NWN Mods on Steam Workshop
Savant1974
Member Posts: 309
So I'm planning to put the Aielund Saga onto Steam Workshop, and I think I've figured it out, but I needed to check something. Basically, I need to put all of the files a mod needs into the directory that's going to get uploaded, so the module files themselves, and all hakpaks it needs. Is that right? I mean... what about CEP? What about extra community content? All of it? That would mean that every mod that gets put on there that uses CEP gets its own version of CEP on there too. My series needs the Real Skies hak, that's 1.2gb. It'll basically duplicate big community content packs for each and every mod. That sounds horribly inefficient! Am I doing something wrong or is that really how this is going to work?
1
Comments
*Untried, untested, no promises
"Dependencies
If your mod relies on content from other mods, you can use Steam Workshop's dependencies feature. To do this, go to your workshop item's page and click "Add/Remove Required Items". From here, you can choose other workshop items that your mod depends on.
Using this feature will allow you to avoid including redundant content or content that you don't have permission to redistribute."
http://steamcommunity.com/app/704450/discussions/0/1699416432428329123/
Let us know if it needs any more changes.
Is there a standard for miscellaneous documents such as walkthroughs and maps? Can we use sub-subfolders, e.g \docs\[mod name] to make them easier to find? Do Steam players generally know how to find documentation folders?
I just added one, the thumbnail seem to not be loading though.
I can link to my own site or the vault, of course.
However, unless I've misunderstood, in many cases modules will still require the player to subscribe to additional shared content items.
One obvious reason is to avoid redundant downloads. Even on today's networks, acquiring big packages like CEP takes time, so you'd only want to do that once.
There are permission issues, too.
As I understand it, those dependent items will appear as links in the module description, to Steam if the author uploads them, or more likely to the vault. So the potential for missing items due to player error remains.
Having said that, I do see a case for bundling all the smaller haks into the module on Steam, terms of use permitting, regardless of the download overhead. To that extent, it should be easier for the player.
If - and this is a design decision - CEP becomes available as an independent subscription, and modules provide a link to it, it would only have to be downloaded once, but with a risk of player error. The more haks that are unbundled, the greater the risk.
True, players would have to figure out how to install CEP manually. We could provide a Guide on Steam & link our modules to that.
Last I heard, TAD was thinking about maybe adding CEP to Steam when EE goes live, which might be a way off.
More generally, modules have a lot of dependencies on vault haks that may never appear on Steam, because the authors are no longer around. Links to the vault would be a solution there, too. Alternatively, where vault permissions allow, perhaps we could bundle a copy of those haks in our modules on Steam. A little duplication wouldn't hurt.
One thing I haven't tested yet is whether Required Items are automatically downloaded when a player subscribes to a module. If they are, it might be better to publish the old haks on Steam as separate (but required) items. That might be a stretch on the permissions front, though.
Clearly, it is best for the player that when a module is on Steam, any required projects are on Steam, too.
However, putting haks like CEP on Steam (or not) is a decision for the hak author, not the module author. As long as a hak is not on Steam, I'm proposing the temporary workaround of linking to the vault.
Posting other people's files on Steam without permission would be an act of piracy, which is against the Workshop rules.
When it is a major live project like CEP, it would also be grossly disrespectful to the author to take the matter out of their hands.
In the case of abandonware haks, I'm cautiously suggesting that (with explicit exceptions) existing vault guidelines and permissions might be sufficient to allow the module author to bundle those haks into the module's Steam Workshop item. This is a controversial opinion, which is open to discussion, both here and at the vault.
Also, I think if people can figure out how to play a game like NWN, they can figure out how to copy files from a .7z into folders on their computer, so it's not a major hurdle if it's not available on Steam before beta is over.