Grand Theft Auto Online

Grand Theft Auto Online

Developer(s) Rockstar North
Publisher(s) Rockstar Games
Distributor(s) Take-Two Interactive
Director(s) Leslie Benzies
Producer(s) Andy Duthie
Designer(s) Leslie Benzies
Programmer(s) Adam Fowler
Artist(s) Aaron Garbut
Composer(s) Tangerine Dream
Woody Jackson
The Alchemist
Oh No
Series Grand Theft Auto
Engine RAGE, with Euphoria and Bullet Physics
Platform(s) Microsoft Windows
PlayStation 3
PlayStation 4
Xbox 360
Xbox One
Release date(s) PlayStation 3, Xbox 360
1 October 2013
PlayStation 4, Xbox One
18 November 2014
Microsoft Windows
14 April 2015
Genre(s) Action-adventure
Mode(s) Online multiplayer

Grand Theft Auto Online is a persistent, open world online multiplayer video game developed by Rockstar North and published by Rockstar Games. It was released on 1 October 2013 for the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360, and was released on 18 November 2014 for PlayStation 4 and Xbox One, with a Microsoft Windows version on 14 April 2015. The game is the online multiplayer mode for Grand Theft Auto V. Set within the fictional state of San Andreas (based on Southern California), Grand Theft Auto Online allows up to 30 players[lower-alpha 1] to explore the open world and engage in cooperative or competitive game matches. The open world design lets players freely roam San Andreas, which includes open countryside and the fictional city of Los Santos (based on Los Angeles).

Developed in tandem with the single-player mode, Grand Theft Auto Online was conceived as a separate experience, to be played in a continually evolving world. At release, it received generally positive reviews, with praise particularly directed at the scope and open-ended gameplay. Critics were polarised by the widespread technical issues at launch, which resulted in the inability to play missions, and loss of character data. It won divided year-end accolades, ranging from Biggest Disappointment to Best Multiplayer, from several gaming publications. The game also receives frequent updates, which are available for free.

Gameplay

Developed in tandem with Grand Theft Auto V, Grand Theft Auto Online was conceived as a separate experience to be played in a continually evolving world.[3] Up to 30 players[lower-alpha 2] freely roam across a re-creation of the single-player world and enter lobbies to complete jobs (story-driven competitive and cooperative modes).[1] The Content Creator toolset lets players create their own parameters for custom jobs, like racetracks and deathmatch weapon spawn points.[4] 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 that of Grand Theft Auto Online. Players can create their own crews and join up to five total. Crews win multiplayer matches to earn experience points and climb online leaderboards.[5]

In Grand Theft Auto Online, players create a new character specific to the online world, which shows on the screen's Switch Wheel alongside single-player characters Franklin, Michael, and Trevor.[6] The player-characters are designed by a genetics-related process.[7] Greater control is given to the character's clothes and hairstyles. The mute player-character online avatar arrives in Los Santos by plane and is picked up by Lamar Davis, who gives the character a gun and a car. The player earns money by playing and can unlock more guns and missions. An hour-long tutorial introduces the player to the various game modes, driving, fighting, and game progression mechanics. The story is not central in the multiplayer, though characters from the single-player are woven in.[7]

Aside from the open world, there are three main types of set activities: racing (by car, bike, air or boat), Deathmatch (team or free-for-all), and objective-based Missions (simplified single-player-like missions, usually cooperative). Online uses lock-on aim and emphasises stealth in firefights. Levelling up lets players buy more guns and cars and unlocks more activities, such as parachuting and aircraft. Once unlocked, items need to be purchased with in-game currency, which can be earned or purchased with real money. Money can also be used to buy car customisations. Players can circumvent an activity's level requirements by joining a game with others of a sufficient rank. There are options to play alone or with friends, and an option for "Passive Mode", which makes the player semi-immune to other players.[7]

The game includes a content creation tool that lets players make automobile races and deathmatches.[6] Players can choose the location, start and spawn points, and weapon and vehicle drops in deathmatches, and the location, route, race type, and player count in air, land, or sea races. Creations have to be tested against computer-controlled players before the mode is available online. The creations can also be published for others to use. Rockstar tags what they deem to be the best as "Rockstar Verified".[8]

