Greetings Sinners!
Unikraken here, the Producer for Sins of a Solar Empire II, and today I’m going to introduce you to the modders that joined the development team to help bring you the game. Sins is known for its vast collection of mods and large community of modders, so it’s no surprise that when it came time to start working on Sins II Stardock and Ironclad leveraged that community for additional support and expertise.
Biased as I am, I do think we have one of the best modding communities around. Sins modders are very collaborative and there is a strong culture of support and sharing of knowledge. If the community hadn’t been as welcoming as it was nearly a decade and a half ago, I wouldn’t have been able to get my start there. Modders are generally very resourceful people who’ve learned to wear many hats and pick up an assortment of skillsets that make them valuable additions to a game development team and my compatriots on the Sins II team are no exception.
Current team members who are former modders are:
- Sovereign Echo - Balance and Design
- (Dawn of the Reapers, Sins of the Prophets, Ages of the Federation)
- Lord_Set - 3D Art
- (Dawn of the Reapers, Stargate Invasion, Sins of the Prophets)
- Dolynick - 3D Art
- (Sins: Remastered, Star Wars: Interregnum, Stargate Races)
- zabik2 - Community Team and Mapmaking
- (Ultimate Balance Mod, Ultimate Campaign Mod)
- Unikraken - Production
- (Sins of the Prophets, Stargate Invasion)
I also want to send a shoutout to Malcontent1692, who was a modder and 3D artist on the team who has moved on to working on AAA titles now and we wish him the best.
I’ve asked each team member the same four questions so that you can get a bit of a feel for who they are:
How did you get started modding with Sins?
Echo:
“I got started modding Sins with the Dawn of the Reapers mod, originally as a String Writer. After DotR went into hibernation for a year I very nearly didn't come back, but Lord_Set convinced me to return, whereupon I took up the role of Gameplay Designer and Scripter. I began making a name for myself from there.”
Set:
“I got started in 2008 helping an old friend (Shout out Epytron Omega) of mine to start and create the Stargate Invasion mod. I eventually branched out to my own project called Dawn of the Reapers. A Mass Effect total conversion mod. Spent roughly ten years on that project off and on.“
Dolynick:
”I started modding Sins of a Solar Empire shortly after its initial release, once the mod tools became available. I’d had some background building and running a Neverwinter Nights persistent world server but this was completely different. For the most part, I just set out to build with the content I wanted, setup to play in a style that I wanted to play the game in - and if others also enjoyed it then great. I still more or less follow that guideline today when making modding decisions. Things were pretty basic back then as it was mainly just “code” work. It wasn’t until many, many years later that I was better able to realize the mod work visually as well.”
zabik2:
”I have created 2 mods for Sins. The first mod would likely not be considered as a "real mod" by most modders, as it was mostly messing with the in-game values, with only minor changes of particle effects, etc. So the first mod was meant to be a fun project for over the weekend, however it turned into a full 6 month project, with multiple team members. Therefore the answer to the question of "how" - it was really thanks to friends I have been working with.”
Unikraken:
”After discovering that Sins had a modding community through Bailknight's Graphic Mod I became involved in making pixel art icons for Stargate Invasion. Eventually finding my way to Sins of the Prophets, as Halo is a huge interest of mine. I climbed the ladder there learning how to lead teams of people and build a cohesive vision for a project and ran it for about a decade before joining the team here at Stardock.”
Are there any memorable moments from development of the game that you would like to share with the community (or what was your favorite thing to work on for the game)?
Echo:
“Memorable Moments? The whole thing? It's been over a year now and I'm still not over the fact that I get to work on the sequel to the game I modded for five plus years.”
Set:
“There are too many to pick. I would say the Coronata or the Vorastra were my favorite. Their unique shapes and curvilinear geometry was something I have wanted to stretch my legs on. They were both the crucible for everything I learned over the last several years. Having a chance to make some of my favorite ships from the first game was surreal.”
Dolynick:
”The derelicts (the first one in particular – the pyramid) were a challenge for a few reasons, but getting those chunk-missing, smashed and/or melted looking damaged areas to look good was a bit of an adventure. I went through several attempts and methods before arriving at what we ended up going with. I was pretty happy with the way the effects turned out in the end though. Getting to see your struggles and tribulations pan out in-game is always rewarding.
