Multi Theft Auto

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Multi Theft Auto
Developer(s)MTA Team[1]
Initial release9 February 2003; 21 years ago (2003-02-09)
Stable release
1.6.0[2] / 16 June 2023; 12 months ago (2023-06-16)
Repositorygithub.com/multitheftauto/
Written inC++ and Lua
Engine
  • RenderWare
GNU General Public License v3
Websitemultitheftauto.com

Multi Theft Auto (MTA) is a

modification for the Microsoft Windows version of Rockstar North games Grand Theft Auto III, Grand Theft Auto: Vice City and Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas that adds online multiplayer functionality. For Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas, the mod also serves as a derivative engine to Rockstar's interpretation of RenderWare
.

History

Background

The release of Grand Theft Auto III, a critically acclaimed

computer and video game developed by DMA Design (now Rockstar North) represented the first 3D title in the Grand Theft Auto (GTA) series. Despite its success, it was the first Grand Theft Auto game to ship without the network multiplayer gameplay features that were present in earlier titles, which allowed players to connect through a computer network and play the game with others.[3]

The first version of Multi Theft Auto, dubbed Grand Theft Auto III: Alternative Multiplayer, attempted to fill in this gap by extending an already existing

cheating tool with functionality that allowed the game to be played with a very crude form of two-player racing over a computer network purely as a proof of concept,[3] similar to how the now-defunct XBAND
service worked by manipulating game memory in order to add online multiplayer functionality. Newer versions of Multi Theft Auto with increasingly better gameplay and other improvements were released based on the same concept of game manipulation, by a small team of developers.

With the introduction of successor Grand Theft Auto: Vice City, it became clear that this computer game title also lacked any form of network gameplay. The Multi Theft Auto software was subsequently extended to include support for this title, and eventually shifted its entire focus towards this title and the concept of a new software framework dubbed Blue.[4] As the original concept (of game manipulation by memory) was prone to various problems with performance and stability that often resulted in application crashes, this new framework was created as a successor and laid the foundation of all future Multi Theft Auto software.[5]

Development

A screenshot of one of the earlier closed MTA:SA deathmatch (alpha version)

The latest Multi Theft Auto version is based on

scripting language
.

The Multi Theft Auto: San Andreas project was revised and relaunched as an

GPLv3 license and made available on GitHub
.

Multi Theft Auto: San Andreas

Multi Theft Auto's latest release is for the game Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas and is built upon a now open source

maps by exposing a large part of the original game functionality through a Lua scripting machine
.

The initial version of the software was dubbed "Race" and unveiled on Sunday 22 January 2006, when the first playable content was released. This version featured a networked

spawn points, power-ups and various objects ranging from ramps to exploding barrels.[7]

The successor release, dubbed "Deathmatch", was designed to improve upon "Race" by providing minimal

code repository
, illustrating any notable updates to the progress of the modification.

The first "Deathmatch" successor was introduced as a fully playable version on 2 January 2008 and tagged as "Developer Preview" to promote the

GPLv3
License.

On Saturday, 22 August, Multi Theft Auto: San Andreas v1.0 was officially distributed as the first open source release.[5] This release abandoned the now obsolete "Deathmatch" tag in the product name to emphasize on the versatility of the software. Gameplay functionality is solely provided by the scripting language, so users can choose or develop their own combination of scripts and other contents to customize and host their own type of game.

Content delivery and development

A third-party race track "resource" in Multi Theft Auto

The initial "Deathmatch" version and its underlying engine presented a series of relevant changes to the functionality of the modification as well as the introduction of an online community

content delivery
system. Through the use of this website, registered users (such as players, server administrators or developers) can accumulate in-game statistics whilst playing on servers or share custom created content with other users.

Third party content is made possible through the addition of the Lua

events
.

The custom created content is grouped into "resources" that are hosted server-side. This is a

client-side execution of Lua code. This system allows for package dependency and inheritance of functions between different packages, easy management and distribution.[10]

Feature summary

A third-party minigame "resource" that transforms the game into a poker match
  • Multi Theft Auto uses a
    modular platform
    to separate several facilities such as the GUI, network, game and scripting code and loads these into the game instead of injecting code into its memory process. This improves stability, speed and allows a better file management.
  • Uses the freeware
    widgets
    for any in-game user interaction such as the server-browser and allows scripting from any third-party resource.
  • A versatile set of scripting functions. By building upon Grand Theft Auto's own
    class-based design
    , implementing this into the client and server and synchronizing between these two, a third-party developer can control almost any aspect of every player's game by means of the Lua scripting language: native elements such as animations, explosions, particles, skins, weapons, vehicles, objects and players, as well as new elements such as custom 3D models are controllable.