Additional content

Post-release content is continually added to Grand Theft Auto Online and the single-player mode of Grand Theft Auto V through free title updates. The Beach Bum Update, released on 19 November 2013, added more beach-themed jobs and customisation content for players.[9] In December, Rockstar announced that they plan to release downloadable content in 2014 that expands the single-player mode and creates new story for the lead characters.[10] The Deathmatch & Race Creators update was released on 11 December and lets players create their own deathmatches and races.[11] The Capture Update was released on 17 December and adds a new team-based capture the flag mode called Capture.[12] On 24 December, the Holiday Gifts update added Christmas-themed items to the online mode. It also gave players discounts on in-game vehicles, weapons, apartments and other items. The items and discounts were available until 5 January 2014. The update also added snowfall to the game world during Christmas.[13]

Coinciding with the 2014 Valentine's Day, the Valentine's Day Massacre Special update released on 13 February added Bonnie and Clyde-themed content to the game for a limited time until the end of February.[14][15] The Business Update, released on 4 March, added multiple business-themed items to the game.[16] On 11 April, the Capture Creator Update was released that added the ability for players to create their own Capture jobs using the Content Creator.[17] The High Life Update released on 13 May added new vehicles, clothes and weapons. It also added new apartments, the ability to purchase two properties at any one time and the Mental State gameplay statistic that monitors player behaviour in-game.[18] The I'm Not a Hipster Update was released on 17 June and added hipster-themed customisation items, and retro-themed vehicles and weapons.[19][20] The Independence Day Special update was released on 1 July to celebrate the US Independence Day and added patriotic-themed vehicles, weapons and customisation items for a limited time. The patch added new properties to Grand Theft Auto Online and the "On Call Matchmaking" feature that lets player accept a job invite and keep playing until the lobby is full.[21] The San Andreas Flight School Update, released on 19 August 2014, added new features and vehicles related to the in-game flying school.[22] On 18 December 2014, the Festive Surprise update was released, which added two new weapons, four holiday-themed vehicles and Christmas-themed apparel that was announced to be available until 5 January 2015. The update also added the ability to buy a third property.[23] Online Heists launched on 10 March 2015, suffering some technical difficulties due to the increased user load.[24]

Heists

The Online Heists update were a highly anticipated feature of Grand Theft Auto Online.[25][26] In June 2014, Rockstar delayed Online Heists from Q1/Q2 2014 to an unconfirmed date.[27] In December 2014, Rockstar released a trailer showcasing Online Heists, stating that they would launch prior to the release of the Windows version of the game.[28] Online Heists launched on 10 March 2015, suffering some initial technical difficulties due to the increased user load.[29] Players that are interested in hosting heists must be level 12 or higher, although players of any level are able to join those who host each heist. Along with the heist mission update, there are other add-ons like various wardrobes and vehicles for players to purchase. As of April 2015, there are five main heists that users can play.

Reception

Grand Theft Auto Online reception
Aggregate scores
AggregatorScore
GameRankings(X360) 82%[30][lower-alpha 3]
Metacritic(PS3) 83/100[32]
(X360) 80/100[33]
Review scores
PublicationScore
Destructoid7/10 (8 October 2013)[34]
GameSpot6/10 (5 May 2014)[35]
7/10 (11 October 2013)[36]
VideoGamer.com9/10 (25 October 2013)[37]
Digital Spy (17 October 2013)[38]
GRY-OnLine7.5/10 (11 October 2013)[39]

Grand Theft Auto Online launched on 1 October 2013, two weeks after the release of Grand Theft Auto V.[40] Many players reported that they had difficulties connecting to the game's servers and the Social Club web service, and others further reported that the game would freeze while loading early missions.[41][42] Rockstar released a technical patch on 5 October in an effort to resolve the issues.[43] The microtransaction system, which allows players to purchase game content using real money, was also suspended as a fail-safe.[44] Problems persisted the second week following launch, and some players reported their player-character progress as having disappeared.[45] Another technical patch was released on 10 October combating the issues, and players experiencing issues were told not to recreate their multiplayer avatars.[46] As recompense for the technical issues, Rockstar offered a stimulus of GTA $500,000 (in-game currency) to the accounts of all players connected to Online since launch.[47] Take-Two Interactive, Rockstar's parent company, stated that by February 2014, 70 percent of players with Internet access had played Grand Theft Auto Online, and that the game's microtransactions system was the largest contributor to the company's digital revenue since the launch of Grand Theft Auto Online.[48]