Getting the Kortul for the Vasari finished was also a highlight. It was the Vasari capital ship I used to establish their new visual style in the Remastered mod. I developed a new appreciation for its shapes and lines during the process, so it was a treat to get to do the new version for the sequel as well.”
zabik2:
”For my community role, the most memorable moment would be by far the Steam release. The game was very solid, but it's like with an exam - even if you are prepared, there is still this feeling of the unknown. And then, on the hour X the waiting was over. The amount of forum posts per minute was so high that one could be non-stop refreshing the page, and still miss a few.
At the same time, our Discord grew to twice its former size in just a week. So everywhere was some action going, everywhere were people to talk to, and it was really amazing to see how many people actually care about Sins 2 and its future.
For my map creation role, the most memorable moment was getting to know the dev team closer. It's one thing to know people from socializing and playing Dev games, and completely another level to work with them. Participating in this part of the development brought me much joy, as not only was I creating something for the years to come, but I also got to know the team much closer.”
Unikraken:
”The development process for the Vasari was a really rewarding time for me. They’re a very cool faction and their ships are quite unique. The playtests were a blast and I even won a few matches.
More broadly, Sins II represents a lot of carefully orchestrated parts coming together as one, and I am very proud of the effort it takes us to work toward every update of the game. Getting to hand that next build over to the community and seeing their response is something I enjoy deeply.”
What advice do you have for any modders looking to get into the industry?
Echo:
”For modders looking to get into the industry on the gameplay design side of things - you need to get out there and display not only your work, but the thinking behind it. Implement ideas, iterate on them to find the fun, and then write a dev diary about it and post it. It's not enough to let the work speak for itself, that will make you known among the modding community, but may not garner enough attention from decision makers inside the industry. Dev Diaries with demonstrations of working mechanics act as a form of portfolio for a gameplay designer, providing insight to observers that is far more digestible than getting someone to play a mod long enough to discover the design brilliance behind it. Otherwise, be patient, be polite, and be willing to explain mechanics and design theory repeatedly in social circles, especially those frequented by Devs and other decision makers.”
Set:
”Never stop seeking knowledge of your craft, treat game development like an artisan trade of old and understand what you do and don't know. Never take critique personally and understand that to do this in a professional setting you have to let go of your ego. I wouldn't be where I am today without the ability to ask for help or acknowledge my shortcomings.“
Dolynick:
”Do your best to pay attention and absorb the information when someone does try to give you pointers as you’re learning. Being confident in your ability is also good, but it’s important to also bear in mind that you probably will never know “everything” and being able to take direction once you’re in a more professional team setting is important. Being able to accept constructive criticism and change requests is essential when going through an iterative design process.”
zabik2:
”Break the game, as much as you can. That's the fun!”
Unikraken:
”Networking is very important in this industry. Showcasing your talent in appropriate settings is also really critical. Be your biggest advocate. Identify your career goals and work incrementally toward them. Apply for the job you want even if you’re concerned that you’re not ready yet. Don’t let fear prevent you from chasing opportunity.”
What kind of mod would you like to see come to Sins II?
Echo:
“I personally love seeing faction mods with interesting and innovative gameplay. Whether they are compatible with the base game or total conversions - they provide the most space for really interesting expressions of design.”
Set:
”Proper Cloaking. There a lot of ways to utilize a mechanic like that to drastically convert gameplay in Sins. I have ideas...”
Dolynick:
”Beyond what I intend to attempt myself? I think there are a couple of established sci-fi settings where things like Sins II’s physical missiles are part of their flair. So, things like Battlestar Galactica and The Expanse come to mind and would be fun to see done well in a mod.”
zabik2:
”Babylon 5 would be top 1 for me. But I would definitely enjoy playing all the other mods, especially total conversion ones. They always provide with excellent roleplay opportunities!”
Unikraken:
”I’d love to see a proper Halo mod come to Sins II, of course. Aside from that, I’d really like to see more total conversion mods that focus on creating new universes, where modders can really stretch their wings and create really unique content. Sins II is a powerful platform for mods, I believe a lot of great mods are coming.”
It was a dream come true for all of us to get the opportunity to work on the sequel to one of our favorite games. The development team has worked closely with the modding community and Sins II has been developed from its outset with modding in mind. We also want to extend a special thanks to every modder we’ve received feedback from during the development of the game and the preceding years before development started. Sins II was made better because of your involvement in the community and your investment in interacting with us!
