An 18-year-old reportedly sped away from a traffic stop and collided with another vehicle on Tuesday.The Florida Highway Patrol says they attempted to stop a car going 85 mph in a 55 mph zone on State Road 82 in Lee County at approximately 12:43 a.m.Troopers say the driver, Alden Roberts, 18, reached speeds of 130 mph-plus to evade the traffic stop on Daniels Parkway and Gateway Boulevard.According to reports, Roberts collided with another vehicle on SR-82 and Sunshine Boulevard, bringing the car to rest.Troopers say two passengers were in the vehicle, and they were transported to the hospital with minor injuries. Deputies reportedly arrested Roberts and charged him with fleeing and multiple counts of reckless driving.
An 18-year-old reportedly sped away from a traffic stop and collided with another vehicle on Tuesday.
The Florida Highway Patrol says they attempted to stop a car going 85 mph in a 55 mph zone on State Road 82 in Lee County at approximately 12:43 a.m.
Troopers say the driver, Alden Roberts, 18, reached speeds of 130 mph-plus to evade the traffic stop on Daniels Parkway and Gateway Boulevard.
According to reports, Roberts collided with another vehicle on SR-82 and Sunshine Boulevard, bringing the car to rest.
Troopers say two passengers were in the vehicle, and they were transported to the hospital with minor injuries.
Deputies reportedly arrested Roberts and charged him with fleeing and multiple counts of reckless driving.
GTA Online runs on money. That’s why there are no cheats for it in the game. (There are, however, cheats in GTA V proper.)
Everything you want to do in GTA Online costs money — basically, everything from a high-end car to the real estate you need to start a new type of event is going to cost you just shy of GTA$2,000,000.
Our guide on how to make money in GTA Online will tell you everything you need to know to get rich quick in Los Santos. Well, quick-ish.
Be patient
The answer to the question “how do you make money in GTA Online?” is slowly. What you do to earn cash is really a question of how much time and effort you want to put in. More time and effort means more money.
Image: Rockstar Games
Very few things you can do are going to earn you millions of GTA$ per hour (or even day) — especially if you’re playing solo. Saving up enough for that new car, submarine, or business is going to be a big time investment.
How to make a little money fast in GTA Online
These activities aren’t going to change your life, but they’ll be enough to refill your ammo or buy some health-replenishing snacks.
Steal a car and sell it at a Los Santos Customs. You’ll only make a few thousand GTA$ and you can only do it a few times a day, but it’s a quick and easy way to make a little cash.
Participate in events around Los Santos. Things like races will earn you up to about GTA$5,000 each for 10 minutes of effort.
Rob a store. Head into any store and point a gun at the cashier, and you’ll walk away with a couple thousand GTA$ (and a wanted level or two).
Watch for weekly 2x and 3x events
Each week, certain events and activities pay out double or even triple GTA$. You can check our weekly guide to see what this week’s are. Depending on the week, you might even get free money just for logging in — like this week’s GTA$188,888 for Lunar New Year.
How to make money in GTA Online every day
Image: Rockstar Games
Beyond the big things (below), you can also get yourself a steady income just by doing certain things every day. Things like:
Spin the wheel at the Diamond Casino. You’ve got about a 20% chance of winning between GTA$20,000 and 50,000. You’ve also got a chance to win a car that changes weekly.
Empty the safes of your legitimate businesses. Your businesses like the bar in your motorcycle club clubhouse or salvage yard will earn some cash every day and store it in the safe. You’ll have to visit each one to pick it up, though.
Find G’s cache. Gerald will drop a package that will earn you roughly GTA$20,000 in cache cash each day. The location changes, though, so you’ll have to do some driving to find it.
Clear stash houses. Each day, you’ll also find one stash house somewhere in Los Santos that you can clear of enemies for Gerard. Once you find the combination and open the safe, you just have to flee the scene. You’ll be rewarded with a little GTA$ and, just as importantly, you’ll get supplies for one of your businesses.
Buy businesses and facilities to unlock new ways to make money
Most activities that make you money in GTA Online require you to own a specific kind of business or facility and the cost of entry to just about all of them is between GTA$1,000,000 and 2,000,000.
Image: Rockstar Games
But, just remember, each time you buy a new piece of real estate or new business, you unlock another way to make money. And keep an eye on the weekly updates — each week a property (or type of property) goes on sale for 30% off.
Agencies unlock Security Contracts and Payphone Hits
Your apartment gets you access to heists (which is where you’ll make the most money)
Auto shops unlock Auto Shop Services, Contracts, and Exotic Exports
Bunkers (or facilities) unlock the Gunrunning business
Clubhouses unlock MC Contracts and MC Work (and a bar)
Hangars unlock the Air Freight Cargo business
Nightclubs allow you to store additional good from other businesses and make money on their own
Offices unlock Special Cargo, Vehicle Cargo, Special Vehicle missions
Salvage yards unlock Salvage Yard Robberies and the Tow Truck Service
The best activities for a lot of money in GTA Online
With the right properties and a good crew (or a lucky roll of the rando pool), you can make a lot of money pretty quickly in GTA Online by focusing on the best paying events.
Heists are multi-step events that will take you about an hour to complete, give or take. They’re also the best payout you’ll get in the game, with rewards ranging from GTA$100,000 to 4,000,000.
Salvage Yard Roberies work a lot like heists, but they’re doable with only one person. They’ll earn you GTA$200,000 to 300,000 for about an hour of work.
Despite The Game Awards officially capping off the end of video game news for 2023, we’ve still got stories to share, from GTA 6 controversies to the inglorious end of E3. Here’s your cheat sheet for the week’s most important stories in gaming.
What’s Coming Out Beyond Pokémon: The Indigo Disk | The Week In Games
The drama-filled saga behind one of Steam’s most-anticipated games of 2023 just took its weirdest turn yet. The Day Before maker Fntastic announced it will cease operations less than a week after accusations of swindling players with a massive bait-and-switch when it came to the true nature of its The Last of Us-looking survival game. – Ethan Gach Read More
Valve has a message to all you folks (myself included) who love huffing your Steam Deck exhaust fumes: Stop it. Please.
