First and foremost, if you haven't been made aware about the attack that Take-Two Interactive (which is Rockstar Games' parent company) has reportedly dealt upon the OpenIV team, look here: http://gtaforums.com/topic/889348-openiv/
Yesterday was a day that was far from pleasant. I woke up at my usual time, immediately checked my phone to make sure there weren't any missed calls, opened up Facebook, and my day went from neutral to downright depressing, instantly. For 5 years, I've followed the GTA modding community, became a part of it, even managed to contribute. I've seen LCPDFR grow into an enjoyable, working modification, then saw LSPDFR sprawl into a living mod for a beautiful Grand Theft Auto V, brings support for many enjoyable plugins and hours upon hours of footage to others to enjoy. I saw YCA-RE release his game-changing 1999 Ford Crown Victoria Police Interceptor, saw F5544's retirement from modeling, proudly joined Albo1125's Loyalty Rewards Program, as well as released the awesome Potato texture before stepping my texturing game up and releasing the Seattle PD texture pack. I've gone from hating on law enforcement to having pure respect for the men and women who help keep us safe. I've learned a lot, changed a lot, and am happy with who I am as a gamer and a content creator, both with my YouTube channel and my graphic designs.
But as they say, "all good things come to an end," and I just couldn't expect this to happen. Honestly, I fell in love with this community. Not just here on this site, but the entirety of the GTA modding community. Sure, there were hiccups, but at the end of the day, we are creators, we're different and we show it in what we share with others. The respect here is real, even if you don't see it. We're more than a community, we're a family. This major situation, whether true or not, will change us. We win some, we lose some. My YouTube channel, which relaunched in 2014 amidst a random take-down by YouTube, was built with LCPDFR as the foundation. What came out of that was amazing. It really opened me up as a creator, and gave me the opportunity to help entertain people from all around the globe. I don't do it for the money (hell, if I did it for the money, I'd be homeless), I do it for the few that enjoy hearing my unbelieveably annoying voice (I mean damn, you think my videos sound awful, try editing them and having to hear my voice replay over and over again, it's horrifying) and watching me chase, arrest, and take down suspects (and maybe some innocent civilians).
I've had quite some time here, and for the most part, I've truly enjoyed it. It's been an honor, and I want to keep going. But if this really is happening how it looks like it's happening, then I'm not really sure what I've got left. My YouTube channel will suffer when my original series, San Andreas: Law, gets instantly discontinued. My vehicle textures will no longer be a thing for people to enjoy. I, as a creative who just wants to create, will crumble. Take-Two Interactive, if they're really going through with this, is making the biggest mistake they ever have, possibly ever will. Modding has been a major selling point for their PC games for years, with Grand Theft Auto IV living years more than it should have, and by taking away our ability to modify the game, they shoot themselves in the knees. Their sales will drop, their reputation as a game developer/publisher will drop, and Grand Theft Auto V's single player will not be played nearly as much. Mods mean so much to people, if only Take-Two could actually observe and try to get an understanding on what it really means to everyone. Mods bring people together, make people get creative, allow players to play an old game and STILL HAVE FUN. Mods keep games fresh with new content, even when the game developer feels like they shouldn't make new content.
A part of me believes that this is a joke, a cruel prank. For starters, have you actually read the C&D that OpenIV claims to have received? The grammar-nazis would lose their minds, with how awful the thing is written. Would Take-Two really not take the time and effort to make the C&D more professional, to proof-read it? And would Take-Two and Rockstar really not say a word about this whole situation with the public, not even to acknowledge that this is really happening? Maybe I haven't had enough time to process what this is going to end up doing, but this doesn't feel right. It doesn't feel professional enough, especially for one of the biggest game companies in the world.
Honestly, this is just a small portion of what I'm thinking, but I want you, the reader to consider what I'm saying, to get on the same page as me. If this is really happening, this will hurt a lot of people in ways that it simply shouldn't. I feel that people who legally own a copy of the games provided by Take-Two Interactive and Rockstar Games should have the right to modify the game in a way that it doesn't affect other people's ability to play.
But hey, everyone is entitled to their own opinions. Maybe I'm wrong, maybe I'm not. But either way, it's my opinion for all to see.
Linked here is a petition, where you can voice your opinion and hopefully prove Take-Two wrong: https://www.change.org/p/rockstar-games-save-openiv
