We have a surprising piece of news about where Grand Theft Auto V is coming next.
In spite of earlier rumors, no, Rockstar did not just confirm Grand Theft Auto V for the Nintendo Switch, or the next console either. Instead, we have a new rumor that the game will soon be added to PC Game Pass.
As reported by RockstarIntel, dataminer Tez2 shared this new information in a tweet:
“Rockstar Games is preparing #GTAV to be playable via Xbox’s PC Game Pass for future availability”
Tez2 went on to explain further. For Game Pass subscribers to avail of this, they need to go through the Xbox app on Windows first, and then access the Rockstar Games Launcher from there. So you will need to have both programs in your computer, and you’ll need to log on to both of these accounts to set it up.
Also, based on Tez2’s explanation, this will not be the same as having the Xbox version of Grand Theft Auto V run on your PC. So, if you buy Grand Theft Auto V on your Xbox console, it won’t be linked to the version of the game that runs from the Rockstar Games Launcher on PC.
Maybe some Rockstar fans already know this. The way Rockstar Games developed this game, there is no cross save or cross progression possible with two copies of the game at the same time. You would have to decide to migrate your game, with your progress and information, from one platform to another completely.
Since this is all rumor, there’s one thing we don’t know that is possible here. We don’t know if Rockstar Games will allow Game Pass subscribers to do that transfer of progress and information from their Xbox version of the game to the PC version of Rockstar Games Launcher.
This may be a desirable option, if not now, then sometime in the future. Even if, theoretically, gamers’ data is saved on their account, longtime Grand Theft Auto V fans will want to keep playing their old saves after they move on from the Xbox Series X|S. And if Rockstar doesn’t bring Grand Theft Auto V to the next generation of Xbox, then their recourse would be to go to the PC version of the game.
We think the fans will expect this too. We’re sure many of you reading this remember migrating your Grand Theft Auto V data from PlayStation 3 or Xbox 360, to Xbox One or PlayStation 4, and then to PlayStation 5 or Xbox Series X|S. And yes, transferring data to PC was possible for those console versions too. The only difference there was Rockstar expected you to buy the game twice or thrice, and many fans did.
But to say anything more would essentially be speculation. If Microsoft has this deal brewing for Game Pass, they will likely announce it before the year ends. It will certainly be another feather in the cap for Xbox, and not something Sony can match at all.
