Hello everyone, As passionate members of the BeamNG.drive community, we know firsthand how much time and effort goes into creating mods. That's why we believe it's important to find ways to support modders and ensure that they can continue to create high-quality content. Modding today isn't the same as years ago. In addition to the creativity and skill required, there are often monetary expenses involved in the modding process, such as the use of specialized software like Substance Painter. Paid mods can help to ensure the longevity and viability of the modding scene by providing a way for modders to monetize their work. This can help to attract and retain talented modders, as well as incentivize the creation of new and innovative mods. An official paid mod repository would not only create a legitimate and secure place for modders to sell their work, but it would also benefit developers by providing them with a cut of the revenue generated by paid mods. We also believe it would provide a safe and secure platform for users to purchase high-quality paid mods. By requiring all mods to be approved by the BeamNG team, users can be confident that they are getting well-vetted and legitimate content. This not only helps to protect against scams, but it also ensures that users are getting the best possible experience. To ensure the quality and legitimacy of paid mods, the system should be integrated into the official mod repository and subject to manual approval by the developers or approval team. Paid mods should meet a minimum quality standard set by the developers and should not exceed a price of 5€. In return for hosting and supporting the paid mod repository, BeamNG should receive a percentage of the revenue, such as 10-20%. This would not only benefit the company by providing a new source of income, but it would also show support for BeamNG and the modding community from modders and users alike. To prevent piracy, each paid mod should be unique and verifiable through the game or another platform, similar to how Steam game codes work. One possible solution could be to package the mod in a locked .zip file or an encrypted file system that can only be decrypted by the game. For example, Android uses .apk files which are simply zip files with a different extension. These files can be encrypted to ensure that only authorized users can access and use the content, while also protecting the work and rights of the author. A similar system could be implemented (let's say with something like a .bng file extension) to the repository. To ensure customer satisfaction and fairness, it is important to have a clear refund policy in place. This policy should outline the circumstances under which a user is eligible for a refund, as well as the process for requesting and obtaining one. Some potential reasons for requesting a refund could include game-breaking bugs, failure to meet advertised quality level, or unauthorized charges. It may also be helpful to include a time frame within which requests must be made, such as within 30 days of purchase. A transparent and fair return policy can help to build trust and confidence in the entire system. I'm not a developer, so I might be underestimating the resources and coding required to implement something like this. However, I believe that the benefits of such a system would outweigh the effort involved. By providing modders with a legitimate and secure way to monetize their work, developers with a new source of revenue, and users with a trustable platform, a paid mod system has the potential to enhance and sustain the modding community. Overall, we think this is a great idea. It wouldn't override the current repository system, and would only be an addition to it. People would still be able to make free mods, and paid mods would have better protection with the use of an official system. This would encourage modders to make better content and would also attract new modders, which is always a good thing. Hopefully most people will agree that this is overall a great idea for all the parties involved. We certainly believe it is. - The BeamNG Modding Community List of modders onboard with this project (in no particular order): @LJ74 @Theo Wilkinson @Finn Wilkinson @Kajzer @DrowsySam @Inn0centJok3r @aljowen @Gregory TheGamer @szanto_sz @Nekkit @RenAzuma66 @AX53 @DutchyGamer @StivJocuri @joushuaYT @CrashHard @Jamie599 @Kueso @Nacho Problem @TrackpadUser @DaddelZeit @Dayz Me Rollin' @Alieu @FalloutNode @13Stewartc @Bentonchiez @Shadows @Aari (Please let me know if I forgot you and you want your name added to the list!) Feel free to react and voice your opinion on this idea. No matter who you are, we need your point of view. We all know this community is great, and now is the time to show it
I believe Microsoft Flight Simulator uses a very similar system to this. They have a lot of developers on their in game 'repository' that you can purchase planes from, and depending on the quality the prices will be different. Having a similar type system here would not only allow more people to purchase any paid mods but to also allow them to receive updates directly through the game without having to go to a separate website every time there's an update. Limiting the price is also a good idea since usually the base BeamNG.drive game goes for $20 USD. Maybe something could be implemented where modders can set prices for specific currencies like USD and euros for consistency across them. Overall, I do like this idea and hope many others believe the same.
