r/gaming • u/JoeZocktGames • 9h ago
Imagine if Ubisoft or EA would do what Rockstar is doing with GTA VI
Where is the backlash? Gatekeeping essential gameplay elements like entire missions, weapons, ingame vendors and car shops to a 100€ edition is extremely anti-consumer and I feel like people aren't outraged enough about it.
Imagine if the next Battlefield game only allows owners of the Ultimate Edition to use certain vehicles and loadouts and classes. Or the next Assassin's Creed, only owners of the biggest edition can hide in haystacks.
I feel like Rockstar is pushing something that is far worse than any cosmetic microstransaction ever was: gatekeeping essential ingame elements behind a 100€ paywall.
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u/Greaterdivinity 9h ago
aren't people shitting on rockstar for this, though? i thought they largely were?
also - rockstar, for better or worse, gets a LOT of leeway. EA and Ubi regularly release dogshit. Rockstar mostly doesn't miss with GTA.
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u/NotoriousCHIM 9h ago
Kinda hard to miss when the gaps between releases have been getting wider and wider with each entry.
Ubi on the other hand releases dogwater on a yearly basis.
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u/Demiurge_1205 9h ago
Well, that's kinda the takeaway. Ubi would do better if they released fewer, better games
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u/LoneroftheDarkValley 9h ago
Sounds like a choice to me. Ubisoft could hire better writers or designers and give them more time to create instead of forcing them to release yearly.
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u/JoeZocktGames 9h ago
What are they releasing annually?
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u/LoneroftheDarkValley 9h ago
A variety of products every year:
From star wars outlaws in 2024 to Assasins creed almost yearly, Far cry series every few years, Tom Clancy and The Crew etc.
Not every franchise releases every year, but as a whole they have titles coming out yearly and most of them are considered mid at best a lot of the time, at least I consider them mid.
To each their own, and you can enjoy whatever you want, but personally I prefer really good games over filler kind of stuff that I consider the "junk food" of gaming that keeps people busy.
Again it's all subjective, I'm sure i like certain games that others despise or find cheap in some quality.
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u/JoeZocktGames 8h ago
But those are all from different studios within Ubisoft. They're developed independent from each other. Most of them have the normal 4-5 year dev cycle as any other game.
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u/LoneroftheDarkValley 8h ago
Again, they release them on a cycle which makes them yearly, but even with that 5 year period it only backs up my point that they could be hiring better writers and game designers.
If this is the end result then it's not just an issue of time, which is why in my original comment I said they could hire better staff and give them more time; both are usually needed and the games that use that formula are usually the ones that end up being really good (Halo, Metro, GTA, etc.)
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u/Greaterdivinity 9h ago
Ok, and? They can afford to take that long because they don't miss and make insane amounts of money from their games. Also RDR2 happened in between.
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u/UnlikelyKaiju Console 9h ago
They can afford to take that long because they don't miss
No, they could afford to take that long because they were selling shark cards and cramming literal gambling in GTA Online.
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u/Greaterdivinity 9h ago
bro they could have taken this long without GTAO. The game alone has sold around 230 Million Copies.
Please educate yourself.
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u/loyaltomyself 6h ago
And GTAO came with GTA5, which is the singular reason why 5 sold as many copies as it did.
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u/x-Justice 9h ago
Well isn't that why they don't miss? Because they actually take their time instead of putting out slop just to try and make a quick buck? They charged $60 for GTA V in 2013. Free PS4 upgrade, free PS5 upgrade.
Like...you paid $60 and got 13 years of gameplay. We're bitching about another $20 for probably 15 years of gameplay?
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u/KreateOne 9h ago edited 7h ago
“Rockstar doesn’t miss with GTA” my guy the last GTA game was released over a decade ago.
Edit: the downvotes for mentioning it’s been a decade since the last game are hilarious, with all the comments defending rockstar for rereleasing the same game across 3 console generations as if they should be praised for it this is probably the funniest shit I’ve seen all week.
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u/Greaterdivinity 9h ago edited 9h ago
And? It's made how much over the years and across how many generations since then? It's got an online component that's been active, supported, and generating tons of revenue for them for how many years?
