Loyal gamers erupted in collective outrage on Wednesday when Rockstar announced that the long-awaited Grand Theft Auto VI will be offering a “physical” edition that contains no physical media of any kind – just a code to access the game digitally.
It has been 13 years since Grand Theft Auto V charted new territory in the open world gaming space and fans were waiting in anticipation for Rockstar to share release details this week before pre-orders went live on June 25. While first images of the game – a new version of Vice City – were warmly received, fans were a bit more unsettled by the game’s tiered pricing ($80 for regular; $100 for ultimate edition) and it having no physical copy beyond a box with a digital code inside. The initial launch will also only allow for single-player gaming and will be delaying online play until a later date.
Fans immediately took to social media in protest, with some even vowing to boycott the sale, viewing the disc-free rollout as a slap in the face, especially given its high price tag.
Video Games Plus, a North American chain, said in a post on X that it will maintain its ban on selling games that do not offer hard copies. Loot Box Gaming took a similar position.
“For nearly 40 years, VGP has been committed to supporting physical media and preserving the value of physical game ownership,” wrote VGP. “As part of that commitment, our company policy is that we do not carry physical products for video game consoles that contain only a digital download code. Based on the information currently available, the physical release of Grand Theft Auto VI for the PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X is expected to be a code-in-box product. As a result, VGP will not be offering it for sale under our current company policy.”