The PC version of GTA IV has only been out for a few days, yet members of our forum are already customizing the game to their liking, achieving quite some comical effects the developers never intended.

Naturally the easiest files to mod in a GTA game are the plain-text configuration files, such as vehicle handling and weapons specifications. To give you a taste of what people are up to when the off-the-shelf game starts to bore them, we've selected two videos for your viewing pleasure:

Since R* decided to hash those files to make sure they aren't modified, you will have to jump through a few hoops if you intend to try out your own ideas. There are currently two methods, but be warned: both are pretty experimental and require some basic modding skills. Also, don't forget to make backups of all files you edit!

• file hashing workaround (recommended)
• initial method using a custom launcher

The second link contains more videos and screenshots.