Is buying future CD Projekt Red games worth it to modders considering the support we are receiving???

[thisisweak]

Is buying future CD Projekt Red games worth it to modders considering the support we are receiving???

I am really disappointed right now. It has been weeks since the Mod Kit tools have been released. We have asked for support, and the only answers we get, for the most part, are from other users.

Broken Items:
Mod kit unpacking. Not all meshes and textures extractable. (some GOG users cant extract at all!!)
Spaces in Directory names (that they set up!)
Model editing. While some have found solutions, they are a pain in the butt! There is no reason what so ever that CD Projekt Red could not have explained or created a fix that exports models with complete skeletons.
And finally the completely convoluted process of Uncooking, Exporting, Importing, and Recooking. (I have spent at least 100 hours working on the Mod Kit GUI to solve this problem. While it is very very far from perfect, it is a lot more effort than CD Prodjekt Red bothered to do).

While I am grateful for the wonderful game they created, these mod tools are so unfriendly, there is no enjoyment in supporting this game and creating new assets.

Will they do this to us in the future games??? Probably.

I am therefore stopping development of my GUI, and will not purchase any CD Projekt Red game in the future until these issues are addressed.

 

[dragonbird]

While you're welcome to your opinion, and a lot of it I agree with, that closing comment was irrelevant to the discussion and totally out of line. Keep it civil if you wish your message to have any impact.

 

[Sarcen]

I think you are completely overreacting, I agree that their "mod tools" leave a lot to be desired (they are pretty useless). But the game is great and I never bought this game with the sole intent of modding. So if they release another great game that isn't modifiable I will still buy it.

I kinda wonder why they don't just release their version of redkit tho. But perhaps it's a mess and has all kinds of hard coded paths etc in it, or it could also have to do with middleware licenses. I guess it could also be extremely broken and releasing it to the public would just get more negative attitude because people expect everything to work perfectly (*looks at OP's post*), if that were the only reason it would be nice if they were to release it in some closed beta form to dedicated modders tho.

 

[erxv]

im 100% sure the reaction we would get, if CDPR would release the Redkit (which is probably very buggy atm) would be... "why did they release it so buggy??, why didnt they just wait and fix it before releasing?? " etc...etc....

just freaking wait.....

 

[Riven-Twain]

I'm not a modder, so I don't know enough about the process to go into technicalities; however, I've been observing CD Projekt RED for a little while, and a few things stand out. First, judging from the number of bugs and glitches in the game, it occurs to me that perhaps even the developers' tools weren't entirely perfect. If I recall correctly, they had to design a few of them from scratch. Thus, if they still need to improve their own programmes, how could they possibly be expected release a fully featured modding kit? Second, they made a very ambitious game: It was their very first attempt at such a large-scale world, with so many details and variables, so I think they were likely learning a bit as they went. I think they're still learning, even now.

Third, although they are popular, they're still not a huge company with very deep pockets. To cut expenses -- which always stack up depressingly quickly -- I suspect they had to limit testing, with the intention of correcting the game post-release, based upon player feedback. Is that entirely proper? Perhaps not, but it got the game out, and into the impatient hands of players faster. If the REDs had held back to exhaustively test and perfect ever aspect of the game, and develop a user-friendly modding kit, likely it would have meant further delays. Another six months, or a year, perhaps? After the previous postponements, this would have continued to cost them even more money, annoy fans, discourage interest, and ultimately hurt sales. Overall, It was a very ambitious project for a comparatively obscure company, attempting to compete in a rather merciless, fast-paced, and constantly changing market. I believe we can see the results of their attempts in the game. All things considered, though, under the circumstances, I think they've managed fairly bloody well!

 

[dragonbird]

I could add to the OP's list of bugs (I've already given direct feedback). And yes, it's very frustrating to keep hitting these roadblocks, some of which have workrounds and some don't.

I've no idea why it was released with these problems, and it's probably pointless speculating on the reason. What I very much hope is that they respond to them, and also that they take a little time to fix them, so that we don't hit new problems with the next release.

 

[CarolKarine]

It should be considered that this is an in-house solution. IE, CDPR is the only company using this engine, and then when you consider the size of CDPR vs other places that use in-house tech....

Middleware licences is also a problem. I'm coming to the belief that the umbra streaming tech is the only thing holding many levels together, and without it there just simply wouldn't be an open world.

Speedtree is notoriously nasty about letting people have their stuff, too.

And Nvidia isn't exactly fond of sharing, either.

 

[Wasteland_Ghost]

Guys, there are tons of games with ZERO modding support people still try to mod (and it's fun in its own way, BTW). Although I'd love better tools, having script sources and script compiler is a HUGE help already and there aren't that many companies out there that provide modders even with these simple tools.

