What are the best GTA 4 mods of all time?
Grand Theft Auto IV, the fourth installment in the GTA series, not counting all the expansions, has been around since 2008. But why think about modifications to a game that’s been around so long? Because the game is awesome.
Now you might think there’s just one truly great mod out there worth trying. But plowing through such a massive list of mods to reach just one and only one is seriously hard.
Because the game is GTA IV, and because it has so many outstanding mods, we’ve decided 30 of them deserve to be singled out.
So let’s sit back and rave about 30 of the best mods you should check out.
The Best GTA 4 Mods of All Time
Our ranked lists are created by researching and rounding up information from the most reputable web sources.
Here’s our list of the 30 best GTA 4 mods of all time:
30. Gravity
Before getting into the 30 best mods, remember these aren’t cheat codes. These mods need to be installed. But there are plenty of cheats in GTA IV, as this list of the best GTA IV cheats give you.
Ever wonder what it would feel like to be a wizard in the world of Grand Theft Auto IV? Not a wand wizard but capable of doing things no ordinary person, even if it is a video, should be able to do without magic.
Well, this mod kind of delivers on that thought experiment. Essentially, this mod allows gravity to basically float away. People, cars, name it. Walk around, and things can be made to float and never land again. All at your command.
Of course, it’s pretty damn chaotic yet fun. Like playing your own version of Doctor Strange: Grand Theft Auto.
29. Simple Native Trainer
The best way to think of the Simple Native Trainer mod is like a tool used by a developer or game tester to try out all kinds of stuff to see if they’re ultimately worth putting in the final product.
This trainer, developed by Sjaak327, allows you to do all kinds of crazy sandbox stuff, like teleporting and customizing cars and weapons. You can even spawn cars and people. It also has a very cool open map function.
Honestly, there’s too much that comes with this mod to cover here. The same developer would go on to do the Simple Trainer for GTA V.
28. GTA IV: San Andreas
If you’re a fan of GTA San Andreas, but acknowledge its old age. Not to mention you love all of the upgrades and technological advancements of GTA IV and wish somehow you could bring GTA SA into the future. Well, you’re in luck.
It may sound weird, sure, but remember, some consider San Andreas the best GTA game of all timeand one of the most popular video games of all time, period. And they really love the map.
This mod allows you to play GTA San Andreas with the advancement of GTA IV’s RAGE (Rockstar Advanced Game Engine). So, you’re basically getting two games in one. The map from San Andreas with GTA IV’s RAGE!
27. New Weapons
If there’s one thing the GTA series has excelled at, it’s the use of weapons; lots and lots of weapons. That being said, it doesn’t hurt to keep the weapons up-to-date.
Why have another regular boring shotgun when there are so many new, fantastic guns to utilize?
Thanks to the New Weapons mod from Quechus13, you can have access to all kinds of new toys.
Mods include an FN P90 (which is a badass submachine gun for self-defense), traditional guns with new attachments, all kinds of grenade launchers, and a shiny new machete.
26. Excellent ENB Graphics
If you’re someone who likes realistic graphics that can be made more realistic, then you’ll love the Excellent ENB Graphics mod.
This mod elevates incredibly well-made animations to another level by using better shadow calculations to enhance shadows and reflections.
ENB stands for Enhanced Natural Beauty, and it does exactly what it advertises. This modification features more sophisticated reflective surfaces and better colors. Even the sun and clouds are sharper.
They all combine to provide a sense of reality the standard graphics don’t achieve. It’s like your playing a whole new game even though it’s the same game.
25. Bicycle Script
Apparently, in a sprint to finish GTA IV, the developers neglected to include bicycle gameplay, which was a big part of GTA San Andreas’s popularity.
However, thanks to JulioNIB’s mod, bicycle riding was added to GTA IV, and a lot of San Andreas fans were satisfied. Not to mention what was a criticism of GTA IV was taken care of.
24. Zombie Apocalypse
A zombie mod for a game by Rockstar? Of course! It seems to happen all the time now. You’re playing a great game, and then you imagine, “What would this be like with zombies?”
Well, look no further. Mod Jc0001 has given you exactly what you were dreaming about. Yes, with this mod, you can become Niko Bellic, the zombie hunter.
If you liked the zombie mod for Red Dead Redemption, you’ll love this. Happy zombie hunting in this open world.
23. Grim’s Weapon Pack
Never want to sweat which weapons or how many types you have? Then the Grim’s Weapon Pack mod is for you.
If you were a fan of GTA San Andreas, then you’re probably already familiar with this weapon pack.
No, it’s not exactly the same. It has been updated and other features included, like upgraded weapons and displays. The main selling point, though, is that you’re pretty much set for weapons forever if you get this pack.
22. Selfie Mod
If you like taking selfies and really want to take selfies throughout your journey in GTA IV as Niko Bellic, then you should get a hold of JulioNIB’s selfie mod.
