Is GTA Online’s success detrimental to GTA 6’s future?

Fans hoping to see GTA 6 often dogpile on GTA Online on social media for what they perceive as a game that's taking all of Rockstar Games' resources.

It's no secret that GTA 6 isn't coming out anytime soon. It was absent from E3, and no competent leaks are discussing when GTA 6 will be released.

Some fans have given up entirely on ever seeing GTA 6 being released anytime soon, which has led some parts of the fanbase to bring their attention toward Rockstar Games' sacred cow, GTA Online.

However, it isn't entirely fair to put all of the blame on GTA Online. Its immeasurable success might make it seem like it has delayed GTA 6's release date, but there are other factors to consider.

It wouldn't be unheard of if GTA Online's success made Rockstar put more effort into it, but that's something which would be easier to notice once GTA 6 is released, retroactively speaking.

---

---

GTA Online and the future of GTA 6

There are so many fake covers for GTA 6 (Image via Vk.com)

It isn't yet known when GTA 6 will be released (or announced for that matter). With an incredibly disappointing appearance at E3, Rockstar Games' inability to announce it has driven some GTA fans to utterly despise GTA Online, a game that continues to get updates and focus to this day.

However, it's worth noting that GTA Online updates aren't as expensive to develop compared to making a brand new GTA title. In the grand scheme of things, continuing to focus on GTA Online is a smart business decision. It might be bad for GTA 6 in the present, but it will be worth it in the future.

Games are expensive to make

Many GTA fans love to look at the release date timeline of all GTA games and wonder why it's taking so long for GTA 6 to be released. In a similar time frame, GTA 3 to GTA 4 was released, and that was full of many iconic GTA titles that fans know and love.

However, video game development has gotten more expensive over the years for AAA titles. The price of video games has barely gone up by comparison, which makes video game development take a lot longer as a result.

It doesn't help that GTA 6's expectations are quite high, to begin with. GTA 5 was a masterpiece of a game, so anything that falls short of that is bound to disappoint a lot of GTA fans.

Of course, GTA 6 can't go back to simpler graphics, and that wouldn't be well-received by most modern critics and fans.

GTA Online's insane profit

GTA Online makes so much money (Image via 9mods.net)

Even die-hard haters of GTA Online would be foolish to argue that the game doesn't make a ludicrous amount of profit for Rockstar Games. While some of this profit is used to pay Rockstar Employees, a good amount of this money is also reinvested into Rockstar Games' projects.

One of those projects is likely GTA 6. If GTA Online died many years ago, then one could argue that GTA 6 would have less immediate funding. Rockstar Games is a rich company and would likely be able to hasten GTA 6's development by then, but video game companies should seek to make a profit.

That's what GTA Online excels at. It's fair to state that GTA Online's constant attention has delayed GTA 6's release date a little bit, but it would also be understating how important GTA Online is to Rockstar Games and their investors.

The future of GTA 6

It's unknown when and where GTA 6 will take place (Image via Blocktoro)

GTA Online has had both positive and negative influences on GTA 6's development cycle in one way, shape, or form. However, most GTA fans simply argue about the latter influences without seeing the benefits GTA Online will bring to GTA 6 once it's released.