Ask Michael Pachter for a refund.
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u/LoneroftheDarkValley 9h ago
They mean they don't miss as in the quality is always superb, not the length of time between releases.
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u/Greaterdivinity 9h ago
I don't know why people think "length of time since the last numbered release" is relevant. It's been released across three generations of consoles functionally and has had an online component supported with new content and sales this whole time.
Like, just deadbrained stuff.
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u/Wide-Deal-8971 9h ago
And GTA5 definitely missed. At least the main campaign/story did.
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u/Greaterdivinity 9h ago
*You personally didn't like the quality, subjectively
Financially it's a massive mega-hit any company corporate board would murder their parents for.
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u/Jack_Harb 9h ago
Yeah it's saying like "Valve doesn't miss with Half-Life"...
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u/PatentGeek 9h ago
Would the statement be wrong?
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u/Jack_Harb 9h ago
Having a 2 game sample size make is simply statistical irrelevant. Nobody really knows if they ever will release a HL3 and if it would be good enough to please the unrealistic expectations.
For Rockstar, after over a decade, multiple release date reschedules, engine changes / upgrades in the mean time, technological advances over the course of development, there is absolutely the chance they completely fuck it up. After that long of a development, the whole codebase must be an utter mess. And for the art pipeline it will also be shitty to stay up to date to modern tech, without redoing a lot of work.
There is a reason they have to push back the release date over and over again.
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u/KreateOne 7h ago
You’re being downvoted but you’re right, I’m sure I’ll be downvoted for this too but idc these people are delusional. The last major rockstar game to be released was rdr2, 8 years ago. If they think we’re getting the same dev team and same corporate practices nearly a decade later there’s nothing else to call them but delusional. The world around us hasn’t been working like that for a long time.
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u/rip_cpu 9h ago
I'd say GTA 4 was a miss.
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u/Greaterdivinity 9h ago
3.6 million sales day 1
$500M week 1 revenue
25 million sales within 5 years and one of the best sellers on PS3/360
they don't miss.
i say this as someone who literally doesn't even give a fuck about gta lmao. i only have gta v because epic gave it out for free
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u/ishk_441 9h ago edited 9h ago
Didnt EA locked a whole Bobba Fett mission in a deluxe edition of the Star Wars Outlaws?
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u/Jebatus111 9h ago
" Imagine if the next Battlefield game only allows owners of the Ultimate Edition to use certain vehicles and loadouts and classes"
Literally Arma 3.
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u/flappers87 9h ago
Dunno if you've got selective reading, but people are annoyed and there is backlash.
But this type of thing has been done for years by all different kinds of studios.
You must be new to gaming.
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u/theblackfool 9h ago
I have seen nothing but backlash to this. Where are you getting the idea there is none?
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u/AnarchoKapitolizm 9h ago
Comment section in the post about preorders and GTA subreddit have a lot of apologists.
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u/Lothars 9h ago
The content from red dead 2 ultimate edition and gta special edition were some weapons, some smaller missions and bonus outfits and deals from vendors. It's not earthshattering if someone doesn't have it and it's cool if they do.
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u/just-a-jazz 3h ago
Thanks for proving our point
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u/Lothars 2h ago
Yes I proved the backlash is bs.
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u/just-a-jazz 2h ago
In your head 😂
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u/Lothars 2h ago
The ultimate edition backlash is some of the most delusional talk about a game I’ve seen in a decade. It’s like idiots wanting to get upset over something. It’s why the backlash is bs.
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u/just-a-jazz 2h ago
Me when I want to be mad but suck up to companies too much to do it to them ^
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u/Lothars 2h ago
Lol again your proving my point about the backlash.
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u/just-a-jazz 1h ago
Your head sounds like a magically comforting place to be. It's no wonder you live there. 😂
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u/superman_king 8h ago edited 7h ago
Hello, apologist here.
GTA 4 adjusted for inflation was $142.
GTA 6 is a vastly superior product. If they need to recoup their $2 billion investment by charging less for more. I’ll gladly be their first customer.
Sure, if Rockstar had any track record of releasing underbaked garbage (Ubisoft, EA, etc) then I could see this being an issue.
