Ozark, a popular mod menu for Grand Theft Auto Online and Red Dead Online that allows users to make modifications to both the single-player and multiplayer modes of each game, is being shut down by Take-Two Interactive.
The mod, which costs $25 on various mod reselling sites, allows players to manipulate the games in all kinds of ways, ranging from spawning money, allowing players to teleport, and more. The mod’s creator, D3skstool, received a legal notice from Take-Two, causing them to take immediate action in shutting down the mod, as noticed by Twitch streamer NorthernLaw (via Eurogamer).
Ozark, a popular mod menu mostly known within #RedDeadOnline and a little bit within #GTAOnline has been shut down by Take-Two.
Pic by @NorthernLawYT pic.twitter.com/WESodMnqX1— Tez2 (@TezFunz2) August 10, 2021
“Despite some of the things written in the letter I received, Ozark was a great community, and I thank you all for being a part of it,” D3skstool writes.
As of writing, the mod can still be purchased on various mod reselling sites, though it has been removed from others. The mod’s creator asks users to “not take this out on any reseller” players may have purchased the mod from. Mods and hacks have run rampant in the PC version of GTA Online, and considering they are against the game’s terms of service, it’s not surprising Take-Two is looking to take action.
It’s not the first time mods have been targeted by Take-Two. Though few players would likely complain about the company taking aim at mods for the multiplayer components of GTA Online and Red Dead Online, which often serve a similar function to cheat codes, Take-Two has also looked to shut down single-player mods.
Recently, a group of creators continuing to work on the 14-year-old GTA United mod ceased development on the project and preemptively took other related mods offline out of fear of legal action from Take-Two. The company in recent months has issued a number of DMCA-takedown notices to other GTA-related mod projects like GTA: Underground and HD texture packs for GTA: Vice City.
Take-Two’s targeting of single-player mods for decade-old games has fueled speculation that official remasters of older games like Vice City and San Andreas may be in the works, though no such project has been confirmed by Take-Two or developer Rockstar Games.
Source: Gamespot
