I support the developers. Why Playstation 3 and XBOX owners are already playing, and we still have not seen even the announcement? 

So why is stealing mods bad but stealing a whole game's graphics isn't?

Honestly, stuff like this reduces chances of us seeing GTA V on the PC, and makes Rockstar think we're all just a bunch of pirates (which this is, this is piracy and copyright infringement).

The person who released this, and is actively working on this, "NTAuthority", is a pirate and had Activision send him plenty of DMCA notices. He made cracked call of duty multi-player servers for MW2, MW3, and Black ops. Now he's working on cracked multiplayer for gta iv. All of his call of duty projects were shut down because of activision being on his ass. 

 

He's found a way around all the legal bullshit now though.

Edited April 11, 201412 yr by Requiem

So why is stealing mods bad but stealing a whole game's graphics isn't?

Honestly, stuff like this reduces chances of us seeing GTA V on the PC, and makes Rockstar think we're all just a bunch of pirates (which this is, this is piracy and copyright infringement).

 

So are all the car models ripped from V going to be taken down? The police peds being worked on, by Sam even?

 

If R* takes OBVIOUS INTEREST in a PC version of GTAV as a reason to not release a PC version, they would be idiots of epic proportions.

So are all the car models ripped from V going to be taken down? The police peds being worked on, by Sam even?

 

If R* takes OBVIOUS INTEREST in a PC version of GTAV as a reason to not release a PC version, they would be idiots of epic proportions.

 

I don't think there's anything wrong with small conversions like cars or peds.  Trying to convert the whole map of GTA V is a different thing altogether.  Personally I don't have a problem with it, but it is the sort of thing that Rockstar might be concerned about it.

Jay's idea still applies to those small conversions. The fact that it's a thing shows that people want HD Los Santos on the PC, and since R* has created an unofficial void, people are going to fill it unofficially.

If Rockstar wants to prevent this, they should lock their models.

If Rockstar wants to prevent this, they should lock their models.

 

I guess you don't understand much about how model locking works.  In GTA IV's case, locking is a feature in zModeler which lets you put a bit of data into the model file.  When zModeler opens a model file, it searches for this bit of data and if it finds it, it won't let you open the file, telling you that it is locked.  GTA IV's default model files aren't locked because they don't have this bit of data in them as when Rockstar made the models, they will have used their own software to do so, rather than a third party application like zModeler.  You might as well consider the default model files to be locked as without an application which understands the format, you cannot open them.  This is where zModeler comes in, as people have reverse engineered and investigated the structure of these files and therefore figured out how to open them.

 

That, by itself, is against the End User License Agreement of the game and is also copyright infringement as the GTA model format is Rockstar's own format which they made and own.  By modifying these structures, you're making unauthorised derivative works.

 

Now, that isn't what this is about.  Everyone should know that technically modding the game is illegal and against the EULA.  This is simply about the extent to which Rockstar enforce the EULA and the suggestion that Jay, myself and others have made, that they may draw the line at an entire map conversion from their flagship game.

Adding onto that, here's what GTA IV's EULA says about using Rockstars content:

 

 

LICENSE CONDITIONS. You agree not to:

(a) Commercially exploit the Software; (b) Distribute, lease, license, sell, rent or otherwise transfer or assign the Software, or any copies of the Software,

without the express prior written consent of Licensor or as set forth in this Agreement; © Make a copy of the Software or any part thereof (other than

as set forth herein); (d) Making a copy of this Software available on a network for use or download by multiple users; (e) Except as otherwise specifically

provided by the Software or this Agreement, use or install the Software (or permit others to do same) on a network, for on-line use, or on more than one

computer or gaming unit at the same time; (f) Copy the Software onto a hard drive or other storage device in order to bypass the requirement to run the

Software from the included CD-ROM or DVD-ROM (this prohibition does not apply to copies in whole or in part that may be made by the Software itself

during installation in order to run more efficiently); (g) use or copy the Software at a computer gaming center or any other location-based site; provided,

that Licensor may offer you a separate site license agreement to make the Software available for commercial use; (h) Reverse engineer, decompile,

disassemble, prepare derivative works based on or otherwise modify the Software, in whole or in part; (i) Remove or modify any proprietary notices,

marks or labels contained on or within the Software; and (j) transport, export or re-export (directly or indirectly) into any country forbidden to receive such

Software by any U.S. export laws or accompanying regulations or otherwise violate such laws or regulations, that may be amended from time to time.

 

I highlighted part h which in plain English prohibits modding the game.

 

There's also their section on User created content:

 

 

USER CREATED CONTENT: The Software may allow you to create content, including but not limited to a gameplay map, a scenario, screenshot of a

car design or a video of your game play. In exchange for use of the Software, and to the extent that your contributions through use of the Software give

rise to any copyright interest, you hereby grant Licensor an exclusive, perpetual, irrevocable, fully transferable and sub-licensable worldwide right and

license to use your contributions in any way and for any purpose in connection with the Software and related goods and services, including the rights

to reproduce, copy, adapt, modify, perform, display, publish, broadcast, transmit, or otherwise communicate to the public by any means whether now

known or unknown and distribute your contributions without any further notice or compensation to you of any kind for the whole duration of protection

granted to intellectual property rights by applicable laws and international conventions. You hereby waive any moral rights of paternity, publication,

reputation, or attribution with respect to Licensor’s and other players’ use and enjoyment of such assets in connection with the Software and related

goods and services under applicable law. This license grant to Licensor, and the above waiver of any applicable moral rights, survives any termination

of this License.

This part will probably not hold up in court (at least in Europe).

 

 

As Sam said, it's all down to how Rockstar chooses to enforce the EULA, the negative PR that inevitably would come doesn't really seem worth it, but Rockstar or Take2 doesn't really have anything to loose.

 

 

Had they only released it on PC....