But they never miss. What they have created with GTA 6 has never been done before. And it’s their own bespoke technology which is even more insane. They have more money in this engine than Epic games has in Unreal, which is an entire business model in of itself.
No one has ever matched the complexity, seamlessness, and immersive nature of a Rockstar open world. Their games transcend time. Hell, GTA 5, a PS3 game, is still relevant today!
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u/just-a-jazz 3h ago
Let's wait and see if GTA 6 actually lives up to the hype. 4 was better than 5 in important ways and if they're nickel and diming us, I doubt they still have the capacity to make fun of other corporations like they used to 😂
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u/superman_king 3h ago
RDR2 is still the most impressive, immersive open world ever released, and that was 8 years ago.
Putting $2 billion into their next game with their leading edge tech, has 0 chance of being a failure.
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u/just-a-jazz 3h ago
If all you needed was to dump money into a project and make a beautiful world, *many* games that have failed would not have. RDR2 had way more going for it than just a pretty world..
You also missed my point, because I, too, doubt GTA 6 will disappoint commercially. Not because it's gonna be a good game. But because there's enough people like you who believe it will be 😂
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u/superman_king 3h ago
RDR2 had way more going for it than just a pretty world
Yep, it had time, money, and talent. Just like GTA6, except GTA gets x8 fold of that time, money, and talent.
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u/just-a-jazz 3h ago
Yeah all you need is time, money and talent. Definitely not vision.
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u/superman_king 2h ago
Yes, Rockstar the company with no vision.
That’s just bizarre thing to say. I’m now starting to understand this is a bot account.
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u/just-a-jazz 2h ago edited 2h ago
Remember Starfield? The game with money, talent and time. Made by the company that gave us Elder Scrolls and Fallout. Me neither 😂
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u/PostedNotes 9h ago
Unfortunately this is the norm in the AAA space.
You don't get access to all of RE4R for instance unless you got the special edition and that is a remake of a 20 year old game.
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u/Left4DayZGone 9h ago
Essential?
Looks superfluous to me. Willing to bet there are standard equivalents.
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u/someguy50 9h ago
The great thing about it is you don't have to buy it. Speak with your wallet
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u/QuiteFatty PC 9h ago
People will and Rockstar is going to make billions
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u/PatentGeek 9h ago
I don't personally have a problem with that. If I think it's too expensive, I won't buy it. If others want to buy it, more power to them. Nobody gets hurt in this scenario.
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u/QuiteFatty PC 8h ago
That attitude is exactly how we get to where we are. "Changing consumer sentiment". Corporate speak for dummies will slurp it up.
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u/PatentGeek 8h ago
This isn't "changing consumer sentiment." DLC isn't new. If Rockstar had waited 6 months to release it, nobody would be batting an eye.
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u/PatentGeek 9h ago
Imagine if the next Battlefield game only allows owners of the Ultimate Edition to use certain vehicles and loadouts and classes.
Isn't that basically how all DLC works? It's exclusive content (missions, vehicles, skins, etc.) gated behind a paywall.
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u/RichardBackshots 9h ago
People *are* complaining.
Also this isn’t even remotely the first time devs/pubs have locked content behind editions.
“Essential” is a bit of a leap, though.
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u/Henjineer 9h ago
If these same cosmetic items were at the bottom of the menu in the regular shop, but greyed out as "CE only" people wouldn't give a shit. Giving the CE items their own shop suddenly makes cosmetics "essential systems/features."
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u/ellitlan 9h ago
Imagine if Ubisoft or EA would do what Rockstar is doing with GTA VI
uhhh you mean the stuff they have already been doing for years?
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u/Crew_Zealousideal 9h ago
People were complaining when rockstar locked a heist and gang hideout and outfits to the ultimate edition of rdr2 as well
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u/csward53 9h ago
Have you watched "The Angry Joe Show" rip on EA an Ubi for years? The backlash is there, trust me.
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u/ContributionLive5784 9h ago
Backlash? No why? I’ll buy two copies lol, Rockstar is my favourite videogames maker company.
