Which is the most "alterable" retail game program?

[MarkAtnip]

I wasn't quite sure where to put this one. (so move it if it needs to be moved)

I am going to guess that there are several of you out there who alter game game programs such as NFL 2005, NHL 2007 etc so that they display your jersey designs "in action". If so could you direct me (and any others who are interested) to the program and the why's and wherefore's of the task?

Thank you in advance.

[gingerbreadmann]

MVP Baseball 2005(PC, PC games are the most editable by far) comes to mind. It has TWO whole communities basically devoted to modding it in all sorts of ways, eamods.com and mvpmods.com. Great sites with great resources although I only have it for Xbox so I haven't tried all the mods though I have wanted to for a long time.

[MJWalker45]

EA's NHL and FIFA PC games allow for teams to be constantly updated as they change uniforms. Also, som FIFA experts have built entire stadiums as well

[LEWJ]

NBA LIVE Has sites out there too,

like nbalive.org

[The Nation]

Madden is uneditable....which is really annoying

[Coast2CoastAM2006]

i know the EA NHL series is modable, or at least my nhl 02 for the pc was. i haven't bought any the nhl series since 02 so i don't know how modable they are now.

i do know that there are several communities for modding like Cyber-NHL, Thunderpuck, Double Minor Downloads and NHL Depot. I used to be a regular on some of those boards before i got bored with the game and moved on.

[pcgd]

Madden is uneditable....which is really annoying

In 08 for the mac you can put custom logos and helmets into the games.

But no custom uniforms from like photoshop. They have some options however.

Unfortunately, you can't play in season mode with the created teams however.

[Audiodrama]

MVP Baseball 2005(PC, PC games are the most editable by far) comes to mind. It has TWO whole communities basically devoted to modding it in all sorts of ways, eamods.com and mvpmods.com. Great sites with great resources although I only have it for Xbox so I haven't tried all the mods though I have wanted to for a long time.

I've used several of MVPMods.com's custom uniforms and stadiums for the PC version of MVP '05, and they're beyond spectacular. You don't realize how much better the game can look until you've seen some of these mods in action.

[Ted Cunningham]

Madden is uneditable....which is really annoying

In 08 for the mac you can put custom logos and helmets into the games.

But no custom uniforms from like photoshop. They have some options however.

Unfortunately, you can't play in season mode with the created teams however.

I think that's what The Nation means. Madden is a very rigid game in what it allows to be customized. Madden has been a very 'tough nut to crack' (for lack of a better cliché) for modders. There are several sites out there that are devoted to Madden custom logos and helmets, but that's about all that you can change in-game. (See maddenteams.com) On the mod front, there are a few programmers out there that have been working to make the game a little more customizable. There are now editors that allow you to make roster changes outside of the game itself, and there are custom team swappers that allow you to replace NFL teams with your custom teams, which then allows the user to use them in season/franchise mode. (Check out football-freaks.com for those mods.) The holy grail for this whole madden-customizing community seems to be fully editable uniforms, and that piece of programming has eluded everyone since Madden 2002.

I would not recommend buying Madden if you want a customizable game, unless you buy Madden 2002 to Madden 2004 for very cheap. (I don't even know where you'd buy something that old? eBay perhaps?) The reason I say that is that the game really has remained unchanged since Madden 2002, which was the advent of customizable helmets and logos. Maddens 02, 03 and 04 allow the user to put custom teams into franchise/season mode. After that, you'll have to turn to the 3rd party stuff. But I wouldn't recommend spending more than $10 on a Madden game because the gameplay has not changed since Madden 2001. (The graphics get a bit better as the years progress, naturally, and the movement of players is a bit smoother, granted.) The only thing that Madden has really added is throwaway modes like "superstar" (inspired by the trend of the media following self-absorbed superstar athletes), which doesn't appeal to me at all. I like to manage whole leagues as opposed to what one player does. (Ha, I guess that's more of a personal gripe then, yeah?) And really, I just don't like the fact that EA can just churn out the same game in a different package every year because they have exclusive rights to the NFL and its teams.

But to be more on topic, check out Maximum Football (www.maximum-football.com). Graphics aren't the greatest thing ever, but they are fully customizable, along with just about every other feature of the game. The user cannot only create custom teams, but they can create custom leagues (which can have essentially an infinite number of teams in them in up to four conferences and infinite divisions). You can even customize the rules. I have not played it yet, but I'm strongly considering buying it to see what it's like. Like I said before I'd rather manage a league than play as one player, and many people have stated in the reviews of that game that I've read that this is certainly a more league/team management game.