Take-Two Boss Says It's 'Shown a Willingness to Support Legacy Titles' Amid Questions About the Future of GTA Online Post-GTA 6

The question on many Grand Theft Auto Online players' minds: What happens to GTA Online when Grand Theft Auto 6 arrives? With GTA 6's fall 2025 release looming, the uncertainty remains.

GTA Online, Rockstar's incredibly lucrative live service, continues to attract players over a decade after its launch. Its enduring success and profitability are believed to have influenced Rockstar's focus on the live service over story DLC for GTA 5, a decision that frustrated some fans. However, a more pressing concern is on the horizon.

The release of GTA 6 is expected to introduce a new and improved GTA Online experience—perhaps even "GTA Online 2," or possibly under the same name. Current players worry that their investment of time and money in the existing GTA Online will be rendered obsolete with a potential clean break.

Why invest in GTA Online now, in early 2025, when a new iteration could launch in just eight months? IGN posed this question to Take-Two CEO Strauss Zelnick. His response offers intriguing insight.

While Zelnick avoided specifics about a new GTA Online (as it's unannounced), he drew a parallel to Take-Two's approach with NBA 2K Online, a free-to-play version of the popular basketball franchise in the Asian market.

NBA 2K Online launched in 2012, followed by NBA 2K Online 2 in 2017. Both games were maintained concurrently, ensuring players of the original could continue without losing their progress.

Zelnick stated, “I'm going to speak theoretically…But generally speaking, we support our properties when the consumers are involved with those titles. As an example, we launched NBA 2K Online…and then we launched NBA 2K Online 2…We did not sunset Online 1. They both are still in the market…So we've shown a willingness to support legacy titles when a community wants to be engaged with them.”

This suggests—though doesn't confirm—that a potential GTA Online 2 wouldn't necessarily replace the original. Continued player engagement in the current GTA Online, Zelnick implies, will warrant continued support from Rockstar.

It's important to note that much about GTA 6 remains unknown beyond Trailer 1 and the release window. However, with a fall 2025 release potentially following Borderlands 4's September launch, Rockstar will likely need to provide more information soon. Until then, consider Zelnick's comments on the potential impact of skipping a PC launch for GTA 6.