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Video game modding is one of the oldest crafts in the sphere. Since game engines were not so freely available, dedicated fans would take the foundations and add their vision for content as a mod. Ever since, some developers have leaned into the modding community, with others not so fond of the idea. Many developers realized that cultivating a healthy modding community could grant their project far more longevity than they had blocked it. But some mod communities go beyond just being a new lease on life for their creations.
Some mods take on their own lives and become something far more significant, like the ones on this list.
Note: This article is subjective and reflects the writer's opinions.
The Stanley Parable and 4 other mods grew into their massive games
1) Counter-Strike
Valve has a long history of supporting mods - the Source Engine SDK is a well-known tool in the developer space. This wasn't a recent decision, however. Ever since the original Half-Life was released, modders were hard at work using its (at the time) modern mechanics to make their content.
One such mod, developed by Minh "Gooseman" Le and Jess Cliffe, was Half-Life: Counter-Strike. Featuring terrorists and counter-terrorists facing off in a fight to the death, it slowly gained traction in the gaming community until Valve bought up the rights to the series and offered the duo development jobs. From there, Counter-Strike grew into the behemoth of gaming it is today, and the rest is history.
2) Dota 2
While being another Valve title on the list, Dota 2 didn't start on Valve's Source Engine. This time, modders took Blizzard's Warcraft III, creating a mod called Defense of the Ancients. However, this time, Valve was not interested until long after the mod's creation.
Moreover, it wasn't the original creator of the mod who worked on Dota 2, either. From the pseudonym "Eul" came the original DotA, but when Blizzard released the expansion The Frozen Throne, many modders scrambled to make their own DotA in the new game. One of these mods' lead designers, a user named IceFrog, was hired to make a "modern sequel on the Source Engine." This modern sequel would then be Dota 2, one of the biggest esports titles ever.
3) Heroes of the Storm
As mentioned earlier, Blizzard is no stranger to having their games modded. Their popular real-time strategy series, StarCraft, one of the biggest esports titles of previous decades, meant that its community was knee-deep into the game's systems. With its dedicated fanbase, Blizzard upgraded the mod support for StarCraft II.
At BlizzCon 2010, while showing off the advanced modding capabilities they were about to add, a map called "Blizzard DOTA" was unveiled. After a few years of arduous development and a trademark dispute with Valve over the name Dota (since it was initially a Blizzard game mod), Heroes of the Storm pre-release versions were made available in 2014, with a full release for the MOBA in 2015.
4) DayZ
The ARMA series is well known for its realism in depicting war, and the challenge it gives players to survive makes it a classic in the gaming sphere. Many mods for it exist, but one of them, the DayZ mod, hit a level of popularity few others have.
Designed by Dean Hill, the mod for ARMA II took its wartime survival systems to the next level. Introducing even more realistic aspects for the player to deal with, like hunger and thirst, on top of ARMA's already hyperrealistic systems, turned the DayZ mod into an instant hit. Not to mention the zombies, of course. Eventually, in collaboration with Bohemia Interactive, a complete game was released in its wake.
5) The Stanley Parable
While most mods on this list have been profound gameplay additions, some modders enjoy inserting their own stories. Yet another mod of Half-Life (2), The Stanley Parable, created a completely separate world with its plot and mechanics.
Removing the "shooter" part from first-person shooters, that being Half-Life 2's genre, Davey Wreden asked, "what if I disobey the narrator?" Thus, The Stanley Parable was born. Soon after the mod's initial release, it was remade and released as a complete game in 2013 to critical acclaim.
