Grand Theft Auto Online Main Theme (Neon Indian - Change of Coast) 
Grand Theft Auto Online, more commonly known as GTA Online, is a story-driven online multiplayer action-adventure game developed by Rockstar North and published by Rockstar Games. The game was originally released on October 1, 2013, accessed for free through Grand Theft Auto V. A standalone version of the game was released on March 15th, 2022, [3] along with the PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X|S versions of GTA V and GTA Online. It is the sixteenth and latest instalment in the Grand Theft Auto series, and the sixth HD Universe title of the series.
Since its original release in 2013, Grand Theft Auto Online is considered by Rockstar North and Rockstar Games as the series' dedicated multiplayer title, set in a continually evolving world designed to grow in size and ambition over time. Unlike its predecessor, the game was never considered as an online component/multiplayer mode for Grand Theft Auto V by the developers.[4][5] The game is also Rockstar Games' most ambitious project since Grand Theft Auto III, and it is claimed the ideas for the online game had been percolating since 2001. [6]
Editions
Main article: Grand Theft Auto Online/Editions
Grand Theft Auto Online has three distinct editions; the former original edition, for the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3, which was shut down on December 16th, 2021; the "enhanced" edition, for the Xbox One, PlayStation 4 and PC and Expanded & Enhanced version for the PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X which includes a standalone version that no longer requires Grand Theft Auto V to access.
Free access to the original versions of Grand Theft Auto Online was first granted to Grand Theft Auto V players on PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 with patch 1.01.
As of September 10, 2018, the versions of the game for Windows Vista are no longer available.
As of December 16, 2021[7], the original versions of the game for PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 are no longer available.
The game was made available for everyone to purchase as a standalone game for the PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X|S in March 2022.
As of January 30, 2024, the versions of the game for Windows 7 and Windows 8, Windows 8.1 are no longer available.
Setting
The game is set in Southern San Andreas in the United States and the island of Cayo Perico in the Caribbean region of Colombia. While the game was initially set a few months prior to the events of Grand Theft Auto V in 2013, [8][9] the narratives of more recent updates, starting with 2017's Gunrunning update, take place in their respective years of release. [10][11][12]
With the most recent content updates, released since the game's 10th anniversary, the narrative of these storyline add-ons depicts current-time events taking place over a decade after its original 2013 timeline,[13] slowly reaching Grand Theft Auto VI's timeframe in the mid-2020s[14], with modern Leonida-based brands appearing as sponsors.[15]
A small section of Ludendorff in the State of North Yankton makes a minor appearance exclusively as a Halloween-themed Survival setting.
Character
Main article: GTA Online Protagonist
In GTA Online, players create their own customized characters through the use of a Character Creator tool. Unlike many other games where players can create their own character, physical appearance is not user-defined, but derived from the pre-set parent and grandparent characters that players choose. With the Collectors Edition of the game, several bonus characters from other Rockstar titles make 'cameo' appearances as a possible Mom and Dad in the character creation tool — Grand Theft Auto IV protagonist Niko Bellic can be selected as a parent, along with Claude and Misty from Grand Theft Auto III. Furthermore, if the player has a Rockstar Games Social Club account, John Marston, the protagonist from Rockstar-made Red Dead Redemption, becomes a potential Dad option.
The enhanced version of GTA Online for Xbox One, PlayStation 4 and PC, features a much bigger and in-depth variety of customization options, and players who have transferred their characters from the previous gen (or from the Xbox One/PlayStation 4 in the case of the PC) will have the chance to customize their character again.
Once confirmed, the player's appearance can only be modified at a cost of GTA$100,000 (Enhanced Edition only), although characters can be further customized in-game by purchasing clothing, tattoos, haircuts and masks from shops around Los Santos; such items can be continually changed or removed as many times as the player desires. As well as appearance, players can also select their character's typical daily activities, which will affect his/her initial skills. Players can create two characters (three other character slots were visible on 7th generation consoles but were locked and could not be used) if they so choose, and any money stored in a bank account will be shared across all characters (although money in the character's pocket and RP do not carry over). The player can also select different actions to be performed by their characters, they can be used during Free Roam and before and after any of the competitive matches.
