One universal truth that has become crystal clear throughout decades in the gaming industry, is that fans always come through. Whether a title is buggy upon release, missing content, or any other various flub, the modding community who loves that title will see it fixed. What about the other kind of modder, though? The modder who sees past the game in front of them and goes on to build something incredible; a mod which stands on its own merits as a stunning piece of work.
These modders take games already widely considered excellent and put their own unique spin on them, often transforming the vanilla game into something totally unrecognizable. That devotion to their craft deserves high praise, and as such this rundown will feature some of the absolute best and brightest overhauls available. Go fans!
10/10 Project Brutality (Doom, 1993)
Doom is renowned for its constant action, motion, and brutal combat. Fans of the newer entries in that series might find it a bit difficult going back to the classic titles, since they are a bit slower paced and obviously have aged a good amount in the years since release. The goal of Project Brutality is to give a drastic update to gameplay while still being true to the soul of the original.
Featuring completely reworked weaponry, map design, and mechanics, Project Brutality definitely lives up to that goal. Hunting down keys, running through demons at a break-neck pace — replaying Doom the way we all remember it. Rip and tear until it is done!
9/10 S.T.A.L.K.E.R. Anomaly
S.T.A.L.K.E.R. is a series that has seen its fair share of ups and downs while also remaining consistently beloved. The original three titles, although fantastic games in their own right, notably released in an unfinished state, with some amount of content always ending up on the cutting room floor. Some such cut elements include overall map size, certain survival mechanics, and a lot of player customization options. Anomaly essentially cobbles together all three of the original titles into one stand-alone package — with a unique story-line to boot.
There is no cut content in this package, with the entire zone being available for the first time in a S.T.A.L.K.E.R. title. Anomaly also features some of the most in-depth player customization available in any game, period. You can alter every aspect of life during your journey through the zone, from bullet damage to the price of goods from traders. Anomaly is so good that fans have modded this mod, with the GAMMA modpack gaining more traction every day. Welcome to the zone, stalkers; this may be the best iteration you ever get to explore.
8/10 DayZ (Arma 2)
Few mods ever reach the level of icon DayZ has reached. The mod would become so popular, in fact, that it would go on to be developed into its own standalone title. Many fans, though, still hold firm in the belief that the original Arma 2 mod remains the best way to experience this legendary game.
Completely transforming that uber-realistic war shooter into a horrific masterpiece, DayZ drops you into the middle of Chernarus, a fictional city set in the former Soviet Republic which has recently seen the outbreak of a zombie virus. The game is very open-ended, tasking you only with survival as you scavenge for supplies across its vast wasteland. Your major obstacle in doing so are not only hordes of ravenous, flesh-eating zombies, but also other players. This leads to some truly tense moments of trying to figure out their motives, whether they are going to attempt robbery or be a rare friendly face. This is your story, and there has never been a better time to start telling it!
7/10 Counter-Strike (Half-Life)
Counter-Strike is, at this point, a mod that could be considered a classic in its own right. Released in 1999 as a mod for the original Half-Life, Counter-Strike spawned an incredible series which sees continual support from Valve to this day. Gone are any of the base game’s fantastical elements — alien invasions and the like.
In their stead is some of the most tactically satisfying gameplay available, with many fans being preferential to the original iteration over the newest in the series, Counter-Strike: Global Offensive. There certainly must have been something magical about it to make Valve sit up and take notice. So much notice that a year later, they officially published the first installment in the series proper. With the series being so influential, its important sometimes to sit back and enjoy where it all started.
6/10 The Dark Mod
Starting life out as a small-time mod for Doom 3, The Dark Mod has come a long way over these last few years. This overhaul essentially just uses Doom 3’s engine for its own means and is heavily inspired by the Thief series, directly recreating many gameplay systems from those titles. You edge your way in shadow through a stark, gothic steampunk world, shoving every shiny object in sight down your endless pockets.
The dev team for this mod made the ingenious decision to release open-source modding tools, building a fantastic community for itself, with over 150 fan-made missions having been released thus far. With that number constantly ticking upwards, there is sure to be tons of content keeping you hooked for hours on end.
Bethesda games have some of the largest modding communities of all time, with each of their main titles being tinkered with by thousands of fans daily. Bethesda even openly encourages this, baking major modding platforms directly into their largest titles. With this as the case, StarWind being one of the most impressive mods available for any of their titles is no small feat.
StarWind takes on the overwhelming task of converting Morrowind into a full-blown Star Wars Knights of The Old Republic sequel, complete with 31 new races, massive planets to explore, and a fully fleshed out storyline. There’s even an expansion pack that unlocks the forest moon of Endor for you to explore — with its own storyline! Fans of Star Wars surely won’t want to miss this impressive feat of modding, which could even stand up with some of the best Star Wars games.
4/10 Fallout 1.5 (Fallout 2)
The original two Fallout titles will forever hold their status as some of the best gaming available for fans of true role-playing. With intricate storylines and incredibly deep, affecting choices for you to make, those of you looking for a game that allows you to truly inhabit your character’s headspace during a grueling journey should look no further. For fans who have already played the first title, it would be safe to say you want more. Taking place directly in between the stories of Fallout 1 and 2, the aptly named Fallout 1.5 is exactly that.
Set in the New Mexico wasteland, players are on a quest to uncover the hidden secrets of their own past after waking up with amnesia. A sprawling 25-hour campaign awaits within this surprisingly tight-paced mod, with thrills around every corner, sure to satiate those fans hungry for more classic Fallout.
For better or worse, Oblivion was the turning point for the Elder Scrolls series. Being an RPG released with console play primarily in mind, many systems saw a broad simplification, a process which continued through to Skyrim. Oblivion is, of course, widely regarded as a fantastic title, but this is certainly where the focus started to shift away a bit from the deeper role-playing mechanics of earlier Elder Scrolls games. Nehrim’s goal is to provide a deeper RPG experience for those interested in such, with an all-new unique world called Vyn for you to explore.
Featuring its own lore and story, Nehrim is completely distinct from the Elder Scrolls series, only using some of Oblivion’s original gameplay for its overhaul. Players are transported to the eponymous continent of Nehrim, a world of danger and intrigue. Many systems are drastically altered from Oblivion, such as the inclusion of a traditional XP-based leveling system as opposed to the former’s skill based one. Fans of deep RPGs encouraging exploration have a ridiculous amount of quests ahead, so you better get started.
2/10 Dust (Fallout: New Vegas)
Dust is a hardcore survival horror mod which takes place 20 years after the events of Fallout: New Vegas. It would be hard to say whether it has been 20 years or 100 years when playing, though, as there isn’t a single inch of the game left untouched by this mod.
You aren’t going to be completing any quests or joining any factions. None of the vanilla NPCs have survived the horrors of this wasteland. You have only one goal, and that’s to escape the Mojave wasteland with your life. This is much easier said than done, however, with combat, enemies, and natural disasters all seeing major updates. Jump in, if you dare, and make sure to stay hydrated!
Developed by the same team as Nehrim, and taking place in the same world, Enderal is a massive mod, covering and altering nearly every aspect of the original game. One feature which returns from earlier titles in the Elder Scrolls series and from Nehrim is the ability to choose from a variety of different classes, with leveling up no longer being only through a skill tree.
World scaling is handled in an entirely different way, as well, with enemies no longer scaling alongside the player. This can lead to some truly devastating encounters early on, but it feels so satisfying to come back later and absolutely demolish those tougher foes. The continent of Enderal is a gorgeous one as well, with breathtaking vistas and interesting terrain to explore. Without a doubt, this is one of the most interesting total conversions of all time.
