sotku

Hi, in the following you can find some early considerations based on the phase 1 interviews. I also included three further questions and I hope we can discuss them on the forum. If you find it more appropriate to contact me via e-mail that is also perfectly ok. Some of the phase 1 interviewees will still receive more detailed questions via mail. I have deliberately used a lot of quotations to show that the motivation of my further questions rests on the notions expressed by the participants. I hope this approach can offer you some insights into the different ways people see the characteristics of OFP community. Cheers, - olli Olli Sotamaa, Researcher olli.sotamaa@uta.fi Game Research Lab University of Tampere, Finland http://www.uta.fi/hyper/gamelab/ --------------------------- The flexible game architecture that offers various possibilities for innovative modders is highlighted as one significant reason for choosing Operation Flashpoint among other games. “There is great diversity in OFP mods - the open design and game scheme allows people to make WWI era addons as well as "GTA-style" mods, add units and scenarios from almost any battlefield of 20th and 21st century.†“Because of the flexibility of the OFP game engine the themes can range from the wars of Napoleon to Star Wars.†In my opinion, the amount of high level add-ons and mods is truly impressive. The clear difference to many other enthusiastically modded games is the respectful attitude on the original game. If you look at games like e.g. Quake III Arena or Half-life the mods form a real intertextual carneval. Not only are characters ranging from The Simpsons to The Matrix brought into the game but the most extreme total conversions can turn the game into a football match or a rally challenge. Approaches like this seem very rare among OFP mods. In relation to this, it is clear that the celebrated “realism†of the original game - because of which many players seem to like it - has its influence on the add-ons and mods. “I always dreamed of a game in which I would be able to fight in realistic way and experience the war like it probably appears. And of course, I also dreamed of a game that would allow me to play it "in my way".†“OFP is, in my opinion, the first real genuine tactical sim, and to this day remains the only fully successful one.†Also the involvement of professionals from various fields can partly explain the thematic concentration. “The other major factor is the significant involvement of experienced military personnel from many countries. You have Russian soldiers advising the designing of graphical and coding details of Soviet-era armor, US ex-special forces people contributing to special ops addons, and so on.†So, although I have some early explanations and a pretty good hunch about the reasons I’m waiting for your answers and discussion on the following question: *************** QUESTION 1: I would like to hear your opinions on whether the modders’ concentration on military themes is in fact the reason for the uniqueness of OFP modding scene and therefore an important strength or would it make sense to use the flexible engine for even more extreme conversions in the future (e.g. something like Legawarz)? *************** The participants of the study identified an impressive number of different earlier hobbies and skills related to modding. It seems clear that the motivations behind mod making can vary a lot but I suggest a few different approaches or sub-groupings can be identified. I prefer here an action-based taxonomy (hacking, researching etc.) instead of an identity-based (hacker, researcher etc.) since I suggest a single modder can hold several of these standpoints simultaneously. a) Hacking “It was probably the pure interest in the way Flashpoint “worksâ€. [---] I’ve always been interested in studying how different things work, already as a kid I had to take all the toys to pieces. [---] Especially in the early days of OFP it was interesting since everything was unknown and a big part of the process was to discover the ways to implement the ideas.†This is somewhat obvious but still important. In a way modding is a game cultural manifestation of the “hacker legacyâ€. It is no coincidence that the first modern computer game SpaceWar (1962) and its various modifications were developed by the first generation hackers. b) Researching “It depends on the age, I think. Some products are quite mature, made by technicians and/or soldiers (or military fans) who spend more time gathering information sources than actually building addons and missions.†If hackers enthusiastically examine the details of the code, researchers want to clarify profoundly the background and the details of the subject matter. In case of OFP this can mean for example a piece of historical information or a clear picture of the object to be modeled. c) Artistic motivations “The best thing in modding is the experience of creation, it’s like painting a picture.†Artistic approach means using a game as a medium of expression. The motivation can vary from purely aesthetic to a more political one. d) Playing “I enjoyed the game, then got into internet community and tried to develop my own things, because the game seemed to be kinda "incomplete" or I had idea I desperately needed to put working into game †“Also repairing â€errors†has come in especially in context of OFP and a desire to make the game more of that kind I would like it to be, for example in relation to realism and the level of difficulty.†I guess, on a very general level almost any modder can belong into this category. On the other hand, a good amount of participants feel that the time spent on playing has decreased after they started making mods. My idea here is that one important motivation is based on the challenge whether one is able to improve the gaming experience himself. e) Socializing “Well, it is great hobby in which I have met some really nice people. I have found some new friends, some from my country, some from abroad. I enjoy the feeling that I made something for others, they appreciate it and enjoy the stuff.†“In brief I would say that the most enjoyable part of modding has been the co-operation and the creation of ideas with other team members and the enthusiasm to work towards a shared goal.†This one is closely related to the idea of having or not having a “community†(More of this in question 3). The larger the mod project the clearer it is that some sort of social skills are needed. My idea here is that for some people visiting the forums and participating the mod projects is primarily a way to find other similar minded people and make friends. *************** QUESTION 2: I would like to hear if this grouping makes sense to you. Maybe there are some other categories I have not noticed. Or maybe some categories (especially “playingâ€) are too loose and have to be reformulated. *************** Based on the interview data and my observations on the forums and websites it seems that the OFP modder community is quite mature and peaceful (at least in relation to modders of some other games). However, every now and then some things seem to raise tension and disagreement. I have tried to analyse the central tensions as power struggles between different actors. a) Modders vs. gamers “I think the only thing that really causes friction is the continual argument between modders and the less grateful users who can't mod. The one about how modders do this for free in their spare time on the one side, and the other side which says that they are 'teasing people' or whatever else. I think the modders have the upper hand here though. they really don't get paid for this, and I think not enough people understand that.†b) Open-source approach vs. encrypting the projects “The friction usually comes where one of the lone editors either mocks the mods' work, or copies it with a new texture and claims it as his own, or borrows and pilfers it and fails to give credit. Insulting someone's hours spent making something to give away free, or outright stealing it, or insinuating that they stole it, has caused many threads to be lock and folks banned for this immaturity. This also demoralizes the mods, to the point that they decide to no longer create content, or to drop out of the game.†“A more open nature, where nobody gets angry when someone else re-uses your work, would greatly improve quantity and quality of add-ons. The process would end up in a natural selection of work, where only the best survive.†c) Hobby vs. employment “There are two "categories" of modders in the community (that I perceive at least.) 1. Those who do it for fun/to better the game/to add content/to enjoy themselves. 2. Those who do it for personal gain/"popularity"/status.†“There are definitely cliques. The friction, to me, is between those who mod because they like to mod and those who mod to be the best at modding. The latter are probably in it for potential employment.†*************** QUESTION 3: Do you consider these differences in opinion actually exist? Do they help to give a picture of the different positions one can adopt among OFP fans or should I consider some other variables? Can you identify yourself in relation to these positions? ***************