Because of the widespread technical issues present at launch, many reviewers bemoaned their experience with Grand Theft Auto Online.[36][39] Chris Carter of Destructoid criticised the "messy launch" and felt that Rockstar should have delayed it.[34] IGN's MacDonald considered her initial play sessions in Grand Theft Auto Online "disastrous",[49] and Liam Martin of Digital Spy reported glitches including loss of his character data. While generally praising the scope of the experience, he considered Grand Theft Auto Online underwhelming as beholden to pre-launch anticipation let down by its technical issues.[38] The character creation system was panned by critics, who felt that the system only produced unattractive avatars.[34][38][39][49] MacDonald of IGN noted an "addictive rhythm" to character progression and was enthusiastic about some of the job missions, although most eventually became monotonous.[49] GameSpot's Petit agreed with MacDonald, writing that "early on, your mission options are dominated by bland last team standing deathmatches".[36] However, reviewers generally recognised the open-ended exploration and dynamic content as the strength of Grand Theft Auto Online.[36][38][49] Jon Denton of VideoGamer.com was particularly enthusiastic, and wrote that the "endlessness" of the gameplay made up for the technical issues.[37]

When Grand Theft Auto V was re-released for PlayStation 4 and Xbox One, Grand Theft Auto Online received similar critical reactions. IGN's Dan Stapleton reported low player counts in matches, long wait times in lobbies, server disconnection and occasional crashes. "Because of that," he wrote, "I can't strongly recommend ... the multiplayer experience alone".[50] VideoGamer.com found online character progression streamlined by comparison with the original version. According to them, the "grind of just doing PvP until co-op Jobs arrive with regularity"[51] was lost, and newcomers would likely find multiplayer enjoyable and balanced. However, they wrote of frequent server disconnection, especially during load screens.[51] GameSpot's Mark Walton thought that Grand Theft Auto Online "still suffers from a lack of direction" for its open-ended and frenetic gameplay, while still being fun.[52] Game Informer‍ '​s Reiner reported "minimal lag or issues in the expanded firefights and races".[53]

