Skip to main content Accessibility help
×
Hostname: page-component-7479d7b7d-jwnkl Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-07-11T05:18:19.832Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false

8 - Mod the World: How Entrepreneurs Learn from Video Game “Modding” Communities

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  31 July 2021

Matthew McCaffrey
Affiliation:
University of Manchester
Get access

Summary

But mods can do a lot more than just modernize a game. Mods can transform an old title into something entirely new and far better.

Rafi Letzter, Business Insider

Gaming provides both a great source of entertainment as well as a welcome mental release for the end of busy days. However, for certain players, it represents something more as well—a chance to create. For them, opportunities to inject their own visions into the worlds they explore offer exciting new ways to stoke their passions and give back to the gaming community. These innovators, known colloquially as “modders,” not only correct the inherently frustrating mistakes made by developers but also bring fresh new content to the games we know and love. After all, what would the Bethesda worlds of Fallout and Elder Scrolls be like today without the dynamic hand of the modder? Would multiplayer online battle arenas (MOBAs) actually exist? How about the incredible new technical marvels displayed in the massive open worlds of Rockstar franchises Grand Theft Auto and Red Dead Redemption? Not to mention the incredible prevalence of the MMORPG.

The list goes on and on, but truly, gamers owe much to the industrious and creative minds of modders. For those unfamiliar with this practice though, what exactly do I mean by “modders” and “modding”? Poor (2014, p. 1250), in his qualitative and quantitative overview of this phenomenon, offers an excellent definition:

Modding, from modifying, is the act of a changing a game, usually through computer programming, with software tools that are not part of the game. This can mean fixing bugs, modifying content to improve it, or adding content. But modding is not an activity taken on by those at game companies—developers release patches and downloadable content, not mods. Modding is instead done by players and fans of the game … Modding is more than adjusting the preferences or game settings, it is making changes that cannot be made through the game as it is.

What might we say about these individuals in a grander sense? More precisely, do they matter beyond the confines of the games they modify? This chapter aims to partially answer this question, and (SPOILER ALERT) the answer is a resounding YES! How so? In terms of entrepreneurial learning (and ultimately judgment;

Type
Chapter
Information
The Invisible Hand in Virtual Worlds
The Economic Order of Video Games
, pp. 183 - 210
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Print publication year: 2021

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

Save book to Kindle

To save this book to your Kindle, first ensure coreplatform@cambridge.org is added to your Approved Personal Document E-mail List under your Personal Document Settings on the Manage Your Content and Devices page of your Amazon account. Then enter the ‘name’ part of your Kindle email address below. Find out more about saving to your Kindle.

Note you can select to save to either the @free.kindle.com or @kindle.com variations. ‘@free.kindle.com’ emails are free but can only be saved to your device when it is connected to wi-fi. ‘@kindle.com’ emails can be delivered even when you are not connected to wi-fi, but note that service fees apply.

Find out more about the Kindle Personal Document Service.

Available formats
×

Save book to Dropbox

To save content items to your account, please confirm that you agree to abide by our usage policies. If this is the first time you use this feature, you will be asked to authorise Cambridge Core to connect with your account. Find out more about saving content to Dropbox.

Available formats
×

Save book to Google Drive

To save content items to your account, please confirm that you agree to abide by our usage policies. If this is the first time you use this feature, you will be asked to authorise Cambridge Core to connect with your account. Find out more about saving content to Google Drive.

Available formats
×