Have you ever taken a break from playing your Steam Deck to sample the complex fragrances emanating from its exhaust vent? If so, you aren’t alone. Since the release of the handheld PC, many owners have reported that they can’t stop sniffing the fumes that waft out of the Steam Deck during play. It’s become a bit of a meme among Steam Deck owners, with folks often posting online how much they enjoy the distinctive aroma. I’m one of those sickos, sticking my nose right above the exhaust and taking a big whiff each time I play. But someone finally asked Valve about this, and it turns out the company wants you all to knock it off. – Zack Zwiezen Read More
A Florida man is calling on Rockstar Games to pay him $2 million for showing literally one second of a character who looks like him in the reveal trailer for Grand Theft Auto 6. Lawrence Sullivan, AKA “Florida Joker,” accused the studio of stealing his likeness in his latest TikTok video. But a Red Dead Redemption 2 voice actor wasn’t having it. – Ethan Gach Read More
Remember when finding and capturing a Legendary Pokémon felt special? You would stumble upon these powerful creatures whose stories were woven into the world’s history. The Mewtwo encounter in the original Pokémon Red and Blue is an incredible endgame payoff for a story that’s unfolding in the background the whole time. When you finally find it in the Cerulean Cave during the postgame, you understand how significant it is to stand in front of this all-powerful monster. However, in the time since, the series has increasingly broken its own lore to come up with silly excuses for why these god-like entities are available to be caught in subsequent games, and Pokémon Scarlet and Violet’s Indigo Disk DLC seems to be the latest to continue the trend. – Kenneth Shepard Read More
‘Tis the season, once again, for Rockstar Games to drop another massive (and free) Grand Theft Auto Onlineupdate. And this time, not only has the company added a whole new chop shop business, but it’s also added drift races, new cars, and animals, too. Yes, it took a decade and three console generations, but finally, GTA Online will have animals running around its massive map. – Zack Zwiezen Read More
Everything going on with failed Steam zombie shooter The Day Before continues to shock and amaze. The latest wild development is studio Fntastic’s response to the entire self-inflicted debacle: “shit happens.” – Ethan Gach Read More
Image: ESA / Kotaku / Frederic J. Brown (Getty Images)
E3, the video game conference that’s taken place annually in Los Angeles since 1995, is officially dead. After several years of struggles and rumors of its demise, its end was confirmed in The Washington Post’s exclusive interview with president and CEO of the Entertainment Software Association (ESA), Stanley Pierre-Louis. – Alyssa Mercante Read More
Today, Sony and Insomniac confirmed that the PlayStation-5-exclusive open-world superhero action game, Marvel’s Spider-Man 2, will receive a big, free update in “Early 2024” that will add highly requested features. – Zack Zwiezen Read More
Rockstar’s Grand Theft Auto franchise is one of the most popular and most profitable video game series in the year, and for good reason. They’re fun, they’re a real power fantasy, and they’re also the embodiment of the sandbox game that lets you do anything. Here’s our ranking of all 12 GTA games, from worst to best.
12. Grand Theft Auto
Image Source: Rockstar Games
Let’s make one thing clear, none of the games on this list are bad. They not only helped to crate a whole new way of playing, but they have been influential in everything from design to tone. The game that started it off may be ‘last’ on this list, but that’s only because each of the games that followed it up were so incredible.
The top down view may have been a bit difficult to get used to at first but once you got a hold of the freedom offered it became clear that this was a truly special game. Of course, it would be just a glimpse of the insanity that players would experience in the series’ future. The cities present in GTA (Liberty City, San Andreas, and Vice City) would become well known in the future as gaming evolved into something much bigger.
11. Grand Theft Auto 2
Image Source: Rockstar Games
GTA 2 followed the mantra of “don’t fix it if it ain’t broke.” The game played almost identically to the first release, with its focus on thievery and more violent felonies in order to rack up points and progress in the game. Instead of taking place in a recreated city of the real world though, it instead takes place in Anywhere, USA, a somewhat futuristic city where apparently crime is still high.
One new aspect added to this GTA was the gang system. Doing missions for one gang could potentially upset another causing serious problems for you and your constituents. It added a fun dynamic that took the game from just straight chaos, to having to actually think about what you did next.
10. Grand Theft Auto: London 1969
Image Source: Rockstar Games
GTA: London 1969 is technically an expansion to the original game (and also the first expansion to ever appear on the PS1). But, like with every successive entry, London 1969 manages to throw something into the mix that shows off the dev’s desire to keep improving.
The 30 vehicles and 39 missions were more than enough, but changing all the language to match the setting of the new location, adding some cameos, and having the disk double as an audio CD made this game amazing. It showed that the team was more interested in creating something new than just rehashing the same old thing.
9. Grand Theft Auto: Vice City Stories
Image Source: Rockstar Games
Liberty City Stories attempted to do the same thing that its predecessor Liberty City Stories did by creating a unique story set in the world of the critically acclaimed Vice City. The story is amazing, there’s no denying that. Vic Vance is out for blood after tying to live an upstanding life and being backed into a corner by a shady superior. It hits all the right narrative notes, but when it came to the delivery of the game, there were issues.
The game had some trouble running on the PSP. It was great that Rockstar was more ambitious this time around, but performance is very important. The PS2 port fixed some of these issues, but was yet another almost completely direct port. Though a few activities were added, the upgrade to PS2 could have done so much more aside from just fixing some loading issues. Instead it brought you the very same game a few months later and proved to be a missed opportunity.
8. Grand Theft Auto: Liberty City Stories
Image Source: Rockstar Games
Liberty City Stories was Rockstar’s first direct stab at making an original GTA for a handheld device. This one took players back to good old Liberty City and gave you control of a new protagonist, Toni Cipriani. It did much more than just gave you a new face though.
Liberty City Stories also brought in a lot of the advancements from games that followed GTA III such as motorcycles, more interiors, and the ability to change clothing. It was a game that built upon the new base and was a solid entry on the PSP. Unfortunately, the PS2 version didn’t change anything and instead just ported the game over making it seem lazy in comparison. Liberty City Stories was solid on the PSP but didn’t do anything special on console and that pretty much held the game back from pushing past some of its fellow GTA entries.
7. Grand Theft Auto IV
Image Source: Rockstar Games
Grand Theft Auto IV was the first ‘next gen’ entry into the series after an extremely large run on both the PS2 and PSP. It brought players back to Liberty City once again, the city that ushered the series into the third dimension on consoles, and it introduced a lot of new mechanics…maybe too many.
