With all the controversy surrounding Manhunt 2 of late, perhaps it's appropriate that Take-Two Interactive should announce today that it's settled all consumer class action lawsuits pending in the U.S. against the publisher and its subsidiary Rockstar Games, relating to the infamous "Hot Coffee" mod enabled consumers to unlock a hidden sex scene in Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas.

The proposed settlement must still receive preliminary and final approval from the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York, and if it does, then all claims in the lawsuits "will be dismissed without any admission of liability or wrongdoing by Take-Two or Rockstar."

According to the terms of the settlement, all class members can apply for benefits that range from an exchange of the game disk for an edited copy (M-rated as opposed to AO) of San Andreas to a cash payment of up to $35 for consumers who submit detailed proofs of purchase. Take-Two said that class members can only claim benefits if they "swear" that they did one of the following:

(a) bought a copy of Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas before July 20, 2005; (b) were offended and upset by the ability of consumers to modify and alter the game's content using the third-party Hot Coffee modification; (c ) would not have bought the game had they known that consumers could modify and alter the game's content using the third-party Hot Coffee modification; and (d) would have returned the game, upon learning the game could be modified and altered, if they thought this possible.

Take-Two noted that it "previously established a reserve sufficient to substantially cover the expected cost of the settlement and related expenses." While the total will depend on how many class members apply for benefits, Take-Two said it committed to spend at least $1.025 million on settlement benefits; furthermore "the settlement generally caps the defendants' out-of-pocket costs at no more than $2.75 million, in addition to the costs of providing notice to class members and paying a fee to plaintiffs' counsel."

"If the case had continued, we believe the court would have agreed that Take-Two was not liable for consumers acting independently to modify their games with third-party hardware and software to access normally inaccessible content," commented Ben Feder, Chief Executive Officer of Take-Two. "Nonetheless, we believe it is in the best interest of the Company to avoid protracted and costly litigation to prove our case and to finally put this matter behind us."