Jumping into a modding project

[BlackCow99]

Well I have a good idea for a multiplayer Source mod so my question is how do I jump into this project. The only experience I have is with 3D Studio Max and Hammer Map editor. My friend also has some modeling and sound/music experience. We one coder but he has never codded for a video game before.

So we have some talent, and we all know each other personally so that helps. We just have no clue how to get started though. I'm sure a website would be a good start but then what?

Can you guys link us to tutorials for programming and modeling and over all moding for the source engine?

Any help will be very much appreciated.

 

[mindless_moder]

google is your friend when it comes to these matters .there are literally TONS of tutorials out there on how to mod source. the Valve developers wiki is a great place to start http://developer.valvesoftware.com/wiki/SDK_Docs . you might also want to check out some of the stickies in the modeling and coding section of this forum and others like it. most of the tools you need come with the source sdk but unless you like working with the commandline you might want to look into some mdl compiler/decompiler tools and also grab the 3dsmax smd import/export plugin from here http://www.chaosincarnate.net/cannonfodder/. compiling mdl's takes a lot of patience when your just starting out you need to know how to setup your textures , models and how to write the QC file. but in the grand scheme of things its really the least of your concerns you need to go through the sdk and have your coder figure out the layout of the code good luck i hope your team doesnt burn out like 99.5% of the mods out there.

 

[Zunni]

I know this isn't going to be what you want to hear, but my suggestion would be NOT to start a new mod. Not having previous experience making a mod makes creating a new one harder. I've seen many mods come and go because the people involved didn't have any experience to start with.

However, the 3 of you together might be an attractive package to an existing mod team. You would still get to work together and more importantly gain experience within the frame-work of a mod team. You also will meet people from your mod and other mods so when you feel ready to tackle the new challenges of creating a mod on your own, you'll know some people who may be able to help.

PLUS, one of the big issues with mod is the fact that 100's of them get started and die deaths because of a lack of talent. If everyone worked on a mod prior to thinking about making their own, a lot more of the games would get done and we'd have a lot fewer failed projects.

Just my 2 cents on the topic.