The new graphics, lovable protagonist (Niko Bellic), and rich open world helped reestablish just why this series is so loved. Everyone other than Niko, though? They for some reason felt the need to constantly hound you at every single turn to go bowling, or some other trivial act. The social aspect added to characters was great, but very overdone. The game also took a step back in terms of customization and really moving up in the world, most likely to refocus.
All in all, GTA IV set up a solid foundation that would be capitalized on a bit later, but its initial outing was impressive to say the least.
6. Grand Theft Auto: Chinatown Wars
Image Source: Rockstar Games
Nintendo wanted in on the GTA action, and who could blame them? The series was hot, and its take no prisoners style while delivering the best in action gameplay was applauded with each release. But who could’ve expected that it would be so damn good?
Chinatown Wars was a surprising return to the top down days of the past, only this time you could rotate the camera to get a better angle of the action. A deeper story set in GTA IV’s version of Liberty City, a new protagonist, and a comic book look made this entry pretty unique, which isn’t easy in this day and age. Plus the DS was used magnificently. The touch screen handled your bombs, radio, PDA, and map, while you took care of business on the top screen. The PSP version of course had to switch things around due to lack of a touch screen, but still managed to make it work and stay enjoyable.
Instead of dumbing things down for the smaller systems, the game was allowed to evolve by leveraging the different tech. It was not only a great GTA for handheld but a truly great GTA, period.
5. Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas
Image Source: Rockstar Games
San Andreas is often overlooked when discussing the best GTA games out there, and its largely due to the solid presence that another entry in the series had on the same platform. There’s also all of the attention it got for the whole ‘Hot Coffee’ situation, and that seemed to represent the game more than the actual game itself. San Andreas brought players into a world where low-riders and Chuck Taylors were badges of status, hip-hop controlled the streets, and you could go from a nobody to a mansion on the hills with just a bit of hard work…and a lot of bullets.
San Andreas introduced a lot of RPG elements such as skill upgrades, character customization that affects how NPCs interact with you, the ability to learn different styles of combat, acquiring property, and even maintaining your health. It was a lot too chew on, and for some the game was a bit too ambitious but it gave the game a strong sense of its own identity.
Gang wars, car mods, new types of crime, and even the ability to go into debt made the world seem more alive. It may have been a bit too ambitious for the PS2 platform, but it was the first view at what Rockstar was working on for the future.
4. Grand Theft Auto: Episodes From Liberty City
Image Source: Rockstar Games
GTA IV set up a solid foundation, but it was admittedly lacking in some departments. Although Niko was likable and easy to relate to (right down to the annoying family), the game itself felt like it really limited players in their personal progression unlike previous entries. The Ballad of Gay Tony and Lost and Damned took the world and injected new personality, action, activities, and standalone stories that were tough to put down,
Lost and Gay Tony’s respective protagonists, Johnny and Luis, were two very unique individuals caught up in their own troubles as the events of the main game are taking place. Luis in particular is lead to a new life after being present during Niko’s bank robbery with Patrick, setting off a chain of events full of expensive cars, a fabulous nightlife, and lots of death.
Each of the expansions also brought back a lot of elements that were in past games but didn’t make the cut for Niko’s adventure such as gang wars, fight clubs, multiple different employment opportunities, and a wider range of weapons and vehicles. Episodes From Liberty City turned GTA IV into the over the top adventure everyone expected when the game first released, and showed us that characters rule by letting each protagonist feel brand new even though everything took place in the same world.
3. Grand Theft Auto III
Image Source: Rockstar Games
If you’re a fan of the series, there is no way you can hear the name of this title and not have your heart swell as the nostalgia washes over you. While the top down games introduced the franchise to the masses, it was GTA III that defined the series going forward. From the moment you first set eyes on the 3D Claude (so that’s his name) you know that this is going to be something you’ve never experienced.
It’s the game that brought mayhem and helped to define an open world to 3D gaming and be copied to no end for many years to come (it’s still happening). It put the series on the map and turned it into a mainstream series with fans clamoring for sequels. The mission structure, the way characters came into your life, the sense of one big mission instead of several levels, and the freedom to do as you please became mainstays in the franchise. GTA III took the top-down action packed formula and turned it on its head by placing you in a city you could believe. It changed game development forever, and remains one of the best games ever made.
2. Grand Theft Auto V
Image Source: Rockstar Games
With everything that has gone on within the series, there was no telling what GTA V would do when it was released. Each game since III built on the sandbox that it made so famous and tried its best to add in something by which it would be remembered. Whether it was a new mini-game, a specific kind of music, certain weapons, or its setting. What this entry did was take everything that maybe didn’t work to well before and perfected it while also introducing us all to the future of the series.
San Andreas’ RPG elements were combined with GTA IV’s social connections, a revamped online component, jaw dropping visuals in a truly open world, and three characters for you to live as all in a world that continues to live even when you’re away. This was all combined to make a game that starts to show Rockstar’s overarching vision for their grand franchise as players are thrust into a world perfectly in sync with the modern age. Where its celebrities are our own, and it effortlessly points out our flaws as it forces us to ridicule them.
If IV was the series setting itself up for a new age, GTA V was it finally taking full advantage of everything it had learned and finally nailing ever single aspect.
1. Grand Theft Auto: Vice City
Image Source: Rockstar Games
Vice City was incredible for a number of reasons. It maintained the same gameplay many had already fallen in love with in GTA III, along with improving upon it with additions like motorcycles, helicopters, smarter law enforcement, and better weapons (minigun, anyone?). That alone would have been enough for fans, but Rockstar didn’t stop there.
Stunning music pulled straight from the ’80s? Check. Slick fashion to match? Check. Scarface’s mansion, a thrilling tale about betrayal and vengeance, tons of money and prestige, as well as lots of crime and action? Check to all of that. Vice City added life to GTA in a way that three failed to do, and it did so using color and music. The pastels donned by you and your pals were one thing, but once the night hit and the city was lit up with Neon as you made your way to your next mission, it all just clicked.
Vice City combined the action with a dream, one that we saw in those movies we weren’t allowed to watch as children. While the entries to the series that followed Vice City added new mechanics and features, none could match the first time you got a sports car and bumped Africa by Toto as loud as you possibly could while pulling off a drive-by on your competition. Damn, Vice City was good.