When speaking into a microphone, the player's character's mouth will move. However, they are generally regarded as very taciturn by non-playable characters. For instance, Trevor often refers to the player as, "My favourite mute." Based on a quote from Brucie Kibbutz, it is implied that if the player calls someone then exits the call, they don't say anything, but rather simply breathes heavily into the phone. Similar comments are made about the player from Agent 14 during The Humane Lab Raid and Lester Crest during The Diamond Casino Heist. In one instance, during the cutscene with Ron Jakowski after buying the Hangar, Ron asks the protagonist why they took so long to come, but as soon as they try to speak they are interrupted by Ron.
Plot
Main article: GTA Online Protagonist#History
The game's narrative begins in 2013, several months before Grand Theft Auto V. Players take on the role of a silent protagonist who moves to Los Santos in search for new pursuits. Upon arrival, they meet with Lamar Davis, whom they befriended on Lifeinvader. After a street race against the player, Lamar introduces them to drug dealer Gerald and corrupt Armenian car salesman Simeon Yetarian for work. As the player slowly builds up their reputation, they attract the attention of individuals like meth dealer Trevor Philips, the hacker Lester Crest, and Mexican drug lord Martin Madrazo, who also employ them.
Eventually, the player is offered bigger job opportunities by Lester, who recruits them to rob a branch of the Fleeca Bank and the main branch of the Pacific Standard Public Deposit Bank; a shady government agent known only as Agent 14, who has them break a convicted spy out of prison and raid a government-run lab; and Trevor, who enlists their help with a highly profitable drug deal. Later, Lamar also hires the player for a few jobs, which mostly consist of sabotaging rival gangs to set the stage for his eventual rise to power. However, this only leads to Lamar having a falling out with his own gang, so he attempts to win back their trust, once again with the player's help. During this time, the player slowly builds up their own criminal empire, starting with an initially small Organization, which is subsequently expanded by purchasing an office and several warehouses to aid the player in the theft and sale of various goods. Some time later, the player also starts a Motorcycle Clubs and begins running additional illicit businesses with a shady contact known as "Long John Teabag". Later the player purchases a vehicle warehouse to steal, store and sell expensive cars along with an underground garage to store modified vehicles used to do jobs for various clients.
With the 2017's Gunrunning update, the timeline of the events has advanced in real-life timing, and each new update events taking place in their respective release years. By this time, the protagonist continues to expand their empire by purchasing a bunker, from where they conduct a gunrunning operation alongside Agent 14 and a hangar, to help them run a smuggling operation with Trevor's former associate Ron Jakowski.
In the following years living in Southern San Andreas until the early 2020s, the player opens a new nightclub in Los Santos with the help of former Liberty City nightclub entrepreneur Tony Prince and begins using it as a front for their illicit businesses; becomes a top competitor in a demolition derby-like TV series taking place at the city's Maze Bank Arena; becomes a VIP member at the newly opened Diamond Casino & Resort and begins assisting the staff with the various problems they are facing; helps a retired Lester Crest plan a robbery of the casino using an arcade business as a front for Georgina Cheng who seeks retribution against Thornton Duggan for tricking her brother Tao into selling him the casino; conducts several new jobs for Gerald, and enters a short-lived conflict with the Kkangpae after they raid their personal yacht, which ends with the player killing the gang's leader; they are hired by Martin Madrazo's son Miguel to steal some incriminating files of his family along with drugs, cash and gold from the world's most notorious drug dealer and cartel boss, Juan "El Rubio" Strickler, from his private island in the Caribbean region of Colombia using a nuclear submarine; They later become a member of the LS Car Meet, where they are introduced to Kenny "KDJ" Dixon Jr. and Sessanta, who provide the player with several robbery contracts after they purchase an Auto Shop and prove themselves to them; begins working for the former street hustler now multi-millionaire Franklin Clinton, and helps him get a big client for his new business; is hired by Agent ULP as a sworn-in IAA special agent to investigate a criminal conspiracy involving local petrochemical magnates; starts their own LSD business with the help of the Fooliganz gang; help a group of ex-military personel expose Merryweather Security's government contracts; runs a salvage yard business with Jamal Amir; performs unofficial police work and disrupts a South American criminal operation with officer Vincent Effenburger; and runs a bail enforcement agency with Jenette Eccles.
