More than any Rockstar game before it, Grand Theft Auto V has endured. It’s hard to believe that it originally launched on the PS3 and 360, considering its current status as a constantly-reinvented online juggernaut and almost immovable giant in Steam’s top 5 most active games.
October brought a great new addition to GTA V’s online component in the form of Transform Races. Perhaps inspired by the excellent Sonic kart-racer, it has you switching vehicles mid-air, mid-track to often spectacular effect. This week, they’ve added Transform support to the in-game editor, allowing you to make your own tracks spanning the entirety of the game-world.
Want the acceleration, but not the crime? We’ve got you covered with top picks for PC racing games, speedster.
It’s hard to deny the appeal of the Transform Races, even if they’re not that original of an idea. There’s something to be said about ramping a BMX bike off the top of a skyscraper, falling for seemingly ages, then switching in mid-air to a helicopter just before you splatter on the road below, and the mode really builds on the satisfyingly varied vehicle handling.
One slightly more questionable addition to this update is the option for players to buy the P-996 Lazer jetfighter for personal, repeatable use. Unsurprisingly, it costs an absurd amount of cash – $6.5m – which, given the price of an $8m in-game cash infusion, works out at approximately £49/$66 in real money, for a single virtual plane. ‘Microtransactions’ indeed. Also running alongside this patch is a reward-boosting event paired with some in-game discounts. You can check out the details here.
Questionable business models aside, GTA Online has become a powerhouse presence on PC, and the regular content updates make it a great pick for larger groups to play, although the game still has a reputation for being infested with hackers and cheaters (rather confusingly referred to as ‘modders’ in many cases) if you play with the rank-and-file playerbase.
Grand Theft Auto 5 is available for £40 on Steam, although you might want to give Amazon a peek if you’re looking for a better price.