7 Best Games That Actually Started Out As Mods

You might not know it, but several of your favorite games from the last few decades started as mods for fan-favorite games. As development has become much more open, especially on PC, players have taken to the tools provided by developers to create a few incredible projects. A few of those have even become hits of their own, turning those modders into full-fledged developers themselves. Heck, some of those games have even gone on to create massive series of their own, overtaking the game they were originally based on.

Here are seven of the best games that began as mods.

7) Killing Floor

Killing Floor started life as a total conversion mod for Unreal Tournament 2004. That version dropped in 2005, but lead developer Alex Quick eventually partnered with Tripwire, which brought a full retail version of the mod to market in 2009. In every form, Killing Floor is one of the early innovators in wave-based cooperative combat. You and a group of friends fight through hordes of zombie-like enemies. Upgrading your character with new weapons and perks is paramount to success, especially if you want to take down the boss at greater difficulties.

6) Team Fortress Classic

Team Fortress started life as a Quake mod, pitting two teams of players against each other in online combat. Even in those early stages, TF had character classes with unique skills and several of its more popular modes. In the late ’90s, the team was hired by Valve to make a full-scale version called Team Fortress Classic in the Half-Life engine. Similar to the mod, it quickly became a massive hit, though both versions were quickly surpassed in popularity when Team Fortress 2 hit Steam shelves in 2007. Taking it one step further, fans eventually created a mod for Half-Life 2 called Fortress Forever, which tries to replicate TF Classic gameplay in the Source engine. It’s a full circle moment.

5) The Stanley Parable

Developer Galactic Cafe first launched The Stanley Parable as a Half-Life 2 mod. Over the next two years, the team worked to get a standalone version up and running using the source engine, while adding quite a bit of new content. Both versions were well received by critics and fans alike, thanks in large part to the narrator’s responsiveness to your choices. It’s a hilarious look at narrative design that also makes you think about heady topics like predestination. To say more would drift into spoiling, and this is a game where you need to go in fresh.

4) The Forgotten City

The Forgotten City started life as a mod for The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim, which launched in 2015. However, the team at Modern Storytellers spent six years making a retail version, which launched on PC, PlayStation, and Xbox consoles in 2021. The story takes place in a time loop, which provides a tremendous setting for a sandbox city begging to be explored. That said, the reason players love The Forgotten City is the exceptional writing, which explores morality and finds ways to build upon new information in future loops in mind-bending ways. Everything is connected, and taking the world apart to see how it works is a worthy experience.

3) Dota 2

Dota 2 began as a mod for Warcraft III: Reign of Chaos. Then called Defense of the Ancients, it quickly became one of the most popular mods of all time. Several modders worked on the fledgling MOBA, but Valve hired IceFrog to make a standalone release of his version of DotA in the Source engine. When it launched in 2013, it almost instantly became one of the most-played games in the world, which led to a lucrative pro scene. Of course, I should note that MOBAs like Heroes of the Storm and League of Legends were made by developers with roots in the original DotA, so consider this a spot for all three games.

2) PUBG: Battlegrounds

PUBG began its life as an offshoot of another popular mod turned full game: DayZ, which was an ARMA 2 mod. That game was called DayZ: Battle Royale, which took heavy inspiration from the Japanese film Battle Royale. By the time DayZ became its own standalone title, PlayerUnknown decided to move his mod to ARMA 3. Eventually, PUBG became its own thing and introduced the world to the battle royale genre.

Almost immediately, PUBG became a massive game, passing Dota 2‘s record as the most-played game on Steam. It’s since spawned tons of imitators, most notably Fortnite, which has since become a phenomenon of its own.

1) Counter-Strike

Counter-Strike was originally a mod for Half-Life, but the team at Valve liked it so much that they bought the IP and brought in designers Minh Le and Jess Cliffe into the fold. The realistic take on counterterrorism attracted a massive playerbase, which quickly turned that first game into a series.

First, players got Condition Zero, a single-player campaign. Then, Source came out alongside the Source engine launch, upgrading the visuals and physics. That said, the most popular release was probably Counter-Strike: Global Offensive, which introduced new modes and improved matchmaking. And while fans balked at Counter-Strike 2 taking over CS:GO in 2023, it remains one of the most-played games on Steam to this day. Not bad for a mod that started in 1998.

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