Development
Originally developed to be a regular multiplayer mode for Grand Theft Auto V, Rockstar North development team brought back an old idea they had since the initial development of Grand Theft Auto III[17] of creating a living GTA massive multiplayer online world. The project was rebooted as an independent multiplayer game titled Grand Theft Auto Online, sharing the same engine and certain features from Grand Theft Auto V but intended to expand over time. According to former Rockstar North president Leslie Benzies, Rockstar choose to release Grand Theft Auto Online in early October 2013, as in their own words, they "wanted it to be known as a different entity, separate from GTA V".
The game was conceived as a separate experience to be played in a continually evolving world. Up to 30 players freely roam across the game world and enter lobbies to complete jobs (story-driven competitive and cooperative modes).[16] The Content Creator toolset lets players create their own parameters for custom jobs, like racetracks and deathmatch weapon spawn points. Players may band together in organised player teams called crews to complete jobs together. Rockstar Games Social Club extends crews formed in Max Payne 3's multiplayer mode to those of Grand Theft Auto Online. Players may create their own crews and join up to five total. Crews win multiplayer matches to earn experience points and climb online leaderboards.
Grand Theft Auto Online launched on 1 October 2013, two weeks after Grand Theft Auto V's release. Many players reported connection difficulties and game freezes during load screens. Rockstar released a technical patch on 5 October in an effort to resolve the issues, but problems persisted the second week following launch as some players reported their character progress as having disappeared. Another technical patch was released on 10 October combating the issues, and Rockstar offered a GTA$500,000 (in-game currency) stimulus to the accounts of all players connected to GTA Online since launch as recompense. Because of the widespread technical issues present at launch, many reviewers bemoaned their Grand Theft Auto Online experience but generally recognised its open-ended exploration and dynamic content as strengths.[19]
Post-release content is continually added to Grand Theft Auto Online through free title updates. Some updates add new game modes and features, and others feature themed gameplay content, such as the Independence Day Special update that added patriotic-themed content on 1 July 2014. The widely anticipated Heists update launched on 10 March 2015 and suffered some initial technical difficulties due to the increased user load. Shortly after the game's PC release, some players reported being banned from Grand Theft Auto Online for using field of view and cosmetic mods in single-player.[20] Rockstar stated in their official blog that nobody had been banned from Online for using single-player mods, but that recent updates to the PC version had the "unintentional effect" of making such mods unplayable. They stated that mods are unauthorised and may cause unforeseen technical problems and instabilities.[21]
Gameplay
The game consists of open world sessions based in San Andreas. Originally, sessions were limited to 16 players on Playstation 3 and Xbox 360. Sessions were expanded to 30 players (with 2 extra spaces for spectators) on PlayStation 4, Xbox One and PC.
Players can play Online in a number of different session types:
- Solo sessions where Free Mode is entirely PvE.
- Invite Only and Crew Only where the players can pick and choose who they play with.
- Public sessions where random players will be co-existing in an open Free Mode lobby and PvP is more common. This is the 'default' session type.
Until the release of the Heists update, most of the Online content could be played by a single player with no actual multiplayer requirement, however, subsequent content updates have included more co-operative jobs that require a minimum of 2 or 4 players and new Free Mode events and features have been limited to Public lobbies only. This was later changed with the 2020 The Cayo Perico Heist update, which introduced the first Heist that could be played solo. The subsequent updates introduced a "Single-Player Element" [22] to the game, where all of the new content can be played on Private lobbies by a solo player.
Except for PC and PlayStation 3 users, a PlayStation Plus (for PS4 and PS5 users) or an Xbox Live Gold Subscription is required before playing GTA Online.
Players may travel around and interact with the map at will and can take part in many gameplay activities, including assaults on local gangs, robbing armored trucks, and challenging other players to Impromptu Races. Several of these open world activities are unique to the GTA Online, while others were originally from GTA V. Players can also purchase property, vehicles, clothing, masks and weapons for their character.