References

Notes
  1. ↑ The PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 versions of Grand Theft Auto Online allow up to 16 concurrent players,[1] while the PlayStation 4 and Xbox One versions allow up to 30 concurrent players.[2]
  2. ↑ The PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 versions of Grand Theft Auto Online allow up to 16 concurrent players,[1] while the PlayStation 4 and Xbox One versions allow up to 30 concurrent players.[2]
  3. ↑ GameRankings's aggregate score applies to the Xbox 360 version. A separate score of 76% for the PlayStation 3 version is based on one review.[31]
Footnotes
  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 Dawkins, Daniel (15 August 2013). "GTA Online first look: Rockstar's persistent online world is its most ambitious project in years". Computer and Video Games. Future plc. Archived from the original on 17 August 2013. Retrieved 16 August 2013.
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 R* Q (12 September 2014). "Grand Theft Auto V Release Dates and Exclusive Content Details for PlayStation 4, Xbox One and PC". Rockstar Newswire. Rockstar Games. Retrieved 12 September 2014.
  3. ↑ Weaver, Tim (16 August 2013). "Interview: Rockstar North president Leslie Benzies on GTA Online and GTA V". Computer and Video Games. Future plc. Retrieved 17 August 2013.
  4. ↑ McInnis, Shaun (16 August 2013). "Why Grand Theft Auto Online is Crazy Enough to Work". Gamespot. CBS Interactive. Archived from the original on 18 October 2013. Retrieved 16 August 2013.
  5. ↑ Krupa, Daniel (22 March 2012). "Max Payne 3: Rockstar's Multiplayer Reinvention". IGN. Ziff Davis. Archived from the original on 25 August 2012. Retrieved 28 March 2012.
  6. ↑ 6.0 6.1 Yoon, Andrew (15 August 2013). "Why does Grand Theft Auto Online launch two weeks after GTA5?". Shacknews. GameFly. Archived from the original on 12 April 2014. Retrieved 12 April 2014.
  7. ↑ 7.0 7.1 7.2 MacDonald, Keza (22 October 2013). "Grand Theft Auto Online Review". IGN. Ziff Davis. Archived from the original on 12 April 2014. Retrieved 12 April 2014.
  8. ↑ Reed, Chris (11 December 2013). "Grand Theft Auto V Gets Deathmatch and Race Creator Update". IGN. Ziff Davis. Archived from the original on 12 April 2014. Retrieved 12 April 2014.
  9. ↑ Keith Stuart (14 November 2013). "GTA Online: release date announced for Beach Bum update". The Guardian. Guardian Media Group. Archived from the original on 14 November 2013. Retrieved 21 June 2014.
  10. ↑ "GTA Online Update: Free Deathmatch & Race Creators this Week, Capture Mode and More on the Way". Rockstar Newswire. Rockstar Games. 9 December 2013. Retrieved 30 December 2013.
  11. ↑ "Free GTA Online Deathmatch & Race Creators Update Now Available". Rockstar Newswire. Rockstar Games. 11 December 2013. Retrieved 22 June 2014.
  12. ↑ "GTA Online Capture Update Now Available". Rockstar Newswire. Rockstar Games. 17 December 2013. Retrieved 22 June 2014.
  13. ↑ "Grand Theft Auto Online Holiday Gifts". Rockstar Newswire. Rockstar Games. 24 December 2013. Retrieved 21 June 2014.
  14. ↑ "Coming this Friday: The GTA Online Valentine's Day Massacre Special". Rockstar Newswire. Rockstar Games. 11 February 2014. Retrieved 16 March 2014.
  15. ↑ "GTA Online Valentine’s Day Massacre Special Is Now Available". Rockstar Newswire. Rockstar Games. 11 February 2014. Retrieved 16 March 2014.
  16. ↑ "The Business Update for GTA Online Is Now Available". Rockstar Newswire. Rockstar Games. 4 March 2014. Retrieved 12 May 2014.
  17. ↑ "GTA Online Capture Creator Update Now Available — Plus #CaptureWeekend Award Details". 11 April 2014. Retrieved 22 June 2014.
  18. ↑ "The High Life Update for GTA Online Is Now Available". Rockstar Newswire. Rockstar Games. 13 May 2014. Retrieved 21 June 2014.
  19. ↑ "The GTA Online "I'm Not a Hipster" Update Is Now Available". Rockstar Newswire. Rockstar Games. 17 June 2014. Retrieved 21 June 2014.
  20. ↑ Luke Karmali (17 June 2014). "Fresh GTA Online update brings hipsters to Los Santos". IGN. Ziff Davis. Archived from the original on 17 June 2014. Retrieved 21 June 2014.
  21. ↑ Luke Karmali (1 July 2014). "Fresh GTA 5 update celebrates Independence Day". IGN. Ziff Davis. Archived from the original on 1 July 2014. Retrieved 28 July 2014.
  22. ↑ Ryan, Jon (18 August 2014). "The New Planes and Rides of GTA Online: San Andreas Flight School – IGN Rewind Theater". IGN. Ziff Davis. Retrieved 22 August 2014.
  23. ↑ Makuch, Eddie (18 December 2014). "GTA 5 Christmas Update Adds Snowball Fights, Ugly Sweaters, More". GameSpot. CBS Interactive. Retrieved 5 January 2015.
  24. ↑ Reilly, Luke (March 10, 2015). "Rockstar Issues Statement Regarding GTA Online Issues". IGN. Ziff Davis. Archived from the original on March 11, 2015. Retrieved March 11, 2015.
  25. ↑ Perez, Daniel (March 10, 2015). "Grand Theft Auto 5's highly-anticipated online Heists now available". Shacknews. Retrieved March 14, 2015.
  26. ↑ Partridge, Jon (March 13, 2015). "GTA Online: Handy hints for dominating Heists". Red Bull. Retrieved March 14, 2015.