What about making addons for these paid mods with different file extensions? They couldn't be unpacked into raw files for obvious reasons, so is it out of the question?
All I can say about adding paid mods to the repo is fr Though I believe the repo should have both paid and free mods on the same page, with each clearly marked A seperate repo would get near-to-no traffic I believe
With this idea making mods of paid mods would rely on you contacting the original author. You could then publish your mod as a separate, regular zip file on the "free" repository.
I'm on board! Quick question though: are there other steam games which have implemented features similar to these and would steam need to be a part of implementing a store into the game? --- Post updated --- *cough* automation tab
while i mostly agree with this and it relates back to a thread i made a while ago, it will kinda suck if there's no way to look through the files and easily make mods or tweaks for paid mods. i like doing this already, even if it's just to add little things for my own benefit, and it seems a little messed up you pay money over standard free mods and your reward is being able to do less to them. while i think some sort of method to verify may be needed, this aint it
Seems like a great idea honestly, it would help the users who are considering using or already using paid mods, as currently paid mods are hosted on multiple platforms by their authors preferences, and this would greatly streamline the process of acquiring mods. It'd also help authors, since their mods would be more prominently promoted and likely reach more customers, with of course a portion of the profits supporting BeamNG's continued development. It wouldn't interfere with existing free mods and their creation, and it would only serve to help those interested in purchasing or creating paid mods. The only real issues that I can foresee are the need for a payment processor, either one developed in house, or purchased / licensed from a third party, both options of course would require payment to develop or to use on the site, as well as the need to strengthen the security of their servers to prevent data leaks and secure users payment information. And, of course, anyone wanting to tinker around in the files of a paid mod for their own personal use would need permission from the authors to do so, which would prevent the upkeep of paid mods in the future, should its authors become unreachable.
But relying on securing permission means that you'd either give the original mod out to random people who want to make body kits and then--uh oh, the whole thing's on 3rd party websites for free, but if you only give it to trusted members, nobody could modify it other than a select few people?
One thing I might add (which may not matter because I can't figure out how to edit a shape on blender let alone make a mod ) is a system that would likely be monitored by the Devs that would determine the max amount of money a mod could sell for depending on the quality, number of parts, etc. This would prevent someone from making a singular high-quality vehicle with one configuration and 30 parts from selling at the same price as a high-quality 4-vehicle pack with 15 configurations each and 1000 parts altogether.
You'd need some sort of system that can tell you if X or Y person has indeed bought the mod, so something like a proof of purchase. Most people don't mod the mods they use. But I'm sure there's a way to make that possible.
Then the pack could be split into individual vehicles. Almost nobody makes mods that are packs of multiple cars.
Relegating the decisions of prices to the BeamNG Devs would undoubtedly cause unwanted controversy, and honestly it's really the author's decision to set their pricing.
I would have to disagree with that, as when the spike strip mod came out someone posted a section of code you needed to tweak so it would blow tires of cars going more than 15mph, and many people did that (myself included).
One solution would be to regularly check if the mods still work (or develop an automatic testing tool) and temporarily remove the ability to purchase outdated mods until they are fixed. This wouldn't prevent something like an author leaving the community though, but then again every single thing on earth will eventually be out of date. Doubt there's a perfect solution to this.
T'was just an example I see your point. I suppose it might be wiser just to stick with a price cap for all mods, but if it ever became an issue this might become implemented (theoretically)
I don't even think a price cap is needed, since the higher priced the mod is the less customers it's likely to get, combined with the current attitude towards paid mods, which would give creators an incentive to keep their mods at lower prices.
