Have you ever subscribed to a mod on the L4D2 Steam workshop, only to discover it doesn't work? If so, you're not alone. I know you're not alone, because I get multiple comments every week on my mods telling me they don't work, and I'm pretty sure people aren't going around leaving these comments for fun.

Out of the hundreds of comments I've gotten telling me my mods don't work, there has been exactly 1 instance of my mod genuinely not being functional (even then, it was because I'd uploaded the wrong VPK file. What I did upload still worked fine, it just didn't do what the workshop page said it did)

So before you go and leave a comment telling a workshopper that their mod doesn't work, read through this guide!

If the workshop page shows any evidence of the mod working (such as a GIF thumbnail or a demonstration video) then it's highly likely that the mod is not broken; if it was broken, the author couldn't have made the demonstration. There's a few simple things we can do to confirm for ourselves whether or not a mod is functional.


Conflicts occur when 2 or more mods contain the same files. Mods that contain textures, models, custom animations or sounds work by replacing an existing in game file. If multiple mods try to replace the same file, they will be listed as a conflict, and some or all of them may not work.

L4D2 makes it easy to check for conflicts, since it gives you a notification on screen when you have conflicting mods.



Script conflicts are a bit harder to diagnose. For the most part, scripts will never be listed as conflicting with each other unless they share the same filename, but it's still possible for them to interfere with one another in terms of what they're trying to do.

If you want to check for script conflicts, disable all other scripts you're using and restart your game. That rules out the possibility of another script messing with the 'broken' one.


Then you have 2 choices:

1) Use common sense and a bit of technical knowledge to disable any scripts that you might reasonably expect to be conflicting with the 'broken' script. For example, if your 'broken' script has a mechanic that relates to survivors being incapacitated, then disabling any other scripts that also affect incapacitated survivors would be a good start.

2) Concede that you have suffered the unforeseen consequences of your actions. When you use hundreds of mods at once, things are bound to break.


Now that you've disabled any potentially conflicting mods, you can test the 'broken' mod again. Make sure you restart your game and check your addons folder in file explorer to confirm the other addons have actually been removed.

When you're testing a 'broken' mod, be sure to test it in a vanilla map. Item test maps from the workshop might seem like a convenient option, but they can oftentimes cause certain mods, particularly scripts, to not function properly.

Also make sure that you use a local host server for testing. Some mods (mostly scripts) won't work on Valve servers or dedicated servers that aren't specifically set up to run them.


If by this point the mod still doesn't seem to be working, check the workshop page again to see if there's anything you might've missed. In some cases, it might be as simple as a config file that needs to be adjusted, an extra button that needs to be pressed, or a file that needs to be manually added. If the workshop page shows any demonstration videos, try and recreate the conditions you can see in the video to give yourself the best chances of having the mod work.


Repeat the process again; remove every other addon you have, restart your game, test the 'broken' mod on a vanilla local host server.

If you can do all of that and the mod still consistently shows no signs of it working, congratulations! The mod may very well be genuinely non-functional!

You might think this is the part where you finally get to comment "Not working" on the mods workshop page before patting yourself on the back for a job well done. Nobody can stop you from doing this, but it's worth noting that it probably won't help anybody if you do.

In a way, mods are a bit like cars. if your car isn't working, you ask a mechanic to take a look at it. If you tell the mechanic "my car isn't working", they probably won't be able to do very much to help you. If you instead say "I turn the key but my car doesn't start, I just get warning lights showing up on the dashboard", they can likely pinpoint what's wrong straight away and get it fixed much sooner.

Similarly, when you're telling someone that their mod doesn't work, it helps to include as many extra relevant details as you can.


Error messages are an easy way to let someone know their mod isn't working; that's why they exist. Check your games console for any lines of red text. These can oftentimes tell you the exact line of code that's causing the problem, which makes it much easier to fix it. If you see any error messages, include them in your comment.


If you're including an error message, it's also a good idea to say what you were doing to cause the error message to appear. If the mods creator can recreate the circumstances that resulted in the error, it can help them with testing their fix.


In some cases, such as where a mod is causing poor game performance, listing your computer specs is also beneficial. It might not be a case of the mod being broken, but rather a case of you needing better hardware.


You were already told several times in the previous chapter to get rid of your other mods. If for some reason you chose not to do that, remember to list any other mods you're using in your comment. The creator might recognise one of them as a conflict.


It never hurts to say what you've already done to try and fix the problem yourself. The best case scenario is that it points the mods creator in the right direction. The worst case scenario is that it shows you at least care a little bit about trying to be helpful.

Now that you have some idea of what to include in your comment, here's some examples of bad comments that aren't helpful in the slightest.


This doesn't explain what's wrong with the mod, what solutions you've tried, or what might be causing the problem. By sheer coincidence, the people who leave comments like this also seem to be the sort of people to put zero effort into trying to fix the problem themselves.


A great comment for scaring other potential subscribers off, but not so great for fixing things. At the very least, say what you were doing that caused the crash.


This is a good start, but it's best to save everyone some time and include the error in your first comment rather than waiting for a reply.


The worst part about this is that it's not clear whether the mod isn't working, or if you just don't like the mod in general.

Here's the essentials:

• Include as much detail as you can
  
• Be specific
  
• Make an attempt to fix it yourself

It isn't that hard.