A Russian modding team, Revolution Team, has released its "GTA Vice City Nextgen Edition" mod despite facing YouTube takedowns from Take-Two Interactive, Rockstar's parent company. This ambitious project seamlessly integrates the world, cutscenes, and missions of 2002's Vice City into the GTA 4 engine (2008).
The modders' YouTube channel was unexpectedly removed by Take-Two, resulting in the loss of a substantial audience and countless hours of work dedicated to the mod's development. Despite this setback, they proceeded with the release, offering it as a standalone installation package instead of requiring a legitimate GTA 4 copy, a decision made to ensure wider accessibility.
Revolution Team maintains the mod is entirely non-commercial, created by fans for fans, and expresses gratitude to the original game's developers. They express disappointment that Take-Two actively suppresses modding initiatives that could sustain interest in their classic titles, suggesting their project might set a precedent for the modding community.
Take-Two's history of aggressive takedowns of Rockstar-related mods is well-documented, creating a tense relationship with the modding community. Previous examples include takedowns of an AI-powered GTA 5 story mode mod, a VR mod for Red Dead Redemption 2, and the Liberty City Preservation Project. This pattern is particularly intriguing considering Take-Two's occasional practice of hiring talented modders for Rockstar Games, and the fact that some removed mods have later been incorporated into official remasters.
A former Rockstar Games technical director, Obbe Vermeij, offered a corporate perspective, stating that Take-Two's actions are simply protecting its business interests. He cites the "GTA Vice City Nextgen Edition" as potentially competing with the "Definitive Edition" and the Liberty City Preservation Project as potentially interfering with a possible GTA 4 remaster. He suggests that the best hope for the modding community is for Take-Two to tolerate mods that don't directly impact their sales.
The future of the "GTA Vice City Nextgen Edition" mod remains uncertain, with the question of whether Take-Two will pursue its removal still hanging in the air.