 

[thibaudv]

Guys, there are tons of games with ZERO modding support people still try to mod (and it's fun in its own way, BTW). Although I'd love better tools, having script sources and script compiler is a HUGE help already and there aren't that many companies out there that provide modders even with these simple tools.

It's weird like that. Take GTAV for example: no modding support, people are even getting banned for modding, but the game is still more moddable than TW3 (stuff like that iron man mod is just crazy).

 

[berserker66666]

As far as modding tool is concerned, CDPR released one of THE WORST modding tool in recent game history. I mean they could've taken their time to at least fix all the time and make a proper GUI so it's user friendly and functional but it seems they rushed it out the door. Disappointing.

To thisisweak, I understand the hassle you went through and very unfortunate that you're not gonna work on the GUI anymore. Quite a few modders were relying on that GUI to make importing/exporting easier. A lot of other modders are having hard time trying to figure out how the modding tool even works, let alone mod the game. The irony is, CDPR who made an amazing open world game, released a broken "Official" mod tool and instead of fixing this, they're working on making more expansions. Very unlikely of them.

 

[emrdesign]

The biggest mistake from CDPR is now their lack of communication towards the community about RedKit. (And that sure does not cost much money to do). They make the same mistake that Crytek made with staying silent for a very long time about releasing a level editor for Crysis 3. That annoyed the community a lot and made a lot of people leave the community. So CDPR should be open about releasing a Redkit for the Witcher 3 yes or no. In both cases the community will know what is happening and they can either decide to stay or leave the community. It is not unfair to ask for answers from CDPR, its unfair (and stupid) from CDPR not to answer.

And on topic: Buying future CDPR games yes or no is not the question. The question is when to buy it. Buying it via pre-order, or on release date, or buy it later when you are satisfied (or not) with what you would get for your money.

 

[ph3s]

Emmm.. Stop buying games cos there is no modding tools? Industry is doomed

 

[Foxtrot1994]

released a broken "Official" mod tool and instead of fixing this, they're working on making more expansions. Very unlikely of them.

Whoa now. What's more important and has more value for us gamers across all 3 platforms? A modding tool for PC or full fledged expansions on all platforms? So which one of the two should take priority?

I'm no modder but I take the word of people more expert than me, and I feel for them if they are not satisfied with the modding tools. I get it's a disappointment. But let's try not to go overboard because of it and enter BS territory, as always happens.

As for the topic at hand, games are for playing them first and foremost. Modders are gamers too. So I don't see why they shouldn't buy future CDPR games if they are interested in them. For fear of not receiving proper mod support? Excuse me, no offense, but that does seem a very petty reason for not buying a game altogether, as I see it.

Weak modding support is something to be called out for, and concerns should be voiced, but such a drastic reaction is ridiculous.

 

[dragonbird]

So CDPR should be open about releasing a Redkit for the Witcher 3 yes or no. In both cases the community will know what is happening and they can either decide to stay or leave the community. It is not unfair to ask for answers from CDPR, its unfair (and stupid) from CDPR not to answer.

This has already been answered:
https://twitter.com/Marcin360/status/632182348260470784

This is the mod support for the Wild Hunt. At this moment we are not planning to release anything else.

 

[emrdesign]

This has already been answered:
https://twitter.com/Marcin360/status/632182348260470784

No it has not been answered. The "At this moment" in the Twitter message makes it still unclear as CDPR stated in earlier communication that it would release modding/editing tools AFTER the release of the paid expansions. As that time is not yet passed the "At this moment" still leaves room that their might be a RedKit after the expansions. That is why the community wants a CLEAR yes or no answer from CDPR about the RedKit for the Witcher 3.

 

[dragonbird]

It means "No".

 

[emrdesign]

It means "No".

Thank you for clearing that up. Clear communication is essential. An apology from CDPR would be appreciated. (But very unlikely of course.) So I guess many of us can now move on and stop wasting our time in here.

 

[essenthy]

while Modkit isnt perect in any ways and has many issue you're totally overreacting , we all know that we need a full Redkit, but this kind of post isnt going to get us anywhere and i see lots of peoples who dont even try to mod the game and yet they complains about ModKit

 

[berserker66666]

Well gentlemen, it's been a good discussion and I guess we know where CDPR stands with the REDKIT so I'm just gonna say that CDPR played us like a damn fiddle.

 

[Bytecode]

Well gentlemen, it's been a good discussion and I guess we know where CDPR stands with the REDKIT so I'm just gonna say that CDPR played us like a damn fiddle.

( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°) metal gear has little modding support too sadly, only mesh swapping or something like that