Subset Games Forum

Please release the source code for the modders of this game. Allot of people are already picking what AWESOME mods they an do. But if you cant can you please tell us why?

Asking for mod support is fine. Asking them to unceremoniously hand over all their work isn't.

Simply put, you don't hand out the source code to a game that has just been released at retail. Handing out the source code means that others can simply compile it and try to sell it themselves (even if an agreement says they are not allowed to, we all know how well that actually works).

They could on the other hand offer mod support so that people can easily modify the associated xml and text files that are packed away now so that modders don't have to use a packing unpacking utlity and can quicker test their mods as well as the end user could combine mods that use different files by simply dropping the altered files into the correct folder and the game would use that file instead of what is packed inside of the data.dat file

Well then can the devs please do mod support for the next update then? If not, why?

The game was not designed to be modded and if someone de-constructed my code base to mod I would not be too pleased, so I can understand Justin's and Mathew's quietness on this issue. They are possibly trying to figure out what to do. Do they allow modding, but remove access to base code or open it out for all to see.

Most source code is open to games that have been super-seeded with newer versions or are Open Source projects. To fully open the source code yourself is immoral/ illegal till you have been allowed by the copyright or permission of the owners. It is like painting a little cat in the background on the "Mona Lisa" because you'd think that would make her smile look bigger.

curithwin wrote:[...]I can understand Justin's and Mathew's quietness on this issue. They are possibly trying to figure out what to do. Do they allow modding, but remove access to base code or open it out for all to see.

They also protected the Windows (at least Steam) binary with what appeared to be a commercial solution, which makes me think that they're not keen on anything except *maybe* stat mods (otherwise they'd have done something crazier with data files, I'd imagine).

Honestly, there's less protection on AAA games than this. The last indie game I saw protected like this was Defense Grid, and it made a lot of modders excited and then very sad (and then suddenly VAC ).

I don't see why they'd need to give anyone the source code. The game is largely driven by XML and even without the devs doing anything it seems people are doing just fine by just modifying data.dat and resources.dat. This allows you to add/modify ships/weapons all you want, the only thing you can't do is change the core game logic but that's not something you generally get to do either.

I think the only thing the game needs in mod support would be a proper mod folder and a proper mod manager so you don't have to replace the original data file to switch mods on and off.