is not the answer. (Score:2)
Re:NWN is not the answer. (Score:3, Informative)
Re:NWN is not the answer. (Score:2)
Camera hack by BrandonW [ign.com]
Looks pretty cool, but it's depressing that Bioware didn't do it themselves.
Re:NWN is not the answer. (Score:2)
" Great job. I'm glad to see someone "Gets It" about the
camera angle. Its just a shame someone from outside has to
do this when it should have been released this way. The
camera Flame Wars when NWN was first released would never
have occurred. All those folks who said "It can't be done."
Probably distantly related to the same folks who thought
the world was flat...."
Re:NWN is not the answer. (Score:2, Interesting)
They're not going to "fix it", but there's a Mod that does release the camera, so if you really want it, you can have it.
I won't spend time countering your "no customizability"-statement, but I can agree that NWN was nowhere as good as I should have been.
Re:NWN is not the answer. (Score:1, Funny)
I think you have a chronic brain injury if you're trying to look around corners on a monitor by moving your head.
But what was the question? (Score:4, Insightful)
Personally I'd much rather play D&D with a good dungeon master than EverQuest, so I like NWN. I don't see why the camera angle is such a big deal; I can see more than far enough to cast a fireball without toasting the rest of the party. And I really don't get the "little customizability" comment - I can customize the whole damn game!
It's not EverQuest, and you don't have to like it, but NWN already has about 1800 published mods. Clearly a lot of people think it's a good game for modding.
Re:But what was the question? (Score:1)
The camera, besides creating a "stiff" feel, and the real-time aspect make the game feel more like a twitch game and far less tactical than Baldur's Gate and real D&D.
Re:But what was the question? (Score:2)
Google: http://nwvault.ign.com/Files/hakpacks/data/102856
Amazing, no?
And as for wanting a more tactical game, why not just make liberal use of the pause key? I mean, that's basically what you did in BG, right? (except you could tell it to auto-pause every round, but that's clearly overkill when you have only one character).
NWN was never supposed to be like Baldur's Gate, but it really is the closest anyone's come to "real" D&D on a computer. Forget the official campaign. It's sort of fun, but if that's all you've done, no wonder you're disappointed. Try playing a highly-rated custom module online with a group of friends.
Re:But what was the question? (Score:2)
The camera angle make it more rpg like, where you don't really know whats ahead of view and often get surprised by the next troll around the corner.
It also gives sense to stats like listen, or spot.
Surely Lucas himself can't be behind this? (Score:3, Funny)
I mean he's ignored the fans for how long?
But surely this will be the one true mod site. As in, 'If you don't want to play by our rules (No killing Jar^2) or else..
Great but, (Score:5, Informative)
They've done it before, see (Score:1, Informative)
Re:Great but, have you seen the submission release (Score:5, Informative)
If this Officially Sanctioned site follows Lucas Arts policy in any way it will be up for grabs once you post. If they borrow from your idea, you won't get anything for it. Sure you might get bragging rights, but that's about it.
Take a look at the Submission Release [lucasarts.com] (.DOC) that you must submit when applying for an Art Position ( FX ARTIST 2 [lucasarts.com] ) with the company.
For those without Word or Open Office:
2. I understand and acknowledge that because of LEC's position (i) it receives numerous submissions of artwork and music from third parties, and (ii) it is constantly developing in-house ideas, formats, stories, concepts, artwork, music, and the like, and that many such submissions and/or developments heretofore or hereafter received and/or developed by LEC may be similar to or identical to those contained in my Submission. I understand and agree that LEC's use of material containing elements similar to or identical with protectible property contained in the Material shall not obligate LEC to me in any manner if LEC shall have developed or obtained such material either heretofore or hereafter independently or exclusively from sources other than from me.
Re:Great but, have you seen the submission release (Score:2)
And?
If you create a derivative work based on and requiring use of a LucasArts game, shouldn't LucasArts be the one that stands to benefit financially because of it?
This seems like a pretty standard and harmless working arrangement to me.
Re:Great but, (Score:2)
All your mods are belong to George!
LFNetwork != LucasArts (Score:1)
Look at the submission terms (Score:5, Informative)
You hereby grant to LF Network the royalty-free, non-exclusive, transferable right and license to use and exploit all rights in copyright in and to Your Posted Material throughout the universe in all forms of media, whether now known or later developed or created. Accordingly, among other rights, LF Network may reproduce, modify, publish, translate, distribute, sell, perform, and display Your Posted Material alone or as part of other works in any form, media or technology.