Aside from the free roam aspect, GTA Online also includes several localized, more traditional multiplayer game modes known as Jobs that are played in separate sessions independent from the larger open world; players partaking in these jobs will not be visible to and cannot interact with players occupying the open world, even if they inhabit the same location at the same time. These jobs include deathmatches, races, sports activities and horde-like survival games. Lastly, players can also undertake co-operative missions for various crime boss characters, most of whom also make appearances in GTA V's story. The number of players involved and the size of the area available to them in these game modes varies depending on the activity and mode itself.
As players progress and increase the rank of their character, more items and jobs will be unlocked for them to purchase and play. Also included in GTA Online is the Content Creator, a development tool that allows players to create and publish their own races, deathmatches, and other competitive gamemodes.
Additional rewards are given, such as free weapons and double RP, if the player is connected to Rockstar's Social Club and a special event is hosted or a special offer is redeemed by the player. Special bonuses are also available for players who reach Rank 100 and beyond.
Introduction and Tutorial
When players first select to play GTA Online they are taken through a character creation stage where they can modify their character's appearance and basic characteristics. The game then begins with the player's newly created character arriving at Los Santos International Airport aboard a commercial flight. Upon leaving the airport, the player is met by Lamar Davis, who drives the player into the city.
Lamar serves as a guide through the initial tutorial portion of the game, introducing the player to the basic gameplay mechanics of the Online world. After completing a street race and taking part in a brief mission - disrupting a drug deal - Lamar introduces the player character to Gerald, the first of GTA Online's mission-giving bosses. At this point, players are granted access to the entire San Andreas map, and are immediately tasked by Lamar with purchasing some new clothing, and then holding up a convenience store. With these tasks completed, the player is contacted by Simeon Yetarian, who guides the player through the process of stealing a car and turning it into a personal vehicle (by fitting it with a tracker and purchasing insurance at a Los Santos Customs mod shop, both of which are free on this occasion). Following the completion of these mandatory activities, the player is introduced to one more job, an LTS, after which the tutorial is complete and players are free to explore the Online map as they wish.
The PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X|S versions feature the Career Builder, designed to give new players — or anyone who wants to reset their character and get a fresh start — a helpful leg-up in the criminal world of Southern San Andreas, giving them a business property, a vehicle, and a weapon — with room to add useful upgrades and a little extra GTA$ to begin.
General
Completing virtually any activity in GTA Online rewards players with both money, used for in-game purchases, and Reputation Points (RP). As players gain RP and increase their rank, new items such as weapons, hair styles, clothes and vehicle mods will be unlocked for purchase, while new missions and jobs, such as Parachuting, will become available to play. Some missions may however not reward the player with any money if they are played solo, particularly sport activities in GTA Online. Many high rank missions offer far greater monetary and RP rewards than low rank missions. At higher ranks additional gameplay abilities will also become available through contacts on the player's mobile phone, such as asking Lester Crest to remove a Wanted Level, set a bounty on other players or calling Merryweather to conduct an airstrike.
When the player dies in GTA Online for the first time in Free Mode, Cris Formage appears in a vision telling the player that he is reviving them. He goes on to explain Passive Mode, and the voyeuristic pleasure he derives from watching people without their knowledge. He appears only once, the first time the player dies.
Jobs in GTA Online can either be accessed from the open world, in the form of a blue circular marker (known as a corona) that the player simply walks into to activate the corresponding job, or selected through a list in the pause menu. Jobs have a specified number of possible players, often with an option to play it alone for smaller jobs. Players can either host the jobs themselves or elect to join a job already in progress. The player may also receive job invites from NPC characters, or other players via their phone. These invites will eventually close in real-time as players join and the player quota is reached for each invite.
