KyleKatarn: I really like the idea of being able to pay for mods. Sometimes I have some ideas but modding can be a lot of work and I don't want to do it. Someone who knows what they're doing could get it done 10 times faster than me.
The way I would like it though is something similar to how Kickstarter works. Someone known for modding (I wouldn't look for an unknown person here) can plan a project they want to do and see if there is interest in it. If people want it they'll pledge for it. Mod projects could be many small, inexpensive projects or a bigger project for something ambitious that tweaks most of the game. The requirement for me is that it should be freely available once it's made like mods are now. No one is obligated to pay and there is not all the confusion that naturally surrounds trying to apply private property principles to non-rivalrous things. Modders can continue to operate freely if they'd rather do that too.
mystral: The problem with that is that legally, modders can't sell the content they create, since they're modifying or adding to intellectual property they don't own the rights to.
No matter how in favor of modding a company is, they'd HAVE to force a modder trying to sell his work to stop, or risk losing their rights, as far as I understand.
The only way modders can make money is through donations, or if the company that owns the IP actually subcontracts them to make a mod, as for the NWN premium modules.
I understand what you're saying. This is why I would hope it would be something like Kickstarter without copyright, where maybe it could be legal as long as it considered a donation and they don't try to sell mods after they're created. (Although personally, I wouldn't be against paying if the files are obscure and cost too much to keep available all the time, just pay a one time fee to send it to me.)
I don't know how to make a good analogy here, but what I'm thinking of would be similar to an unaffiliated contractor getting paid to make a public park more beautiful (building a statue, trimming trees, installing benches, etc). The contractor is not doing the work so they can restrict people from accessing the park so that the people who use the park must pay while the contractor gets a part of the fee, but they do the best work they can do while setting their price before any work is done and then move on. The contractor is not claiming any ownership of the park or the work they did.
The problem with the park analogy that I can think of right now is that a portion of the public can't just pool some money together to hire someone to cut a tree down they don't like in the park because it will affect everyone else who uses the park. With games, that's not a problem. Sure, mods can change the way a game is played and some people might argue that that is not the way the game is meant to be played, but it only affects me when I install a mod or tweak, no one else. I can change it quickly too if I don't like it.