Of course, if you ever wanted to embark on the journey of playing all the Grand Theft Auto games in chronological order, here’s the list:
Grand Theft Auto (1997)
Grand Theft Auto 2 (1999)
Grand Theft Auto: London 1969 (1999)
Grand Theft Auto 3 (2001)
Grand Theft Auto: Vice City (2002)
Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas (2004)
Grand Theft Auto: Liberty City Stories (2005)
Grand Theft Auto: Vice City Stories (2006)
Grand Theft Auto IV (2008)
Grand Theft Auto: Chinatown Wars (2009)
Grand Theft Auto: Episodes from Liberty City (2009)
Grand Theft Auto V (2013)
What’s your favorite GTA game? Let us know in the comments below.
About the author
Ishmael Romero
Ishmael was a Senior Editor at Twinfinite from 2014 to 2018 covering every new release he could get his hands on. When he wasn’t playing through the latest titles, he was living his best life as a Guardian in Destiny 2. Outside of writing, he was just a wandering character from Brooklyn, NY, and a fan of horrible Spider-Man games, anime, and corny jokes.
It was a big week for the scantily clad at Kotaku this week, with both GTA 6 and Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth giving players plenty of skin. We’re also feeling veryexcited about the new Fallout show, but decidedly less enthusiastic about the minimal focus on the actual awards at this week’s Game Awards.
Grand Theft Auto 6 Comments: A Dramatic Reading
These are the week’s most interesting perspectives on the wild, wonderful, and sometimes weird world of video game news.
Grand Theft Auto 6 looks gorgeous. Unless its debut trailer this week was faked, it might end up being one of the best-looking games of this console generation when it comes out in 2025. By that time, my Xbox Series S will be five years old. I shudder to think of that sleek little white box trying to play Rockstar Games’ latest open-world blockbuster. – Ethan Gach Read More
I’ve played about six hours of Ubisoft’s new Avatar: Frontiers Of Pandoraand my big takeaway is that Avatar sickos will love this game, Far Cry Primal fans will get a kick out of Ubisoft returning to this formula, and everyone else, well… uh…dang, the game sure is pretty, huh? – Zack Zwiezen Read More
An intimate moment in GTA 6.Screenshot: Rockstar / Kotaku
Good news, everyone! Unless you’ve been living in a monastery, you’re likely aware that 2023 is the year that video games got horny again. And no, I don’t mean tastefully Hades frisky, I mean Leisure Suit Larry and Night Traplevels of unhinged lust, the likes of which “mainstream” gaming (whatever that means) hasn’t seen since the 1990s. – Jen Glennon Read More
Historically, TV and film adaptations of video games don’t have the greatest track record. The last few years, however, have started turning that around. Pikachu, Sonic, and Mario have all starred in successful movies, and earlier this year The Last of Us got a proper prestige adaptation that certainly left a mark on fans. – Claire Jackson Read More
And so that’s that. The Game Awards 2023 are over. 32 awards were handed out over three and a half hours. You might think, with that much time to spare, the show took its time and truly celebrated all the creators and games nominated for what the show calls “Gaming’s Biggest Night.” Nope. Instead, more so than before, the show sped through them at a rapid pace, making me wonder why it still pretends to be an award show at all. – Zack Zwiezen Read More
Final Fantasy Tactics is one of the best games Square Enix ever produced, and it’s not available anywhere on modern consoles or PC. A remaster is an obvious way to fix that problem, and it seemed like all signs were pointing to one getting announced any day now. So it’s an especially cruel twist of fate that the original game’s director, Yasumi Matsuno, keeps toying with fans’ emotions about whether a remaster is actually happening or not. – Ethan Gach Read More
Cyberpunk 2077 is in a pretty good spot these days. After a dumpster fire of a launch, the next-gen update, 2.0 patch, and Phantom Liberty expansion have gotten CD Projekt Red’s open-world RPG to a respectable state. The 2.1 patch that launched this week adds a nice little bow to the game as its “last big update.” It has long-requested features like a working subway you can take across Night City, and it also lets V, its mercenary protagonist, spend a little time with their lover in their apartment. The results are an adorable stay-at-home date with your paramour, but for as sweet as it is, these hangouts underline something that felt left out of the Cyberpunk 2077 redemption arc: the romance. – Kenneth Shepard Read More
The first trailer for Rockstar’s next Grand Theft Auto game, likely to be named GTA VI, comes out December 5. What can we expect the trailer to reveal? Well, based on Rockstar’s past GTA trailers, which are fantastic, there’s a pattern that can help us predict what we might see during GTA VI’s official debut. – Zack Zwiezen Read More
Earlier this week, we asked you all to give us your choice for the best video game sequel. Any sequel would count and everyone was free to suggest any game they wanted, no matter how old, obscure, or divisive. And we tallied up all the answers, crunched the numbers, and figured out your top ten sequels. – Zack Zwiezen Read More
Sultry singlets everywhere, oh my!Screenshot: Sega
The secret is out: the Yakuza / Like a Dragon series has great minigames. Whether you enjoy playing retro arcade brawlers like Virtua Fighter, dumping dozens of hours into becoming a real-estate tycoon, or chatting up bodacious babes at the hostess club, Sega’s goofy action series has plenty of pleasant timesinks to wile away the hours. Though it’s still several weeks away, it’s already clear that the upcoming Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth is no exception to that rule. – Jen Glennon Read More
Gaming’s biggest night has come and gone, and perhaps the biggest surprise of all was just how little time devs were given to thank their family, fans, and recently deceased colleagues during their acceptance speeches. But before that, we finally got our first in-depth look at Rockstar’s GTA 6, the most anticipated game in a decade. Here’s your cheat sheet to the week’s biggest news.
