Take-Two CEO explains why GTA 6 isn't launching on PC

In a recent interview with Bloomberg's Jason Schreier, Take-Two Interactive CEO Strauss Zelnick gives a brief explanation on why GTA is coming to consoles first and PC second.

3

For Rockstar, console has always come first...and for good reason. Recent financial leaks showed that GTA Online makes most of its money on consoles, with PC making only 3% of weekly bookings, as well as 11% of weekly active players (a lot of PC players also play FiveM, a separate modded version of GTA Online). The numbers speak volumes, but now Take-Two Interactive CEO shares a quick take on Rockstar's console-oriented focus:

"Rockstar always starts on console because I think with regard to a release like that you're judged by serving the core. Like really serving the core consumer. If your core consumer isn't there, if they're not served first and best, you kind of don't hit your other consumers," Zelnick said in the interview with Bloomberg.

"Historically, Rockstar's gone to console first."

3

Rockstar's staggered cadence gives the team much-needed breathing room to assess changes between the console and PC versions, as well as make key optimizations for new hardware--all of which is very costly.

It also gives the market more room to breathe and absorb the colossal impact of GTA 6's release on consoles, and for Rockstar, time in between releases gives more chance for a kind of FOMO to build, which is then capitalized on a fully-fledged PC port with new bells and whistles.

The reality is that Rockstar is serving two very different platform-based communities with its console and PC versions, especially when it comes to Grand Theft Auto.

GTA on PC has splintered off into a uniquely dedicated roleplaying community that grew so much that Rockstar actually bought the team behind the online mod, Cfx.re, who has become a very active part in Rockstar's content-oriented future.

We've postulated that Rockstar could be working on a next-gen version, possibly SixM, to coincide with GTA 6's launch. It's possible that SixM could also have some sort of UGC framework, as supported by recent Rockstar Games job listings.

Rockstar is also focusing even more on its new GTA Online Mission Creator, which allows users to create and share customized missions in an online framework. It's possible that this is priming GTA 6 for UGC support in some way.

Console users, conversely, are more dedicated to the on-rails official version of GTA Online. These gamers are much more likely to spend consistently if the content is right, and for Rockstar, the content has been very right.