Hey, remember when paid mods in The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim was a thing? You know, that thing that turned into a big joke? One would think that Bethesda would give up on that after everything that happened, but nah. They’re actually still considering it in the future.
The company admitted that they hadn’t fully thought out how paid mods would be received by the community, but promptly took it down and offered refunds after realizing the chaos they’d unleashed. They didn’t say it would never show up again, though.
Speaking to Gamespot, Bethesda VP of PR and Marketing Pete Hines reveals that paid mods are still sitting on the back burner. "I think our stance on it is we're going to re-evaluate it going forward," Hines said. They still believe that folks who pour plenty of time and effort into creating mods should have a way to cash in on their hard work. Folks had a big problem with the breakdown for mod revenue, though. Valve was going to get 30%, while the modder would receive the standard 25%, with Bethesda raking in 45%. If they ever bring back the paid mod system, Bethesda’s still expecting a cut, even if it won’t be the original 45%.
Hines isn’t making any promises, though. "I honestly, genuinely, don't know what it means for the future. It was an idea we worked on with those guys for Skyrim; it didn't pan out. It came back down." Don’t expect the paid mod system to return anytime soon, folks.
Bethesda’s considering bringing the paid mod system back, but their hands are full at the moment. Maybe they’ll get back to it after Fallout 4 comes out this November? They’re releasing mod tools for it, but word on the street is that there won’t be a paid mod system in this game.
