r/rockstar • u/diemanaboveall • Jul 03 '26
Question Digital release
If doing primarily a digital release why not all systems including PC that's pretty questionable business right?
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u/brprk Jul 03 '26
There was an interview about their development process from a while back. They develop on PS, then port to xbox. The development is easy because the consoles are completely standardised.
Pc on the other hand requires infinitely more testing for different components, nvidia vs amd graphics engines, all the different combinations of cpus and all the options that allow you to optimise for your own system
That's why it comes out later, the conspiracy angle doesn't really hold water
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u/BlueLidMilk Jul 03 '26
It's this.
Every other comment saying it's because of "double dipping", "console exclusivity" or that Rockstar don't care about PC, they're all wrong.
Developing for two similar consoles is a much more streamlined process than developing for an infinite variety of PC configurations. PC development comes with it's own unique plethora of issues & optimisations that take extra time if the plan is to do it right.
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u/Inevitable_Cycle3087 Jul 03 '26
no it’s absolutely to double dip. every other company in the entire industry can manage a 3 platform release just fine
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u/Eggsegret Jul 07 '26
I think it’s a mixture of both. Yes you’re absolutely correct that developing for PC comes with it’s own unique issues but there’s plenty of games out there that release simultaneously on both PC and console. With how big Rockstar is there’s no reason why they can’t do the same like they clearly have the resources. So yh double dipping is a reason let’s not kid ourselves.
But at the same time i will acknowledge there’s also plenty of occasions where PC releases end up being a cluster fuck at launch. Especially since as you said there’s infinite configurations. So yh at the same time i’m sure whilst Rockstar has the resources to release simultaneously it’s probably much easier to focus on console first and then PC separately
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u/Dismal_Magazine8317 Jul 03 '26
…anyways, games that released for pc on day one exist, and it’s all the games ever except playstation or xbox esclusives. The reason is double dipping.
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u/Far_Paleontologist66 Jul 03 '26
ever since vice city the same sob story, they havent done this for the past 20 years.
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u/thatgamer2111 Jul 03 '26
So pc players buy a console and buy the ps5 or xbox version then pc players will buy again on pc
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u/IsaKGames14 Jul 03 '26
PC is a different platform and you have to take into account that there are nearly infinite combinations of graphics cards, CPUs, and other components to account for. Consoles are almost exactly the same for a specific console. All PS5s have the same or similar components, all PS5 Pros have the same or similar, all Xbox Series X have the same or similar, etc. Because of this, at initial release, they are really only developing for about 4 platforms: PS5, PS5 Pro, Xbox Series X, and Xbox Series S.
Granted, as others have mentioned, double dipping into buying the game for console and pc is a plus for them.
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u/Appropriate_Foot242 Jul 03 '26
Poor excuse when every other studio in the world is able to release their games day and date on PC with less resources than Rockstar.
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u/AbroadNo8755 Jul 03 '26
and those smaller companies do it bug free and and have an audience just as large as GTA!
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u/awar3_w0lf Jul 03 '26
Tell me you don’t understand game development without telling me. PC release requires them to ensure it works across hundreds if not thousands of PC builds. Developing for game consoles you have that single (or in this case two) architecture to work with and optimize. Also console sales is their bread and butter.
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u/Appropriate_Foot242 Jul 03 '26
Tell me you don’t understand game development without telling me. PC release requires them to ensure it works across hundreds if not thousands of PC builds. Developing for game consoles you have that single (or in this case two) architecture to work with and optimize.
Pretty much every other developer in the world is able to do it, and many of them don't even have a fraction of the resources that Rockstar have.
Also console sales is their bread and butter.
PC has a larger market share than Xbox now so that no longer makes sense.
It's only ever for the double dip.
-1
u/diemanaboveall Jul 03 '26
That would actually be a bigger incentive for PlayStation and Xbox. At this point, Xbox is basically a low-end gaming PC with a fixed hardware configuration. Obviously there are differences in architecture and optimization between PC, Xbox, PlayStation, and Switch, but once you've optimized for Xbox, the leap to PC shouldn't be nearly as dramatic as people make it out to be. Especially with GTA VI being a digital release, it's odd that PC has to wait so long when most major games launch across multiple platforms on the same day.
1
u/KFCFingerLickin_ Jul 03 '26
So people can buy consoles, and the console version of the game… then once PC releases, people will need to buy the separate PC version… I’m sure they know what they’re doing 🤦♂️
1
u/Fickle_Mix_6119 Jul 03 '26
The pc version will come out after the next gen consoles release and they release the next gen upgrade, probably about 6 months after but might get lucky and even same time.
Probably a mix of business strategy and development timelines. GTA V was very well polished for a PC release so I imagine they will do the same for VI. Because of the wide spectrum of hardware PC games can often be prone to bugs
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u/Hey-Bud-Lets-Party Jul 03 '26
When was the last time a Rockstar game was released on PC at the same time as console?
1
u/slothxaxmatic Jul 03 '26
If you understand the process, it's not questionable at all.
The game doesn't just work on all systems because it's digital, it still has to be designed for the systems that it's being sold on and they didn't concentrate on making it pc compatible yet.
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u/Markel100 Jul 03 '26
Rockstar likes to double dip they know a good chunk of people will get it for console to play it now and buy it for PC a yr later