DICE Says No to Mod Tools For Battlefield 3

[Arehexes]

RIP Dedicated Servers
RIP PC Support Equality
RIP Mods

What more is just going away, "because it is too complex"?

Aren't there still dedicated servers and 64-man multiplayer for the PC version?

But there are no public server files. You cant setup a server on your own machine, you need to rent it from 3rd party.

I don't understand how that is suppose to work at all -_-, but my question is if they are going to use punk buster or not.

 

[shaboinkin]

They could do what Bethesda does if they are really scared about lost revenue from dee-el-cee.
If something gets put up that goes against their terms of service (As in recreating expansions), send them an email asking them to take it down or legal action will be taking.

It's not that hard.

 

[UnderCoverGuest]

HAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA.

MY GOD. Just reading that actually took my breath away. This...wow. HAAAAH. If that just isn't a dedicated insult to us modders, I don't know what is. Man, I can't even think of anything to say, this is just too much. Wow.

 

[sluggyfreelancer]

Ouch... That's not a smart move DICE. Not a smart move at all...

I get the feeling it was primarily EA's decision and them who pressured DICE into denying modding tools, since DICE have supported modders in the past.

Incidentally, i... really do not care. I do play on PC, and yet, i absolutely loathe mods. I guess i have a very purist view when it comes to games. I don't like people fucking with things that should be as they are and as they were intended to be. It's why i will never mod STALKER or Fallout, despite them being notoriously moddable games. I know, i know. It's silly, i can get more content and fixes out of mods. I just... don't like the concept of modding.

The only two things i've modded extensively are Oblivion with the Nehrim mod (a German mod that completely overhauled the world, the game, the story, the levelling system and included professional-quality voice acting for this entirely new and lengthy experience) and Minecraft with the PhotoRealism mod for up to 128x128 pixels (I tried to patch in the 258x258 HD mod, but that caused the game to keep crashing) as opposed to the normal 16x16.

That's how I view mods so you're not alone on that.

 

[JWAN]

I say that there will be.
I respect dice but I might want to modify my game.

 

[GeorgW]

That's a huge disappointment. But if it really is that hard, maybe proving you can get by without mod tools will be proof that you're good enough. I don't think it'll be that hard of a blow, but it's a really bad publicity stunt.

 

[Owlslayer]

Well this isn't certainly great news, that's for sure.
I myself am not an avid modder, tho i do use them from time to time. But i can see a lot of people getting mad because of this.

 

[Scizophrenic Llama]

I don't like this, given the awesome things I know that would have come of it. I think they should at least release a mod kit at a later time.

Regardless I'll be getting the game on PC. 64 player combat is my only reasoning on that part.

 

[Irridium]

You shouldn't underestimate the mod-community. Even if it takes years, they will become more powerful than you could possibly imagine [http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/111488-Galactic-Warfare-Brings-Star-Wars-To-CoD-Universe].

 

[ImprovizoR]

It's going to be very difficult for people to mod the game, because of the nature of the set up of levels, of the destruction and all those things ... it's quite tricky. So we think it's going to be too big of a challenge for people to make a mod.

Well of course it's gonna be hard WITHOUT THE DAMN MOD TOOLS

Let me tell you why they're not releasing any mod tools. DLC! If you give people mod tools they can create their own content, and even recreate DLC. Without mod tools they can sell you whatever they want. Fuckers!

 

[Still Life]

For one, it hasn't taken that long for them to develop the game, so obviously it's not all that time consuming. For another, not having mod support is the best way to force people to pay for new maps, etc.

I wouldn't expect anything less from a studio who have developed the engine tools in-house, more or less from the ground up, whilst concurrently developing a product. My understanding is that most mod tools people use have been developed into a much more user friendly and streamlined SDK by a developer.

Is it that much of a stretch to believe that the engine tools aren't ready for public use, and that DICE wants to focus on finishing and polishing one of the most anticipated games on time?

That's not what they're saying though, is it?

They weren't very forthcoming on detail, so you can interpret in a few ways. Going off from what I know, it can take a fairly large amount of time (and money) to bring a complex engine into a usable software package for those who have not had the benefit of intimate knowledge of developer tools.

Engine tools in many studios aren't always centralized into a convenient and accessible package, and given that DICE is quite clearly creating an advanced next gen engine, it seems like a reasonable (if arrogantly articulated) point to make. Perhaps they have plans to work on an SDK? Or maybe it is simply an excuse to charge $15 for a map pack? I'm not going to assume anything until we hear more and for now I'll accept DICE's reasoning as valid.

Still, I'd much rather see the community get their hands on mod tools.

 

[Adzma]

There is already a boycott
http://www.d-gu.com/gamers-planning-a-battlefield-3-boycott/

Heh because every other boycott to date has made a HUGE difference. Silly kids these days. How many copies did MW2 sell again?

OT: As has been stated no one buys your BS "ENGINE IZ TOO HARD FOR YOU GUYSH" DICE. We all know that you either can't be bothered putting the time in, or EA won't let you due to this new fad that modding means people won't buy DLC. Smart people wouldn't buy map packs anyway. Sooooo overpriced. >_>

 

[Still Life]

-snip-

I can totally understand. I can also appreciate a cynical mind

PS. Interesting link, by the way.

 

[UltimatheChosen]

I don't think they're being unreasonable.

Their point isn't that it's impossible to make mods, it's that any set of mod tools would be so difficult to use that they'd see limited use, so they're not going to bother to make the tools.

 

[Victoras1984]

I don't think they're being unreasonable.

Their point isn't that it's impossible to make mods, it's that any set of mod tools would be so difficult to use that they'd see limited use, so they're not going to bother to make the tools.

Assuming there are any usable tools. It's not unheard of in the gaming industry to have tools with huge learning curves that crash if you sneeze at them.

Maybe getting those tools in shape for a public release (Bioware or Blizzard standards) will warrant a very big effort, so they're just prioritizing other stuff.

 

[vivster]

sounds more like "please don't discover the secrets behind our awesome engine"

 

[Frank_Sinatra_]

This is not a good move, and you know it DICE. Battlefield 2 had some of the coolest mods ever created, and yet you're deciding to slap the modders in the face.
It's up to the modders to decide if it's too complex.

I was going to get it on the ps3 since I CAN'T STAND PUNK BUSTER, I don't want that useless software on my machine at all.

I'll give ya that. Punk Buster is a terrible piece of software.

 

[CD-R]

There is already a boycott
http://www.d-gu.com/gamers-planning-a-battlefield-3-boycott/

Heh because every other boycott to date has made a HUGE difference. Silly kids these days. How many copies did MW2 sell again?

OT: As has been stated no one buys your BS "ENGINE IZ TOO HARD FOR YOU GUYSH" DICE. We all know that you either can't be bothered putting the time in, or EA won't let you due to this new fad that modding means people won't buy DLC. Smart people wouldn't buy map packs anyway. Sooooo overpriced. >_>

That was the boycott for the exclusive pre-order bonuses. Which isn't even an issue because they don't give you exclusive unlocks just earlier access to stuff everyone can unlock. Which becomes a moot point after about 3 days. Even less if you're playing on the PC where people can set up boosting servers.

Still what I care about more is whether or not they are going to to do the free map packs like they did with Bad Company 2.

 

[icyneesan]

Oh DICE. Just watch, the mod community will break and shatter your 'too complex to be modded' idea. NOTHING is to 'complex' to be modded.

 

[NeonWraith]

The other way to look at it, given the way they talk about the destruction, etc. is that the game is really heavily scripted in terms of destructible scenery and they don't want anyone to know.

Also, yeah. Map packs.