Climbing the Ladder
Much ado is made in and around the community of the tremendous learning opportunities that can be had by participation in mod development. I'd be the last person in the universe to disagree with that view. However, one thing that isn't really discussed is the way in which we, as modders, progress in our craft.
Most people believe that continuous practice can and will elevate anyone from rank beginner to competence, and by and large, that is true, but not for the reasons that are often assumed, and not in the way they seem to think.
A large proportion of the modding community seems to believe that enthusiasm can compensate for a lack of experience or talent, or even reduce the time required to learn new modding concepts. I have some issues with this belief.
Producing a good quality piece of work in modding is a learned exercise, and can be improved with time. Like other skill-based activities, some people are naturally gifted at learning certain concepts and techniques, while others struggle with the fundamentals. It all depends on your innate talents, how well you can mold your thought processes to fit the activity you're trying to learn, as well as your discipline and commitment.
What I have found is that skill development is not so much a smooth incremental process, but rather a number of small but significant "quantum leap" progressions, many of which have pre-requisite concepts that must be absorbed before they can themselves be learned. Practicing one specific thing over and over might get you some very small tertiary improvement in skills, but what I have found to be the most important element in improving at a craft isn't repetition; it's absorption of new and useful techniques.
In order to excel at any craft, you must constantly push yourself to explore and learn new elements. Most people are uncomfortable with the thought of doing things outside of their sphere of competence, and naturally shy away from trying new things out of a fear of failure.
For mod developers, being able to overcome this instinctive reaction is critical to success. Without the courage to excel, even the most naturally talented person will never discover their potential. This is where enthusiasm can be a powerful tool, because it lets us overcome our fear and inhibitions.
Unfortunately, a lot of people seem to think that it's all you need. And that isn't really true. Simply wishing to learn isn't enough; if your thought processes aren't in tune with what you're doing, no matter how much you want to learn something, it won't come to you either quickly or naturally, and trying to do so just leaves you wasting a lot of time.
"But wait, you said that anyone could become competent with enough practice!"
I did, and it's true. Basic competency, in my opinion, is the point when you've absorbed the essential elements of a craft; learned the simple building block techniques, acquired the ability to identify the most common mistakes, with enough proficiency to produce a presentable simple, working example of that craft: a simple low poly model for 3D modelling, a simple texture in texturing, a simple subroutine in programming, designing a basic map for level editing, or writing a short plot hook for a story.
The problem is that competence is not enough. You can't make a playable mod that's worth anything with only basic level skills, and for a lot of people, they never make it past basic competence. Mods, by their very nature, push the envelope of what is possible in a game, and to achieve this goal, you need to be more than competent: you need to be exceptional.
Exceptional means that you have enough talent to easily identify what new techniques you can explore without wasting time, coupled with the drive to follow through, do the necessary research, and practice to successfully absorb those new techniques. Many of the best techniques in modding are complex and difficult to grasp even with a lot of talent and a lot of experience. For most prospective modders, with only average talent, they can get to basic competence without too much trouble, but progressing beyond those limits becomes either unacceptably time-consuming, or outright impossible.
I feel that this one simple observation explains much of why there are so few truly skilled individuals in the modding world. Some people inaccurately estimate their level of talent in a chosen activity, then get frustrated when their rate of development doesn't meet their needs. Others set their sights on tasks which require highly complex techniques that are simply out of their reach, and end up falling short, regardless of how much they practice.
The key is, then, to correctly identify the areas where we have aptitude, and then nurture that skill with time investment and enthusiasm.
Most people believe that continuous practice can and will elevate anyone from rank beginner to competence, and by and large, that is true, but not for the reasons that are often assumed, and not in the way they seem to think.
A large proportion of the modding community seems to believe that enthusiasm can compensate for a lack of experience or talent, or even reduce the time required to learn new modding concepts. I have some issues with this belief.
Producing a good quality piece of work in modding is a learned exercise, and can be improved with time. Like other skill-based activities, some people are naturally gifted at learning certain concepts and techniques, while others struggle with the fundamentals. It all depends on your innate talents, how well you can mold your thought processes to fit the activity you're trying to learn, as well as your discipline and commitment.
What I have found is that skill development is not so much a smooth incremental process, but rather a number of small but significant "quantum leap" progressions, many of which have pre-requisite concepts that must be absorbed before they can themselves be learned. Practicing one specific thing over and over might get you some very small tertiary improvement in skills, but what I have found to be the most important element in improving at a craft isn't repetition; it's absorption of new and useful techniques.
In order to excel at any craft, you must constantly push yourself to explore and learn new elements. Most people are uncomfortable with the thought of doing things outside of their sphere of competence, and naturally shy away from trying new things out of a fear of failure.
For mod developers, being able to overcome this instinctive reaction is critical to success. Without the courage to excel, even the most naturally talented person will never discover their potential. This is where enthusiasm can be a powerful tool, because it lets us overcome our fear and inhibitions.
Unfortunately, a lot of people seem to think that it's all you need. And that isn't really true. Simply wishing to learn isn't enough; if your thought processes aren't in tune with what you're doing, no matter how much you want to learn something, it won't come to you either quickly or naturally, and trying to do so just leaves you wasting a lot of time.
"But wait, you said that anyone could become competent with enough practice!"
I did, and it's true. Basic competency, in my opinion, is the point when you've absorbed the essential elements of a craft; learned the simple building block techniques, acquired the ability to identify the most common mistakes, with enough proficiency to produce a presentable simple, working example of that craft: a simple low poly model for 3D modelling, a simple texture in texturing, a simple subroutine in programming, designing a basic map for level editing, or writing a short plot hook for a story.
The problem is that competence is not enough. You can't make a playable mod that's worth anything with only basic level skills, and for a lot of people, they never make it past basic competence. Mods, by their very nature, push the envelope of what is possible in a game, and to achieve this goal, you need to be more than competent: you need to be exceptional.
Exceptional means that you have enough talent to easily identify what new techniques you can explore without wasting time, coupled with the drive to follow through, do the necessary research, and practice to successfully absorb those new techniques. Many of the best techniques in modding are complex and difficult to grasp even with a lot of talent and a lot of experience. For most prospective modders, with only average talent, they can get to basic competence without too much trouble, but progressing beyond those limits becomes either unacceptably time-consuming, or outright impossible.
I feel that this one simple observation explains much of why there are so few truly skilled individuals in the modding world. Some people inaccurately estimate their level of talent in a chosen activity, then get frustrated when their rate of development doesn't meet their needs. Others set their sights on tasks which require highly complex techniques that are simply out of their reach, and end up falling short, regardless of how much they practice.
The key is, then, to correctly identify the areas where we have aptitude, and then nurture that skill with time investment and enthusiasm.
posted by Jim Tran at 2:20 AM
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