In recent months, the modding community has been abuzz with the groundbreaking work of the elusive collective known as 2girls1comp. They have redefined the practice of altering, customizing, and reinventing Grand Theft Auto V (GTA V), pushing the boundaries of what is possible at the crossroad of the avant-garde and the vernacular. In a manner reminiscent of the Situationist International, their work is both ironic and iconic, infused with elements of culture jamming and tactical media. Their approach to modding is simultaneously political and playful.
Their latest mod, titled SANANDREAS.TXT , turns GTA V’s replica of California, i.e., San Andreas, into a social media platform. In other words — no pun intended — this modification allows players to write messages all over the map of GTA V, both literally and metaphorically. Those “captions” or “overlays” can be read by everyone who has the mod installed. To use the mod’s messaging system, player must simply hit the F10 key on their keyboard to open a text box, type messages of up to 94 characters, and press ENTER to share them with all mod users, making their messages visible at the specified location within the game world, enabling a collective and shared textual experience.
Possibilities are endless: San Andreas can be transformed into a poetic space. Haikus could be disseminated everywhere. Hints and tips. Casual observations. Instructions. Revelations. Meta play. However, early experiments with the mod have taken a more prosaic turn, with players dropping insults and expletives as they did in previous social media. “We welcome users leaving Twitter/X to SanAndreas.txt” the collective state with an (un)intentional dose of recklessness. By transforming GTA V’s game world into a platform for social commentary, 2girls1comp actively disrupted the prevailing norms and encouraged players to participate in virtual dialogue. The resulting (asynchronous) conversations, in turn, shed light on the key values, top priorities, and main interests of the GTA V community. As they state in their communiqué:
“we do moderate hate speech, but so far, we decided to leave everything in, because we are looking at the mirror of the GTA V gamer community […] we will post screenshots of the less offense and more creative ones on the mod site. the game is […] a messaging service for friends, a piece of concrete poetry, a meme.”
By now, the collective’s modus operandi is clear: their prankish attitude is loaded with social criticism. For instance, last Summer, 2girls1comp introduced a mod titled F*** the Policy. When the player’s avatars are being actively sought by the in-game cops, they are read their rights, which amusingly includes the verbose Rockstar Games End User License Agreement (EULA). This clever twist not only injects humor into the game but also serves as a satirical commentary on the often overlooked legalities in the gaming industry.
2girls1comp’s repertoire extends beyond the realms of satire. Their modding experiments include titles like Towards and Philosophy of the Photo Daddy which combines Vilém Flusser’s theories on the medium of photography with the stereotypes surrounding the so called “photo fanatics”. Specifically, this mod challenges the dogmatic ideas of what constitutes a “good photograph” advanced by the infamous daddies. On the other end of the spectrum is The GTA V Piano of the Dead a more whimsical and zany creation that defies conventional gameplay norms. As of today, it’s the collective’s oldest and most popular mod, with approximately 800 downloads. All of their creations received 5 stars out of 5 and a variety of colorful comments.
In a prior modification, aptly named Every thing, 2girls1comp draws inspiration from the innovative concepts of game designers Keita Takahashi and David OReilly. This mod ambitiously transforms San Andreas into a boundless realm of possibilities. Its core function involves systematically spawning every object within the GTA V prop database, pushing the game to its limits until it inevitably succumbs under the sheer weight of “every thing,” resulting in a spectacular crash.
2girls1comp’s modding endeavors in GTA V represent a unique blend of artistic expression and sociopolitical commentary, deliberately disseminated within vernacular rather than avantgarde spaces, i.e., one of GTA V’s most popular modding sites. Their work challenges the conventional boundaries of gaming, inviting players to engage in critical discourse within the virtual world and the Artworld.
As they continue to push the envelope with their innovative creations, the modding community eagerly anticipates what 2girls1comp will offer next, bridging the gap between the virtual and the real in thought-provoking ways. Their upcoming creation (release date: “soon”) is titled “MEANWHILE IN LOS SANTOS (DISSOCIATION NATION)”.
Read more about 2 girls 1 computer, a force to be reckoned with in the modding-sphere.
