Change the displayed text in GTA V

6 October 2025
  • Jolaine KANDA
  • Ameni HAJJI
  • Yohan SCHMITT
  • Léo BONO

This tutorial explains how to change the displayed texts in GTA V (example: the application name "Snapmatic", but works with all texts (dialogues, menus, policies, etc))

Preparations / safety rules

  1. Install OpenIV
  2. Important: Close GTA V before any operation
  3. Launch OpenIV as administrator (right-click → Run as administrator).

  1. Backup the original .gxt2: right-click → Export (or Export to folder, or drag and drop) to a backup folder.

Locate the .gxt2 file to modify

In this example, we will modify French texts.

  1. In OpenIV, navigate to mods\update\update.rpf\x64\data\lang\french_rel.rpf\ and locate the file global.gxt2.
  2. Export in openFormats
  3. Right-click on global.gxt2 > Export to openFormats
  4. Choose a working folder (ex. D:\GTA_textes\global_gxt2_oxt\)
  5. Result: OpenIV creates an editable text/export file (.oxt / openFormats folder).

Prepare the file for editing

  1. Open the exported file (.oxt) with any text editor like Notepad++, Notepad, or VSCode.
  2. Set the encoding to UTF-8 without BOM
  3. Enable Windows line break display (CRLF)
  4. Make a backup copy before modification

Search and modify the string

  1. Ctrl+F search for the string (ex. "Snapmatic") Example: APP_SNAPMATIC = Snapmatic → change to APP_SNAPMATIC = Snapchat
  2. Do not modify the technical key (before the "=")
  3. Save your modified .oxt file

Reimport into OpenIV (.oxt → .gxt2)

  • Method A: Drag and drop the .oxt file into OpenIV in "Edit Mode".
  • Method B: Menu "File" → "Import openFormats" → select your .oxt.
  • OpenIV automatically reconverts it to .gxt2. Click on "Save" if necessary.

7) Test in game

  • Close OpenIV and launch GTA V (single player).
  • Check that the modified text appears correctly (ex. "Snapchat" instead of "Snapmatic").
  • Restart the game completely if the text does not update.

8) Common pitfalls and solutions

  • Import error: make sure you are modifying the correct file french_rel.rpf.
  • Text not displayed: the wrong key may have been changed.
  • Corrupted file: do not delete lines, keep the structure intact.
  • Accent problems: make sure you are in UTF-8 without BOM.
  • Alternative: use VPC GXT2 Editor if you prefer a graphical interface.

And that's it! You can now modify any text in the game: menus, dialogues, credits, object names, etc.

Translated by AI from the French version.

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