Rockstar Games has confirmed that, at least at launch, the company’s long-awaited open-world crime sim, Grand Theft Auto VI, will launch on Xbox Series X/S and PS5 only, with no mention of a PC version. – Zack Zwiezen Read More
The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time is often heralded as one of the best adventure games of the past 25 years. With the nefarious Ganon once again scheming to conquer the land, it’s up to Link to traverse through time, space, and yet another aggravating water temple to save the Kingdom of Hyrule. While the epic for the N64 is celebrating a major birthday this year, inspiring tribute mash-up videos and social media celebrations, another classic Zelda title is quietly celebrating a major milestone of its own. – Jen Glennon Read More
The Day Before kicked off 2023 as one of the most wishlisted games on Steam. Now, after endless controversies, the self-proclaimed open-world survival-horror MMO styled after The Last of Us is finally in Steam Early Access, and it’s getting panned. The first players to lay hands on the much-hyped zombie shooter are sharing footage of game-breaking glitches and leaving thousands of negative reviews. – Ethan Gach Read More
Overwatch 2 season eight begins today, December 5, but Blizzard showed off its new skins, events, and latest tank hero, Mauga, before kick-off. And the sentiment from players about the skins for season eight has been mixed—Baptiste’s formal wear is a standout, but it’s sandwiched between some real stinkers and an unremarkable Mythic Skin. But one cosmetic has stood out for all the wrong reasons: Mercy’s Year of the Dragon event skin. – Kenneth Shepard Read More
2023’s The Game Awards just wrapped. Did you watch it? Well, no worries if you missed it (or had something better to do) as we’ve rounded up every major game trailer and world premiere you could want to watch in a single sitting. So if you’re looking to check out a new trailer or catch up on all the games that were announced this year, you’re in the right place. – Claire Jackson Read More
A seven-second TikTok reverberated across the internet over the weekend, after it claimed to show the “first look” at in-game footage of a city in Grand Theft Auto VI, the open-world blockbuster whose official trailer is just a day away. Frantic speculation about whether the footage was real or not ensued, including unverified rumors that the leak involved a Rockstar Games developer’s own kid. – Ethan Gach Read More
While Sony acquired Destiny 2 maker Bungie for $3.6 billion in 2022, it repeatedly claimed the creator of Halo and other hits would remain an “independent subsidiary.” Now IGN reports that if Bungie’s sci-fi MMO keeps failing revenue targets, Sony could dissolve its existing board of directors and take full control of the roughly 1,100 person studio. – Ethan Gach Read More
After a long and tumultuous road, Cyberpunk 2077 appears to be getting its final major update today. The sprawling patch includes a new ridable metro system and more romance options, as well as a host of other tweaks, changes, and additions. Unless it ends up breaking something big in the game, consider patch 2.1 Night City’s last overhaul until Cyberpunk 2 arrives a decade or so from now. – Ethan Gach Read More
Earlier this week, Rockstar Games released the long-awaited first trailer for Grand Theft Auto VI, the massive sequel to 2013’s GTA 5. And while the trailer itself is quickly racking up millions of views every hour, the Tom Petty song featured in it is also doing pretty dang well, too.
Grand Theft Auto 6 Comments: A Dramatic Reading
I probably don’t need to tell you that on December 4, after a small leak, Rockstar released the first GTA 6 trailer a bit early and, in the process, blew up the internet. That trailer, which revealed the game won’t be out until 2025 and also showcased some incredible-looking NPCs, has since hit over 100 million views already, breaking some world records in the process. And the trailer’s song, “Love Is a Long Road,” is predictably blowing up too, according to Spotify.
Rockstar Games
As reported by IGN, Tom Petty’s “Love Is a Long Road” has seen a ridiculous increase in streams since the trailer went live. According to Spotify, streams of “Love Is a Long Road” have increased by 36,979% compared to last week. As of December 6, the song has over 11 million plays on Spotify.
Originally released in 1989, Tom Petty’s “Love Is a Long Road” was included on his massively successful album, Full Moon Fever, alongside hits like “Free Fallin’,” “I Won’t Back Down,” and “Runnin’ Down a Dream.” While “Love Is a Long Road” will no doubt continue to explode online thanks to the GTA 6 trailer, this isn’t the first time Petty—who died in 2017—has had his music featured in a GTA game.
Tom Petty / UMG
If you played GTA San Andreas back in 2004, you know that “Runnin’ Down A Dream” was included on the game’s classic rock radio station K-DST. According to the official Tom Petty Twitter account, the famous singer “loved contributing” the song to Rockstar’s massively successful open-world sequel.
I’d like to think if he was still alive today, Petty—who was born in Florida— would love his song being featured in a trailer for what looks to be the ultimate “Florida game.”
Grand Theft Auto reveals are arguably among the biggest cultural events in all of gaming. It was no surprise, then, that hype for GTA VI blew through the roof as thousands of people patiently stared at a black screen, waiting for the official trailer to release. However, after someone leaked the trailer on Twitter, Rockstar made the decision to publish it early, which left livestreamers scrambling to Go Live as soon as possible to provide their reactions. Unfortunately, at least some of those reactions were hit with copyright strikes.
Grand Theft Auto 6 Comments: A Dramatic Reading
According toIGN, content creators reacting to the GTA VI video ran into some trouble. Streams across TikTok were muted, possibly because the trailer makes use of Tom Petty’s “Love Is a Long Road.” The song is copyrighted, after all, and most platforms have restrictions on copyrighted materials. Meanwhile, some streams on other platforms were taken down entirely. In the video below, for instance, YouTuber TheProfessional details how his reaction video was hit with copyright strikes. Thankfully, after some time passed, most content was brought back.
TheProfessional
It’s hard to specify how widespread the issue was given that it was temporary, but the strikes point to the chaotic flurry surrounding the trailer’s release. GTA VI has been in development for many years now, with copious leaks providing tons of information on the highly anticipated crime simulator. We’ve learned that the game will take place in Vice City and really bring theFlorida energy, and will feature two protagonists in a Bonnie and Clyde kind of relationship. Kotaku readers also shared their many wants from the next Grand Theft Auto, and we’ve learned that it will skip PC when it launches sometime in 2025.
While Rockstar hasn’t given the next GTA game a proper name yet, it’s almost assuredly going to be titled Grand Theft Auto 6 (or Grand Theft Auto VI). And we know some details about GTA 6, after an unprecedented leak of the game in 2022. But thanks to Rockstar’s secrecy and the enormous task of following up one of the biggest games of all time, much about GTA 6 is still shrouded in mystery.
Here’s everything we do know about Grand Theft Auto 6 so far.
When does GTA 6 come out?
