The Steam Workshop integrated into ManiaPlanet!

[HaagseSmurf]

Steam ftw.

Steam can be trusted.
External 3rd parties dont offer the same quality than steam.
Im not trying to step on anyones toes, but its true

After years of experience most players and serverhosters know where to find reliable quality and knowledge of the game in hosting tracks/maps with MX and TMX and skins with maniapark and trackmania carpark. Steam is only usuable for Steam-users and not for other Maniaplanetplayers. Serverhosters can easily add tracks/maps on their servers with MX and TMX which is until now not possible from steam.

Perhaps the crew from MX, TMX, Maniapark and Tm Carpark can host in the nearbye future all those great tracks and skins etc etc in cooperation with Steam, with the help from Nadeo. This would reduce their costs of hosting a lot. Its just a thought, but i think that it is better to have 1 place for storage of everything. Until now i think most players and hosters keep on using MX, TMX, Maniapark and TM Carpark because they have proven their quality and reliability.

Greetz,

[MrA]

There should be a 'share files' button on all versions of the game, not just the steam versions. But it should not go to steam workshop directly, it should open some choices on the right hand of the page which lets players choose between steam workshop and the various community pages which offer similar services...

Then let there be competition between 'us' and steam on a fair level, not sending people there behind the scenes, its quite underhand the way it is done.

Give the players the choices, and let them decide who can do the best job at providing these services. Steam Workshop can then compete with us in an open and fair way. At the moment, it is unfair and rather looks like the game is showing the community sites 'two fingers' in favour of directing players to Steam.

[PapyChampy]

Quality-wise, community sites will always be one step ahead.
And that's what matters for a good experience with the content generated by players.
I kinda agree with MrA's post. Some manialink support for maps/custom models/skins/other contents could be a nice addition.

Personally, I'm not even interested into the Steam workshop.

[zarexz]

Mr.A. Reality will solve this problem.

I'm a supposed kid having his tracks on Steam. Haagse is the ever friendly server admin.

Kid: "Hi, I've made a track, can you ad it to this server?"
Admin: "Sure, do you have an MX-ID?"
Kid: "What's that?"
Admin: "I need that number to be able to ad your track to this server."
Kid: "I see, how do I do that?"
Admin: "Log on to mania-exchange and upload your track there. Then I will ad it."
Kid: "Is there really no other way?"
Admin: "No, I'm sorry. Although I'm friendly, I'm also a tad lazy, just like all other serveradmins."

If I was that kid, I'd hurry over to MX in a sec. Although this site is my least favorite one, it is the most important one if I want the world to play my tracks. Even hate can't keep me away from it. Let alone something silly as steam.

Problem solved. If there ever was any...

[TGYoshi]

I'm fairly certain someone can write a plugin to add steam workshop maps.
I'm not sure how steam handles it, but I wouldn't be amazed if it's possible.

[Bramble]

External 3rd parties dont offer the same quality than steam.

I think that massively underestimates, and frankly insults, the impact TMX and other websites have had on Trackmania as a whole. I honestly don't think TM would be half the game it is today without the dedication and support that the people who host these websites provide. We all have a hell of a lot to thank guys like MrA and Slig for.

TMX has been running for years, and it is THE place to go for tracks. It would take something really amazing for me to "trust" more than TMX.

[Hylis]

With years going on, and masters of the community being around, I think the level reached is just really high.

I see Steam Workshop as another opportunity to bring interest to sharing to some new players and to promote this to other players as well. Once they reach a first step, I kind of also think that the reality will bring players to mania-exchange for map sharing, meaning more players there, and more activity.

Steam Workshop may also help in another way one day that I have not tried to predict, but who know what creative approach can be made out of it. So, some would talk about dividing, but I always think it will add. If there is a group of players using Steam Workshop, than this group may participate in their own way to some diversity or innovation.

The point is to know why is it put more in front that community sites. First of all, I think it is more because it is not a community site. We may do a function to upload videos to youtube like we made a function to stream to twitch. Is it really community sites to compete with tm-tube? for me, it is a no since it is not made by someone of the community, somehow. These are more like tools than sites. It is to the players to make use of it.

The main interesting question for me, is more to know how the community would be capable to be part of the game and the web more easily. It is still the question of ManiaPub, with possibility to install plug-ins that would enhance the menu of Maniaplanet, like we already do dynamically and will for other menus.

We are late on these topics compared to manianews of TM1. But we have concentrated a lot on 1: making the games and 2:bringing a lot of players into it. Community features are more a 3 to us, since we believe that good games and many players are desired by the community as well.

I have suggested to Nadeo Live to present some main community sites directly in the news of the game during the summer, in order to give us time to set up the tools required for them to be independant and efficient into the game. The three first ones could be Mania-Actu, Mania-Exchange and Maniapark. We also have open the "mania" links inside the game for these ones.

For the little story, when we first announced the steam workshop, I said to insist on the fact that community tools already existed. This is how the first news about it ended with "Players will therefore soon be able to share their creations via the Steam Workshop, just like they already do in game and through community sites." So, I share the stress about having the impression that community sites are put in the second plan, but I really don't think it will be the case. I was a little surprised by the post of Cerovan in that regard and understand well the reaction. But I believe that TMX is really well made for maps and the game itself and I think there is around two times more files on TMX than the workshop for all games together. So, there is time before worrying, and we should stay aware to stay fair as much as possible. I was enough under the spotlight for making a fair ground that you can be sure that I will try to keep things that way ^_^

[zarexz]

That's all very nice but if it goes unmoderated like it seems to be right now, new players are introduced to low quality and/or not properly functioning stuff. This could have two consequences, they either leave or find MX and maniapark after all

[MrA]

From here: http://forum.maniaplanet.com/viewtopic. ... &start=120

Hi all, just shared a map called 'Twin Peaks' through Steamworks. http://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/f ... =159145279

This is my first map, and I tried to make it around Green/Blue difficulty. It features a highway that exits out into a small town called 'Twin Peaks,' which features some tighter turns as you wind through the suburbs before making your way back onto the highway to complete the loop.

I'd love feedback/criticism so I can make my next map better

Where is the best place for Zwanglos to go to share his map and find feedback?
Where has Nadeo directed him to go?
Would it be better if Nadeo offered him some choices so he can decide where to go himself?

I rest my case.

[Hylis]

We would like to offer different choices, like you may see when you go in "create server / rent" for example.

The system are not in place to do it. But as I said before, I think that Steam workshop is something that is more of a tool than a site. What if Nadeo would make a hosting space for maps, like we did for the solo some time ago? Sites like TMX are more advanced because they are made with the need of many players in mind, the evolution, the communication etc.

If we would put a basic cloud to upload and have urls of maps, I don't think it would be like mania-exchange. Should we prevent ourselves of doing it? I don't think so. In ten years, we have not made so much about it, because I think that people share stuff like they want: email, hosting sites, skype, TMX or else. Steam is about that, and the fact that it is in the menu of Steam owners, is a way to simplify. Would I be happy that TMX could be in it, of course, but I can not make TMX by default like there is Steam, I just can give good ways for TMX to reach the players and have them to include a plug in to enable that.

Until then, I agree that there is a flaw, but I also think that TMX is enough ahead to avoid to be scared about it. Keep in mind that Maniaplanet is not at all obligatory to use Steam, and maps sharing on TMX is a way to keep it as cool out of it than in it. So, it would not be in our interest to cause difficulties to TMX on long term. On short term, let us take our breath, please.

And be sure I did not ask Cerovan to make a post about it