Fallout 4 console mod support now requires a Steam-linked account

Uploading a Fallout 4 mod to Bethesda.net now requires a Steam-linked account with Bethesda, an extra step meant to thwart the unauthorized uploading of PC modders' work for use on consoles.

Bethesda Game Studios made the change with the latest title update to Fallout 4 this past week, as it prepares the PlayStation 4 for the PC mod support that Xbox One now has.

When mod support first came to consoles at the end of May, many PC modders found their work had been lifted from nonofficial, third-party hosting sites such as Nexus Mods and then uploaded to Bethesda.net for use on Xbox One. Bethesda created a channel through which mod creators could file complaints under the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA) to have the content removed.

The requirement of a Steam-linked Bethesda.net account appears to be an additional means of tracking or sanctioning those who lift work for use on consoles.

At E3 2015, Bethesda promised mod support would come to the console editions of Fallout 4 (and at this year's E3, it said it will do the same for the upcoming remaster of The Elder Scrolls 5: Skyrim). However, the Xbox One and PlayStation 4 can only pull mods from Bethesda.net.

The most popular, most publicized mods for Fallout have been hosted for years on non-Bethesda sites. Console players took PC mods that weren't uploaded to Bethesda.net and put them there so they could access them on Xbox One, roiling both platforms' communities. PC users accused console players of theft; console players complained that PC modders were being lazy or selfish by not sharing their work.