Gaming fans will be disappointed to hear that GTA (Grand Theft Auto) V remains as popular a title as ever, meaning that a sixth edition of the game is unlikely to be making an appearance anytime soon.
After a refreshed marketing push to coincide with the launch of an in-game casino, fans have flocked back to GTA V, with the game seeing user numbers that nearly match the hype of when the game was launched back in September 2013, which itself was five years after the release Grand Theft Auto IV.
Game publisher Rockstar has not commented on the numbers, but if the past is anything to go by then the figures will be huge. GTA IV sold a massive 110 million copies worldwide and back in 2014 GTA V had 33 million active online players. If the game is seeing anywhere near those numbers after the recent update, it would seem GTA’s virtual casino is more popular than any of the other online casinos USA has to offer in games or beyond.
Not even brand names and cleverly designed games such as the Pokiepop online casino can boast of user numbers anywhere near those of GTA, although we should stress that it is unlclear just how many GTA online users are playing cards or dice at the tables and how many are still enjoying the general lawlessness that the GTA franchise is known for.
Rockstar released the casino update earlier this year as a free upgrade for all users, but it is the in-game microtransactions where the publisher makes its profits, letting users spend their money on buying news outfits and cars for their player avatars. The microtransactiosn means that GTA lets users buy virtual chips at the virtual casino for real money, and then only pays out in virtual currency – a setup that has garnered some negative reactions from the global community.
Nonetheless, the update has been a smash hit for Rockstar, and if the continued popularity of GTA V means we won’t GTA VI anytime soon, the company is likely to release versions of the game for the new Google Stadia gaming platform as well as for the upcoming Sony Playstation 5, which some analysts have hinted could be launched within the next twelve months. The game might not be new, but it will certainly continue to find new audiences on every platform it is released on.
Originally publisher as GTA Online are now bigger than at any time since launch
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