GTA V – Syndication Server

GTA 5’s Michael may be coming to GTA Online

One of GTA 5’s protagonists could be venturing into the popular multiplayer mode.

Michael, the foul-mouthed father from GTA 5, might be arriving in GTA Online.

As first spotted by VG247, datamining expert Rollschuh2282 came across a peculiar scenario starting point in GTA Online‘s PS5 and Xbox Series X|S ports. It’s likely the start of an upcoming mission located outside of Record A studios in Los Santos.

Some hours later, well-known GTA Online updates source Tez2 found an in-game character strolling around the same spawn point between certain hours. The NPC in question is tagged with “movie_set” in GTA Online‘s code. Most fans believe this has something to do with the recent Vespucci Job Remix racing minigame, as it contains loads of classic film references.

Check out a screenshot of the mysterious character below.

You can find the NPC assigned to the "Movie_Set" scenario between 7 to 11 AM in-game.#GTAOnline https://t.co/24EcmDZyjU pic.twitter.com/MOWzPwkJB6

— Tez2 (@TezFunz2) June 2, 2022

All these movie mentions are leading everyone to hypothesize that Michael could make an appearance in GTA Online. Reason is that in The Contract DLC, we learn that Michael is working for Solomon Richards at the Richards Majestic movie studios. Remember that this is speculation, but the evidence is sound.

In any event, something strange is brewing in GTA Online. Incredibly, the multiplayer mode is still popular, even getting a massive content patch last month.

Written by Kyle Campbell on behalf of GLHF.

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5 biggest changes in GTA Online update 1.41

The first major update to GTA Online since it launched on PS5 and Xbox Series X/S, we’ll give you the rundown of all the biggest changes.

With GTA Online up and running on PS5 and Xbox Series X/S, fans new and old are picking up the game again. These new versions, dubbed GTA 5 Expanded & Enhanced, have renewed interest in GTA Online over the past few months, especially with the promise that these enhanced features will be making their way to the Steam version soon.

One of the first updates to the game since this version launched has now been released, and while it doesn’t add new content, it makes a lot of quality of life changes fans have wanted for a while. This coincides with a big bug fixing update to GTA 5 across all platforms.

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GTA 5 update 1.56

This update fixes a host of issues that have plagued different versions of the game for a while. Specific to the PS5 was an issue where the adapted trigger feedback on a select few cars was far too strong. Then, specific to Xbox Series X/S were issues involving game audio not loading when launching the game, or joining a party.

On top of that, the full patch notes list fixing “several crashes”, which are unspecified, and a glitch that locked the game up when trying to transfer characters to the PS5 and Xbox Series X/S versions.

Motion blur settings

Post-processing effects, such as motion blur often divide opinion, especially amongst PC gamers. Some enjoy the smoothness and visual quality it brings, while others find it irritating, and those prone to motion sickness can suffer greatly from its effects.

It’s commonplace for these sorts of options to be customisable on PC, but they are only now being introduced as options on consoles. GTA Online is catering to those who want greater control over their experience. It now has a slider that adjusts the severity of the motion blur, all the way down to completely removing it.

Faster transitions

One thing that has always been a nightmare for GTA Online players is the load times. When the game first boots up, it can take upwards of 5 minutes from launching the game to loading into the world. This goes extra on PC, where even story mode suffers from long loads.

One of the fixes in update 1.41 improves the experience for the recently released PS5 and Xbox Series X/S editions. Changes have been made that optimise the transition between story mode and online. It’s a small fix, but one that should save you time and frustration when trying to get online.

Expanded & Enhanced on PC…sort of

The Expanded & Enhanced edition of GTA 5 has been available on PS5 and Xbox Series X/S for a little while now, and it pushes the game’s performance and graphical fidelity to a new level. With 4K resolution and 60fps on consoles, the game is taking full advantage of the technology on offer.

This upgrade has also been promised for the Steam version of the game on PC. It’s not quite ready yet, but this update is a promising sign. PC players have found that the files for Expanded & Enhanced have been added to the game’s directory, they’re just currently empty. Hopefully, this means a full update will be coming sooner rather than later.

Hide jobs/events on the map

A theme throughout this GTA Online update is customisation options. There is a push to give greater control over the experience, which pairs well with the different modes on offer with the Expanded & Enhanced edition.