Furthermore, the terms of submission incorporate by reference Attachment A [lucasfiles.com], which reads:
Fatal error: Call to undefined function: latest() in
Weird moderation... (Score:2)
Re:lawyers battle ahead (Score:2)
Soon on El Stupido channel:
Better than catfights in the mud, lawyers fight throughout the universe in all forms of mud !!!
shameless plug (Score:2, Informative)
Yeah... (Score:5, Funny)
Re:Yeah... (Score:2, Funny)
I can almost imagine an aroused wookie chasing after Leia. Sort of like a german shepard getting excited over a pillow, but bigger....
Re:Yeah... (Score:2)
Doom Total Conversions? (Score:1, Interesting)
one of 'em had you going around inside the friggin death star! it was great.
so was the Aliens Total Conversion mod for that matter. scary as fuck with the sound clips.
The spirit of game mods was started by Rob Malda (Score:1, Offtopic)
Modifications of Slashdot's intrinsic features began to crop up. Rusty Foster's Scoop project turned into Kuro5hin, a site for green party members and graduate students. A bunch of Nuke-based software turned up to, such as PostNuke.
Game mods are just like weblog software -- they facilitate community building. There's a great community of LucasArts gamers consisting of developers, game mod creators, artists, musicians, and gamers. In relation, there's a great community of weblog sites like Slashdot, Kuro5hin, Metafilter, and Monolinux.
Don't overlook the often overlooked. Give some credit to Rob and other webloggers. That's my message, basically.
Thanks for reading.
Re:The spirit of game mods was started by Rob Mald (Score:2)
Sweet! (Score:4, Funny)
Oh, wait.
Great! Now we can program the game the right way! (Score:2)
Long live the original trilogy, the way it should be.
Very surprising. (Score:1)
Jedi Knight 2 mods (Score:1)
Premtive stirke? (Score:2)
maybe.... (Score:5, Informative)
This could be a cool thing just so long as the lucas guys started to release bonus packs kinda like the Unreal guys, that and if it hasn't already happend a new big fluffy pack(aka bfp3) for jedi knight 2 if there isn't already one......
Re:maybe.... (Score:2)
Re:maybe.... (Score:1)
Re:maybe.... (Score:1)
Re:maybe.... (Score:1)
The best mods will still get killed (Score:5, Interesting)
New maps, more wookies, flying yodas, etc will probably be tolerated. How would they feel about Jedi Starfighter being turned into a Star Trek game?
But if someone did something like a total conversion mod, say about Dragonball Z or the such, and they gave it some name like Bid for Power, and it was really really cool - much better than any official DBZ game ever created - FUNimation would send out cease and decist orders.
This is a good step, but the modding communities options are still extremely limited.
Re:The best mods will still get killed (Score:5, Insightful)
Re:The best mods will still get killed (Score:2)
The point of my post was that I find the notion of "the best mods" only being based off of other copywritten works (ala Total Conversions based on other games, comics, movies, cartoons, etc) pretty narrow-minded. I also think that mod creators using such copywritten material are wasting their time and should expect to be unsupported by the game's company, who are themselves in the business of selling copywritten material.
If someone is going to bother creating a mod, perhaps they should spend some time coming up with their own storyline, characters and setting. This is not to say that no good mods were based on stolen material. I've played quite a few good ones that were.
Re:The best mods will still get killed (Score:2)
Pod Racer (Score:2)
Anyways, I didn't see anything for Racer at the new mod site. Maybe it's time I make the time for it. It was never an 'open' game, but there is very often a way...given persistence. Sometimes all you need is a laid-off engineer. Hmm, like me.
I'd start with figuring out how to add pods (kinda like the car models you can add to 'Need For Speed'). Then tracks and other fun stuff.
Shitstirrers, Muckrakers Unite! (Score:5, Funny)
Just imagine Kirk, Spock, Bones, Scotty and Uhura all flying around in an enterprise-skinned millenium falcon. It'll take the concept of nerd-to-nerd combat and make it a high artform:
JARJAR_85
Mesa no lika vulcans.
KIRK_237
Set Phasors to kill.
On another note, surely LucasArts realise that their new MMORPG universe will be 95% populated by naked Natalie Portmans.
enuff FPS already! (Score:3, Interesting)
Re:enuff FPS already! (Score:2)
[/joke]
Another "borrowed" business plan. (Score:1)
- I have no reason to download your mod, but I do have many players.
- Why do you have many players?
- I learned how to win players from Bioware. Why don't you download me?
- Are all things are not always are not always are not always are not always are not always are not always are not always are not always are not always are not always are not always are not always are not always are not always are not always are not always are not always are not always are not always are not always you need to know you learned from Bioware?
WTF LucasFiles? (Score:4, Informative)
Yes, we have been talking to them along the way, and bits of the site was made in a way that would suit the notorious Lucas Legal (most importantly the disclaimers you agree to when uploading and downloading a file). That "little bit" aside, it's our site.