When a job is launched, an invite screen will launch with various options depending on whether the player initiated the job or joined from an invitation. Before almost any job, players can bet on themselves or other players in order to gain bigger payouts at the end of the job. There are options for the radio station to play during the job, purchasing ammo and armor, starting weapon, time of day and difficulty (with corresponding payout) level. At the end of each job, after gaining any points or money from the job, the player has the option to continue playing with the same players, and is given the opportunity to vote on which job to next complete with that team, a random job, or to return to free mode, leaving the current team of players.
Although several activities from GTA V are available in GTA Online, such as purchasing clothing and sports, there are numerous differences in the gameplay mechanics involved. For instance, police will never attempt to arrest the player in GTA Online, instead shooting to kill even at one star wanted levels. The severity of wanted levels changes depending on the players' actions, with an automatic three star wanted level for killing a police officer, or a four star wanted level for trespassing at Fort Zancudo, where tanks and fighter jets will be scrambled.
Many of the characters featured in GTA V re-appear in GTA Online in the form of mission-giving bosses, with the notable exception of Michael (although Trevor and Franklin do appear in such a role). Several other boss characters are unique to GTA Online, such as Gerald, although he was first mentioned in GTA V. Chronologically, GTA Online was originally set before the events of GTA V; for example, Martin Madrazo is often found at his house in Vinewood Hills which is destroyed early in GTA V by Michael, while Trevor, aside from the events in the Series A heist, is still based solely in Sandy Shores. Additionally, the player character in GTA Online is briefly mentioned by Lester at the start of the mission Casing the Jewel Store in GTA V, although he dismisses them as "too unpredictable". This timeline has moved in the Enhanced editions with the addition of subsequent DLC containing anachronistic elements and dialogue confirming events were taking place in the present day.
If a player is seen to be creating an excessive negative effect on the Online world, they will accumulate Bad Sport points. When enough of these points are either accumulated through a short period of time (or gathered up for longer periods) the offending player will be moved into a separate match-making pool which will prevent the player from playing with non bad-sport players, people in their friend list included. The player will also be forced to wear a dunce hat (which will be taken off inside vehicles or replaced by motorcycle helmets on bikes). These bad sport points are gathered and bound to a character by destroying personal vehicles belonging to other players, quitting jobs/mission early, submitting false reports and being reported. This system has proven to be a controversial mechanic as the system has several flaws to it as to just how these points are gathered as the game does not take into account whether player reports are illegitimate or not, or if the destruction of another player's vehicle was self-defense. As of title update 1.22, players who are innocently disconnected from a job due to a crash or game fault will not have Bad Sport points applied. A fair balance between players are enforced through this system. The first time the player goes into a bad-sport lobby, the time in bad-sport will be 2 days, then 4 days, then 8 days.
Money and Lifestyle
- See also: Safehouses in GTA Online
Money. along with RP, is the core basis for the GTA Online economy. Players can purchase almost any item in game including apartments, garages, clothes, cars, aircraft and more. With regular updates to GTA Online these options will continue to change and evolve over time. Money is also required to launch jobs.
Money is earned through most activities in the game: Performing missions, convenience store robberies, selling cars, surviving/killing bounties, completing heists, and more. Rockstar also offers players the option to purchase in game cash using real life money in the form of Shark Cards.
Using their cash players can purchase garages and apartments that allows players to store purchased vehicles. These cars known as personal vehicles can then be used in Free Mode, race modes and in missions. Although the player is able to steal cars and turn them into personal vehicles, high-end vehicles must be purchased through the Legendary Motorsport website.
Properties come in four classes - Garages, ranging from $25k-$100k+, Low-end apartments, ranging from $80k-$120k, Mid-range apartments, varying from $125,000-$150,000, and High-end apartments, ranging from $205k-$400k. High-end apartments include a 10-car garage, the most expensive apartment is the Eclipse Towers Apartment 3 at $500,000, although it is worth noting that all $205k+ apartments have the same interior, and it is the view and location that add the most value. Rockstar has since added $400,000-$500,000 apartments, all of which have a redesigned interior. Since The High Life Update, players are able to own up to two properties, and since the Festive Surprise players can now own a third property. The Lowriders update implemented a fourth property slot, but exclusive to the enhanced version players. The Executives and Other Criminals update allowed players to customize high-end apartments and mansions and yachts are available for purchase, albeit for the enhanced version players only.
