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The highly anticipated Grand Theft Auto VI (GTA 6) has generated excitement and speculation, but also growing frustration. Recent leaks about Rockstar's plans for the game's online mode, dubbed 'GTA Online 2,' have sparked backlash from fans. While GTA 6 promises to revolutionize open-world gaming with its vast map and dual protagonists, the online mode's features have drawn criticism for being 'greedy,' 'grindy,' and 'out of touch' with the fanbase.
Here’s a closer look at why fans are upset—and what Rockstar might need to address before release.
In the initial GTA Online, the money grind was so intense that it could perhaps be considered a full-time job, unless the players were willing to shell out real money to purchase Shark Cards.
Now, with the leaked information about GTA 6's online mode hinting at similar strategies, there is a gloom that Rockstar is reinforcing a monetization path that promotes pay-to-win instead of skill or creativity.
The players on Reddit and Twitter have expressed their frustration, with the post reading, 'If I have to grind 20 hours to buy a mid-tier car again, I'm out.'
And the other hot potato is microtransactions. While nearly all the games created in this era come with their forms of monetization, fans are kicking up a storm ever since bad rumors spilled out.
This backlash comes from fears that the game is being designed more to make money than to give players a better experience. Some are also speculating that Rockstar intends to go for a live service-style scenario with regular content drops at a price.
'GTA isn't Fortnite, and it's not supposed to be,' lamented a long-time fan on YouTube.
The RP players, who helped extend the longevity of GTA 5 through more creative unscripted play, are worried about the possibility of GTA 6 turning into an online game with a more structured structure.
There have been reports that GTA 6 Online will constrain some customization and modding freedom, which may alienate the massive RP community that thrives on freedom.
This poses the more pertinent question: Is Rockstar building for the casual players or whales while ignoring their topmost committed consumer base?
With fan sentiment already on shaky ground and with the game still a year from launch, will Rockstar stay true to the fans? Red Dead Online's stagnation taught us that players are quick to abandon a platform when it fails to deliver.
If Rockstar wants GTA 6 Online to stand tall next to its predecessor's legacy, Rockstar needs to rethink the grind, give meaningful rewards, offer more content upfront, and hold no price tags on any of it.
Rockstar has remained coy on the online specifics, which only adds to the community's anxieties with each passing day.
GTA 6 has all the makings of changing the future of open-world games, but the online mode might just turn out to be a bane for the fans that have been sustaining the franchise. With every passing day that goes by and with every increasingly loud clamor, Rockstar may yet awaken to the possibilities.
If it stays the way it is, then 'it can't be like this' will reach beyond a statement of frustration and into an ominous preamble of what is to come.
Also Read: Tornadoes and Hurricanes in GTA 6? Trailer 2 Hint Suggests ‘Yes’
