Modders, don't make external links available

[Heto]

Guys, there is no other version than Steam version of this great game available - so basically everyone who asks for an external download link of your mod has pirated the game.

So there is literally no reason for you to make them downloadable outside of Steam. There is a site called skylinesnations or something like that, please don't support them - because that site will be the main hub for all pirates.

Remember that every pirated copy means less money for the devs, which also means that we may not get an expansion pack or free DLC of great quality.

Do you agree with me?

[Burlokk]

Agreed.
Many butt pirates already revealed them self on a certain mod with external link , saying "thanks for this" but they did not even have the game in their library.

However, i have been told that Workshop can cause troubles for some people who make more advanced dowloads with constant updates.

[Heto]

Originally posted by GANuclearShadow:

No, I don't agree with you. There are reasons why a modder may host his mods elsewhere even more so on personal websites. To help self promote themselves if they are seeking a job within the industry. I don't believe Steamworkshop at-least at this time has the same effect.
In-fact if I were to mod for this game with the desire of attention coming on to me I believe I would likely not post my work on the workshop at all. Instead I would promote it on this forum, and reddit. Directing everyone to my site rather than here.

Also you are wrong about the piracy aspect. Don't get me wrong I'm not advocating for piracy. But rather constant updates to a game and support is a anti-piracy measure. Steam and clients like it are popular because of the ease of use involved the games simply patch themselves. While pirates don't have this luxory so whether a patch comes to fix bugs or add features to a game they have to hope someone bothers to crack every single patch that releases. Continued support is the best anti-piracy measure while also making consumers happier.

I think that the main reason potential pirates have bought this game is that you can get most of the mods only here on Steam. I've seen plenty of people in other sites and forums who say that they have pirated the game, but wanted to play with mods so they bought it.

It's comforting to know that they already sold over 500k copies, but... yeah.
This is the first game worth its price since a long time.
I would really like to see the devs get the money they so rightly deserve...

And I'm not that much worried about modders, because they can advertise their mods on Reddit or whatever site they visit. Since the game is only available on Steam, there is no reason to make a 'download link' available, even if they crave for attention.

[PhearFactor]

Agree with Hepari00.

[Heto]

Wait a second... [GA]NuclearShadow, you don't even have bought this game yet.
I see you have plenty of games in your library, so I don't think you are a pirate yourself, but get the game, man. It's great.

[BLÀde]

don't agree civfanatics hosts civilization mods outside of steam and that place doesn't feel piraty there are a lot of modders who only put their mods on that site they refuse to use the workshop. because sometimes workshop can be a complete ass and not install your mods no matter how many times you subscribe etc it's done it to me in civ V many times!

[Mansen]

Originally posted by BLÀde:

don't agree civfanatics hosts civilization mods outside of steam and that place doesn't feel piraty

Last I checked it wasn't the websites hosting Workshop mods that were blamed for making piracy worse - It was the people using them. Aside from mods that won't fit (+250mb) or aren't allowed (copyrighted music et cetera) there is NO reason to host them anywhere else.

Food for thought - People have been trying to spoof the Workshop downloading system to specifically download workshop content for pirated copies.

[BLÀde]

the real big civ V conversion mods are well over 250 MB. some are even as big as 1 gb

[Sol]

Originally posted by Ghost B.C Papa Emeritus II:

Agreed.
Many butt pirates already revealed them self on a certain mod with external link , saying "thanks for this" but they did not even have the game in their library.

However, i have been told that Workshop can cause troubles for some people who make more advanced dowloads with constant updates.

You need to be reporting these people. I hate pirates.

[Nokturnal]

The argument against pirating is so silly. Pirates buy more games than people who don't pirate, it's usually a try before you buy thing with them. Saying you're losing sales due to pirating doesn't take in account the people who pirated the game THEN bought the game. Also, you can't say you're losing money to people who would've never bought the game if they couldn't pirate it.

Also, suggesting mod-creators to never place mods outside of Steam gives way too much power to Valve. Good competition like GOG would suffer due to being unable to provide customers with mods. Just think, one day Steam might actually stop working as technology advances to no longer require it. Noone would be able to play any games that solely rely on Steam or be able to mod it. It's not plausable but it is possible.

