Coming Soon to a Next-Gen Console (and, a little later, a PC) Near You: GTA V

Rockstar Games had some great news about its most famous gaming franchise, Grand Theft Auto.  The company announced today that GTA V, will be released onto both the Microsoft Xbox One and the Sony PlayStation 4 on November 18, 2014.  Moreover, the much-awaited PC version will launch just a couple of months later, on January 27, 2015.

Of course, the game has been out on the Xbox 360 and the PlayStation 3 for almost precisely one year now.  It shattered several sales records from launch, including best-selling video game in 24 hours, highest grossing video game in 24 hours, fastest entertainment property to gross $1 billion, fastest video game to gross $1 billion, highest revenue generated by an entertainment product in 24 hours, and even most viewed trailer for an action-adventure video game (source:  Wikipedia).  It’s quite possible, then, that if you’re reading this, you’ve already played GTA V.

So what’s the point of getting it for either of the next-generation gaming consoles, or for the PC?

Well, perhaps Rockstar Games subscribes to the maxim “Good things come to those who wait.”

Not only will the game benefit from the next-gen consoles’ and PCs’ more powerful graphical hardware, but there will also be more content to be enjoyed.  Rockstar says that players can expect a range of additions and improvements including:

–       New weapons, vehicles and activities
–       Additional wildlife
–       Denser traffic
–       New foliage system
–       Enhanced damage and weather effects, and much more

Moreover, the new releases will also have a big bump up in terms of audio content.  The game’s radio stations will play over 100 additional songs over what’s already on offer in the current-gen consoles; not only that, but there will also be new DJ mixes on offer as well.

And speaking of boosts, Grand Theft Auto Online will also get an increase in player count.  Up to thirty players can now play together on both the Xbox One and the PlayStation 4.

If you pre-order the game, you will get a $1million in in-game bonus cash as well.  You can spend this in-game money in both GTA V‘s story mode and in Grand Theft Auto Online; you’ll have a bonus of $500, 000 for each.

Rockstar offers a perk for those who have already bought GTA V:  They will be able to transfer their Grand Theft Auto Online progress and characters onto whichever next-gen platform they choose as well as to the PC version.  Rockstar says you should check this link out to learn more about this perk if you’re already an existing Grand Theft Auto Online player.