GTA Boss Says It Will Never Be A Day One Subscription Release
In the gaming world, they don't come much bigger than Grand Theft Auto. In fact, they don't come any bigger. With 2013's GTA V being the most profitable entertainment product of all time, there's a lot of pressure riding on GTA 6... whenever it releases.
The GTA name is one of the increasingly few franchise that still makes its way under its own steam. As Sony and Microsoft try to gobble up studios like Pac-Man to make them exclusives, there's even a potential future where Call of Duty could be an Xbox Game Pass exclusive. As it turns out though, the GTA boss isn't a fan of Microsoft's business model.
Will GTA Appear On Game Pass?
Click to enlargeTake-Two Interactive hold the keys to everything from GTA to Borderlands, BioShock to Red Dead, with there being more than enough titles for it to have its own subscription service similar to Game Pass. According to Take-Two Interactive CEO Strauss Zelnick, you'll never see a day one release for any of its big games.
Speaking to GamesIndustry.biz, Zelnick explained that Take-Two liked to support subscriptions for older titles that have already had their prices slashed - rather than rolling out the next AAA title with a day one release. While Microsoft has become known for its day one releases on the likes of Halo Infinite and the upcoming Starfield, Zelnick reminds us that Sony adopts a similar approach to Take-Two. Don't expect God of War Ragnarok on PlayStation Plus when it eventually drops.
"We've supported various subscription services and we're happy to do so," said Zelnick. "Our skepticism has been around making frontline console products available day and date with subscription. That doesn't make any sense to us because, economically speaking, we don't think consumers are prepared to pay for that – why would they? – and we can't afford to turn our business upside down in a way that doesn't make sense economically."
What Does The Future Hold For GTA?
Although Zelnick's stance could change, it doesn't sound like any of the gaming giant's upcoming releases will be arriving on a subscription service in the near future. In 2019, he said it was "hard to say" whether a day one release of Outer Worlds had helped or hindered the game's success. He's previously made his scepticism of subscription services clear, and it's a sentiment he's hammering home once again.
Of course, Take-Two could adopt a different approach by the time GTA 6 rolls around - whenever that is. There's no concrete release date for GTA 6, however, Take-Two financials could point to a possible 2024 window. We're also told of a big announcement coming soon, and if it's not the long-rumoured Red Dead Redemption remake, it's likely to lift the bonnet on what's going on with GTA 6.
