Is it worth diving into GTA V for a third time?
This review will be more of a comparison and almost re-review of GTA V/GTA Online. For previous reviews of the past generation versions, click below:
I’ve always loved the GTA series and the series definitely hit its peak with GTA V. Some may question why Rockstar have re-released it yet again for the new consoles, but it does make a lot of sense. GTA VI will naturally be several years away at least and what better to try and fill the void than a more improved version of Rockstar’s magnum opus?
This new version has different graphic options to choose from, so you can have the game running at 30 FPS with Ray-Tracing, Performance RT will aim for 60 FPS and add some Ray-Tracing and finally Performance mode will stick to 60 FPS without RT. I switched between them all and found that Performance RT was the best of both worlds and really, I didn’t notice any drops in framerate so was naturally impressed since there aren’t a lot of games that can pull off Performance RT so far this generation.
Besides the new performance modes, there have been improvements to the visuals too with more detailed character models and effects like explosions look better than ever. The FPS mode that was added in the Xbox One/PS4 versions return but feel more natural if you can play in either Performance RT or Performance mode.
Load times were always the most frustrating part in the past versions, even switching characters still took a good amount of time. Luckily now thanks to the new hardware, this is a thing of the past. The initial game takes about 20 seconds to load, while switching between characters takes mere seconds. GTA Online takes a little longer but not as much as you would think, plus all the improvements have made it across there as well.
This generation’s versions allow you to import your characters from both single player and online, so essentially you can move ahead to the new versions without losing any progress if you choose to. I personally imported my GTA Online character across but wanted to experience the entirety of GTA V’s single player with all the new additions from scratch and it was worth it, at least for me.
The PS5 version also adds DualSense support very well with impressive haptic feedback and adaptive triggers that give each weapon a more natural feeling to them. It definitely feels like the game handles more responsively overall, making it the best version so far. While I’m impressed with the new improvements, it would have been nice to get some form of new single player content, even if it was just an extra mission or something. I’m not surprised they haven’t, but I think it would have definitely been a plus for those thinking of picking up this game for a third time.
The good news is that for the first few months, the upgraded version is incredibly cheap to entice those to switch over. I’d highly recommend it for that though its hard to say it’ll be worth full price afterwards, plus since it’s launch a few weeks ago, Rockstar announced a subscription service for GTA Online in the form of GTA +. Naturally this will divide opinion on the future of GTA Online, but I can understand it from a business point of view.
The Verdict
GTA V for PS5 adds some much needed improvements to performance and visuals, while adding impressive DualSense features. I just hope we get GTA VI before the next generation…