That doesn't mean they can't decide how they're going to promote it. Their press release and the small blurb on the main page of LucasArts.com says that it's "home to mods of LucasArts games," but that's not the limit of the scope of LucasFiles.
In addition to mods, we can also host full-on fangames that don't require, say, Jedi Outcast, to run. Odds are we could host fan games that aren't even related to Star Wars (probably not fan games of the sequel-knockoff variety, I'm talking original stuff)... And, we're also working to reach into the depths of our hard drives and long abandonned file download areas to find some classic stuff that was formerly hard to get your hands on (for instance, old promos and demos relating to Sam & Max hit the road, Day of the Tentacle, Grim Fandango, the Monkey Island series etc etc etc as well as some Lucas titles that are "classics" for entirely different reasons... like Force Commander and Yoda Stories ).
Anyway, by limiting LucasFiles to "another Mod site" or claiming it is LucasArts's own site, made in an attempt to woo you into not noticing some other evil, for one you're wrong, and for two you're really pigeonholeing something the fan community's been after for quite some time. Its amazing to see LucasArts as excited about it as we are (and they are).
Jake
designer, lfnetwork.com
webmaster, mixnmojo.com
LucasArts embraces mod community... (Score:1, Interesting)
Re:LucasArts embraces mod community... (Score:1)
In Other news... (Score:1)
DarkForces MOD (Score:1)
Sam and Max FPS? (Score:2)
Re:MMORPG (Score:4, Informative)
You may remember SoE/VI from the craptacular service they give on Everquest. You'd think that on a company that's pulling $2million+/month profits they'd be able to afford a better support staff.....
But yeah. SWG isn't LucasArts.... For LucasArts... somebody tell me where I can get a nudie mod for Jedi Knight II? Oh yeah... I wanna shoot at naked clones of Jengo Fett....
Re:MMORPG (Score:1)
Re:MMORPG (Score:2)
Jengo Fett????
I sense a great disturbance in the force, and i believe it's eminating from a large horde of Natalie Portman fans who are about to vocally let you know the error of your ways!
Re:MMORPG (Score:3, Interesting)
Re:MMORPG (Score:2)
Re:MMORPG (Score:1)
The starwar's fans will get their collective butts kicked. Though I do admit that a swarm of x-wings could be fairly irritating, photon torpedos travel at warp speeds. Ouch.
Re:MMORPG (Score:1)
Fortuna Miner's Democracy forever.
Re:MMORPG (Score:1)
http://www.penny-arcade.com/view.php3?date=2001-0
http://www.penny-arcade.com/view.php3?date=2000-0
http://www.penny-arcade.com/view.php3?date=2000-0
Wow. The similarities are frightening.
Re:MMORPG (Score:2, Funny)
The starwar's fans will get their collective butts kicked. Though I do admit that a swarm of x-wings could be fairly irritating, photon torpedos travel at warp speeds. Ouch.
shut the fuck up.
Re:They live again (Score:3, Insightful)
Re:They live again (Score:2)
Re:Seriously though... (Score:2, Funny)
Buying Maniac Mansion, etc... FOR ScummVM (Score:5, Informative)
I bought (just a few months ago) both Indiana Jones games, Day of the Tentacle, Sam & Max, a Monkey Island or two, Loom, and I don't remember what all else. But the point is I bought them BECAUSE of ScummVM, and I wish LucasArts would just GET IT and leave the ScummVM folks alone. They're not stealing IP. They're not hurting profits. They're actually contributing to sales of older games. Why are they still being hounded?
Ah, well-- enough ranting. Glad to see the ScummVM folks are sick of waiting for LucasArts to make up its mind, and have gone ahead with the latest release of ScummVM without their permission. Good work, guys!!
Re:Buying Maniac Mansion, etc... FOR ScummVM (Score:1)
Re:Buying Maniac Mansion, etc... FOR ScummVM (Score:2)
Seriously, you just have to take a look at EBay prices of classic LucasArts/Films/Games games before and after ScummVM supports them. Also look at how quickly the LEC store and Amazon start selling out of packs when ScummVM releases a new version.
They're being incredibly naive. ScummVM is selling games for them... it may bump up the piracy a little bit, but they are still overall selling more copies of their classics than ever before.
Re:Buying Maniac Mansion, etc... FOR ScummVM (Score:1)
The copy protection schemes on the original games would be non existant in any warez copy anyway.
Re:Supporting the communities? (Score:1)
About those files.... Sorry that "they" havent gotten around to it. Oops, maybe this truly is a fan-run free time project. Ass.
Jake
Re:It won't last (Score:2, Insightful)
Re:The best all-LucasArts file site there is. (Score:1)