Why lack of modding ability causes unforseen losses in sales for CA

[Gigantus]

No it doesn't, because what was once a mod is now paid dlc.

Which mod are you referring to? There are four campaigns that are 'DLC' (expansion) - none of which have been claimed to be mods as far as I know.

[Lin Huichi]

Which mod are you referring to? There are four campaigns that are 'DLC' (expansion) - none of which have been claimed to be mods as far as I know.

I'm talking about in general

[NostalgiaFan]

No it doesn't, because what was once a mod is now paid dlc.

Really? because I sure as hell don't remember anything like the Third age mod being paid DLC nowadays. You know about something no one else does?

[Gigantus]

I'm talking about in general

The only mods you ever have to pay for are the original DLCs (the 4 kingdom campaigns in M2TW for example). If you pay for other mods then alert CA\SEGA to it - it's criminal fraud.

[Aexodus]

I do despair at culture packs, it seems ridiculous when here I am changing a few lines in descr_strat.txt, and thats not to mention the wealth of factions mods introduce.

[NorseThing]

I had a thought after a discussion of a discussion with a person who just loves to create modifications. If you followed that opening sentence you are a better member than I am.

He had stated that since he is now very interested in modding, that his actual playing time has dropped like a rock. Well that means as a modder, he is now less likely to but the newest and latest game even if modding was not an issue since he simply does not play as much as he used to.

This got me to thinking that from the corporate side of things, perhaps a new issue with less modding capacity will generate less of a drop-off in future game purchases rather than the reverse as postulated by the OP. I do not like the implications of my thinking and I may be way off base, but it is something to consider.

[Frunk]

A TWC saying, which I believe can be attributed to Ngugi, is "modders don't play". From my perspective, I can say I certainly play less than I would if I wasn't interested in modding, because playing takes away from the time needed to mod. I don't think the saying is entirely true, though. I still make a point to play fairly often so that I remember why I'm modding, and also to learn about the game and see what other modders have already achieved. And the simple enjoyment of playing, of course...

[Emperor Arcturus Mengsk]

Just look at Skyrim. Skyrim had 2 Major DLC's and it's selling like crazy still because it's extremely moddable.

CA has gone the route of 23231323 DLC's and limited modability...

[Aexodus]

Personally, I think Skyrim was a piece of strategic genius from Bethesda. They've seemingly managed to keep a respectable revenue coming in from it. If CA would just realise how much actual content can bring to a game, with old fashioned EXPANSION PACKS like BI, or the Dragonborn dlc etc then I would be more of a mind to purchase. Its the same story with Rome 1 and Med 2 Arcturus, a few dlc can often (but maybe not always) result in more moddability = longevity = long term sales

[PikeStance]

A TWC saying, which I believe can be attributed to Ngugi, is "modders don't play". From my perspective, I can say I certainly play less than I would if I wasn't interested in modding, because playing takes away from the time needed to mod. I don't think the saying is entirely true, though. I still make a point to play fairly often so that I remember why I'm modding, and also to learn about the game and see what other modders have already achieved. And the simple enjoyment of playing, of course...

The only game i do not play is the one game I am modding at the time. However, i rarely play other games much, like ATW, R2, S2, and NTW. I also play, occasionally, Paradox games.
If I am modding the battle AI, I never play except the battles. If I am working on campaign AI, then I may play through to about 1750. It is generally around that time that I can see a few changes. The thing is, I am taking notes on what is happening more than I am "enjoying" the game itself. So, I agree with Ngugi when he says modders do not play. I am always looking for things to change and improve on.

[Strengelicher]

Hi folks, old time TWC user coming back from cryosleep for a comment here. I used to play Medieval II with the Kingdoms expansion and the Stainless Steel mod a lot. At the time, I frequented TWC often and found my way into the AAR department and some of the community competitions as well. It was great to be here. However, when Rome II came out, I was extremely disappointed on many levels. Starting with false advertising and not ending with moving from historical games for enthusiasts to arcade games for... well, to avoid flaming let's say the less astute gamers. Didn't buy and was never tempted to buy any TW title coming after it.

Concerning the relationship between moddability and sales, I'm not sure that moddability guarantees for greater sales of the game in question. Does anyone have any reliable numbers to back this up? I would believe that moddability does extend the "life cycle" of a game, meaning that given the existence of good mods the base game will still be sold long after its release. However, I would expect these "long-time sales" to be fairly low, and I really don't know whether they can compensate for the sale of official DLC. Because I would also assume that there is some level of competition between official DLC and mods, as other people have noted in this very thread. So my bottom line is I would not assume that CA is necessarily missing out on a business opportunity here. Maybe from a financial point of view, either strategy (moddability or not) can work.

Concerning myself, I have waited desperately for another good TW experience - be it either a good base game from CA or a base game boosted with a good mod. But now I don't think that TW games as we knew them from Rome I and Medieval II will come back. The market for historical strategy games will remain vacant until another gaming company steps into the risk and seizes the prize. I have some hopes that this could actually be a Chinese company. In the meantime, I have moved on. I'm playing Crusader Kings II now and then, which unfortunately misses the part of strategic battles MIITW had. But Paradox Interactive's business practices are more to my liking, I really don't want to support what the TW franchise is doing.

[PikeStance]

I am not in the camp that thinks that mods increase sales of games. A business model that has worked for Paradox is the creation of a base game and then "modding" it releasing different play styles within the framework of the base game. Ironically, this is what creative Assembly seems to be moving towards. Create a base game and then develop different playing experiences. The next Rome II DLC seems to fit this description. The Saga games are shorter specific games design to "placeholders" until the next base game is created.

To my knowledge, the only game that people say they buy because of the mods is City Skylines. In all honesty, without the mods, that game would be very boring to play. I do not know too many people who will buy a game because there is "x" mod for it. Generally, you may not know if a game needs a mod until you have at least played it. I supposed you can trust friends input, but how many people fall into that category.

If I am right about CA, then it is a smart move just like Paradox's business model. people complain about the price but many still buy the games at the release price. While I am here, video makers are in the business to make a profit. So, they are definitely money grabbing. If they didn't you can kiss innovation goodbye.