ThirteenAG updates Ultimate ASI Loader v9.7.2 for GTA modders

A fresh Ultimate ASI Loader v9.7.2 build gave GTA modders another way to keep a stubborn stack alive when the usual dinput8.dll route stops cooperating. The release page listed the loader as the latest build and described it as a proxy DLL system that loads custom .asi libraries into game processes, which is exactly the kind of plumbing that decides whether a modded GTA V install reaches the main menu or falls over early.

That flexibility is the headline here. ThirteenAG’s loader supports a wide set of proxy names, including dinput8.dll, version.dll, dxgi.dll, binkw32.dll, several xinput variants, and other common entry points such as d3d9, d3d11, wininet, winhttp and dsound. The readme says installation starts by placing the DLL in the game directory, then renaming it if dinput8.dll does not work. It even gives GTA SA as an example of a game where the loader can be dropped into the game folder and renamed to another supported name.

The practical payoff is biggest for heavily customized single-player setups. Trainers, script frameworks, visual overhauls and other DLL-based mods do not all hook the same way, so a loader that can move between proxy names gives you another compatibility path before you start tearing the stack apart. The release notes also point to a safety step that matters in real troubleshooting: original DLLs can be preserved by renaming them to <dllname>Hooked.dll, which helps avoid losing the clean file while testing a new load order.

That matters because ASI loaders have long been the first thing blamed when a GTA V setup refuses to launch. GTAForums posts show dinput8.dll as a common troubleshooting focus when multiple ASI files are involved and the game appears to run but never properly opens. Script Hook V’s own documentation keeps the loader central to the workflow, saying it allows GTA V script native functions in custom .asi plugins and that the distribution includes the latest ASI loader and Native Trainer.

The bigger picture is familiar to anyone who has been around GTA modding for a while. AB Software Development notes that ASI plugins and scripts have been widely written since GTA IV’s 2008 PC release, and that history is why loader updates still matter. When a stable build starts acting up, v9.7.2 is the kind of maintenance release that can rescue a modded install without changing the mods themselves.