I'm currently trying to take a break from TCT, but wanted to pop in because of this post I saw on r/imaginaryelections, titled "the 1968 ronald reagan campaign trail mod truly boggles the mind."

The comments of the post are filled to the brim with armchair critics agreeing with the poster. The OP, u/greeleycrat doesn't offer any constructive criticism, only linking to a twitter post he made where he asserts "the new reagan thing is so bad it's so so bad."

The repliers said things like "Honestly one of the worst mods of all time" and "Well it's made by a guy who worships Reagan, so it shouldn't be surprising it's not that well made", a reference to the fact the modmaker's name is "Raygun Stan." Of course, u/greeleycrat and the other unserious commenters have never contributed anything to this community, let alone a mod. They just sit around, playing what other people have spent their time to provide them without charge and delight in hating on the work.

I understand not liking 1968 Reagan, the writing isn't exactly my preferred style, but the mod is emulating (I would say successfully) a Bryanesque feel and the traditional sense for what a mod looks and plays like. There's nothing outright bad about the mod, besides a select few wacky state margins, yet folks will confidently declare it "the worst mod ever", as if any mod that isn't a 1968 Romney-style narrative mod is automatically garbage—as if a Dan Bryan scenario has no merits. This sort of criticism is not constructive nor productive. It is worthless and gross, and sets an impossible bar for new modmakers.

Of course, I did help Raygun with the mod as its coder, but I'm not making this post because I'm biased or whatever. I personally gave the mod a 6/10. I'm making it because I just find this general culture of hate for new mods that aren't perfect a really dangerous precedent. I've perosnally been on both sides of this coin. 1948Red, my first mod, was panned and my second mod, 1498 Florence was widely acclaimed. I think both have value, and I know people who have had a lot of fun with both. I've always accepted constructive criticism for my mods, but I also have experienced the same thing Raygun is experiencing now when it came to 1948Red, many people not even playing the mod but hating on it automatically. If I had never accepted constructive criticism on my first mod and listened to the haters I wouldn't have ever been able to make 1498 Florence. This is a problem. Leave Raygun and other new modders alone.

And just to clarify, if you have constructive feedback, of course you should share it. If you didn't like a mod, that's also perfectly understandable! But if you want to share your negative opinion, you need to be constructive. I'm a critic on this community too, I don't deny it, but I hope if you've read any of my articles on Writing Right you'll understand that it was never my intention to hate on creators, but to provide actual, constructive criticism that helps modders grow. Everyone who wants to critique needs to do that, and build a better community for new modders, or the brats will ruin it for all of us.

View the original post here.