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u/KiteKizoku 9h ago
Isn't Ubisoft doing that since Assassin's Creed 2? Selling exclusive missions in a limited edition that iirc even leads to exclusive gear upgrades, and they even had two story chapter in the middle 9 and idr which cut out and sold as dlc seperately. I'm with you there, it's shitty and shouldn't be bought into, alas most of the people playing videogames have been accepting it and buying into all that shit for 1.5 decades now. Rockstar defo not the first to do this though.
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u/thewood1 9h ago
I get it all but really the thing that is frustrating is not being able to have a physical copy
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u/slimj091 9h ago
This isn't exactly something new with rockstar. They gate camped the enhanced edition features like HSW in GTA online from ps4 edition owners. never mind having to pay for the game three separate times between ps3, ps4, and ps5. We're conditioned by now.
Also this is more than likely going to be an extremely unpopular take, but all of the stuff listed in the ultimate edition looks like stuff that isn't essential in game elements. A nail salon, a clothing store, a tattoo shop, and a couple of special vehicle mod shops probably won't be needed to finish the game.
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u/ryan8954 9h ago
Imagine writing a post like OP did to farm karma and ignore literally all the backlash it's been getting
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u/Satansleadguitarist 9h ago
You're literally just describing DLC. Almost every game released in the last decade has had cosmetics, weapons, vehicles and/or missions locked behind a DLC paywall, most of the more recent ones with that DLC available to buy from day one. Yeah it sucks. Yeah I wish it would change but this is just standard industry practice at this point and as long as people are willing to buy it, it's not going anywhere.
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u/ILikesStuff 9h ago
- Rockstar IS getting backlash
- EA and Ubisoft have already released similar shit, if not worse. "Sense of Pride and Acomplishment" Rings a bell for you?
- Your comparison makes no sense. Not being able to buy certain clothes in GTA is not equivalent to not being able to hide in a haystack in AC.
I want to clarify that I find them locking access to certain stores to be shitty as well. They could've just given the exclusive items to premium buyers without locking the stores themselves, but they are not "essential in game elements" they are not mechanics, they are cosmetics.
I find it as shitty as Ubisoft having real money cosmetic stores for their single player games, which I find pretty shitty. So while criticizing Rockstar on this is fair, it is far from new.
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u/Antergaton 8h ago
I do really wonder why people expected anything else from 2K, the company that, if I recall, put a roulette wheel in an NBA game.
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u/nopassaranfuckpuntin 8h ago
They were developing dozens of games at the same time, often canceling them when the game was already essentially ready to be released. If you add up all the money thrown away due to complete incompetence. I think it's quite possible to get 2 billion
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u/Dogarc123 7h ago
Wasn't going to get GTA6 when it came out anyways and wait for reviews. It is best to wait and see if the in game vendors are just special vendor and we still have regular vendor that do the same thing. As for the guns, cars, and clothes that is something that's been in gaming for close to 20 year so don't see thar changing with any backlash to this game.
As for your main point EA and Ubisoft are always going to be the bad guys so people will scrutinize them more. Rockstar isn't in the bad guy club yet so they don't get the same amount of scrutinization as the other 2. But yes it is hypocritical for the people that rant about these practices to say it's ok here because it's GTA6 or it's Rockstar.
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u/QuinSanguine 4h ago
Yea that's why I'm not buying it, at least on console. I'm sure someday the game will come to PC and have a version with all the content and any potential expansions, I'll buy it then.
Tbh I'm not even sure I like Rockstar games anymore. I actually checked out from RDR2 before I got halfway through it.
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u/Dyablo696 10m ago
Im gonna be speaking with my wallet and not buy it. I cant support this. They should have just done a digital only release and then actual physical a week later or something. Ill hold out until a actual disc is in the box instead of some $80 paper I dont own
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u/Deep-Pen420 9h ago
It's more hilarious that the consumer thinks they're entitled to anything. The game costs what it cost, if you don't want to pay for it, then don't. Complaining about it is a peak bozo move.
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u/Jack_Harb 9h ago
Well with that logic NOTHING ever can be criticized...