Yes, this selfie mod pretty much does as it sounds. However, a big difference between this mod and the selfie mod for GTA V is you can’t look at your snaps during gameplay. But they are saved to your game folder for later adoration.
21. Liberty City Customs Autobody Shop
With GTA V came some incredible additions, one of which was car customization. But what about GTA IV lovers?
Thanks to modder NatT96Report, this wish was granted with the addition of the Liberty City Customs Autobody Shop to the vanilla game, which it completely lacked and was corrected inGTA V.
20. 4K Ultra HD Graphics
This mod is great if you want hyper-photorealistic gameplay. The drawback is the same issue with deep fakes in that everything looks real until you stare at it for too long, and then the inconsistencies start to pop out.
Yes, it improves GTA IV’s graphics and may be considered the ultimate graphic tweak by some. But don’t dream of using the mod if you’ve got an extremely low end PC. No, you’ll need a beast of a PC with this one.
19. Beta Mod
If you ever want to be a Beta version of Indiana Jones, you should check this one out. This allows you to go back and see all the stuff removed from GTA IV during Beta testing.
How? Well, the mod cracks the code. Or rather, it recreates the old code through a lot of hard work put in by modders.
The main thing you’ll get here is stuff not in the game at all, like various cars, items, skins, etc. It offers a unique experience while acting as an “alternate” cut like a fan-edited movie.
18. GTA Environment Mod
Another great graphics mod and one of the most popular, developed by Kriller2. Environment is the right word to describe this mod because it tweaks all the climate conditions within the game.
By tweaking climate conditions, we mean it improves all weather patterns and the impacts they have on reflections and shadows while improving natural lighting. And, of course, there’s the gorgeous HD cloud textures.
Pretty hard to resist the GTA environment mod now, right?
17. HQ GTA V Weapon Pack
Have we mentioned GTA and weapons yet? Well, even though we have, there’s still another great weapon pack out there.
This mod takes weapons from GTA V (the best selling PS4 game of all time) and brings them to GTA IV gameplay.
What’s included? Oh, just stuff like a double-barrel shotgun, assault shotgun, assault rifle, sniper rifle, and mini-gun.
16. Death Race IV
We already know you love Grand Theft Auto IV, but did you like the movie Death Race? How about a mod, lovingly called Death Race IV, that brings some of the cars from the movie to the game?
Yes, another mod by JulioNIB that added a lot of the weaponized, armored vehicles from the flick to the game, allowing for hours of mayhem-filled entertainment.
Unfortunately, the mod was never completed to its full potential, mainly because of the sheer amount of customization it required. If it had, it would have given days of mayhem-filled entertainment.
15. Spiderman IV
JulioNIB and Bob Lester strike, this time with the Spiderman IV mod that allows you to become Spiderman and swing around in a GTA environment. It even gives you spider-sense.
So, you’ll be able to spider-sense cops and gangs going at it and get the hell out of danger fast.
This mod was developed long before Marvel’s Spider Man, which is its own incredible game. Before it, this mod was the crème of the crop.
14. Ultimate Textures
The Ultimate Textures mod from the Realism IV Team went a long way to improve textures with Grand Theft Auto IV, none of which were as impressive as what it did for road surfaces.
When it comes to all the great improvements from other mods, none come as close to the asphalt graphical overhaul this mod achieves.
13. LCPD First Response
This mod brings a lot more realism to the Liberty City Police Department in both how they interact with you and how you see them actively in the game. The arrest system is also improved with this mod installed.
What does that mean? Well, you’ll actually have to be identified and reported before all the police come after you. When roaming the streets of Liberty City individually, that’s a nice feature to have.
12. Snow
Yes, there is a Snow mod for GTA IV. This lovely little mod allows you to experience a true winter wonderland through Liberty City.
The great thing about the Snow mod isn’t just the fact you can experience a snowstorm but also the pure visual delight.
In other words, it’s a nice break from all the different weather patterns you might have grown accustomed to.
11.V Style Char Switch
Another mod by JuiloNIB. This time, though, and like a lot covered so far, this mod has a really great impact on gameplay in that it takes more from GTA V (ranked one of the best PS4 games to play right now) and imports it into GTA IV.
What kind of things? Well, like Grand Theft Auto V, it allows you to toggle between characters during gameplay. Also, it gives GTA IV a more user-friendly HUD for selecting weapons.
In short, it makes the gameplay of GTA IV more new and a lot more improved.
10. Ultimate Graphic Tweak
Okay, back to more graphics mods. This mod smooths out shadows and eliminates low-quality dotted shadows while also adding motion blur.
Because this mod adds several post-processing effects to the entire game, it may come at a sizable performance cost. So, just take that into account if you’ve got an older system.