One of these is a simple quality of life option that allows you to hide jobs and events from their UI, be it on the minimap or regular map. With such an expansive amount of jobs, heists, events, missions, and more stuffed into GTA Online in 2022, it’s easy for the map to become way too crowded with icons, making it much harder to read. This change gives you the ability to dispose of that which does not spark joy like Marie Kondo.

Increased payouts for MC Business & Nightclub

When it comes to making the most money possible in GTA Online, investing in the MC Businesses & Nightclub features is the way to go. As well as being luxurious places to visit in the urban open-word, businesses let you store and sell drugs for a tidy profit, whilst the nightclubs can earn huge cash on a continuous basis once it’s up and running.

The two are designed to go hand-in-hand, with nightclubs allowing upgrades such as cocaine lockups, which can keep the drug money flowing. Despite already being great ways to make money, update 1.41 has made them even better. It’s not specified by how much the payouts have been increased, but you can expect to be making more than ever from them going forward.

Written by Ryan Woodrow on behalf of GLHF.

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Rockstar announces GTA+, a new subscription service for GTA Online

There’s another new way to spend real money coming to GTA Online, but only for next-gen players. GTA+ – launching March 29 – gives players a monthly deposit of half a million GTA$, as well as a range of membership benefits.

There’s another new way to spend real money coming to GTA Online, but only for next-gen players. GTA+ – launching March 29 – gives players a monthly deposit of half a million GTA$, as well as a range of membership benefits.

Extra benefits include the opportunity to claim properties around Los Santos, unlock special vehicle upgrades, take advantage of membership discounts, and more. Here’s a list of what’s included:

– GTA$500,000 delivered automatically to your Maze Bank Account.

– The Principe Deveste Eight — along with a complimentary Hao’s Special Works upgrade for it before it is made available to purchase by the general public — plus the HSW Orange Trip and HSW CMYK Glitch Liveries.

– The Auto Shop located in La Mesa, introduces an assortment of gameplay updates from Los Santos Tuners. Current Auto Shop owners can relocate to La Mesa at no additional cost.

– Waived LS Car Meet Membership fees. Current LS Car Meet members with GTA+ will be reimbursed GTA$50,000 during this event period.

– Yacht owners can upgrade to the Aquarius Super Yacht at no additional cost.

– The Gussét Frog Tee and Broker Prolaps Basketball Top and Shorts automatically added to your wardrobe.

– The Conveyor Livery for the Mammoth Avenger, HVY APC, and TM-02 Khanjali.

– A selection of free paints and emblems for the Auto Shop.

– 3X GTA$ and RP on Hao’s Special Works Race Series.

– 2X Car Meet Rep on the Street Race Series.

On top of this, Shark Cards will offer bonus cash to subscribers, like some kind of Russian doll of microtransactions. You’ll also be able to claim exclusive rewards at Legendary Motorsport, Hao’s Special Works, Maze Bank Foreclosures, DockTease, and other stores, increasing that FOMO for your pals.

Rockstar promises that the usual events and updates will continue to land in GTA Online. A GTA+ membership will cost you $5.99 a month, exclusive to PS5 and Xbox Series X/S.

If you’re looking for more on Rockstar’s crime sim, here’s why GTA 5 is still the king of urban open-world games.

Written by Kirk McKeand on behalf of GHLF.

GTA 5 is still the king of urban open-world games because of its flaws

How many other games include falling over as a mechanic?

I’ve been replaying GTA 5 thanks to the PS5 remaster and it’s wild how much a game released in 2013 poops on modern open-world titles from a great height (at least open-world games set in a contemporary urban environment). The streets of Los Santos feel alive, and every district in the city has its own vibe.

When I originally played it at launch, I appreciated Los Santos as a virtual space, but I’d never been to LA. I’ve been there multiple times between then and now, and it’s so impressive how Rockstar captured the soul of the place, from the hustle and bustle of Venice beach to the winding roads up in the Hollywood hills.

It’s not just the city as a concept though. It’s not just how it feels lived-in because of the NPCs and systemic interactions you can have with them, or that they have with each other. It’s the city itself, from the dustbowl to the freeways.

Drive down the streets of Los Santos and you feel every bump in the road, every flaw of the infrastructure. This is where a lot of developers miss – their recreations of modern cities are too clean, too pristine. Once Franklin outgrows the hood, he moves to a house in the hills. The price for this is spaghetti roads leading up to his crib, all blind corners and hairpin turns. In a perfect world, you wouldn’t arrange roads like this. A game designer wouldn’t arrange roads like this. Hundreds of civil engineers probably would.