  27. ↑ Jackson, Leah B. (18 June 2014). "Rockstar Delays Grand Theft Auto Online Heists". IGN. Ziff Davis. Archived from the original on 3 January 2015. Retrieved 3 January 2015.
  28. ↑ McCaffrey, Ryan (16 December 2014). "Grand Theft Auto 5 Online Heists (Finally) Revealed". IGN. Ziff Davis. Archived from the original on 3 January 2015. Retrieved 3 January 2015.
  29. ↑ Reilly, Luke (March 10, 2015). "Rockstar Issues Statement Regarding GTA Online Issues". IGN. Ziff Davis. Archived from the original on March 11, 2015. Retrieved March 11, 2015.
  30. ↑ "Grand Theft Auto Online for Xbox 360". GameRankings. CBS Interactive. Archived from the original on 5 October 2013. Retrieved 15 March 2014.
  31. ↑ "Grand Theft Auto Online for PlayStation 3". GameRankings. CBS Interactive. Archived from the original on 4 October 2013. Retrieved 15 March 2014.
  32. ↑ "Grand Theft Auto Online for PlayStation 3 Reviews". Metacritic. CBS Interactive. Archived from the original on 5 October 2013. Retrieved 15 March 2014.
  33. ↑ "Grand Theft Auto Online for Xbox 360 Reviews". Metacritic. CBS Interactive. Archived from the original on 5 October 2013. Retrieved 15 March 2014.
  34. ↑ 34.0 34.1 34.2 Carter, Chris (8 October 2013). "Review: Grand Theft Auto Online". Destructoid. ModernMethod/Destructoid LLC. Archived from the original on 11 October 2013. Retrieved 15 March 2014.
  35. ↑ Petit, Carolyn (5 May 2014). "Grand Theft Auto Online Updated Review". GameSpot. CBS Interactive. Archived from the original on 17 October 2013. Retrieved 12 May 2014.
  36. ↑ 36.0 36.1 36.2 36.3 Petit, Carolyn (11 October 2013). "Grand Theft Auto Online Review". GameSpot. CBS Interactive. Archived from the original on 14 October 2013. Retrieved 15 March 2014.
  37. ↑ 37.0 37.1 Denton, Jon (25 October 2013). "GTA Online Review". VideoGamer.com. Pro-G Media. Archived from the original on 30 October 2013. Retrieved 15 March 2014.
  38. ↑ 38.0 38.1 38.2 38.3 Martin, Liam (17 October 2013). "'GTA Online' review (Xbox 360): Full of untapped potential". Digital Spy. Hearst Corporation. Archived from the original on 15 March 2014. Retrieved 15 March 2014.
  39. ↑ 39.0 39.1 39.2 Antares (11 October 2013). "Recenzja gry Grand Theft Auto Online — multiplayer z potencjałem" [Review of Grand Theft Auto Online — multiplayer with potential]. GRY-OnLine (in Polish). GRY-OnLine S.A. Archived from the original on 30 October 2013. Retrieved 15 March 2014.
  40. ↑ Dyer, Mitch (30 September 2013). "When Can We Start Playing GTA Online". IGN. Ziff Davis. Archived from the original on 1 October 2013. Retrieved 1 October 2013.
  41. ↑ Karmali, Luke (4 October 2013). "GTA Online Launch Issues – Rockstar Speaks". IGN. Ziff Davis. Archived from the original on 5 October 2013. Retrieved 8 October 2013.
  42. ↑ Sarkar, Samit (1 October 2013). "GTA Online now live, Rockstar looking into server issues (update)". Polygon. Vox Media. Archived from the original on 1 October 2013. Retrieved 8 October 2013.
  43. ↑ Farokhmanesh, Megan (6 October 2013). "GTA Online connection issues resolved, lost items still being investigated". Polygon. Vox Media. Archived from the original on 6 October 2013. Retrieved 8 October 2013.
  44. ↑ Stuart, Keith (4 October 2013). "GTA V Online: Rockstar launches update to fix PS3 problems". The Guardian. Guardian Media Group. Archived from the original on 4 October 2013. Retrieved 8 October 2013.
  45. ↑ Scammell, David (7 October 2013). "GTA Online: Rockstar investigating missing characters, progress and money". VideoGamer.com. Pro-G Media. Archived from the original on 14 October 2013. Retrieved 8 October 2013.
  46. ↑ Karmali, Luke (10 October 2013). "GTA Online Deleted Character Fix Released by Rockstar". IGN. Ziff Davis. Archived from the original on 10 October 2013. Retrieved 13 October 2013.
  47. ↑ Matulef, Jeffrey (7 November 2013). "GTA Online's stimulus package is live". Eurogamer. Gamer Network. Archived from the original on 7 November 2013. Retrieved 17 March 2014.
  48. ↑ Dring, Christopher (3 February 2014). "70% of GTA V gamers have played GTA Online". Market for Home Computing and Video Games. Intent Media. Archived from the original on 7 February 2014. Retrieved 16 March 2014.
  49. ↑ 49.0 49.1 49.2 49.3 MacDonald, Keza (22 October 2013). "Grand Theft Auto Online Review". IGN. Ziff Davis. Archived from the original on 22 October 2013. Retrieved 15 March 2014.
  50. ↑ Stapleton, Dan (17 November 2014). "GTA 5 PlayStation 4 and Xbox One Review". IGN. Ziff Davis. Archived from the original on 23 November 2014. Retrieved 23 November 2014.
  51. ↑ 51.0 51.1 "Grand Theft Auto 5 Review". VideoGamer.com. Pro-G Media. 20 November 2014. Archived from the original on 23 November 2014. Retrieved 23 November 2014.
  52. ↑ Walton, Mark (17 November 2014). "Grand Theft Auto V Review". GameSpot. CBS Interactive. Archived from the original on 23 November 2014. Retrieved 23 November 2014.
  53. ↑ Reiner, Andrew (21 November 2014). "Grand Theft Auto V – Intimate Violence". Game Informer. GameStop. Archived from the original on 23 November 2014. Retrieved 23 November 2014.