Mod of the Year is the largest celebration of hobbyist, amateur and professional modification developers. With record attendance and a massive number of updates, releases and new projects 2010 was a year like no other, packed to bursting with goodies to make any tired relic PC game seem new and exciting again. The Modding Hall of Fame has rolled out the red carpet welcoming one and all to see the best mods ever released all in one place.

Up until Jan 1st 2011 join us and help celebrate your community, culture and give thanks to the developers by voting for your favorite projects. For the first time in ModDB history we have a press panel which sees personalities from other websites like Joystiq and Rock Paper Shotgun have their say where it counts. Welcome to the 9th Annual Mod of the Year Awards.

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Report RSS The Modding Hall of Fame

The Modding Hall of Fame is a collection of the very best mods that have graced the Internet.

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ModDB was born in 2002 as a simple way to showcase mods that Scott (the site founder) thought were fantastic. Back then there was no easy way to find mods and Altavista was still the search engine of choice. ModDB quickly became something much more useful then a list of one man's favorite mods, it became a hub for developers to showcase their work to the world and naturally because of this our community was born.

While the site grew into a PR powerhouse it missed that truly definitive list of the best of the best. It created a fantastic site but left us without a way to showcase those who truly deserve to be recognized! Until now that is...


The Modding Hall of Fame is a collection of the very best mods that have graced the Internet, mods that have changed how we approach gametypes, the trend setters that spawned clones both in commercial games and other mods, the mods that cause us to think or re-think how we feel on things and the just plain awesome. These are the type of mods we WANT the world to see, either for the first time or once again!

Each year we plan to add a few spectacular mods to this prestigious list, either new or old but rest assured the mods we do pick deserve to be there. So make sure you check out the site, we would love to hear your feedback on what you think of the website itself and if you have any nominations you would like to see added, after all it's something we built to help you guys out!

Post comment Comments  (0 - 50 of 95)
Darkbladecr
Darkbladecr - - 1,039 comments

Amazing idea, and wow it is mighty snazzy =D

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ianna_keeper
ianna_keeper - - 279 comments

good idea. However content should be extended otherwise it'll be dead soon.

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INtense! Staff
INtense! - - 4,100 comments

We will announce new additions every now and then. We already have about 5 lined up.

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FW:ToW_Sushi
FW:ToW_Sushi - - 1,450 comments

Awesome. Great idea!!

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sushiflavoredcupcake
sushiflavoredcupcake - - 28 comments

I wonder what 2010 will be :/

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lil_Toady
lil_Toady - - 9 comments

This list definately lacks Multi Theft Auto

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INtense! Staff
INtense! - - 4,100 comments

Indeed but MTA or SA-MP?

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lil_Toady
lil_Toady - - 9 comments

Definately Multi Theft Auto, which was the original mod first released back in 2003. If you check it's history it had a great press coverage even on tv (G4TV) and a reply from Rockstar developers. And Multi Theft Auto's concept was unique when it appeared, editing game memory directly without changing any game files and it was the first mod ever to add multiplayer to a single player game. This list just can't be full without MTA.

(Not to mention that samp was created by one of MTA developers who left the team due to some conflict, i guess you can see where im coming from)

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Delusibeta
Delusibeta - - 43 comments

Do have to concur with Toady. MTA has been around since GTA 3. The small fact that SA-MP lacks a ModDB profile also helps.

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INtense! Staff
INtense! - - 4,100 comments

They used to but both sides seem to argue they are the first and the best so they opted to stick to their own site unfortunately.

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Snazz
Snazz - - 482 comments

SAMP apparently requested that their profile be removed from ModDB, no idea why.

MTA has been around longer but SAMP is far more popular.

MTA Stats: Game-monitor.com

SAMP Stats: Game-monitor.com

Roughly 10 times the amount of simultaneous players, with 500 slot servers compared to 128.

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shaftling
shaftling - - 54 comments

i don't get the selection. some mods are truly essential to the community while others feel like a lesser projects that shouldn't be on this list.

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billyboob
billyboob - - 297 comments

It's not clear to me either and the blurbs read more like standard profile descriptions rather then explanations as to why the recipients have been bestowed such an honour.

Obviously not all mods can be as genre defining as Team Fortress or Defense Of The Ancients (yes I know about AOS), so perhaps that space could be more informative.

Just a thought, perhaps a new page for each mod with developer/industry interviews/quotes on why these mods matter.

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phipe
phipe - - 519 comments

It is so small now, it could at the time being be considered a Wall of Fame. Until you add more things to it.

I still think it is a good idea.

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w0dk4
w0dk4 - - 129 comments

I think the list lacks Sven-Coop for its unprecedented co-op experience, adopted by many commercial games.

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Dragonlord
Dragonlord - - 1,934 comments

CoOp existed way before this mod. It's not like Sven-CoOp invented the wheel in this domain.

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INtense! Staff
INtense! - - 4,100 comments

Sven is on the list to be added

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garthbartin
garthbartin - - 9 comments

As great as revolutionary mods are, I think a far better measure of importance and worthiness of the HoF should solely be how FUN a game is. People come here to find fun mods, not revolutionary mods so revolutionary shouldn't be a part of the criteria.

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Dragonlord
Dragonlord - - 1,934 comments

Does this include vaporware that even won MOTY? As then it would be quite a waste and meaningless.