Crews
The game implements the Rockstar Games Social Club's crew system with two types of crews. Private crews are mainly aimed at a group of friends or associates to play online together and can hold as many as 1,000 people. Public crews are much larger and can have unlimited members. The use of crews and teamwork is heavily encouraged by Rockstar, as the player receives more money in races depending on how many players are in the game, also, the player receives a 10% bonus to RP for playing with friends and 20% for playing with crew members. On top of this, many missions (particularly from Lester and Martin) involve the use of teamwork to succeed. The crew system in GTA Online also encourages customization and personalization, with the addition of crew emblems that can be placed on vehicles and crew colors.
Jobs
Main article: Jobs in GTA Online
There are approximately 500 jobs in GTA Online and even more are added as part of DLCs. Jobs can be encountered in many ways, including stumbling on them on the map, calling or receiving a phone call from an NPC, or choosing one of the menu. Races can be entered with modded personal vehicles. Players can also create their own race tracks and deathmatches using the Content Creator.
Missions are received from various characters most of which are present in GTA V. Trevor Philips and Franklin Clinton are the only two of the three central characters to appear in GTA Online, however Lester, Martin Madrazo, Lamar Davis and Ron also make appearances.
In mission lobbies, the player can scroll through a list of players in the current lobby, or invite friends to join. While scrolling, a menu shows up showcasing the highlighted players Driving, Shooting, Flying, Sneaking, and Stamina skills.
Game Modes
- Adversary Modes
- Captures
- Contact Missions
- Deathmatches
- Freemode
- Heists
- Last Team Standings
- Races
- Stunt Races
- Survivals
- Parachuting
- Versus Missions
Vehicles
Main article: Vehicles in GTA Online
Many new things can be done with vehicles in GTA Online. As stated before, cars can be locked to prevent them being stolen, and the player can also buy car insurance just in case their car is stolen during free roam, destroyed, or lost. Once a player has insurance, the car can get destroyed an infinite number of times without ever needing to renew the insurance. However, high-end vehicles (which have a retail value over $100,000) can be stolen and driven in-game, but cannot be made into Personal Vehicles, nor can they be sold or modified at Los Santos Customs (they must be bought legitimately).
Features
- If the player remains idle for fifteen minutes they will be kicked from the online session. An on-screen message after two minutes of inactivity will warn players of this. The timer will beep for the final 10 seconds before the player is kicked out.
- However, the time will be reduced to a minute and 30 seconds if they idle with their dashboard opened.
- Grand Theft Auto Online introduced a new feature called Passive Mode, which allows the player to roam around on foot without being killed by another player. Players in Passive Mode cannot be targeted by another player, though the Passive player cannot use their own weapons. If a player is killed whilst they are in Passive Mode, the other player has to pay the Passive player's hospital bills. On PS3 and Xbox 360, Passive Mode is deactivated once the player enters a vehicle. Enhanced passive mode was introduced in PC, Xbox One, and PS4 where players will be ghosted to other players.
- The Heists update introduced the Daily Objectives, a feature that is presented in the form of 3 different objectives that must be completed each day (in real life). The player is rewarded with Money and RP points. Completing these objectives periodically allows the player to obtain bigger rewards.
- Awards are challenges that once completed can reward the player with in-game items, such as T-Shirts, tattoos and chrome wheels.
- The Text Chat and the Team Chat are features in GTA Online, exclusive for the PC Version. They are accessible by Pressing T (for Global Text Chat) and Y (for Team Chat) by default.
Social Club
Like in Max Payne 3, players can form Crews using the Rockstar Games Social Club. As a reward for signing up to the Social Club, a free Sawed-Off Shotgun will be available to acquire from Ammu-Nation, as well as the Elegy RH8 from the Legendary Motorsport website.
Players can be in up to 5 crews at one time and perform Heists and other activities together. When players form Crews in GTA Online they can be identified via the crew colour, which would cover half of the outside of their white marker, there is a new Hierarchy system to set ranks amongst players.
