As many expected, the first installment of Grand Theft Auto 6, slated to arrive on 19th November, appears to include only the single-player campaign. Rockstar indicated this earlier today in a statement that also confirmed GTA 6 pre-orders will open at midnight, with no physical disc, and the company did not mention any multiplayer offering.
“The biggest and most immersive step forward the franchise has seen so far, Grand Theft Auto 6 delivers a single-player experience launching on 19th November for PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X/S,” the announcement reads.
The open-world game will launch in two editions. The Ultimate Edition bundles a range of added digital perks, including “premium vehicles, weapons, and clothing,” yet all of that extra content is limited to the single-player mode. Although Rockstar has previously packaged extra in-game items with GTA 5’s Special and Collector’s Editions, the scale of additional content included with GTA 6’s Ultimate Edition feels a bit out of the ordinary.
What does seem to be standard, though, is the delay for the online side of the release. GTA 5’s GTA Online debuted two weeks after the main game went on sale. For Red Dead Redemption 2, Red Dead Online launched seven months following the original game’s release.
Before today’s announcement, some speculated that Rockstar could break with its usual pattern of holding back the online mode for GTA 6, potentially releasing two editions at launch—each bundling one of the two modes. Still, the fact that the studio didn’t bring up GTA Online in its press release is notable, even if it may simply be aimed at keeping the focus on the main single-player campaign.
Rockstar hasn’t officially addressed whether the currently available GTA Online will continue alongside GTA 6. Some believe the existing version could run in parallel with whatever GTA 6 ultimately introduces—possibly something like GTA Online 2. Until further details are shared, though, there’s no way to know for sure.
It’s also worth pointing out that Rockstar has not yet offered a full look at GTA 6’s gameplay. Since the game was first revealed, it has only received two trailers, each showing a stylized, cinematic snapshot of its characters and setting. More information should likely emerge over the summer.