GTA 5 now available in stores for Xbox 360 and PS3

Written by Brandon Hofer on September 17, 2013

GTA 5 News: Rockstar releases their latest masterpiece to current gen consoles on the same day that a lot of people call in sick for work.

GTA 5 is now on store shelves. The day a lot of people have been waiting years for is finally upon us as millions of people are now experiencing what Los Santos has to offer. Developed by series creator, Rockstar North, Grand Theft Auto 5 pushes the series forward in exciting new ways. For the first time, players can jump in and out of the lives of three simultaneously playable lead characters, experiencing all sides of an interwoven story. Set in a satirical reimagining of modern day Southern California, Grand Theft Auto 5 offers players the freedom to explore the dense urban metropolis of Los Santos and the wide open countryside of Blaine County; plan and execute a series of epic heists; meet a vast array of strangers and freaks; or participate in a host of activities, from golf to arms trafficking, base jumping to yoga and much more.

“Grand Theft Auto V was a massive undertaking for us, I'm so proud of what the team created,” said Sam Houser, Founder of Rockstar Games. “We cannot wait for people to finally play it.”

According to early estimates there will be millions of people playing it. When you factor in everything Grand Theft Auto 5 took over 300 million dollars to make and Rockstar made all of that money back before the game even launched. It has been reported that the pre-order numbers for GTA 5 were so high that the game will already turn a profit on day one. You have to really stop and think for a moment how impressive that really is and it speaks to how big of a franchise GTA has become. The only title that might outsell Rockstar’s latest opus might be Call of Duty: Ghosts and that is because it is Call of Duty. Otherwise it appears that Rockstar has another hit on their hands judging by the early reviews that have been hitting the web over the past 36 hours or so.

Please keep in mind that if you are purchasing the Xbox 360 version of Grand Theft Auto 5 that Rockstar recommends you don’t install the “play” disc. If you missed our story on that and want the details be sure to click here. To help celebrate the release of GTA 5 Rockstar has also released a companion app. It is called “iFruit” and available exclusively on iOS platforms. There has been no mention at all of an Android or Windows Phone version and with the name “iFruit” I don’t know if I see it hitting any other platforms. Only time will tell though. This new companion app for GTA 5 is a free download and if you want more details on it be sure to check out our story about what iFruit brings to the table.

Finally, please keep in mind that while GTA 5 launches today the online component will not be released until October 1. That is to give Rockstar just a little bit more time fine tuning everything without having to push back the release date of the entire game. It should give everyone enough time to have fun in Los Santos and experience a lot of what Rockstar North has spent the past five years working on.

Which version of GTA 5 are you getting? Did you get the physical or digital version? Tell us what you think below.