Downloadable Content (DLC)
Main article: Updates in GTA Online
Rockstar operates a continual update program for Grand Theft Auto Online, periodically releasing free content updates that introduce new features, vehicles, weapons and game modes into the game. Several of these updates, particularly themed updates based around a particular holiday or significant date, have been time-limited updates that are automatically rendered unavailable again after the update period has expired.
Events
Events are periodic occasions in which discounts and bonuses are typically offered in Grand Theft Auto Online.
Events first appeared after the release of the Ill-Gotten Gains Part 2 update and soon became a fundamental part of GTA Online in the enhanced release of the game, particularly when content updates for Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 versions of the game were discontinued.
During events, prices of existing content, new and old, are often cut, usually by 25%. As well as this, Double GTA$ and RP is usually awarded on certain game modes. As well as weekly occurrences, events are also prominent in re-releasing exclusive content, mainly during national holidays. Occasionally, major special events are hosted to celebrate the upcoming release of an update, or a major part of GTA Online, or even real-world history.
Subscription Service
Available exclusively on the PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X|S versions of Grand Theft Auto Online, on March 29, 2022, Rockstar Games launched GTA+, a paid subscription service which promised subscribers with extra monthly benefits for membership, including a monthly deposit of GTA$500,000, free vehicles and properties, as well as discounts across the board.[23]
Add-Ons
Grand Theft Auto V: Story Mode
Main article: Grand Theft Auto V
Grand Theft Auto V is a singleplayer game title, considered a separate game by Rockstar, from which the initial access to GTA Online originated. It can be purchased separately as an add-on for the standalone versions of Grand Theft Auto Online. Players can experience the interwoven stories of Franklin, Michael, and Trevor across the sun-soaked metropolis of Los Santos and the backwoods countryside of Blaine County in greater detail than ever before with stunning all new levels of visual detail. The game shares the same San Andreas map, although set in 2013.
Grand Theft Auto V: Story Mode requires a retail copy of Grand Theft Auto Online to play. Alternatively, players can purchase Grand Theft Auto V as a full game, and get free access to Grand Theft Auto Online through the menus or the Character Wheel.
Reception
Grand Theft Auto Online received mixed to positive critical reception from critics and fans alike.
Metacritic awarded the Xbox 360 version with 83/100 and the PlayStation 3 version with 80/100.
VideoGamer.com awarded the game with 9/10. Jon Denton thought the gameplay's "endlessness" made up for its broken launch and he also found progression more streamlined and balanced than before and thought the "grind of just doing PvP until co-op Jobs arrive with regularity" was lost. However, he noted frequent server disconnection, especially during load screens.
GRYOnline.pl awarded GTA Online with a positive 7.5/10, declaring that "the fun is tremendous", but saying that the game's potential is "not fully realized".
Destructoid awarded the game with 7/10, Chris Carter felt the "messy launch" should have been delayed, but he claimed that he had "the most fun in a online game". Carter concluded that "one day GTA Online will reach its true potential with a massive map creation tool and more playable content than pretty much every genre outside of MMOs — of this [he has] no doubt, given how deep Rockstar's coffers are. But for now, it's best to tread lightly until all of the kinks are worked out."
GameSpot originally awarded the game with 7/10 in 2013, but Carolyn Petit of GameSpot later changed the score to 6/10 in her updated review in 2014.
Digital Spy awarded the game with 3 stars out of 5, Liam Martin of Digital Spy heavily criticized the terrible launch; as in his review he said that he lost his character data and considered the technical issues dwarfed his pre-launch anticipation, despite this, he praised the heists' designs as he thought the Heists update encouraged teamwork and "pinpoint coordination".
IGN were the most critical towards GTA Online. Keza MacDonald of IGN panned the disastrous launch of the game, she also felt that gameplay's "addictive rhythm" eventually faltered as errands became a monotony. Dan Stapleton of IGN reported low player counts in matches, long wait times in lobbies, server disconnection and occasional crashes, he commented on his review: "I can't strongly recommend... the multiplayer experience alone". Ryan McCaffrey of IGN however praised the addictive gameplay loop of GTA Online, as he found high replay value in the heists' volatile action. To this day, GTA Online hasn't been given a rating by IGN as of 2023.
