I’m already worried that Grand Theft Auto 6 could repeat the biggest mistake of GTA 5. At this point, it’s no stretch of the imagination to say that GTA 6 is the most anticipated and most talked-about video game release of the decade. But for all we’ve pored over and dissected GTA 6‘s two trailers, there’s still relatively little we know about the long-awaited sequel.

One of the biggest blind spots is GTA 6‘s online mode. We’ve gotten a glimpse at the story, the characters, the map, maybe even a little bit of the gameplay, but we have no idea what the future of GTA Online is at this point. What it looks like, whether it’ll be available at launch, whether it’ll be released on PC – all of these remain a mystery. However, given GTA‘s recent track record, I think I know what the future of its online mode looks like, and it could be a problem for GTA 6 as a whole.

GTA 5’s Scrapped Story DLC Was A Wasted Opportunity

We Missed Out On GTA 5 DLC

It’s no secret that GTA 5 was supposed to get several story DLCs after launch; after all, Rockstar even announced as much. Story expansions were expected to focus on Michael, Trevor, and Franklin individually, building out their stories and allowing players to learn more about these now-iconic characters. But GTA 5‘s story DLC was all scrapped, according to Senior Camera Artist Joseph Rubino,simply because Rockstar decided developing new content for GTA Online was more profitable.

And honestly, they were probably right: GTA Online has remained successful for over a decade, long after GTA 5‘s story mode went out of fashion. That’s in no small part due to its consistent content updates. GTA Online gets a new set of missions every few months, with far more resources devoted to it over time than story DLC ever would’ve gotten.

On the other hand, it’s impossible to say whether GTA 5‘s story DLC would’ve reached the same level of success. But at the very least, it would’ve provided an interesting contrast to the base game. Rockstar has a great track record when it comes to DLC: things like GTA 4‘s The Ballad of Gay Tony and Red Dead‘s Undead Nightmare have proven excellent companions to the games they’re based on. That’s because Rockstar always gives its story DLC to shake up the rules, to look at familiar settings from different angles.

At this point, we can only imagine what that would’ve looked like for GTA 5. Its story is a little weaker than the best entries in the series, but its characters are its strongest suit, so I could see expansions focused on its protagonists being a lot of fun. I fear GTA 6 could fall into a similar pattern, with a weaker overall story that could be bolstered by DLC, but ultimately isn’t because Rockstar decides there’s more money to be made by continuously expanding its online mode.

GTA Online Will Be Too Profitable To Ignore

But Will It Detract From GTA 6’s Story Mode?

Again, we know next to nothing about GTA 6‘s online mode at this early stage. But considering how well the current iteration ofGTA Online has done for Rockstar, and Take-Two CEO Strauss Zelnick’s recent revelation that he considers GTA Online content updates on par with standalone games, it’s almost certain that Rockstar will continue to prioritize online gameplay over story DLC.

It’s not necessarily a bad thing. GTA Online can be chaotic fun, and online modes in general tend to give games longer legs that keep them interesting year over year. Still, I’d hate to miss out on pieces of GTA 6‘s story in favor of endless online content. I’m primarily a story mode player, in GTA as in all things, and it’s Rockstar’s penchant for strong, innovative storytelling that’s kept me coming back to the series over the years.

GTA 6 Likely Not Having Story DLC Isn’t All Bad

GTA 6 May Be Better As A Standalone

 

Custom Image by Austin King

Still, there’s a silver lining: GTA 6 might have a better story overall if it’s developed without the expectation of DLC to come later and fill in all its gaps. Lots of big, triple-A releases (like Assassin’s Creed Shadows) come out feeling incomplete today, because the developers know they can (or they have to) save some story content for DLC. If you play them at launch, you notice the gaps, and the story as a whole winds up feeling a lot weaker.

GTA 6‘s story will inevitably be better if it’s developed as a cohesive, comprehensive whole in and of itself – not the first chapter in a saga that’ll only be resolved in later DLC. GTA Online may overtake the story mode in profitability, which could lead to more canceled DLC and an overall incomplete story. For the best possible version of Grand Theft Auto 6, it needs to be developed with DLC as a potential bonus later – not as a given before the game’s even out.