Well, for me, what makes a mod really successful is the quality/execution.

When I say that, I don't necessarily mean the purpose or idea behind it, but how well that idea is carried out. For example, if you make a quest in a mod:

• How good is the dialog (Any spelling issues, accurate punctuation, odd or "unusual" (not generally known by the masses) grammar, phrases in the wrong order?)
• Is the quest structured in a realistic or detailed way? (Is it too long, are the goals not really connected, are you crossing lots of areas just to grab one little piece?)
• Are the characters well thought out? (Backgrounds of a suitable length for their role or whether they are minor/major characters, any oddities related to the character executed well [such as a slight slurring of certain sounds, or a favored tone of voice])

Or if your mod is more for texturing for instance:

• Do your textures "mesh" well? (Can you tell where the seams are, do the textures tile well?)
• Do the textures for the area (if doing a module) all fit together well, or are they somewhat jarring where they're placed?
• What sort of feel do you want in the textures, and do others get that same feeling when looking at them?

How do we define 'successful?'

As far as the second question:

Mods work for me if they fix or correct an issue that Bioware or Obsidian left behind. Those are automatic downloads for me. For those mods not intended to fix anything, they just have to be consistent with my vision for KotOR/TSL. I tend to be in the middle between conservative and liberal usage of mods.

Mods don't work for me if they don't fit with my vision for KotOR / TSL. The devil is in the details to get a download from me.

I'd say a successful mod is only for the mod author to choose. I believe they have the choice to think whether or not their mod is successful. Like they say. "Beauty is in the eye of the beholder." Sure, there could be 50 people who review a mod. Sure half could be good reviews, the other half bad reviews. But it doesn't matter. A mod could have only 15 downloads when it's been out for four years, so what? As long as the mod author feels like they produced a good mod, then it's successful. For me personally, I consider all of my mods a success because I mod on a Mac. Sure, I have to run the same PC applications as everyone else, but they're a pain to get working sometimes and don't always work correctly. I just find them successful because everyone says Macs are horrible, or you can't do anything that a PC can do. Well, I'm here to prove that wrong in a modding sense. I (or anyone as a modder) shouldn't care about what people think of your mods. They're YOUR mods, YOU made them, and you should be happy about that. It doesn't matter the content of the mod, it could be a lightsaber mod, an armor mod, or a whole module. Again, I feel it just depends on what the author thinks of their stuff. I will always find my mods to be successful, even if they have 10 downloads. I don't care, they're mine, and I'm glad for that. I know I kind of went too into my own mods, but that's just the general concept that I'm trying to get out.

Thanks for the responses everyone.

Miles, I'd like to hear YOUR definition of successful in this case. It's an opinion question so the interpretation may be varied.

Mods are successful to the extent that the author deems them successful. It is a labor of love, and if the author believes in their work, then I am on board with it too.

There is no real definition of a mod's success. It only depends on one's perspective. If a mod which succeeds in writing is released, then it is a success to not just the author, but also the audience the mod appeals to.

 

Well, for me, what makes a mod really successful is the quality/execution.

 

When I say that, I don't necessarily mean the purpose or idea behind it, but how well that idea is carried out. For example, if you make a quest in a mod:

 

• How good is the dialog (Any spelling issues, accurate punctuation, odd or "unusual" (not generally known by the masses) grammar, phrases in the wrong order?)
• Is the quest structured in a realistic or detailed way? (Is it too long, are the goals not really connected, are you crossing lots of areas just to grab one little piece?)
• Are the characters well thought out? (Backgrounds of a suitable length for their role or whether they are minor/major characters, any oddities related to the character executed well [such as a slight slurring of certain sounds, or a favored tone of voice])

 

Or if your mod is more for texturing for instance:

• Do your textures "mesh" well? (Can you tell where the seams are, do the textures tile well?)
• Do the textures for the area (if doing a module) all fit together well, or are they somewhat jarring where they're placed?
• What sort of feel do you want in the textures, and do others get that same feeling when looking at them?

 

At all I agree with this. Explained answer