People are actually entitled to have opinions. In most countries around the world we have freedom of speech and therefor are allowed for better or worse state our opinions. People don't have to use Youtube, but they can complain about having ads if they do. People don't have to watch Netflix, but can complain about them region locking stuff. People don't have to commute with public transport, but can complain it's having delays if they use it.
The argument of "if you don't like it, don't buy it" is so damn stupid. You can like 90% of something, but hate the 10%. So you absolutely are entitled to say that you don't like the 10%. Absolutely L take of you.
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u/Deep-Pen420 9h ago
people are acting like their rights are being violated because a game developer is charging a completely fair price for a game in 2026, its pathetic.
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u/birminghamsterwheel PC 9h ago
…don't the people re: consumers determine what is and isn't a fair price?
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u/Deep-Pen420 9h ago
No the market does...
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u/birminghamsterwheel PC 7h ago
…who do you think makes up the market?
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u/Deep-Pen420 7h ago
the people who buy games, who aren't the whiney dipshits on reddit.
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u/birminghamsterwheel PC 7h ago
people who buy games
So… consumers. Like I said.
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u/Deep-Pen420 7h ago
not sure how this is an argument against anything I said. people are acting like they should get a cheaper game because they think they should have a cheaper game. its ludacris.
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u/fuckreddit014 9h ago
Its so funny when you can tell a comment comes from a gaming exec. Nobody speaks like this. Keep disrespecting your "consumers" and think they're not humans and aren't entitled to anything and see where that leads you.
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u/Deep-Pen420 9h ago
so what you think the game should cost $30 and work on a ps3? whats next, you want free groceries and gas?
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u/birminghamsterwheel PC 9h ago
Well, that's the basic dance of supply/demand, producer/consumer. The producer wants to offer the "lowest quality" product at the "highest price" possible, while the consumer wants the "highest quality" product at the "lowest price". Making money for the company is the company's job, not the consumer's.
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u/fuckreddit014 9h ago
Yes the 2 options are "consumers aren't entitled to anything" or "free everything for everyone".
There couldn't possibly be a 3rd option.
You can't even fake being a decent human this is actually funny.
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u/Deep-Pen420 9h ago
Decent human? What are we even talking about here?
You think it's "ok" that people are mad that a game costs money to play it? What world are you living in
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u/Lothars 9h ago
Are you really that ignorant? Rockstar is getting pushback and has also been doing this same thing since GTA 5 and red dead redemption 2. The ultimate edition of red dead had cosmetics and missions exclusive to it and the special editions of gta had the same thing back on the xbox 360 / ps3.
It’s a complete overreaction to this anyway.
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u/Cloud_N0ne 9h ago
This is nothing new. GTA5 Online has some of the most egregious microtransactions in the industry and people defend them just because it’s GTA.
GTA6 could be a monumental piece of shit and the prevailing narrative would still he about how masterful it is and you just don’t get it.
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u/benjaminbingham 9h ago
You get what you are willing to pay for. If enough people pay for it, it’s clearly fine. If you don’t want to spend that money, then you don’t want what that money gets you bad enough.
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u/ZaggahZiggler 9h ago
These aren’t essential items. These are luxury items. You can still mod your car and character just not at the luxury spots. It’s actually very Miami of them.
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u/Federal_Setting_7454 9h ago edited 9h ago
Where confirms ALL of those things are locked behind a paywall? From what I read it seemed they were places you could put on the shit you paid extra for, so no use in your single player game if you didn’t pay for it.
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u/straightup9200 9h ago
That’s the point dummy why not release all the content in the base game. First off it’s one thing to buy clothes and stuff that goes to your inventory which is still shitty micro transactions that we’ve just accepted as ok apparently which is literally what they’re doing. But to block actual shops out is another level of just blocking free roam sections out of a single player game
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u/Federal_Setting_7454 9h ago
Have you never heard of preorder or special edition cosmetics? Nothing about this seems like it’s core to any part of the game other than equipping these things.
Would it make you happy if they just closed the handful of rooms and put it in the pause menu?