Plus being a seasoned modder I have to say I prefer not to use steam workshop, certain mods require more files to be edited and a 3rd party program to be used to work correctly and the workshop doesn't allow for that. On top of the fact that keeping all your mods in one folder on your hard-drive is way more organized than subscribing to them in the workshop.

(For example certain Skyrim mods that add more texture variation to the game require a 3rd party program to actually edit all the variations into the game.)

I'm personally waiting for a GOG version myself because I'd rather support them, than Valve. Why? Cause Valve's customer service is so bad they made my friend find a 10 year old CD key in order to not be locked out of his account that he spent thousands of dollars on. On top of the fact they took forever to return his e-mails and refused to accept any other way to verify his ownership of the acccount.

[MrCynical]

There's also the bug where assets downloaded from the Workshop (but not from other sources) won't show a preview graphic - a particular issue for intersections. So there's a perfectly legitimate reason for people to want non-Workshop mod downloads, leaving aside the fact that many mod authors don't like Steam Workshop.

[xılǝℲ ★]

Originally posted by Nokturnal:

The argument against pirating is so silly. Pirates buy more games than people who don't pirate, it's usually a try before you buy thing with them. Saying you're losing sales due to pirating doesn't take in account the people who pirated the game THEN bought the game. Also, you can't say you're losing money to people who would've never bought the game if they couldn't pirate it.

Also, suggesting mod-creators to never place mods outside of Steam gives way too much power to Valve. Good competition like GOG would suffer due to being unable to provide customers with mods. Just think, one day Steam might actually stop working as technology advances to no longer require it. Noone would be able to play any games that solely rely on Steam or be able to mod it. It's not plausable but it is possible.

Plus being a seasoned modder I have to say I prefer not to use steam workshop, certain mods require more files to be edited and a 3rd party program to be used to work correctly and the workshop doesn't allow for that. On top of the fact that keeping all your mods in one folder on your hard-drive is way more organized than subscribing to them in the workshop.

(For example certain Skyrim mods that add more texture variation to the game require a 3rd party program to actually edit all the variations into the game.)

Agree so bad on this. Wouldnt even have bought this game if I didnt torrent it first. You can look at my Steam games collection, yes I have torrented any game that was able to. Pirated games are almost never up to date and always lack functions (MP, bugs, etc).

These days so many crap gets released its always best to try it first. And since demo is a strange word to most developers these days, pirating is the only option.

[Mansen]

Originally posted by Nokturnal:

Also, you can't say you're losing money to people who would've never bought the game if they couldn't pirate it.

Except you can cut them off and force them to buy the game if they want to enjoy the full experience - Valve also have to pay up for the server costs required to host all of these files in the first place.

And let's stop that whole "pirates buy more" bs right away - There's a difference between trying and buying, and longterm(permanent) use of "free trials" with more and more content.

Originally posted by MrCynical:

There's also the bug where assets downloaded from the Workshop (but not from other sources) won't show a preview graphic - a particular issue for intersections. So there's a perfectly legitimate reason for people to want non-Workshop mod downloads, leaving aside the fact that many mod authors don't like Steam Workshop.

Hate to break it to you but that issue is not restricted to just workshop downloads - It's a "global" problem.

[Heto]

Pirates buy games? You must be joking.
Considering the majority of mobile gamers (90%+) never pay for the in-app purchases, I really don't think your argument is valid in any way.

In most of the cases, they are whiny little freeloaders who pay easy money for fast food, but think they can get games for free. And that's really pathetic.

[BLÀde]

yeah you want to talk about pirates the mobile gamer is over 9000 times worse than pc gamers at pirating!

also the workshop is full of a lot of jerks. they will just come in and bad mouth your stuff without even ever using it.

[Xort]

I have receved a copyright take down notice for a highway roundabout section that I shared on mega. I doubt that the claim was filed by any of the 3 other potential legit owners (CO, Paradox, Valve) but I find it interesting that some people are posting on forums about this.