9. Jetpack Mod
A jetpack with mini-guns? Sounds like something inspired by the movie Kick-Ass.
In this case, it is, and we’re damn thankful for it. JulioNIB put together this mod that allows you to fly and reign hate down on anyone you want from safely above, which is perfect when you’re in a shootout with the finest of Liberty City.
Again, you get to fly, armed with mini-guns. Not enough for you? You can also shoot guns while flying.
8. Realistic Driving & Flying
The title of this next mod says it all. Modder Killatomate went through and made massive handling improvements for each of the 170 playable vehicles. Each, as in individually modified all 170 vehicles.
As a result, you get more realistic driving and flying than the vanilla game when it comes to its vehicles.
7. GTA 4 Beautification Project
Another graphics improvement but one that comes well over a decade since the original release of GTA IV. If you’re not a big fan of modifications, the GTA 4 beautification project is one you should seriously consider.
With this mod installed, gone are the yellow, dull colors. In their place are more vivid colors that make everything pop more. It’s an improved experience from the vanilla game that doesn’t impact the original gameplay.
For the GTA series,which has some of the biggest open world maps of any game, making something you love exploring even more beautiful is always a positive.
6. VIVA New York
Liberty City is, of course, based on New York City. However, if you want even more specific details that make Liberty City ring even more true as a stand-in for NYC, this mod brings them.
The changes don’t affect gameplay, just the world as you go through it. Stuff like street names, locations, and landmarks.
If you’re a fan of NYC, then you’ll love this. It’ll be a nice facelift and something different but still cool if you’re unfamiliar with NYC.
5. Realism Project Mod Pack for GTA IV
Another mod that improves the realism of GTA IV’s graphics. In this case, it’s not focused on specific city details like VIVA New York or lighting details like the GTA 4 beautification project.
Instead, this mod focuses more on the day-to-day details you’d see.
To be more specific, we’re talking about details like billboards with specific advertisements, whether it’s a new movie coming out or a real-life store or ad campaign. Brand names, stuff like that.
Very cool details that bring a lot more depth and realism to the game.
4. Dual-Wielding
Want to hold and shoot two weapons at the same time? We thought you might.
The duel-wielding mod, brought to you by JulioNIB, allows you to shoot any gun simultaneously with both hands.
In a way, this mod is literally an extra weapon in your arsenal.
3. Shark-O-Matic Gun
Let’s ponder this mod for a second.
You have a game you can modify to be Marvel’s Spider Man (whose own game is now considered one of the best open world PS4 games), get all the weapons you want, have a massive snow day, fly a jetpack with mini-guns, and even kill zombies. But something still feels like it’s missing.
Oh, yeah, you want to be able to shoot sharks at people.
Well, then you need the Shark-O-Matic gun. Point it, pull the trigger, and watch a shark burst through the road like it’s breeching the surface of the ocean and eat your chosen foe.
2. iCEnhancer
Hayssam Keilany’s iCENhancer mod may be one of the most famous GTA mods ever.
By far one of the best graphical overhauls of any game, it instantly makes GTA IV look like a game that came out a year or two ago.
It brings better shading, improved models, and night shadows that wow. It really improves every little thing in the game.
1. American Sleep
Maybe you’ve finished GTA IV dozens of times, installed and played a vast majority of all the mods, and are now hoping for something new set in this world that isn’t just another improvement to the graphics.
The American Sleep mod continues Niko’s story after the original GTA IV campaign.
It’s not a real sequel, story-telling-wise. Instead, you start as cash broke, down, and out Niko that needs to rise to the top again while surviving poverty.
This one comes in last on the list because it takes place after GTA IV ended, as players knew it. It’s unique and challenging without repeating the main storyline over and over.
Summary
For the Grand Theft Auto series, you might think the games themselves are more than enough in their original form.
However, great mods can make large worlds bigger, better, and far more enriching.
These mods, in many ways, make GTA 4 as original as the first time you played it.
Here’s a quick recap of the 30 best GTA 4 mods of all time:
- American Sleep
- iCEnhancer
- Shark-O-Matic Gun
- Dual-Wielding
- Realism Project Mod Pack for GTA IV
- VIVA New York
- GTA 4 Beautification Project
- Realistic Driving & Flying
- Jetpack Mod
- Ultimate Graphic Tweak
- V-Style Char Switch
- Snow
- LCPD First Response
- Ultimate Textures
- Spiderman IV
- Death Race IV
- HQ GTA V Weapon Pack
- GTA Environment Mod
- Beta mod
- 4K Ultra HD Graphics
- Liberty City Customs Autobody Shop
- Selfie Mod
- Grim’s Weapon Pack
- Zombie Apocalypse
- Bicycle Script
- Excellent ENB Graphics
- New Weapons
- GTA IV: San Andreas
- Simple Native Trainer
- Gravity