PSA: The best 2K25 PC mods won't be free

[vetmin]

With the recent surge of interest in 2K on PC, just a heads up to anyone who has been out of the loop on 2K modding in recent years that most of the really impressive fan-made player likenesses (i.e., cyberfaces) that you see people comparing to the default models (on Instagram, Reddit, these forums, etc.) are not free. (Other types of mods are sold too, but the biggest quality gap is between free vs. premium cyberfaces.) This isn't to say that you can't have a dramatically superior-to-default experience without spending extra money. You 100% can, as there are always many high-quality mods available at no cost every year, but you will not always be able to see someone else's modded 2K25 on YouTube, for instance, and just follow a link in the description to make your game look and function the same way. This is unlike some other mod-heavy games like Skyrim, where almost everything is a click away for free on Nexus.

There are pros and cons to premium mods. The obvious negative is that they cost money ($5-15 USD is a typical range for a premium cyberface, depending upon how elaborate it is, for instance if it's a single styling or an entire career pack), but a major positive is that creators are more open to making what their regular customers want even if it's not an area of personal interest. As a consequence, for instance, there are much-improved likenesses available now for players who have long needed them, but who aren't such sexy names (e.g., Big Country, Rick Barry, Bob Pettit, George Gervin).

Anyway, with some folks rushing to buy new PCs, this is just something to keep in mind.

[jk31]

i Mod my game for years now and have never even thought about any paid mods. There are enough (Good quality) mods out There, that are for free. Just head over to NLSC and you find a lot.

[BiTractBANNED]

Reasonably, if you offer your services for monetary gain, you're bound to be criticized or slandered if it is deemed an unreasonable price point for the quantity. I couldn't imagine ever offering up a price tag on something like a passion project unless it is 100% perfect to a lot of people.

[vetmin]

Quote: Originally Posted by jk31

There are enough (Good quality) mods out There, that are for free. Just head over to NLSC and you find a lot.

Absolutely. Those like you who are already acquainted with the scene can appreciate how much better one's game can look and function without spending a dime on mods.

I made this thread because, for the past couple years as PC kept getting old-gen, it has been common to see people comparing screenshots of default new-gen player likenesses to modded old-gen versions, for a variety of reasons ("OMG imagine if we could have this mod on PS5!!!1" "2K is lazy! Their lebron looks like an action figure! even this PC mod one looks 10x better and it aint even next-gen!!! smh" etc. etc. etc.)

...and almost without exception the mods people screenshot to make their point are paid ones, since they're the highest quality. I just want potential newcomers to 2K on PC—or those who have been out of the loop for awhile—to understand that that's the case, since it's not like this for every PC game (yet).

Quote: Originally Posted by BiTract

Reasonably, if you offer your services for monetary gain, you're bound to be criticized or slandered if it is deemed an unreasonable price point for the quantity. I couldn't imagine ever offering up a price tag on something like a passion project unless it is 100% perfect to a lot of people.

There was a lot of initial pushback when paid 2K mods started taking off, but most people have come around on the idea. It's a type of art after all, and while artists create in large part from a place of passion, they still usually sell their work if there's a market for it (and/or shape their work around what there is a market for). Of course there are low-skill creators who try to sell their work, and while they don't get outright slandered for it (the community is too friendly for that), I have to assume that people decide with their wallets what is and isn't premium quality.

[Grundynaco]

Good point! The premium mods can really elevate your game, but they come at a cost. It's nice to have the option, though, especially for those specific players who usually get overlooked. Definitely worth considering if you're diving into 2K on PC!

[Lagoa]

As a 2K Modder for years, I say my future 2K25 MODs will be free. I'll put my link (Payoneer and Paypal) in case anyone wants to give me a bonus, after all, I need to pay bills, but for me, MODs are something for the community, not for making money.

[vetmin]

Quote: Originally Posted by Lagoa

As a 2K Modder for years, I say my future 2K25 MODs will be free. I'll put my link (Payoneer and Paypal) in case anyone wants to give me a bonus, after all, I need to pay bills, but for me, MODs are something for the community, not for making money.

Mine will too, but less as a matter of principle and more because the money is not worth the time for me personally. I'm repeating myself, but having observed the rise of premium mods (and having initially been resistant to them), I just can't really argue with the results, i.e., more high-quality mods being produced than ever before, and covering more corners of NBA history (and present) than ever before.

Think of it like paying a modder to create a cyberface of yourself. No one is going to devote an entire afternoon to making a picture-perfect likeness of you just for love of the community. You would more just be hiring that modder to do a personal 3d portrait of yourself. It's really no different if we're talking about a real-life NBA player who would've otherwise not interested the creator enough to make, and that's what I've really enjoyed about the past few years. We've finally gotten top-tier likenesses of players (and coaches, etc.) that the top-tier creators may otherwise have never gotten around to.

Anyway, I made this thread less to justify premium mods and more (per the title) as a PSA to potential PC converts that premium mods are a thing and it's likely that the majority of mod screenshots you've seen floating around on social media, etc. in recent years have been premium mods, since they tend to be the highest quality.

[m29a]

I understand frustrations but personally I don't feel I'm owed anything like this because it's not at all required to enjoy the game. If a modder wants to try to earn a bit of money from it, I don't blame them because there probably are some who find it worth it anyways. To each their own.