Driving in GTA 5 isn’t just thrilling because the handling model straddles the perfect line between arcade and realism – and it’s not just because a muscle car feels wholly distinct from a sports car – it’s because of those twists and turns, the dips and the bumps. A tiny hump can throw you off, forcing you to wrestle your vehicle back under control. You’re grounded in the world by a complex physics simulation.

Rockstar naysayers often complain about the clunky character movement, but it’s all part of the illusion of piloting a real human meat unit. Humans are clumsy – like the city, they’re flawed – and GTA 5 understands that. How many other games include falling over as a mechanic?

Falling over is funny! There are whole TV shows dedicated to people falling over, and YouTube channels focused on ‘epic fails’ (some actually house GTA 5 clips, incidentally). It’s funny here too – especially when a co-op partner fumbles a parachute jump in GTA Online. Accidents are just another thing that adds to the overall illusion.

Of course, this is backed up by Rockstar’s dogged attention to detail, with sweat forming on characters’ backs when they run or during hot weather, bespoke interactions for behaving a certain way, the way flip-flops actually flip and flop, and how your vehicle GPS loses signal in tunnels.

People often focus on the crass humor and the dated jokes when talking about GTA, but even those are in service of the same thing – it’s America turned up to 11. When a cartoon artist paints a caricature of someone, they highlight the ugly or prominent features. The person is still recognizable, despite becoming an abomination. That’s what GTA 5 is to LA – all those character flaws and imperfections exaggerated out to form something as grotesque as it is compelling.

It’s these aspects of GTA 5 that make the world more convincing, almost like a funhouse mirror version of reality – the American Nightmare. There’s a reason this nightmare is recurring (GTA 5 is now live across three console generations) – it’s because no other urban open-world comes close, almost a decade later.

Written by Kirk McKeand on behalf of GLHF.

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GTA 5 graphics comparison – PS4 vs PS5

Here we have a quick look at the graphics enhancements for GTA 5 on next-gen platforms.

Here we have a quick look at the graphics enhancements for GTA 5 on next-gen platforms. Originally released in 2013, Rockstar’s crime caper still looks good on PC, and now – thanks to a beefy graphical upgrade – it looks even better on PS5.

The next-gen version of GTA 5 boasts improved graphics, various visual modes including 4K (or 60fps at a lower resolution), improved textures and draw distance, HDR, ray-tracing, faster load times, increased population and vegetation density, improved lighting and reflections, and more.

We played through the opening section on PS4 and PS5 to show you how the two versions of the game stack up. See for yourself in the video below:

As we mentioned above, you’re able to play the game in three visual modes. Above you can see the game running in Fidelity mode. Here’s what changes with each:

Fidelity mode: tuned for the highest visual quality and targets 30 FPS. In this mode, the PS5 and Xbox Series X support native 4K resolution with ray tracing enabled, while the Xbox Series S supports upscaled 4K resolution.
Performance mode: tuned for the most responsive gameplay experience and targets 60 FPS. In this mode, the PS5 and Xbox Series X support upscaled 4K resolution, while the Xbox Series S supports a resolution of 1080p.
Performance RT mode: a hybrid of the Fidelity and Performance modes, supporting upscaled 4K resolution with ray tracing enabled and targeting 60 FPS.

Are you heading back to Los Santos?

Written by Kirk McKeand on behalf of GLHF.

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March 2022 game releases: Upcoming titles being released this month

Following a fine February that saw one of the greatest RPGs, March feels similarly packed.

We’re not sure if the traditional Q4 games glut has come early or late this year, but we’re rolling with it. Following a fine February that saw one of the greatest RPGs of modern times arrive in Elden Ring, stellar action-adventure worldbuilding in Horizon Forbidden West, and what feels like 100 other great games released the same month, March feels similarly packed.

First-party titles are sauntering onto the catwalk, including a certain Gran Turismo 7 and Kirby’s first-ever 3D experience, and they’re flanked by fascinating indies, series reboots and – well, look, we’re not even sure how to categorize Ghostwire Tokyo. But that, too. It’s a month for careful consideration of gaming funds, and here are the titles you should know about before you spend a dime.

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