Mods, or remaking a game

Just the name, "Mod" should hint at what it means. No, not the Mod Squad, not Modern, but Modification. These take an existing game or game engine (say, Half-Life, Myth, or Diablo) and change it. Some mods are minor - new artwork, changing the statistics or goals to make the game harder. Others are far more extensive.

Now, this isn't a new idea - game manufacturers have been making addons and sequels for a long, long time. And mods aren't always... well, they don't always get support from the manufacturer, but neither do they get stopped. Game manufacturers know full well that a good mod (or set of mods) only increases the life and demand for their game. Some even put out tools to *help* mod-makers (the insane wait for the 1.10 patch for Diablo II is partly due to this - all the creature stats are being moved to a spreadsheet format for mod makers, among other things.)

How good can a mod be?

This runs the gamut, since they're all made by fans. Some are real stinkers, and die a quiet death. Some are nothing more than new maps (for games like Red Alert,) and don't really qualify as "mods." Some are... well, you decide what to call things like the "Nude Raider" patch for the Tomb Raider series, which puts Lara Croft in a gunbelt and a smile (I've never been lonely enough to want to stare at a squared-off woman's simulated bits, so...)

Some go into full campaigns (some of the maps for MechCommander 2 at Mechlab are like this, and quite good - and hard.)

Some go farther and leave nothing similar to the original game intact - The Mill has some incredible modificatoins to Myth and Myth II - great games in their own right - that leave nothing untouched - check out the WWII Giants section, among others.

And some become so big they're bought outright and sold - ever hear of Counterstrike, for Half-Life? IT... started out as a mod.

Pretty good, eh? Some of the *initial* games are old enough to get them for $10 or less. Add some good mods, and you've gotten several games... for the price of one.