Mere weeks away from the most anticipated gaming release in recent memory with GTA V, we now find ourselves in a mixed state of unprecedented hype and... fear. Why? You may have noticed a plethora of new GTA V news over the weekend (there's an article on this very site discussing the leaked soundtrack) and Rockstar hasn't been the ones sharing publicly or willingly. In the wakes of the September release both Rockstar and Sony were finalizing the preparations of the digital launch via making the game available for preorder through the PS3's UK version of the Playstation Store. As usual, hackers and criminals have to go and ruin everything as somehow, they have obtained major information, key files, and from what I hear the game itself with the ending apparently leaked online (you can check the validity of that one yourself as I would preferably remain unspoiled thank you). Upon news of this both reaching Sony and Rockstar, the digital preorder was pulled but unfortunately the damage is already done. You will be perusing internet message boards and comment sections at your own risk until completing the game yourself. Sony (via
http://blog.us.playstation.com/) and Rockstar (via Rockstar Newswire) have both expressed their disappointment on this unfortunate circumstance which you can read below.
Regrettably, some people who downloaded the digital pre-order of Grand Theft Auto V through the PlayStation Store in Europe were able to access certain GTA V assets. These assets were posted online. We have since removed the digital pre-order file from the PlayStation Store in Europe. We sincerely apologize to Rockstar and GTA fans across the world who were exposed to the spoiler content. GTA V is one of the most highly anticipated games of the year with a very passionate following, and we're looking forward to a historic launch on 17th September.
Rockstar responded by stating;
Unfortunately, as many of you may already know, some people who downloaded the digital pre-order of Grand Theft Auto V through the PlayStation Store in Europe were able to access certain GTA V assets leading to leaked information and media from the game appearing online," the statement begins. "As you can imagine, we are deeply disappointed by leaks and spoilers being spread in advance of the game's launch. GTA V represents years of hard work by many people across the world, and we all couldn't be more excited to finally share it with you properly this September 17th
Fingers can be pointed in multiple directions for various reasons but my personal question is, why the hell does something digital need to preordered? There's an infinite stock and if the hang up really is with these preorder bonuses, then maybe it's time corporations seek an alternate method of distribution for them, like giving it away alongside the game download for buying within in a certain time frame. I can understand preloading the actual game data into the store but making it publicly available for preorder clearly isn't working. This same situation happened earlier this year with the release of Naughty Dog's The Last of Us although in that case sensitive information was hacked through the demo's files. Up to no good hackers found the cutscene titles and more plot oriented material that inevitably spread and fueled spoiler trolling along with more childish antics. Navigate the internet at your own risk (or abandon it completely) and beware of GTA V spoilers for the game has leaked. For us law abiding citizens, GTA V will be released on both the PS3 and Xbox 360 on September 17th.