RockstarThe lasting legacy of GTA V was not the controversial torture scene or nihilistic Trevor's various ridiculous outbursts - instead, it was the proof that GTA can be truly immortal online. Whilst old-school fans who favour story as a means to unlock GTA's worlds themselves will scoff at the nature of taking the experience online, GTA Online earned $60 million dollars through microtransactions alone in 2014; a figure that more than justifies Rockstar doubling down on the idea in the future.
Don't forget, Rockstar were one of the first developers to pioneer the season pass as a method of delivering DLC, and look where that's gotten us. Thankfully, they're yet to segment off large chunks of their games into a mandatory online component, and GTA V was one of the only games with these features to still feel worthwhile without them.
RockstarHowever, the state of the industry has changed drastically since 2013. 70% of all GTA V owners played the online component according to Rockstar, and both Destiny and more recently The Division have proven the introduction of constantly-connected worlds, currencies and daily quests/missions is a money-making formula all its own.
Rockstar's financial analysts will be screaming for the creative department to embrace this model in full - the only question is how much they will.
