Grand Theft Auto 5 has taken the gaming world by storm, and although we’ve seen Call of Duty break records on an annual basis in what was becoming a one-horse race, Take Two/ Rockstar’s long-awaited title has eclipsed the opening numbers of any previous CoD release. As stores continue to replenish their supplies, the game’s creators have begun rolling out the online multiplayer functionality. As you might expect given the scale of the operation, there seem to be a few glitches with the service, but the take-home is that GTA Online is now in motion for both Xbox Live and Sony’s PlayStation Network.
In the run-up to the release, Rockstar gave plenty of glimpses of the game’s arsenal, characters, landscapes and vehicles. Yet while we were, and are, dazzled by the visual effects and general attention to detail, the reason so many of us were keen to grab GTA 5 right off the bat was the impressive multiplayer mode.
Allowing gamers to host their own get-togethers, form gangs and generally interact in the virtual Los Santos world represents a whole new angle for the franchise, and as many have pointed out previously, gives a real Sims feeling about proceedings.
After a small update, users will be able to interact with their PlayStation Network and Xbox LIVE buddies, and although we’re not getting too giddy with excitement until we’ve seen that the server can handle the inevitable surge, we still can’t wait to get started. At present, connection issues to the tune of “Rockstar cloud servers are not available right now” – found on both Microsoft and Sony’s respective infrastructures – suggests we’ve some waiting to do, but hopefully, the kinks will be ironed out pronto.
Although there’s not any confirmation on whether the title will be given visual upgraded and released on either of the next-gen consoles, many suspect this to be the case, and having seen just how much of a success GTA 5 has been already, the temptation to cash in with a PlayStation 4 / Xbox One release may prove just too strong for those behind it.
There’s also no official word, at least from Take Two or Rockstar, regarding a release for the PC. An NVIDIA spokesperson slipped a couple of months that the title would indeed be making its way to the PC before the close of the year, and although we’d expect this to be a formality at some point in the future, a release in the run-up to the holiday season would be more than welcome.
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