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INtense! Staff
INtense! - - 4,100 comments

Winning the MOTY does not necessarily grant a spot

Reply Good karma+4 votes
Hatel3reed
Hatel3reed - - 903 comments

Man that must have been a difficult list to compile simply because there are so many stand-out mods that come to mind. Having to choose those that really impacted the gaming community while maintaining the prestige of being in the Hall of Fame is a tall order.

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Mkilbride
Mkilbride - - 2,784 comments

NeoTokyo better make it on that list. :P

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Icedecknight
Icedecknight - - 974 comments

I wouldn't be surprised if it isn't, Neotoyko was quite fun for a while and the extra polish was a plus but it wasn't very revolutionary.

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SteveUK
SteveUK - - 114 comments

Mediocre capture the flag gameplay with above-par graphics shouldn't grant a hall of fame spot.

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KortalMombat
KortalMombat - - 391 comments

@SteveUK

This this this this this
This this this this this
This this this this this

Neotokyo, eyecandy for asians.

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CaptainLagfail
CaptainLagfail - - 259 comments

Just had a look and I'm already wondering why Minerva isn't up there? Surely that deserves some recognition as one of the greatest HL2 mods to ever exist? The mapping was near perfect, the storyline was intense and Minerva herself provided some of the greatest lines to ever grace gaming in general!

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PaulDolgov
PaulDolgov - - 627 comments

Great idea, we are witnessing the history of modern gaming here.

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CaptainLagfail
CaptainLagfail - - 259 comments

Also while I'm making suggestions... The STALKER Complete series? Anyone? Not exactly original but certainly set the standard for everyone else!

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Fxor
Fxor - - 362 comments

Excellent!

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zonbie
zonbie - - 1,299 comments

Potential candidate, right here Moddb.com

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Mr.Noseybonk
Mr.Noseybonk - - 6 comments

Eh, I think not.

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feillyne Staff
feillyne - - 5,816 comments

Another surprise this year!

However, IMHO, shaftling is somewhat right - some mods just don't feel right figuring on that list (it's all a way too subjective). Definitely Counter-Strike and TF should be, but what about the rest?

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MrTambourineMan
MrTambourineMan - - 717 comments

Awesome, just awesome!

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MARiN3
MARiN3 - - 713 comments

team fortress first was a mod for Quake ??
Thats amazing

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MrTambourineMan
MrTambourineMan - - 717 comments

You bet.

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Mkilbride
Mkilbride - - 2,784 comments

But the people who made it for Quake went into the future and stole the idea from Valve.

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Wolf0x
Wolf0x - - 437 comments

Great Idea! Never heard of some of these mods so I think I'll try them.

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thelastlambda
thelastlambda - - 67 comments

Great list and I love it. One new mod that you have to add though is Nightmare House 2, redefined HL2 mods for me and created an atmosphere that can't be beat, one of the first games to truly get fear in a way that hasn't been done before.

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Hatel3reed
Hatel3reed - - 903 comments

Another very possible candidate would be The Specialists. However, you obviously don't want HL mods to be dominating the Hall of Fame.

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Dragonlord
Dragonlord - - 1,934 comments

Especially since TS is not the first. Now I'm not 100% sure but I think Action-HL had been first followed by Action-Quake. TS came later.

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Hatel3reed
Hatel3reed - - 903 comments

Yeah you're absolutely right, I completely forgot about Action HL.

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Schmung
Schmung - - 12 comments

If memory serves, Action Quake 2 first(obv), then AHL, TS, then the Opera. Each had their own approach to the 'diving about wielding two pistols' genre. I'd vote for TS personally, but I'm horribly biased 'cos I worked on it. Slow-mo in a mutliplayer setting was (I think) first done by TS and while it was out it was among thethe most popular HL mods along with Natural Selection and obviously excluding CS and DoD.

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Ennui
Ennui - - 420 comments

I don't know what your work on TS was, but even if it was something as small as a gun model or a couple of environment textures, I have to say THANK YOU from the bottom of my heart. The Specialists has long been my favorite HL1 mod and one of my favorite multiplayer experiences, period. It totally deserves to go on this list.

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Bird_of_Prey
Bird_of_Prey - - 1,616 comments

Wow! Another great addition! You guys are really been working hard lately and I for one really enjoy watching the site grow.

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Dragonlord
Dragonlord - - 1,934 comments

Will TNM be included? I think it deserves a spot in there for a project worked on for 7 years ending with an AAA quality experience. Not sure though what criteria are used to govern inclusion or not.

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AJ_Quick
AJ_Quick - - 1,321 comments

what criteria are used to determine whether a mod "makes it" ?

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TheUnabridgedGamer
TheUnabridgedGamer - - 1,671 comments

Yeah, I really wonder that myself. I could just as well put The Stanley Parable, Dear Esther, and that Fireflies mod for Crysis.

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justgoaway
justgoaway - - 8,208 comments

This idea is pretty much sweet.

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Icedecknight
Icedecknight - - 974 comments

IMO I think Research$Development (Half-life 2 mod), should be in here, but not because I'm a fanboy of it even though I am but for me it set a new standard for Puzzle mods on any engine, especially ones that are made solo. The mod showed me that you don't need any custom models or animations to make the game more fun (forgive me if it does :D).

*Cheers* - Icedecknight

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HounderKnight
HounderKnight - - 1,660 comments

Very neat addition. :)

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