Hi guys, first of all I must thank the OFP modder community for an extremely positive response to our research. We've already received detailed and profound answers from over twenty OFP modders and we're still expecting a few more already promised contributions to arrive. The process of going through the interviews has already begun but it will naturally still take a while. At the moment we're generating some additional questions. I could probably post a couple of generic questions to the forum. This way also the ones who have not participated in the first round are still able to express their thoughts and opinions. Some of the interviewees will receive more detailed questions via mail. The participant will only be asked additional questions if something in his/her initial interview prompts further exploration. This decision process can be quite random (e.g. if two people have touched upon the same issue), so I hope that no one takes it as any kind of judgement on the value of their initial interview answers, let alone their work/role in the OFP community. When it comes to presenting some early results, I'm still considering the suitable means. I'm not actually focusing so much on the comparison between OFP and other games but can obviously sketch some characteristics. This will still take a couple of days, so please be patient. - olli

Got that right, raedor. A couple of questions got mixed up somewhere on the way. Fortunately you guys seem to get the idea anyway.

And special thanks to Hellfish6 for pinning the thread.

My sincere thanks to everyone who's expressed interest in our research so far. We've already received a significant amount of requests and even the first answers but could still handle some more. So, don't hezitate to contact me any time.

Hello OFP modders, We are currently conducting a research study of user-created game content (or "modding") at the Game Research Lab at University of Tampere, Finland. One of the games we've chosen for closer inspection is Operation Flashpoint. As a part of our study we are now inviting OFP modders to participate in a short email interview. If you have created custom content (skins, models, map add-ons, code, mods etc.) or editing tools for Operation flashpoint, and would be interested in sharing your thoughts about your hobby and experiences in the OFP modding community, please contact me at olli.sotamaa@uta.fi. I will send you a set of questions, which you can then answer in your own time as briefly or extensively as you wish. Once I’ve received and gone through a reasonable amount of answers, I will present some general findings here on the forum. Hopefully they will spur some interesting discussions. All interviews will naturally be treated anonymously and no personal information (e.g. email addresses) will be released to third parties. Feel free to contact me for any additional queries. You can also find more information about our lab and the research projects from the web site linked below. I'd personally like to express my sincere thanks beforehand to all participants, and a special thanks to placebo for his favourable attitude to our research. Best regards, Olli Sotamaa, Researcher olli.sotamaa@uta.fi Game Research Lab University of Tampere, Finland http://www.uta.fi/hyper/gamelab/