Since 2002 when ModDB first launched, the biggest event in the calendar each year, continues to be the Player Voted Annual Mod Awards.
Since its inception over 1 million players have voted for their favorite mods, with many winners and top 10’s going on to change the gaming industry in profound ways.
The 2021 ModDB Mod of the Year awards marks the 20th Anniversary of one of the most prestigious events in the industry. These awards find their origins in 2002 as a way to acknoledge and recognize mod makers worldwide, who change the games we play in creative, inspiring and unique ways.
The inaugural winner in 2002 was Natural Section, and the team behind this mod (Unknown Worlds) went on to create Subnautica. Another winner is Garry’s Mod, who went on to create Rust and is now working on S&Box. Every story is unique, and you can find the lineup of all 20 winners here.
Perhaps the most interesting story is not the mods that won, but those that missed out, because many of the most recognized and celebrated mods in the industry (that you can see in the Mod Hall of Fame) did not always place. This includes Counter-Strike and Team Fortress which were released before the awards began in 2002, while DotA was overlooked almost entirely as the early days of ModDB had its roots strongly in FPS mods. DayZ was the 2012 runner up behind Black Mesa, and amazingly PLAYERUNKNOWN’s Battle Royale (PUBG) was an editors choice in 2014 but never featured in the players choice voting.
To mark the occasion, Scott Reismanis, founder of DBolical and ModDB, said “The Mod of the Year Awards are a favorite time of ours, an opportunity to pause and reflect, celebrate mods and people behind the projects. It’s a great honor to be reaching our 20th year standing on the shoulders of giants, and we thank everyone who’s contributed to the community over that time.”
Please see the following links for our article reviewing the past twenty winners, as well as the article which takes a look at the unique award logos designed each year to mark the occasion: – Celebrating 20 Years of Mod Winners – Award Logo Designs Over the Years
