GTA 5 Liberty City Mod: Legal Shutdown Initiated

Summary

• A GTA 5 mod featuring Liberty City was shut down after "speaking to Rockstar Games."
• Many players suspect that the modders were forced to discontinue the project.
• Despite setbacks, the modding team remains passionate and aims to continue modding for the game.

An exciting Grand Theft Auto 5 mod that brought players back to the iconic Liberty City has been discontinued, much to the disappointment of the gaming community. The news broke after the mod garnered significant attention in 2024.

While some game developers like Bethesda embrace community modding, others, such as Nintendo and Take-Two Interactive (Rockstar Games' parent company), have a history of shutting down mods. Despite the challenges posed by these companies, the modding community's dedication remains unwavering. Even with this setback, the team behind the mod expresses a continued passion for modding GTA.

The modding group, World Travel, behind the Liberty City Preservation Project for GTA 5, announced the project's discontinuation on their Discord channel. They cited "unexpected attention" and mentioned that after "speaking to Rockstar Games," they decided to pull the mod. While the specifics of their conversation with Rockstar remain undisclosed, the team reaffirmed their commitment to modding, describing it as their "passion."

Another GTA Mod Bites the Dust

Although World Travel did not explicitly state they were forced to shut down the mod, many players suspect legal pressures were involved. The term "speaking to Rockstar Games" hints at a potentially amicable discussion, but the reality might be closer to a warning of legal action, such as a DMCA takedown. Given that most mods are created by volunteers without legal support, such threats often lead to immediate project closures.

The fanbase's reaction has been one of frustration, with many taking to social media to criticize Rockstar and Take-Two for their aggressive stance against mods. Some speculate that Rockstar's concern might stem from potential impacts on GTA 4 sales, despite the age of the game and the fact that playing the mod still requires a copy of GTA 5. As GTA 6 is set to feature Vice City rather than Liberty City, the reasoning behind this move remains unclear to many fans. Unfortunately, the Liberty City Preservation Project is no longer available, leaving fans hopeful that future projects from World Travel will fare better. However, it seems unlikely that Take-Two's approach to modding will change in the near future.