Rockstar has recently announced GTA 6 for home gaming consoles PS5 and Xbox Series, once again with no mention of a PC version, which seems to be delayed to an unspecified later time.
Rockstar’s policy is not new at all, as they have intentionally delayed the release of all their previous games on the PC platform without a clear reason. But it seems that there is one driving force that forces Rockstar to delay the release of their games on the platform with a large fan base.
Release dates for Rockstar games on PC:
- Grand Theft Auto 3: We waited for 7 months.
- Vice City: We waited for 7 months.
- San Andreas: We waited for 8 months.
- Bully: We waited for 2 years.
- GTA 4: We waited for 7 months.
- Red Dead Redemption: We waited for approximately 14 and a half years.
- GTA 5: We waited for a year and a half.
Some publishing companies have followed Rockstar’s strategy of delaying their games on PC in favor of focusing on releasing the console version. One of the prominent companies that did this was the Japanese giant, Square Enix, which recently retreated from this strategy after the failure of its recent games to achieve the expected sales.
Square Enix has decided from that moment onwards not to limit its games to any platform and to make its releases available on all different platforms, including the PC.
Also, Capcom partially followed this strategy, especially with the Monster Hunter series, but now the release of Monster Hunter: World on the PC from day one was a great success.
However, the most important question remains, will Rockstar follow the footsteps of these giant companies and reconsider their strategy of delaying the release of their major games on PC?
Until the announcement of GTA 6 nearly a year ago, the clear answer to us is “no”. When Rockstar unveiled the first trailer for the game, as usual, it was confirmed to be coming to PS5 and Xbox Series, with no mention of the PC version which seems to be facing a delay in release as with its previous games.
But why does Rockstar delay its games including GTA 6 on PC?
The answer to this question may be mysterious, but let’s discuss it with various aspects that are always in front of top executives of companies: the technical aspect, and the commercial aspect.
From a technical standpoint, we don’t believe that a giant company like Rockstar, which has experts and technicians capable of overcoming any technical or artistic issues in the blink of an eye, would be standing in front of problems preventing them from creating a high-quality PC version.
At this stage of technological advancement, the PC has become a fundamental platform upon which the technologies of other platforms, including home gaming consoles, are built. Therefore, transferring any game from any platform to the PC is very easy, and a small side team at Rockstar can accomplish the task with high quality.
From a business perspective, no one denies that the PC platform has a very large fan base, and releasing any title on it witnesses great demand and success, especially if it is a highly popular and famous title like GTA 6.
Some may mention the issue of piracy that allows players to access the game illegally and distribute it widely. However, this has become difficult in this time with the presence of supervision and protection systems that prevent the use of pirated copies on a large scale around the world, and we do not believe it will have direct repercussions on sales.
The reason for delaying Rockstar’s games on PC is purely commercial
So, there are no technical or commercial issues that could prevent Rockstar from releasing games on the PC platform. So, what is the reason behind delaying their release on the PC, then?
The answer is the commercial greed that comes after the guaranteed commercial success that Rockstar achieves by releasing its games first on home gaming consoles.
When Rockstar releases its games on home gaming platforms and achieves widespread distribution, many people will be forced to temporarily switch to these platforms and purchase the game to enjoy it from day one, as millions around the world do. And after a year or two, Rockstar moves on to its second commercial plan, which is re-releasing the game on broader platforms like the PC.
Here, when the user finds out that their favorite game is available on their preferred device, they will be compelled to repurchase it and enjoy it there with more features and attributes that were not available on home consoles. Additionally, Rockstar will make the transition process easy and smooth, allowing the user to transfer all their progress and achievements from the home console version to the PC, as they did with GTA 5.
This will create a new commercial renaissance for Rockstar and therefore achieve more revenues through expanding to a new fan base, perhaps most of whom temporarily played the game on home consoles not long ago. In other words, there will be a massive number of users who will repurchase the game on PC at full price.
Of course, Rockstar will continue to support GTA 6 and re-release it on the next generations of home gaming consoles through paid upgrades at a high price, as they did with GTA 5, which was re-released on 3 consecutive generations.
Is there hope that Rockstar will reconsider this strategy?
According to the latest statistics, the PC gaming market has seen an 8% growth in revenue. In contrast, sales of games on home gaming platforms remained stagnant at 0.5%. With the continuous rise in the prices of home gaming consoles, which will be dominated by the launch of the $700 PS5 Pro next month, this may be a motivation for Rockstar to reconsider or reduce the delay in releasing GTA 6 compared to its previous games as Square Enix and Capcom have recently done.
However, as mentioned earlier, the upcoming GTA 6, which will be the only major release in the near future, will not arrive on PC from day one and may force players to wait between a year to two years to get the game on their favorite platform, the PC.
The question now to you, dear reader, do you think Rockstar will eventually reconsider their strategy of delaying the release of their games on PC? Share your opinion in the comments section below…
