Multi Theft Auto

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Multi Theft Auto
Developer(s)	MTA Team
License	GNU General Public License v3
Platform(s)	Microsoft Windows
Release date(s)	MTA 0.5 (GTA III and VC) : June 14, 2004 MTA:SA R1.1.2 : May 18, 2008 MTA:SA 1.0 : August 22, 2009 MTA:SA 1.0.1 : October 2, 2009 MTA:SA 1.0.2 : October 25, 2009
Latest release	1.0.2 / October 24 2009
Preview release	Updated Nightly Download Here
Genre(s)	Third-person shooter
Mode(s)	Multiplayer
Media	Download via the official website
System requirements	Windows version of GTA III, GTA:VC or GTA:SA (Windows 98/ME/2000/XP/2003/Vista/7)

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Multi Theft Auto (MTA) is a multiplayer mod ("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 an online multiplayer component.

[edit] Overview

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

Although often referred to as a modification, Multi Theft Auto is based on code injection and hooking techniques whereby the game is manipulated without altering any original files supplied with the game. The software functions as a game engine that installs itself as an extension of the original game, adding core functionality such as networking and GUI rendering while exposing the original game's engine functionality through a scripting language.

Multi Theft Auto was previously ranked as one of CSports.net's top online games, with statistics showing peaks of roughly one thousand players playing different versions of the mod on-line simultaneously.

The project has also been the subject in multiple articles in different media.^{[1][2][3][4][5][6][7][8]} The most prominent being a coverage on G4TV^[9] and an exclusive release for Fileplanet with coverage on its frontpage.^[10]

The Multi Theft Auto: San Andreas project was revised and relaunched as an open source project, leaving all prior versions behind. The source code was licensed under the GPLv3 license and made available on Google Code.^[11]

[edit] 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 game engine that has been in development for several years and is the only project that is still actively maintained. The engine provides users with all the necessary tools they need to create their own game modes and 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 22nd of January 2006, when the first playable content was released^[12]. This version featured a vehicle racing-only gamemode and a map editor that allowed users to create custom environments and races. The advanced nature of the engine's early incarnation allowed the developers to develop a sophisticated integrated WYSIWYG editor for adding gameplay elements such as checkpoints, spawn points, power-ups and various objects ranging from ramps to exploding barrels.

The successor release, dubbed "Deathmatch", was designed to improve upon "Race" by providing a minimal sandbox style gameplay that could be extended by users and developers. The production on this release started shortly after the initial release, but stagnated due to what is seen as a lack of focus by the development team. As many new features were being introduced, the continuous introduction of these features delayed a stable and final version of the modification^[13]. Instead, several on-line facilities were introduced during the development phase to allow visitors to track the development process of the software as changes were made to the code repository, illustrating any notable updates to the progress of the modification.

The first "Deathmatch" successor was introduced as a fully playable version on the 2nd of January 2008 and tagged as "Developer Preview" to promote the third-party development of custom gameplay content and utilities. This version was followed by a second "Developer Preview" that introduced several new features and fixes and was subsequently followed by a period of major code restructuring that led to the open source relaunch on Friday, 21st of November 2008 under the GPLv3 License.

On Saturday, 22nd of August, Multi Theft Auto: San Andreas v1.0 was officially distributed as the first open source release. 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.

[edit] Content delivery and development

Web-based server content management.

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 scripting language in both the server hosting the game (e.g. providing functionality for a specific game mode), as well as the client playing the game (e.g. providing a graphical front end or user-specific local content to the game mode). Different scripts can then be run in parallel on either of these, communicating to each other through the use of events.

The custom created content is grouped into "resources" that are hosted server-side. This is a package based system that packs all script files, custom content (e.g. images, 3D models, textures and collision files) and metadata files inside a single archive or directory. Specific content can then be marked to be uploaded to every connected player, to enable client-side execution of Lua code. This system allows for package dependency and inheritance of functions between different packages, easy management and distribution.^[14]

[edit] Feature summary

Multi Theft Auto's custom in-game main menu.

• 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 CEGUI system, replacing the original Grand Theft Auto GUI, allowing Multi Theft Auto to draw its own 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.
• Shared library loading support through C++ on the server, allowing complex functionality to be added.^[15]

[edit] See also

• Grand Theft Auto
• Multiplayer game
• Lua
• Third-person shooter

[edit] References

[edit] External links

• Official Multi Theft Auto Site
• Multi Theft Auto wiki a documentation Wiki set up for Multi Theft Auto
• Multi Theft Auto forums
• Multi Theft Auto Community site for downloading of resource packs (DM+)
• Multi Theft Auto Google code page & SVN
• Multi Theft Auto nightly releases