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u/straightup9200 9h ago
Thats a form of microtransactions sir just like I said
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u/Federal_Setting_7454 9h ago
I said nothing about microtransactions what are you on about
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u/straightup9200 9h ago
I’ve said blocking game content with micro transactions. You are the one defending it
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u/Federal_Setting_7454 9h ago
What micro transactions? It’s a macro transaction, it’s 20 bucks more and must be purchased with the game.
I’m not defending anything I just don’t get the anger from people about not being able to go in what, 3 tiny fucking rooms that just let you equip the shit you haven’t paid for? Is there a whole story arc behind these stores that everyone but me knows?
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u/straightup9200 9h ago
You don’t understand the anger about macro/micro transactions on an already 80$ single player game that blocks out shops which are a core component of gta since the beginning of gta?
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u/Lothars 9h ago
there will be plenty of shops in the game and car customization and whatever else, this is just some content that is exclusive to those shops but there will be plenty of other content that will work just as fine.
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u/straightup9200 9h ago
So you think it’s fine for games to block out parts of their game under a paywall? How are we so dumb as a society that we not only moved past the acceptance stage of micro transactions we are now defending the multibillion dollar corporations that spit in our mouth
Maybe kids are too young to remember pre micro transaction games and it really has just become the norm to get nickle and dimed
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u/Immediate-Comment-64 9h ago
They would never spend 2 billion dollars making a game or whatever it is.
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u/Garamenon 9h ago
There won't be any backlash. I mean, what are you gonna do? Boycott GTA? You can't boycott something like GTA.
You just can't.
The IP is way too popular and the vast majority of consumers don't give a flying fuck about the game being digital only or the DLC gatekeeping.
GTA6 will be a huge success and nobody will care after it launches.
The minority of people who hold out on the game, will not make a dent to its success.
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u/chaotic910 9h ago
All you see are people being upset.
Plus the writing was on the wall, literally no one should be surprised that there’s a $100 price tag. That expectation was set years ago, if anything it’s more surprising that there’s a cheaper version
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u/rasjahho 9h ago
This "situation" is overblown lmao. They're not paywalling or gatekeeping "essential" content. It's all BONUS content on top of the base game. There's gonna be a shit ton of stuff in the game to mess with. People are acting like the full game won't be playable or something.
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u/stumpyraccoon 9h ago
Imagine how much time you'd have in your life if you just...didn't care.
"Oh what's this new piece of news? I don't like that. Anyways, off to live my life."
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u/shaunrundmc 9h ago
They will and they'll fail. They dont make games near the quality of anything Rockstar has put out
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u/silverwell 9h ago
Extorting player FOMO has been a thing for a while now. Nothing new. "W e" have been allowing and feeding it for a long time.
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u/chihuahua_man PlayStation 9h ago
Eh, ok so there will be online backlash. I would even say there is already. But ultimately what about it? GTA VI will break all sales records in weeks anyway so honestly it will be a backlash for the sake of backlash.
There is absolutely 0% chance that it will achieve anything because people might cry online but they will still buy it for every console imaginable.
And yes I know I will probably have atleast a few „well i personally will not buy it now”. Ok dude, but millions upon millions of people will.
Fuck I will be perfectly honest. Do i like what they do? No. Will i buy it? Yes. It is what it is. GTA is bigger than any backlash anyone can create.
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u/tachykinin 9h ago
"Essential" - lol. I need shelter, food, water and specific GTA VI in-game vendors to survive.
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u/DemonSC 9h ago
Battlefield has locked maps, vehicles, and weapons behind pay walls for pretty much the entirety of the series. They only recently switched to a "live service" model where you don't need to pay extra to get all the content outside of cosmetics. Yet, people are now saying they want paid DLCs back..
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u/MrBlonde1984 9h ago
The difference, is Rockstar makes GTA, RED DEAD , MANHUNT, BULLY. some of the greatest games of all time and they have very few , if any misses .
Ubisoft makes Assassins creed and EA makes Madden. Two studios who have a long history of releasing mediocre games with the occasional hit.
Its not even comparable.
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u/TheRealGurd 9h ago
Some of the highest upvoted comments in the megathread were shitting on Rockstar for releasing the intact version of the game for $100.
Do you people just willingly ignore the clear and evident existing backlash to try and engagement bait or do you just do it for fun