The many twists and turns of Grand Theft Auto Online's long post-launch life recently continued with the launch of an enhanced port of the game for PC players, with this being intended as a definitive version of the project that brings it up to speed across all platforms. As a freely-available update, many PC players were quick to get their hands on the enhanced version of GTA Online when it launched on March 4, yet this may be a short-lived send-off for the longstanding multiplayer game.
The success of Grand Theft Auto Online has rewritten the expectations of GTA as a franchise over the years and, while the game is still popular, many players are anticipating the potential multiplayer offerings of Grand Theft Auto 6. With so much attention already being placed on the next possible multiplayer mode for Grand Theft Auto, it seems likely that the recently launched enhanced edition will be a brief footnote marking the end of a successful era.
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Grand Theft Auto Online's Enhanced PC Port Might Be the Last Step in the Game's Storied History
The recent enhanced version of Grand Theft Auto Online came as a new port of the game for PC players, featuring the same improved graphics as the most current builds of GTA Online across other modern console platforms. Not only does the enhanced port allow things like ray tracing, higher frame-rates, increased performance, and enhanced audio, but the port additionally includes the DLC content of Hao's Special Works.
With the enhanced port, PC players can now finally experience animal encounters in GTA Online, while also opening up the PC playerbase to the wide-spanning benefits of the GTA+ subscription service. It is worth noting that this latest update to Grand Theft Auto Online has been met with a mixed reception, largely down to reported audio-related bugs that the port possesses, but it seems likely that Rockstar will eventually iron this out through patches in the coming weeks.
GTA Online's PC Playerbase is Deserving of Enhanced Gameplay Before GTA 6's Arrival
While GTA Online remains massively popular across all the platforms that it is available on, the PC community for the title is unique in the sense that it is at the heart of the hugely successful RP servers that have gone mainstream in recent years. It only seems right that this vibrant and dedicated community aspect of GTA Online should be given a more modern and sleek build of the game, with the enhanced port having big potential implications for RP content creation and beyond.
Despite this, discourse about the GTA franchise is firmly pointed towards the upcoming launch of Grand Theft Auto 6, with Rockstar still seemingly aiming for a late 2025 release window for the title. The anticipation behind GTA 6 is unlike anything the gaming industry has seen before, and it seems extremely likely that huge swathes of GTA Online players will eagerly make the jump over to whatever multiplayer experience GTA 6 eventually features.
Current rumors suggest that Grand Theft Auto 6 and its online mode will release as two separate products at launch, with their combined value perhaps being the source of the rumored $100+ price tag for the upcoming title.
This could make the overall longevity of GTA Online's enhanced PC version quite brief, although it is worth mentioning that the PC release date for GTA 6 is believed to be as far back as 2026 compared to the game's console launch window. This would enable the enhanced PC version of Grand Theft Auto Online to make a bit more of a sustained impact on a multiplayer title that has lasted well over a decade, allowing PC players a brief period of enhanced gameplay before GTA 6 dominates the franchise.
- Released
- October 1, 2013
- ESRB
- M for Mature: Blood and Gore, Intense Violence, Mature Humor, Nudity, Strong Language, Strong Sexual Content, Use of Drugs and Alcohol
- Developer(s)
- Rockstar North
- Publisher(s)
- Rockstar Games
- Engine
- Rockstar Advanced Game Engine
WHERE TO PLAY
- Genre(s)
- Open-World, Action
