Editing Video game modding (section)

===Total conversion===<!-- This section is linked from [[First-person shooter]] -->
{{main|List of video games derived from mods}}
A ''total conversion'' is a mod of an existing game that replaces virtually all of the artistic assets in the original game, and sometimes core aspects of gameplay.<ref name=":0">{{Cite news|url=http://www.escapistmagazine.com/articles/view/features/galleryoftheday/13909-8-of-the-Best-Total-Conversion-Mods-of-All-Time|title=8 of the Coolest Total Conversion Mods Ever Made|work=The Escapist|access-date=2017-07-19|archive-date=2020-01-21|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200121205708/http://www.escapistmagazine.com/articles/view/features/galleryoftheday/13909-8-of-the-Best-Total-Conversion-Mods-of-All-Time}}</ref> Total conversions can result in a completely different [[video game genres|genre]] from the original.

The ''Half-Life'' modding community splintered across the different total conversions available, often modding for a particular total conversion rather than ''Half-Life'' in general.<ref name=":2" /> Examples of famous total conversions include ''[[Counter-Strike (video game)|Counter-Strike]]'' (1999), whose developers were hired by [[Valve Corporation|Valve]] to turn it into a commercial product,<ref name=":1">{{Cite journal|url=https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/2017/02/10/best-total-conversion-mods/|title=Best total conversion mods|last=Donnelly|first=Joe|date=2017-02-10|journal=Rock, Paper, Shotgun|language=en-US|access-date=2017-07-19}}</ref> ''[[Defense of the Ancients]]'' (2003), which was the first [[Multiplayer online battle arena|MOBA]] to have sponsored tournaments,<ref name=":0" /> and ''[[Garry's Mod]]'' (2006), for which fans created thousands of game modes over its decade-long development.<ref name=":1" />

Many popular total conversions are later turned into standalone games, replacing any remaining original assets to allow for commercial sale without [[copyright infringement]]. Some of these mods are even approved for sale despite using the [[Intellectual property|IP]] of the original game, such as ''[[Black Mesa (video game)|Black Mesa]]''.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.eurogamer.net/articles/2013-11-20-valve-gives-black-mesa-permission-to-be-a-commercial-product|title=Valve gives Black Mesa permission to be a commercial product|last=Matulef|first=Jeffrey|date=2013-11-20|website=Eurogamer|language=en-UK|access-date=2017-07-19}}</ref>