One of the most iconic maps in the Grand Theft Auto series, Liberty City, was brought to GTA 5 by a fan-made mod. However, this mod, named the Liberty City Preservation Project, was removed just weeks after its release due to Rockstar Games’ intervention. Here are the details and what you need to know…

Silent Move from Rockstar: Statement from the Mod Team

The Liberty City Preservation Project, which had been under development since 2018 and was made available to players last month, aimed to add a fully functional Liberty City map to GTA 5. It also aimed to bring the map to life and make it playable with details such as traffic flow, pedestrians, weather effects, and new scenarios.

After discussions with Rockstar Games, the mod team decided to terminate the project. The lead developer, nkjellman, shared the following statement on Discord: “After the unexpected attention our project received and our discussions with Rockstar Games, we decided to remove the Liberty City Preservation Project.”

This incident is not the first time Rockstar Games has taken a harsh stance against the modding community. Previously, the company intervened in a mod aimed at bringing GTA Vice City to GTA 5.

At that time, it was revealed that the remaster collection GTA: The Trilogy – The Definitive Edition was in development, which made Rockstar’s action seem more reasonable. However, there has been no announcement of a GTA 4 remaster, which made the community’s backlash stronger.

Rockstar has previously stated that it doesn’t generally enforce a ban policy against third-party projects, but has made it clear it may intervene in projects that use its intellectual property. The Liberty City Preservation Project might have been targeted due to combining content from two different Rockstar games.

So, what do you think about Rockstar’s stance towards such mods? Was it the right move to remove Liberty City Preservation Project? Feel free to share your thoughts in the comments!