Reception has improved over time. VG247's Patrick Garratt felt the San Andreas Flight School update incentivised player engagement with the oft-neglected aircraft missions by offering more liberal reward payouts. Eurogamer's Stanton enjoyed the strategic planning necessary to pull off a successful heist and thought players were required to think on their feet and adapt to changing scenarios. He further noted occasional gameplay pacing issues and technical hiccups such as mid-mission server disconnection.
Bans
If a banned player plays Story Mode, a notification will periodically appear above the minimap telling them when their ban expires.
If a player is reported by enough players or is discovered to be using identifiable cheats (such as a mod menu) by Rockstar's automated anti-cheat system, there is a chance that they may be banned from GTA Online. With each ban, the player's characters are completely reset back to Level 0, deleting all progress they had in the game. All vehicles, properties, businesses and stats are also reset. All money is also reset, minus any Shark Cards (they are deposited into the player's bank).
The first time a player is banned, the banning period is 30 days. The second ban is permanent.
Before October 2016, a player could receive a first ban of 14 days, the second one of 30 days, and the third one being permanent. Players did not lose all their progress, only losing their illegitimate funds.
This feature is arguably one of the more controversial features of GTA Online, since some players claimed to be banned innocently for using programs that hook an overlay (for example, Skype). This also includes hackers being able to easily evade bans whereas other, non-hacking players, were banned with viable evidence often being turned down.
Gallery
Screenshots
- See more, Grand Theft Auto Online/Screenshots
Artworks
- See more, Artworks in GTA Online
Logo Variations
Trailers
Main article: Grand Theft Auto Online/Trailers
Soundtracks
Main article: Grand Theft Auto Online Official Score
Trivia
- The GTA Online Protagonist is the first female protagonist in the HD Universe of the Grand Theft Auto series (as both genders are treated as canon storywise), and the first one overall to have some kind of personality applied to her character. She is also the seventh female protagonist to appear in the entire Grand Theft Auto series.
- When the player is on the plane arriving in Los Santos during the introduction, other players' characters can be seen on the plane as well.
- Prior to the Gunrunning update, Grand Theft Auto Online serves as a prequel to Grand Theft Auto V. Prominent examples showing Online is a prequel mainly occur in the Heists update, as Trevor doesn't seem to know who the O'Neil Brothers are, the Protagonist has to help Chef set up his meth lab in the shop, Trevor starts his rivalry with the Lost MC by having the Protagonist steal their supply, the Vagos are still situated in Sandy Shores and Simeon is still running his business in Los Santos.
- Although this is the case, some Internet pages mention events that happen during GTA V's story, and the Fame or Shame finale can be seen on TV. The Meltdown film also be viewed in some theaters as well. This could either be a developer oversight or an attempt to increase the amount of content in GTA Online.
- However, in the mission Mole Hunt, Agent 14 says "Yeah, it's 2017, I can't believe it either.", officially confirming that GTA Online is no longer considered a prequel. Since then, each update has taken place in its release year, with the storyline moving forward in real time.
- Grand Theft Auto Online and Grand Theft Auto V are the only games in the series that take place in two different decades (2000s and 2010s in GTA V, and 2010s to 2020s in GTA Online).
- Many Contact Missions (such as Docks to Stock II, American Exports, Pickup Sticks, ATV Steal, Truck Together, A Boat in the Bay, and Chemical Extraction) available in the original version were removed in the enhanced version for unexplained reasons.
- Originally, "Online" in the Grand Theft Auto Online logo used the Pricedown font, as opposed to the custom font used in the final version.
- In the enhanced version, attempting to steal any DLC-related vehicle found in traffic would automatically kick the player out, locking the vehicle in the process to prevent the player from gaining access to it. However, certain vehicles such as the Pigalle, the Dukes, and the Panto could still be driven, but not be kept or modified at all.
- These have been patched as of the Southern San Andreas Super Sport Series update, allowing players to drive DLC-related vehicles spawned in traffic, though they are still too hot to modify.
References
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