GTA 5 Liberty City Mod Shut Down

Liberty City GTA 5 Mod Shut Down Following Contact with Rockstar Games

A highly anticipated Grand Theft Auto 5 mod recreating Liberty City has been discontinued. The news follows the mod's popularity in 2024. While some game developers embrace modding, others, like Rockstar Games' parent company Take-Two Interactive, are known for taking a more aggressive stance.

The modding team, World Travel, behind the "Liberty City Preservation Project," announced the shutdown on their Discord server. They cited "unexpected attention" and subsequent discussions with Rockstar Games as the reason for removing the mod. While the specifics remain undisclosed, the team expressed continued passion for GTA modding.

Another Modding Casualty

Although World Travel hasn't explicitly confirmed coercion, many players suspect the mod's closure resulted from legal pressure. Contact from Rockstar Games likely signaled a potential DMCA takedown or other legal action. Given the volunteer nature of most modding teams and lack of legal resources, such contact often leads to immediate project termination.

The community's reaction has been largely negative, with many criticizing Rockstar and Take-Two for their aggressive anti-modding policies. This is particularly frustrating given the absence of a confirmed Liberty City return in GTA 6, which currently focuses on Vice City. While Take-Two's concern might stem from potential GTA 4 sales impact, this argument is widely disputed; playing the mod still requires owning GTA 5.

Regardless of the reasoning, the Liberty City Preservation Project is no longer available. The modding community hopes World Travel's future projects will fare better, but Take-Two's approach to modding doesn't appear likely to change.