Grand Theft Auto has ever had a robust modding community, but galore of the GTA modders successful the country are uncovering themselves successful Take-Two's crosshairs. While takedown notices person been a happening successful the past from Take-Two, particularly earlier this twelvemonth erstwhile looking astatine Vice City, it appears that the institution is ramping up the aggression towards Grand Theft Auto mod creators and has been for the past respective weeks.
The latest question of takedowns has been targeting immoderate of the bigger mod projects retired there, including the full conversion mod called GTA: Liberty City. For those that whitethorn not know, this mod recreated Grand Theft Auto 3 utilizing Vice City's motor (not dissimilar Skywind implicit successful campy Bethesda). As spotted by PC Gamer, GTA: Liberty City is nary longer listed arsenic available. The aforesaid tin beryllium said of GTA: underground, the Liberty City Stories ports, and more.
Djluin via PC Gamer
The modding assemblage has been banding unneurotic to way which projects are being taken down and which ones are (so far) surviving. For those funny successful tracking this, the GTAForums has been astatine the epicenter of this peculiar niche successful the modding community, which tin beryllium recovered here.
Nintendo is different large institution that is precise overmuch against the instauration of mods, though Rockstar, successful the past astatine least, has been a small much lenient. The archetypal question of bans mostly targeted either full conversion mods oregon those that interaction multiplayer settings to debar cheats. Back successful 2017 (later updated successful 2019), Rockstar tweaked its enactment page with the beneath connection regarding single-player mods and if those would beryllium exempt from takedowns:
Rockstar Games believes successful tenable instrumentality creativity and, successful particular, wants creators to showcase their passionateness for our games. After discussions with Take-Two, Take-Two has agreed that it mostly volition not instrumentality ineligible enactment against third-party projects involving Rockstar’s PC games that are single-player, non-commercial, and respect the intelligence spot (IP) rights of 3rd parties. This does not use to (i) multiplayer oregon online services; (ii) tools, files, libraries, oregon functions that could beryllium utilized to interaction multiplayer oregon online services, oregon (iii) usage oregon importation of different IP (including different Rockstar IP) successful the project; oregon (iv) making caller games, stories, missions, oregon maps. This is not a license, and it does not represent endorsement, approval, oregon authorization of immoderate third-party project. Take-Two reserves the close to entity to immoderate third-party task oregon to revise, revoke and/or retreat this connection astatine immoderate clip successful their ain discretion. This connection does not represent a waiver of immoderate rights that Take-Two whitethorn person with respect to third-party projects.
The amendment regarding making caller games and contented utilizing Rockstar IPs, specified arsenic the overhaul mods that supply caller contented and "importation of different IPs," similar the Liberty City and Vice City Stories ports, would not beryllium allowed. This changed wording was not recovered successful the archetypal transcript backmost successful 2017 and did explicate wherefore definite mods are being taken down successful caller weeks.
There are ever talks astir Grand Theft Auto 6; it's a minefield of leaks, rumors, and mendacious reports, but the caller aggression towards mods seems to beryllium fueling those GTA 6 fires. A ample information of the GTA assemblage seems to deliberation that this question of bans is indicative of Rockstar being much protective of the spot due to the fact that of thing related to the adjacent Grand Theft Auto. Others deliberation that this could mean a imaginable remake oregon remaster could beryllium connected the horizon, and that's wherefore the older mods are being abruptly taken down. At this time, we've got thing but questions, but we're funny successful seeing if determination is simply a bigger crushed down the renewed fervor.