The new expanded and enhanced version of Grand Theft Auto 5 arrives on the PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X/S later in March, but it feels less like a true next-gen upgrade and more like an attempt to drive up more interest in GTA Online. The latest iteration of GTA 5 brings with it a number of graphical upgrades and quality-of-life tweaks, but most of the focus in the run-up to its release has been on GTA Online. Following its announcement at Sony's PS5 event in 2020, PlayStation Plus subscribers were given a promotion where they received $1 million in GTA Online currency each month simply by visiting the PlayStation Store. PlayStation Plus users will also get GTA Online free for three months following the release of the new expanded and enhanced iteration, while Rockstar itself has been teasing new updates to come throughout 2022.
The new next-gen version of GTA 5 is the second upgrade the title has seen since its initial launch in 2013, when it debuted on the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3. The game was then released on the PlayStation 4 and Xbox One in 2014, boasting new visual tweaks and better performance, as well as new additions to a then-burgeoning GTA Online. GTA 5 has aged well since its release, and is still one of the best-looking games on the previous console generation. This latest version also improves on those visuals somewhat, although not in a way that makes it look like a true next-gen title.
Rockstar was slow to reveal key details surrounding the Xbox Series X and PS5 versions of GTA 5 following its announcement in 2020, with new significant details only coming at the beginning of March. The bulk of information concerning GTA 5 since the announcement has related to GTA Online; Rockstar has confirmed that new updates will be coming to the mode in 2022, and given the expanded & enhanced version of GTA 5 doesn't appear to bring significant additions to the single-player, it very much feels as if the release of the new title is meant to benefit GTA Online specifically. GTA Online still makes a ludicrous amount of money for Rockstar, and this latest version of GTA 5 could be a great way to not only bring in new players, but to maybe recapture those who drifted away as the game's economy inflated, and updates took on a more outlandish focus.
GTA 5 Enhanced May Bring New Players To GTA Online
While the next-gen changes to the single-player of GTA 5 are nice, they aren't as significant as the original expanded & enhanced tagline may have initially implied. The discounted price-point is arguably reflective of that (GTA 5's current-gen version will cost $9.99 for the first three months, rising to $39.99 after that), as well as the idea that it will function as another entry point into GTA Online. The multiplayer component for GTA 5 is filled to the brim with almost a decade's worth of content, and even with the free promotional currency being offered new and returning PlayStation players may find themselves having to consider Shark Cards - the game's microtransactions - in order to see all it has to offer. Further updates in 2022 and potentially 2023 should also ensure that GTA Online maintains a steady level of popularity, long after players have experienced everything the single-player has to offer.
The lack of substantial improvements coming to GTA 5's enhanced single-player is disappointing, but these new visual upgrades and performance tweaks should go some way in providing an incentive to warrant another visit to Los Santos. Michael, Trevor, and Franklin's story is still compelling, and while the game won't approach Red Dead Redemption 2 levels of graphical brilliance, the visual improvements will be welcome. That being said, it very much feels as if the game is approaching the end of its shelf-life, and that the resources devoted to one of any number of future GTA Online updates could've been better spent on expanding Grand Theft Auto 5's single-player instead.