Can a single game make the fortunes of an entire system? In the case of Grand Theft Auto 6, it certainly may be possible.
What seems to be taking shape here is that the PS5 Pro is a real thing that is happening, and it will be an upgrade over the base PS5 which should be out by holiday 2024. Ray-tracing, faster rendering, upscaling, more all-important Teraflops, the works. But what that means is that if Sony gets this out, and GTA 6 hits its target release date, Sony may find themselves in a situation where the PS5 Pro is unequivocally the single best place to play a game that is very obviously going to break a lot of all-time speed-selling records very quickly.
The PS5 Pro is very much closer to being a reality, it seems, than an upgraded Xbox unit past Series X. Back in June of 2023, less than a year ago, Phil Spencer talked about this idea specifically:
He “doesn’t feel an imperative” to release another Xbox. “That’s not the feedback we’re getting right now. Right now, we’re pretty set on the hardware we have.”
That’s all well and good, as they already have two power levels, an S and X, and they have been increasingly less reliant on console sales, or at least so they say. However, if that remains true, and Sony pushes forward with the PS5 Pro, and Xbox keeps the Series X, it’s even more of a reason to head to PlayStation for GTA 6, even though that was obviously going to be the main platform already, given Sony’s estimated 2:1 market position over Xbox.
This is also important because unlike many modern releases, Rockstar is not simultaneously releasing GTA 6 for PC. The idea is not that they necessarily couldn’t, but it’s mainly because they will no doubt want to release an “upgraded” version of the game for PC some time later, and make those initial console players double dip with a bonus purchase.
So that’s important, because even primarily PC gamers will have to pick up GTA 6 on console, and I mean, who wants to wait 1-2 years for GTA 6, of all games, to make it to PC. So if you want the best hardware to play it on, by default, that is probably going to be a PS5 Pro, given these new specs and the apparent idea that Xbox is not going to make a competitive, upgraded system. One obstacle to this working may be price, as there are rumors that because of hardware costs and Sony wanting better profit margins, the Pro could for as high as $600.
But in general, all of this is great news for Sony, who may get a system/upgrade-selling game without it even needing to be their own game. One open question is if GTA 6 actually makes it out in its 2025 window. Granted, it has been in the works for a long time, but this is arguably one of the most important video game releases of all time, and other AAA games are usually hit with a few delays past their first announced date. But we’ll see.
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