For a long time, I've questioned one of the rules on this forum, a rule that I helped create. The outlawing of game modification talk here makes them appear wrong to use or an evil that must be avoided. It is clear by our atmosphere that we've given that impression, simply because such a rule exists. It is easy to do so simply by enforcing the rule over time, editing posts and telling people not to bring them up again. There ARE bad mods out there that can mess up your game, but most are beneficial to players in some way. They can improve the game in both the fun and stability departments, and that's something most people will want more and more as time goes by.
So, disliking this rule has a history for me. With the recent arrival of UC, created with one of these mods, it's bothering me even more. I was very annoyed to try to give twallan credit for his mod, which allows populated worlds, and find that I could not link directly to Nraas because of my own rule. I linked to the wikia instead to keep the guide in line with the forum rules.
So, after discussion came up with someone a little later, I talked with several moderators about it then approached the entire staff. Most see allowing discussion here as a logical thing to do and several confessed to their own use of game mods.
With the current state of things, we outlaw mod discussion and members go to search engines like Google to get their mods. They cannot be told specifically by a member what mod fixes this issue, or adds this gameplay feature. In investigating them blindly, they are more at risk than anyone would ever be were links here on the forum. There is very little risk in allowing linking in posts. It's not like you wouldn't know you were going to a mod site. If you don't like them or want them, you don't have to follow the link or pay attention to the post. There are many sites that are free of graphic content and maintain a PG-13 rating. They should be perfectly acceptable to link to with no ban on discussing the specific mods they offer.
Here's what I'm planning: On March 6, when Showtime launches, I will create a board for game modification talk. This will keep the discussion separate for people who do not like mods. People will be able to link and mention them where applicable on other boards, although any topic created specifically about mods will go to the board. Any mod sites linked must be free of adult content that breaks the game's Teen rating. We are not going to screen every site but if it is there, rest assured we will be told about it. You won't get in trouble if it's something buried on their site and not easy to reach so don't worry. Just be confident you would vouch for the site to a parent. All rules will be modified to fit this new policy.
The things you like about this forum will not be changed as a result. It is still a clean forum with a moderation staff that is quick to respond to problems. We will still have the friendliest community around, simply because we enforce our rules and keep rude people quiet. Instead of being so strict to people who wish they could talk about them here, let's allow them to educate others about the cool mods they find and assist them in using it. We don't need to lay this burden on some moderator, I am confident enough of you already know about mods and won't mind helping someone out!
Please Note: I am not referring to CC (hair, unique objects, nudity skins). We do not want to have to screen them so no direct linking to CC. They're really just pretties and shouldn't be something we talk about on a forum that forbids frivolous topics anyway
It is OK if sites have both mods and CC but the focus will be mods. Items on the Swap Shop must remain CC-free and
never require a mod to be functional. We'll still be watching for that, so don't even do it. It is a special place where people know they will get only what they see in the image. Mods will still be banned in Challenges, because they could inflate the player's score.
Share your thoughts on this change. Please remember that this does not have to impact you personally, although you just might hear about something so cool you've gotta have it and take the plunge! There are many expansion packs' worth of content out there, just waiting to be tried. It can be removed, and with a backup save file and a clearing of caches your game is as good as new.
I used our email announcement system this time to ensure that everyone who's registered and has more than 5 posts knows about this change. This will ensure members are aware of their opportunity to chime in on the discussion. If it annoys you to get both this and the UC notification email within a day, I'm sorry. Most of you know I rarely send something like this but this happens to be a big change for us. If you NEVER want an announcement from our forum, you can turn them off from your profile setup.