Rockstar hasn’t announced a release date yet for GTA 6, but parent company Take-Two Interactive might have revealed a release window for the next Grand Theft Auto game. In August, Take-Two told investors the company plans to see a “significant inflection point” during its 2025 fiscal year, which has been interpreted by analysts to mean that GTA 6 will be released sometime between April 1, 2024 and March 31, 2025. Obviously, that’s a pretty big window, but it could point to a 2024 release for GTA 6.
While GTA 6 may be targeting a 2024 launch, Rockstar is famous for delaying its biggest games in the name of polish. Its last major release, Red Dead Redemption 2, was publicly delayedthree times. And back in 2013, Grand Theft Auto 5 saw a significant delay, slipping from its original spring release date to its ultimate September 2013 launch.
In other words, even if Rockstar gives us a release date or window by the end of 2023, history tells us that nothing is set in stone.
When does the GTA 6 trailer come out?
Rockstar co-founder and president Sam Houser has only confirmed an “early December” release for the first GTA 6 trailer. It may or may not coincide with The Game Awards 2023, which streams live on Dec. 7. It’s more likely that Rockstar will release the trailer on its own schedule, without competing with a bunch of other game announcements.
Where does GTA 6 take place?
According to a massive leak of early gameplay videos and early reporting on the game, Grand Theft Auto 6 will be set in Vice City, the GTA version of Miami. That location was previously explored in 2002’s Grand Theft Auto: Vice City and that game’s 2006 prequel Grand Theft Auto: Vice City Stories. Those entries were set during the mid-1980s, but GTA 6 will reportedly tell a modern-day, Bonnie and Clyde-inspired story featuring two leads named Jason and Lucia, based on early gameplay videos. Lucia would be the GTA series’ first female lead playable protagonist in a mainline game.
The videos show robberies, gunplay, open-world driving, a police chase, a crowded nightclub scene, and conversations with full voice acting. The game footage was clearly not intended to be shown publicly, with debug programming elements visible on-screen at the time.
One of the longer videos showed the female player character robbing a diner, as well as threatening staff and customers, who react in fear to having a gun pulled on them. Then she and her male accomplice get in a shootout with police before jumping in the police patrol car and driving off. The game’s graphical treatment is quite realistic, but still consistent with GTA games’ style.
TBD, but PlayStation 5, Windows PC, and Xbox Series X are a safe bet. Unlike previous Grand Theft Auto games, which saw staggered releases on consoles versus PC, it seems more likely than ever that Rockstar would release all versions of the game on the same day. But given Rockstar’s track record, the PC version could lag behind PlayStation and Xbox releases.
There’s also another platform coming that could be home to Grand Theft Auto 6: Nintendo’s Switch successor. Rockstar has embraced the Switch with releases like L.A. Noire, Red Dead Redemption, and Grand Theft Auto: The Trilogy — The Definitive Edition, so don’t rule out an eventual release of GTA 6 on Switch 2.
How much will GTA 6 cost?
Rockstar and publisher Take-Two haven’t announced a price point, but it seems likely that Grand Theft Auto 6 will carry a $69.99 price point, increasinglythe standardfor AAA video games with big budgets.
Don’t worry about those unfounded rumors that GTA 6 will cost $150, or will be priced per hour, based on misinterpreted comments from Take-Two boss Strauss Zelnick. There may be higher-priced premium or collector’s edition versions of GTA 6 that cost more than the industry-standard $69.99, but hold your horses (and your pre-orders) until Rockstar makes it official.
What happens to Grand Theft Auto Online when GTA 6 comes out?
Rockstar hasn’t said, but given the massive popularity of GTA Online, which is also sold as a stand-alone experience, it will likely continue. Rockstar may have more grand ambitions for an online mode for GTA 6, and it may run two versions of the online experience for each game. The future of GTA Online is one of the biggest open questions — not to mention Rockstar’s trickiest needle to thread — when it comes to discussing GTA 6. Rockstar may very well keep those plans under wraps for the foreseeable future.
Ahead of next month’s Grand Theft Auto VI trailer, three classic GTA games from the PlayStation 2 era are coming to Netflix’s mobile library in December. These might not be the versions fans actually want ported to more platforms, though, even if some visual improvements seem to have been made.
Grand Theft Auto 6 Comments: A Dramatic Reading
We first reported on Rockstar’s plans to remaster GTA III, Vice City, and San Andreas for new consoles and mobile devices back in 2021. These remastered ports were finally released as Grand Theft Auto: The Trilogy – The Definitive Edition in November of that year on Xbox, PlayStation, and Switch. While select parts of them looked okay, the games were a mess, with new bugs, broken graphics, and other glitches. The issues were so bad that Rockstar Games did a very un-Rockstar thing and apologized to fans while offering them free copies of the original versions of the games on PC. And while the remastered GTA Trilogy did get some updates to fix its more egregious shortcomings, the games are still not fan favorites. That all being so, I’m not sure many people will be excited about these remasters making the leap to phones.
On November 29, Netflix announced that Grand Theft Auto III, Grand Theft Auto: Vice City, and Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas—all released originally on the PS2 between 2001 and 2004—would be available on mobile phones starting on December 14. As with other Netflix-hosted games, you’ll need to be a Netflix subscriber to play these GTA ports on your iPhone or Android device.
Things look a bit different this time around…
Interestingly, comparing the screenshots of the new Netflix ports to the current console and PC versions of the GTA Trilogy reveals some changes have been made. I noticed this a lot in an early moment in GTA: Vice City. It seems as if the colors have been toned down a smidge and the overall image looks darker and more like the original PS2 version’s.
Screenshot: Rockstar Games / GTA Series Videos / Netflix / Kotaku
If you look carefully, you can still see the remastered Vice City Definitive Edition models and textures, so this is still (presumably) that version of the game.
But it seems someone has gone in and tweaked some visual settings—including the fog, based on other screenshots—to perhaps improve these new Netflix ports.
I’m intrigued by the changes, even if they are minor, as they seem to help the remastered versions of these beloved games look a bit more like Rockstar’s original open-world classics. So I might check these out once they arrive on mobile devices next month. I just have to remember how the hell you play Netflix games on a phone.
A recently uncovered Rockstar Games patent suggests the developer could be using new technology to make NPCs in its games more immersive, particularly when it comes to the highly anticipated action-adventure crime sim GTA VI.