Gameplay

Deathmatch, roleplay and race gameplay options are available. Some gameplay elements include checkpoints, spawn points, power-ups, weapons and various objects ranging from ramps to exploding barrels. Many online servers contain custom game modes which use the scripting engine supplied with Multi Theft Auto. As example a few game modes in MTA:SA like Freeroam, where players can roam free in San Andreas all across the map, or competitive game-modes like Race, Destruction/Demolition Derby, Team Deathmatch, and Fallout, where players spawn their characters in the air, on a platform of glass plates, which will suddenly fall down after indicating it, where the players have to jump from a falling piece to an intact one, and the last surviving player wins. The principle of Fallout is similar to Hay, where players have to climb and be on top of a haystack first. The last modes also indicates how many game modes and scripts are possible to create on the MTA scripting engine, with endless possibilities and variation.

There are many genres of specific game servers and communities, like real-life role-playing, classic RPGs, and gaming communities that serve a wide variation of different gamemodes, sometimes all together in one server. Today the average amount of game servers the San Andreas version of Multi Theft Auto (MTA:SA) contains, is 3000 to 4000 servers, with over 600,000 players monthly, spread over the servers. The most popular game servers have a constant average of 200 to 1000 online players in-game.[11]

Reception

The Multi Theft Auto project has also been the subject in multiple articles in different media.

G4 TV,[18] an exclusive release for Fileplanet with coverage on its frontpage,[19] and features in published magazines such as PC Gamer[20] and Total PC Gaming.[21]

References

  1. ^ mtasa-blue network members
  2. ^ "Release 1.6.0 · multitheftauto/Mtasa-blue". GitHub.
  3. ^ a b Liles, Jordan (1 May 2006). "Becoming a Fully-Realized GTA Fanatic". IGN. p. 3. Archived from the original on 11 July 2011. Retrieved 2 December 2009.
  4. gamespy.com. IGN. Archived from the original
    on 11 July 2011. Retrieved 2 December 2009.
  5. ^ a b "Multi Theft Auto - San Andreas Goes Open-Source". Slashdot. 24 November 2008. Retrieved 24 November 2008.
  6. ^ Wen, Howard (29 March 2005). "Multi Theft Auto: Hacking Multi-Player into Grand Theft Auto With Open Source". OSDir. Archived from the original on 31 December 2008. Retrieved 5 June 2009.
  7. ^ Liles, Jordan (19 January 2006). "MTA: San Andreas "Race" Review". IGN. Archived from the original on 11 July 2011. Retrieved 8 December 2009.
  8. ^ "Multi Theft Auto - Update and Beta News Review". IGN. 13 June 2006. Archived from the original on 31 March 2008. Retrieved 8 December 2009.
  9. Filefront. 7 January 2008. Archived from the original
    on 16 July 2010. Retrieved 8 December 2009.
  10. ^ "MTA "Resources" explained". Multi Theft Auto. 4 March 2007. Archived from the original on 31 March 2008. Retrieved 5 June 2009.
  11. ^ Moss, Richard (15 September 2016). "Why A Million People Still Play Multiplayer Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas Every Month". Rock Paper Shotgun. Retrieved 17 September 2016.
  12. ^ Aaron Boulding, Tom McNamara (27 March 2004). "True Crime: Streets of L.A. Review". IGN. pp. 2, 4. Archived from the original on 10 June 2004. Retrieved 5 June 2009.
  13. ^ McNamara, Tom (19 April 2005). "GTA San Andreas PC Hands-On". IGN. Archived from the original on 22 April 2005. Retrieved 5 June 2009.
  14. ^ McGarvey, Sterling (14 July 2006). "Saints Row Preview". GameSpy. Retrieved 5 June 2009.
  15. ^ "Multi Theft Auto - San Andreas". MegaGames software. 6 February 2006. Archived from the original on 11 March 2008. Retrieved 5 June 2009.
  16. Neowin.net. 24 January 2006. Archived from the original
    on 18 December 2022. Retrieved 5 June 2009.
  17. ^ "Multi Theft Auto". TechWack. 6 September 2004. Archived from the original on 5 December 2010. Retrieved 5 June 2009.
  18. ^ YouTube version of G4TV's MTA fragment.
  19. ^ Fileplanet frontpage screenshot.
  20. ^ "PC Gamer UK - Issue 140". PC Gamer UK. No. 140. October 2004.
  21. ^ "Total PC Gaming - Issue 26" (26). Imagine Publishing. October 2009. {{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires |journal= (help)

External links

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