Earlier this year, Grand Theft Auto modder and superfan Dark Space began working on an ambitious mod for GTA 5 that would’ve added the entire map of GTA 6 into the game based on leaked coordinate data and official trailer scenes. Without really knowing the actual size or layout of the sixth game’s map, the modder was simply basing their creation on data that was readily available online. However, the mod has now been removed after publisher and Rockstar Games parent company Take-Two Interactive issued a takedown.
As reported by IGN, the GTA 5 mod which was in the works by Dark Space was available as a free-to-download mod on PC. Some gameplay footage shared by the modder showed their work-in-progress that aimed to accurately recreate the GTA 6 map in the game, which was shared on their YouTube channel. It certainly wasn’t a completely accurate replication of the GTA 6 map, but it was enough for the publisher to take some course of action.
The modder had to remove the videos after recently receiving a takedown notice from Take-Two Interactive. While the takedown never explicitly mentioned that the modder should remove all download links as well – it was mainly targeted at the creator’s YouTube videos – Dark Space did so anyway to avoid any future problems.
“I expected this would happen based on their past takedowns,” said the modder. “I went into this project knowing it was a possibility, and the fact that it happened does not surprise me.”
Dark Space believed that the mod was taken down because it was based on an online GTA 6 community mapping project that was dedicated to recreating the map of the upcoming game as accurately as possible based on leaked data and the official trailer. The modder believes it probably would’ve ruined a few surprises:
“That’s probably the biggest red flag, although most of the work in my map was based on the trailer shots. I think my map could have ruined the surprise of their map, which I get. If you spent years building out this amazing game world just to have some YouTuber spoil the experience of the map’s shape, size, and vibe… I’d want it removed too.”
GTA 6 is still expected to launch sometime this year. A previous rumour suggested that it could launch in October on PS5 and Xbox Series X/S, with a PC release possibly pinned for early 2026.
Source: IGN
