On modder labour, commodification of play, and mod competitions

As the boundaries between play and work are becoming increasingly blurred among digital games, avid player labour is increasingly harnessed as a source of revenue. This article focuses on "modders", hobbyists who build on existing retail game titles, and the strategies the game industry uses to motivate and persuade these hobbyists to produce content that most effectively benefits the industry. Special focus is on industry-organized mod competitions that form an area of experimentation where the potentials of free modder labour are tested.