Grand Theft Auto 5 is almost 11 years old, which means the future of GTA Online, its multiplayer game mode, is hanging in the balance. Grand Theft Auto Online is almost as old as the singleplayer story mode, and it has had a multitude of content updates over the years. Now that GTA 6 has been announced, with a scheduled release window of Fall 2025, its future is even more uncertain.
Fans are wondering if Rockstar Games will keep updating GTA Online or if the upcoming summer update will be its last DLC. With all this in mind, here are some predictions and speculations for this game based on recent developments and previous patterns.
Note: This is a speculative article about the future of GTA Online, so fans are suggested to take everything with a grain of salt. The views expressed here are the author's alone.
Predictions on the future of GTA Online as of 2024
Right now, the biggest thing on every GTA Online fan's mind is the upcoming GTA Online Summer Update 2024. Rockstar Games hasn't teased much about it, except making a subtle acknowledgement in one of its newswire articles. Many fans believe this might be the last big content update for the game, as its future is a bit uncertain at the moment.
This is because Rockstar is more focused on GTA 6, its next big instalment, and the hype surrounding the game is massive. As such, the title is also expected to have its own multiplayer mode, likely called GTA 6 Online, GTA Online 2.0, or something similar.
Now, when this new multiplayer game mode comes out, the future of GTA Online will be up in the air.
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When Rockstar released Grand Theft Auto 5 and its multiplayer mode, the future of GTA 4 multiplayer was left uncertain. However, they didn't cut it off entirely, and it was only in 2020 that they removed it, but that was due to Microsoft no longer supporting Games for Windows Live (GFWL), the dreaded online service GTA 4 online was reliant on.
This isn't the case for Grand Theft Auto Online, so Rockstar might continue with it even after GTA 6 gets launched in Fall 2025. However, it's highly likely that the major content updates/DLCs will drastically reduce in frequency and eventually stop coming.
Alternatively, as mentioned before, the upcoming GTA Online summer update 2024 could be the last major DLC, and we might not get any more content updates after this.
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The future of GTA Online will also rely a lot on its fanbase, who are unlikely to keep playing it for so long. This is because, unlike GTA 4 multiplayer, Grand Theft Auto Online is a bit too old.
GTA 6 will arrive after more than a decade of Rockstar rereleasing Grand Theft Auto 5, so fans will undoubtedly be eager to move on.
If Rockstar does release more DLCs after the upcoming summer update, they're likely to be minor. The occasional weekly updates might continue, but they rarely have any new items and content. This means it would be unrealistic to expect more new vehicles or characters in the future of GTA Online.
Also Read: Is GTA 4 Online still active in 2024?