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Release checklist

Before you hit "Upload" on Nexus Mods or GTA5-Mods, you owe it to your future users to run a pre-flight audit. Most mod bugs reported in public comment sections are not complex algorithmic flaws; they are silly oversights: a debug key left active, a missing default config file, or an accidental hard-coded file path pointing to C:\Users\YourName\Desktop.

The pre-flight checklist​

Work through these five verification gates in order:

1. Scrub all debug cheats and test shortcuts​

While building a mod, you often add temporary developer shortcuts:

  • A key that instantly gives $100,000 to test economy logic.
  • A key that teleports the player directly to the objective.
  • A toggle that renders all NPC bounding boxes.

Search your codebase for every KeyDown handler. Either comment them out or guard them behind a #if DEBUG preprocessor directive so they do not compile into your release build.

2. Verify all file paths are relative​

Check every call to File.ReadAllText, File.WriteAllText, or Directory.CreateDirectory.

  • WRONG: C:\Games\GTA5\scripts\my_mod\data.json (breaks on every other user's PC).
  • RIGHT: scripts/my_mod/data.json or Path.Combine(AppDomain.CurrentDomain.BaseDirectory, "scripts", "my_mod", "data.json").

3. Test on a clean environment​

Do not test your final release zip using your development Visual Studio environment.

  1. Extract your final zip into a fresh GTA V directory (or remove your developer project files).
  2. Launch the game from cold boot (not a reload).
  3. Verify that default settings and profiles generate automatically when no previous save exists.

4. Audit ScriptHookVDotNet.log for clean execution​

Open ScriptHookVDotNet.log after completing a full gameplay session with your mod.

  • There must be zero [ERROR] lines.
  • There must be zero uncaught exceptions.
  • Verify that your script registers, ticks, and shuts down cleanly.

5. Validate the reload cleanup contract​

In game, trigger your mod's events, spawn companions or vehicles, and press Insert to reload scripts.

  • Every ped and vehicle spawned by your mod must vanish cleanly.
  • No orphan blips may remain stuck on the radar.
  • No audio loops may continue playing in the background.

When all five gates are passed, you are ready for Project 09: Complete mod.