Remember the good old days of Grand Theft Auto 5 roleplay utterly taking over Twitch?
Top streamers across the world would log in and create drama through RP, creating their own legion of viewers, storylines, and TV show-like experiences. It’s continued since, and now it’s officially being recognized by Rockstar Games, and the newest version will be found natively in the studio’s own game launcher.
The latest iteration of nopixel RP, nopixel V, has been created in collaboration with Rockstar Games. In the past, it was up to modders themselves to get the RP up and going, but now Rockstar is fully on board, and it’s even introducing Twitch drops to celebrate its launch next week.
“For years, we’ve seen the exciting possibilities and passion that the creator community brings to expand upon the worlds of Grand Theft Auto V and Red Dead Redemption 2,” Rockstar said. “GTA 5 Roleplay is one prominent example of how creators have brought their signature blend of creativity to these experiences and have pioneered new ways to play and watch our games.”
On paper, it’s an awesome win for creators now that the game’s devs are on board. I’ve never played RP myself, but I’ve previously found a lot of joy watching RP streamers have fun with it throughout the years. Unfortunately, some are looking at things from the GTA 6 angle, as you may expect, and seeing this news as confirmation that the new GTA 6 Online is not coming any time soon.
Rockstar has not yet mentioned anything about GTA 6’s online component. GTA Online for GTA 5, meanwhile, launched two weeks after the main game. That seems like it won’t be happening this time, and with the focus on the older game continuing for now, some fans are worried that it means the new one is months, if not years, away. Just check the replies to Rockstar’s post today.
I’m choosing to look at the glass half full here for a second, because if Rockstar is fully embracing RP and modding, then GTA 6 Online may have it already taken into consideration or even built in whenever it does release. That would also require a PC launch, however, and that’s also not coming for a while.
It’s anyone’s guess when the new GTA Online will come out, but given how GTA 5’s online mode has consistently brought in many millions of dollars every year since it launched, it’s a safe bet that the new game will be getting it too… when it’s ready. And nothing about that is confirmed yet, so for now, offline Vice City will have to suffice (and there are likely dozens, if not hundreds, of hours already awaiting us this November as it is).
For nopixel V and its selected members, the immediate future is bright. Twitch drops from Sept. 8 to 30 include $1.5 million in GTA Online money and a Burger Shot tracksuit cosmetic item, so the viewership is likely to be quite high to begin with. Add in the fact that Rockstar said “some familiar faces” will be “reprising fan-favorite characters and new personalities beginning their own stories.” Sounds like some of the site’s bigwigs will be coming back. Stay tuned.
