Shaping the future of Total War modding

[Divinus Arma]

An argument for strict modification management: Getting off on the right foot with an ambitious project.

When reading the title of my reply, one may erroneously come to the conclusion that strict is equivalent to tyrannical and management is equivalent to beauracracy. The reader would do well to read on rather than come to hasty conclusions.

One of the most difficult aspects to negotiate in a major modification endeavor is that of cooridination and control. All modifications have a general "mission statement" as to what they desire to see accomplished: Most Historical, Better Gameplay, a Total Conversion, and etc. But how often do these modification find themselves bogged down with conflicting points of view, strong personalities, idea-burn, and data overload? The fact is that each of these probelms can create a single stumbling block large enough to cripple a modification before it can ever finish. Concurrent to these issues is the resource crisis- all mods struggle for great and consistent talent who are willing and able to dedicate hundreds of hours of time. I would argue that each of these major obstacles to success can be overcome with sound management principles implemented from the very inception of a serious modification effort.

Idea-Burn: When is enough really enough? Modders are imaginative out-of-the-box creators with a talent for conceptualization. But where is the follow-through? It is so very tempting to continue a streak of ideas with further ideas, one loaded upon the other until a vision of modding brilliance is achieved in the mind's eye. This very process can end up hindering a mod more than aiding it, as new ideas generate enthusiastic zeal and old ideas fall to side half-way finished. The old ideas, once new and exciting, soon become chores and dreaded tasks.

Data-Overload: A modification can become so overburdened with information that it becomes a job onto itself to track, store, and locate the currently relevant data to complete a task. A job which should have taken an hour now takes two , three, or four. New members drown in a sea of scattered images, debates, administration, and code. They become restless, then listless, and lastly disillusioned.

The Human Element- Personalities and points of view: Negotiation fails. Ideas clash. Roles and responsibilities are confused with respect and esteem. A talented member leaves or worse yet- the team breaks apart.


All of these issues are found in any organization, whether that be a non-profit, a corporation, a goverment agency, or the local elks lodge. BUt those organizations that find the most success are those that follow the basic rules of organizational management: Goals & Structure. A serious modification should be pursued with the same professionalism as a modern start-up corporation. Here is how.


Integrated Asynchronous Project Management

Goals.
Human Resource Structure.
Data Management.
Communication.

Each of these four elements is important in its own right. And each of these are typically well addressed within any project. The error is in failing to integrate these elements into a symbiotic model that works for mutual efficieny.

Goals are the basic building block of any project. Whether your goal is to type a line of text or to revise an entire component of the system, the vision of an end result is the first step to change towards that vision. Goal management begins with prioritization. The project shouls have a one-sentence mission statament that clearly defines the underlying motivation and purpose of the project. Such a mission statement could be:

" To achieve an accurate conversion of RTW: BI to the setting of pre-industrial Feudal Japan, incorporating modest changes in gameplay and reasonable depications of history. "

This mission statement offers a foundation from which all futures efforts will be directed towards.

Second to the mission statement is the overarching goals of the project. These goals are broad, mostly measurable, and achievable given the resources your team has. Goals may include: " Modify the existing Campaign map to accurately represent geography and population distribution in 1650 ".

Thrid your objectives. Objectives directly contribute to the specific outlined goal. For the example Goal above, objectives would include "Compile research on 1650 Japan". "Complete Geographical modification". "Complete Icon placement and territorial division". "Complete campaign map icons".

Lastly are the tasks. Tasks are brief and specific items of work that, when completed, will contribute towrds an objective. For the Objective of "Complete Campaign Map icons", A task would be "Complete Iron resource Icon" .

To Be continued...