Grand Theft Auto 6 Comments: A Dramatic Reading
As spotted by Reddit user Tobbelobben30 (via Eurogamer), former Rockstar Games lead AI and gameplay programmer Tobias Kleanthous issued a patent in April called “System And Method For Virtual Character Locomotion.” The 11-page document, as Kleanthous described on LinkedIn, was “architected and implemented for games” at the Grand Theft Auto and Red Dead Redemption studio. According to the paper’s abstract, the patent houses “a system and method for controlling the animation and movement of in-game objects.” In layperson’s terms, Kleanthous’ tech should make characters way more life-like. Tobbelobben30 detailed the patent’s contents in their Reddit post:
“Based on this patent, it seems like they’re using a clever system. They’ve built a library of small building blocks for character movements. These blocks can be combined in various ways to create a wide range of animations. For instance, think about a character in the game walking in the rain, feeling tired, or getting injured. Instead of designing separate animations for each of these situations, they use these building blocks to put together the character’s movements naturally. This means GTA 6 can have more diverse and lifelike animations. So, when you play GTA 6, you’ll see characters moving in ways that match the weather, their energy level, and their injuries. This makes the game feel more immersive. It’s like having characters that can adapt to different situations, making the game world feel more real and thrilling.”
“Immersive” can so often be an empty marketing buzzword thrown around ahead of game releases, but when it comes to this patent, the adjective couldn’t be more apt. Based on the tech described, Rockstar Games’ games—particularly GTA IV—should have characters with more dynamic animations, giving their worlds unparalleled realism. While Tobbelobben30 couldn’t verify if the system was used in Red Dead Redemption 2, they did say that the animations in Rockstar’s upcoming game will be “incredible.” (Kleanthous gave a talk during GDC 2021 about some similar tech used in the cowboy RPG.)
Various Reddit users have shared their reactions to this new locomotion patent. “Yeah it’s gonna be mind-blowing, even in the leaks the animations and physics looked insane,” ArkhamIsComing2020 said, referring to leaked development footage from September 2022. “Soo procedural animation? Niceeeee,” quipped ProceduralFish. “So basically if my arm gets hit with a bat I won’t be able to shoot as well? That’s kinda cool,” noted rustynutsbruh.
Kotaku reached out to Rockstar Games and Tobbelobben30 for comment.
Grand Theft Auto Online’s latest update unleashes ghosts across the world of Los Santos, letting players track down and photograph them for rewards. And one of these ghosts might look kinda familiar if you’ve played GTA IV’s Lost and the Damned DLC…
Grand Theft Auto 6 Comments: A Dramatic Reading
Every October for years now, GTA Online has enjoyed an influx of spooky new game modes and creepy secrets to celebrate the Halloween season. Last time it was killer carsand aliens. This year, Rockstar has added 10 ghosts to the online crime sim and tasked players with photographing these haunting spirits. One of these phantoms is returning GTA character Johnny Klebitz, making real an old GTA urban legend.
GTA Series Videos / Rockstar Games
Fans have already figured out where and when all 10 ghosts appear, as seen in the video above. They’re spread out all around the large GTA Online map. Some appear in places you’d expect, like old cemeteries or abandoned homes. Others are chilling near waterfalls or inside trailers. The ghosts only appear during certain in-game hours, and players have to photograph them to “expose” them.
One of these ghosts is not like the others…
Once you’ve captured the first nine ghosts—who appear to be random, generic characters—on film, you can find a 10th and final ghost in Sandy Shores, north of Los Santos.
This 10th apparition, haunting a trailer park, is none other than the ghost of Johnny Klebbitz, the protagonist from Grand Theft Auto IV: The Lost and the Damned. And, spoilers for a 10-year-old game, Klebitz was beaten to death by GTA V protagonist Trevor Phillips in the opening hours of that game. In fact [lowering voice and putting a flashlight under chin] he was killed in the same spot where, a decade later in 2023, his ghost now lingers! According to players visiting Klebitz’s spirit, you can hear him yelling about Trevor before you snap a pic.
Seeing the ghost of a former GTA protagonist is a neat Easter egg by itself, but this is also Rockstar making real a previously debunked urban legend that after Klebitz was killed you could find his ghost hanging around the Sandy Shores trailer park. Although players claimed to hear his ghost yelling or found evidence of his spirit haunting the area, these were all lies and hoaxes spread online in the years following GTA V’s release.
Grand Theft Auto Online might be close to a decade old, but it’s still popular and getting big updates from developer Rockstar. In fact, its next big, free expansion is out later this month with a focus on aerial warfare and smuggling. But it’s also adding some nice quality-of-life changes that’ll make it easier to run around Los Santos.
Grand Theft Auto 6 Comments: A Dramatic Reading
Since its initial launch in October 2013, GTA Online has continued to be updated, expanded, and ported as millions of players keep returning to the game’s large open world to commit more crimes alongside (or against) other players and NPCs. At this point, GTA Online has been around so long it has had to leap across three different console generations to keep up with players and the ever-changing video game industry. It also keeps receiving updates every year, like the just announced June 13 update: San Andreas Mercenaries.
On Friday, Rockstar shared the first details about GTA Online’s next big expansion on the company’s official website. This time around players will be teaming up with vets and military pilots to take on Merryweather Security, a large PMC that has been in the game for years, but is now apparently expanding its operations and interfering with criminal operations. To combat the evil private security force, players will join a new mercs group known only as the Los Santos Angels and take on new jobs, including stealing data from server farms, launching raids against the PMC, and dropping bombs on valuable targets spread across the state.
According to Rockstar, this new update will expand the functionality of the aircraft hangar added in the Smuggler’s update back in 2017. That’s nice, as that piece of the game had long felt abandoned and old. The publisher is also promising changes to improve the already-existing Avenger, a large aircraft added in a previous update.
GTA Online’s next free update adds more quality-of-life changes
As has become the norm in recent updates, Rockstar isn’t just adding big new missions and business opportunities to GTA Online with June 13’s update. It’s also once again adding some long-requested features in its continued effort to make the game less of a hassle to play.
One big one is that players will finally be able to choose a new option for sprinting. Currently, players have to continually mash the X or A button to sprint in GTA Online. The faster you mash, the faster your character runs. It’s a neat idea but has long been considered annoying and possibly a barrier for some players who don’t have the dexterity to repeatedly and quickly mash buttons. Now, Rockstar is adding a “hold to sprint” option to the game, which is greatly appreciated.
