Bully Online, a PC mod that added online gameplay to Rockstar's 2006 school-exploration title Bully, has been unceremoniously taken down just one month after its launch. The decision comes as a surprise to fans of the game and the modding community at large.
According to developers, the reason for the takedown was not something they had wanted, but rather a response to circumstances that were beyond their control. In a message posted on the project's now-defunct Discord server, the team stated that development of any Bully Online scripts would stop, and any account data created by users would be deleted.
The Bully Online mod was spearheaded by Swegta, a Rockstar-focused YouTuber who had been working on the project for years. The mod allowed players to engage in various activities such as role-playing, competing in racing games, and fending off NPCs. Despite its potential appeal, however, the mod's developers seem to have underestimated the implications of creating an online multiplayer experience for a game that is not officially supported by Rockstar.
The takedown has left fans of the game wondering why Bully Online was specifically targeted while other legacy Rockstar multiplayer projects, such as San Andreas Multiplayer, have been left untouched. Some speculate that this may be due to changes in Rockstar's modding policies or a desire to protect its intellectual property.
In a surprising twist, Rockstar has recently taken steps to make it easier for fans of the company's games to create and share custom content. Just last week, the FiveM team behind Grand Theft Auto V announced the launch of a new curated digital storefront for role-playing mods in GTA V. This move seems to be an attempt by Rockstar to tap into the modding community and provide a more official outlet for fans' creative endeavors.
As the situation continues to unfold, one thing is clear: Bully Online's abrupt disappearance has left the gaming community with more questions than answers.
According to developers, the reason for the takedown was not something they had wanted, but rather a response to circumstances that were beyond their control. In a message posted on the project's now-defunct Discord server, the team stated that development of any Bully Online scripts would stop, and any account data created by users would be deleted.
The Bully Online mod was spearheaded by Swegta, a Rockstar-focused YouTuber who had been working on the project for years. The mod allowed players to engage in various activities such as role-playing, competing in racing games, and fending off NPCs. Despite its potential appeal, however, the mod's developers seem to have underestimated the implications of creating an online multiplayer experience for a game that is not officially supported by Rockstar.
The takedown has left fans of the game wondering why Bully Online was specifically targeted while other legacy Rockstar multiplayer projects, such as San Andreas Multiplayer, have been left untouched. Some speculate that this may be due to changes in Rockstar's modding policies or a desire to protect its intellectual property.
In a surprising twist, Rockstar has recently taken steps to make it easier for fans of the company's games to create and share custom content. Just last week, the FiveM team behind Grand Theft Auto V announced the launch of a new curated digital storefront for role-playing mods in GTA V. This move seems to be an attempt by Rockstar to tap into the modding community and provide a more official outlet for fans' creative endeavors.
As the situation continues to unfold, one thing is clear: Bully Online's abrupt disappearance has left the gaming community with more questions than answers.
can't believe Rockstar just yanks online mod from the net like that... I mean, i get it, they might've wanted to control the experience and all, but come on, fans were really getting into that game! 
Swegta and the Bully Online crew had put so much effort into making it happen, too. now what's gonna happen to all those account holders? 
it's kinda like they just took away a part of the community... 
. It can be super frustrating, right? But here's the thing: sometimes change happens for a reason that we don't fully understand until later. Maybe Bully Online just got too big or too complicated for its devs to handle, and they couldn't have kept up with all the drama 
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. It's like when you're trying something new in a game or in life, and it doesn't work out as planned - but that's not the end of the story! You can try again, and sometimes those attempts turn into something even better 
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, I think this is actually a chance for us all to learn how to navigate uncertainty and come out stronger on the other side 
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. Can someone please tell me what went down?! 
maybe it's because rockstar wants to keep all their modding options under one roof 
but that just feels like a convenient excuse 
now we'll see if they can actually deliver on that promise 
. Maybe they were worried about people exploiting the game or something 
. Now we're left with more questions than answers 
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what's rockstar thinking? didn't they know how much people loved playing together in a single mod like that? 
. One month ago, Bully Online was up and running and now it's just gone? Like, what even happened? 
The modding community is already pretty used to things like this happening with other mods, so it's weird that Rockstar would take down a project that was already out the door 
. And the fact that they didn't give the devs any warning or anything is just weird too... I don't know what changed their minds but it's definitely left a bad taste in a lot of people's mouths 
. Can we get some more info on what went down? This whole thing feels like a giant mystery 
! But seriously, what's the deal? One month in and poof, gone 
. and now they're just gonna delete all our progress lol what even is the point of that?! 
. but still, Bully Online was such a sick mod 
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this whole thing is super shady and it feels like rockstar is basically saying that fans who wanna play online multiplayer with their old games are just too much trouble. and now swegta's discord server is gone and it's like, what even happened to the game? 
it was so much fun to explore the game world with friends and cause chaos together. but rockstar's move has kinda left a bad taste in my mouth. maybe they should just relax and let the community run wild for once? 
. Fingers crossed we'll see more awesome mods like Bully Online pop up in the future! 
. anyways, this is just great for the modding community. now we get to figure out why rockstar decided to screw swegta over 
it's actually pretty cool!