April Fools’ Day came early this year as many fans of the Grand Theft Auto series were duped into believing that a well-made trailer featuring musician the Weeknd revealed a long-awaited sequel, but it was all a big joke. While today there are many fan-made projects that look to hype up potential games or new projects, none of them look as good as this trailer did.
The excitement began when a Twitch account by the name of “GTAVI” appeared with a countdown clock of two days. The fact that the channel name was not associated with Rockstar Games was quickly pointed out, but then the trailer appeared and enough people instantly believed (or perhaps wanted to believe) that a sequel was inbound.
While it is still rather silly to see people fall for this kind of trick, it is hard to blame fans for wanting so badly to hear of a new sequel. In a time when some developers pump out sequels on a yearly basis to keep the cash flowing in, it might seem odd to players that Rockstar has not yet even announced a new game in the series.
However, looking at the revenue stream of GTA V helps clear up any misconceptions. The truth is that despite approaching its seventh year since launch – which is long enough for most video games to release, be played, and long forgotten – GTA V still brings in massive amounts of revenue thanks to its microtransactions and dedicated player base.
According to TweakTown, GTA V brought in an impressive $595 million in 2019 alone, beating out heavy-hitters such as Fifa 20, Call of Duty: Black Ops IIII, NBA 2K19, and more. To beat out EA’s sports game is no small feat, as those titles incorporate the most devious of microtransactions, but GTA V makes far more than each of those other titles.
As a result, while there is obviously room for graphical improvements in GTA V, there is not likely going to be any sort of announcement while the game remains as profitable as it is now. On the other hand, 2020 might be a great time to announce a sequel simply because the next generation of consoles will be hitting the market in the near future, and given how long this game has lasted, that could prove profitable once again in the long term for Rockstar.
Source: tweaktown.com