Another nice quality-of-life change is that, after June 13, players will be able to replace all their destroyed vehicles via Mors Mutual Insurance at once. Another nice change that makes me wonder “Why wasn’t it like this to begin with?” Rockstar is also expanding the content creation tools by adding more props and snow options.
All told, it’s a solid update that isn’t the most exciting in the game’s history, but one that will be appreciated by folks who have spent the past decade tapping X for hundreds of hours just to run faster. Finally, we are free.
During Take-Two Interactive’s recent earnings call with investors, CEO Strauss Zelnick was asked about other publishers selling AAA games at a discounted price shortly after launch. His company has been one of the many to start charging $70 for games, and at least according to him, he hasn’t seen any “pushback” on the new price point.
An Anime That Might Make You Put Your Minecraft Bed Next To Someone
On May 17, Take-Two Interactive—the publisher behind games like NBA 2K, GTA V, Borderlands,and BioShock—released its 2022 earnings report alongside a press release that seemed to hint at GTA VI-levels of success coming in the next year. As part of this process, the company also conducted a call with investors, who asked questions about Take-Two’s plans and past performance. It was here that one person brought up AAA game prices.
“We’re not seeing a pushback on frontline price,” Zelnick said. “What we’re seeing is consumers are seeking to limit their spending by going either to the stuff they really, really care about, blockbusters, or to value, and sometimes it could be both. And the good news is, we have a bunch of blockbusters and we have a wonderful catalog.”
The rise of $70 games
Basically, Zelnick believes that gamers are just buying fewer games and focusing on getting a couple of big, expensive $70 blockbuster titles or are willing to pick up older or smaller games that cost less. As the video game industry continues to struggle with layoffs and big games failing to sell well, it seems odd that Zelnick is fine with people being unable to afford more games and instead having to “limit their spending.” But I’m not a big rich CEO, so what do I know?
The reality is that while gamers are definitely vocally pushing back on $70 games—Zelnick should check out the comments on literally any story about these pricey titles—the reality is that publishers are going to move forward anyway. There’s too much money to be made, and as Tears of the Kingdom’s massive sale numbers have shown, a $70 game can sell like hotcakes if it’s good enough.
Best: New Toys: It’s hard to choose one thing that I’d call the best part of Vice City, the GTA game that brought the series to Florida and the 80s, but if I have to (Editor’s note: You do.) then I’d pick the introduction of more vehicles to the sandbox. In Vice City, you could fly in planes and helicopters, drive scooters, golf carts, dirt bikes, various boats, and even pilot remote-controlled helicopters, too. All of this made Vice City a more fun playground to tinker with between missions.
Worst: Crappy Combat: The annoying, crappy combat. While it’s mostly unchanged from GTA III, it stands out in Vice City more because everything else—like the improved visuals, larger map and better cutscenes—is so much better this time around. And Vice City has a ton of combat in it, making it even harder to ignore just how clunky and bad it is.
Grand Theft Auto: Vice City – 2002 Screenshot: Rockstar Games
Last year, footage of the next Grand Theft Auto—assumed to be GTA 6—leaked online. While Rockstar quickly tried to erase the videos from the internet and plug the holes in the ship, it was impossible to completely contain such a massive, unprecedented leak. So fans around the world got a very good look at the future of Grand Theft Auto. And now myself and others find it hard to go back to the aging GTA Online.
Late on September 19, 2022, 90 short videos of early gameplay of what would later be confirmed by Rockstar as the next GTA entry leaked online via a hacker. The footage revealed a lot about the next game in the massively popular open-world franchise, including that the series would be returning to Vice City, Florida, a fan-favorite location last seen in GTA: Vice City Stories, the prequel to the beloved PS2 classic, GTA: Vice City. It also gave us a good look at the new protagonists of this next criminal adventure and some of the missions we might experience when GTA 6 is eventually released. Fans even began mapping out the game’s virtual world using the leaks.
Rockstar undoubtedly hates the leak and likely wishes it could rewind time and prevent it from ever happening at all, but it did end up revitalizing the playerbase. For the first time in a long time, there was excitement and energy in the GTA community, which after years of GTA Online updates and poorly received remasters was in a pretty bad place prior to the leak. Even an early, unfinished or unpolished leak of GTA 6 was better than radio silence and glitchy remasters. People were pumped and hyped about the future of Grand Theft Auto in a way I hadn’t seen in years.
But then, once the leaks were scrubbed from the web and it became clear Rockstar wasn’t going to release any official teaser or trailer to capitalize on the moment, all I and other GTA fans could do was go back to GTA Online. And that’s harder to do now that I’ve seen the future.
Rockstar Games
The latest big and free expansion to GTA Online,Los SantosDrug Wars, was released late last year at a really bad time for me to play and cover it for the site. So I just…didn’t play it. For the first time ever in the history of GTA Online, I skipped a new update completely. I’ve still not played it. At first, I blamed my skipping of the latest update on bad timing and a busy schedule due to holidays and end-of-the-year content. But now, weeks removed from all that, with more free time to play stuff, I’ve still not fired up the new update. And I think it’s time to admit to myself that my growing burnout around GTA Online was increased greatly by that small taste of what’s to come. That look at the future of GTA in Florida ruined me.
I could go back and drive around the same highways and streets of Los Santos I’ve been cruising around since 2013. I could fire up the game and check out the newest business and missions connected to it. I could, sure. The thing is, I don’t know if I want to. I mean, eventually, I will play more GTA Online. I sort of have to as it’s part of my job here at Kotaku. Yet, if it wasn’t part of my career there’s a real chance that I might just never play GTA Online again.
To be clear: It’s not because GTA Online is worse today than it was a decade ago—it’s actually much better to play in 2023 than in 2013—but because getting a glimpse of a fresh new world has killed my desire to boot up the same old Los Santos after a decade of GTA Online and GTA V. I mean, just having new songs on the radio will be amazing. I love Queen’s “Radio Ga-Ga” but you can only hear it so many times in 10 years before you’re ready for new tunes, too.
At this point, I’m hoping the wait for Grand Theft Auto 6 and its sunny beaches, palm trees, and new characters isn’t too much longer, because I’m ready to leave Los Santos behind for a tropical vacation to Vice City.
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