Coders reverse-engineer Grand Theft Auto’s raw PC source code

• 

  Shots from the reverse-engineered version of Grand Theft Auto III showing off the graphical improvements over the 2002 original.

A group of dedicated coders has generated complete reverse-engineered raw source code for the PC versions of Grand Theft Auto III and Vice City in a years-long process that comprises hundreds of thousands of lines of C++ code.

We’ve discussed in the past how video game fan coders use reverse-engineering techniques to deconstruct the packaged executable files distributed by a game’s original developers. This painstaking, function-by-function process creates raw programming code that can generate exactly the same binary file when compiled.

With that code in hand, coders can examine what makes the game tick and make improvements and changes at a much more granular level than with traditional modding. In the case of Grand Theft Auto, those improvements include bug fixes, reduced load times, improved rendering, widescreen monitor support, and a free-floating camera system, to name a few examples. The source code can also be used to generate ports of the game to new platforms like Linux, Switch, and PlayStation Vita (though these recompiled versions all require the copyrighted art and music files extracted from the original game).