Despite being one of the most anticipated releases in gaming history, it remains that Grand Theft Auto 6 will still have to put out robust and engaging marketing material in the run-up to its eventual launch. With so little currently being known about the title from official sources, the scope of what fans are expecting from promotional material and advertisements for the release is only growing with each passing day.
It is likely that Grand Theft Auto 6 will have a seriously wide range of game characteristics to focus on in the lead-up to its release, most likely spanning across the game's single-player and online modes. In this line of thought, it seems pertinent that Rockstar does well to capture the attention of the many different demographics of the GTA franchise, and a new particular breed of player will surely have to be targeted within the title's early marketing.
The Success of Grand Theft Auto Online and GTA RP
It is no secret that 2013's Grand Theft Auto 5 is an extremely successful title, being considered by many as the best and most definitive entry to the longstanding and prestigious IP. As many expected, the single-player GTA 5 was revolutionary in its use of three protagonists and its bustling, breathing open world. However, not many could have expected the level of success that the game's online component would bring Rockstar, with Grand Theft Auto Online being a huge factor in the continued relevance of GTA 5.
The core experience of GTA Online turns the game world of Los Santos into a competitive multiplayer sandbox, in which players rise up the criminal underworld and reap the benefits of penthouse apartments, luxury cars, and high-tech weaponry. Beyond this, GTA Online offers lots of content with community races and game modes, but it is the recent rise of roleplaying within GTA Online that has truly given the mode its time in the limelight. Only occurring recently, the presence of dedicated and often modded RP servers has heralded a meteoric rise in GTA content creators and audiences, creating an entirely new demographic within the IP.
Grand Theft Auto 6's Marketing and GTA RP
Across the now ten-year life cycle of Grand Theft Auto 5, the popularity of GTA RP is one of the most significant community-led happenings to occur within the game, and so it would be remiss for Rockstar to not take this aspect of the franchise forward within its next release. As it stands, GTA RP occurs in a very much unofficial capacity, with private online servers and the use of mods being the primary way in which RP takes place. In this way, there is a fantastic opportunity for Rockstar to include a more immersive RP experience at launch within Grand Theft Auto 6's online mode.
A fantastic way to bridge the gap between the current success of GTA 5's online mode to that of GTA 6's would be via early-access RP events for the top content creators of the GTA roleplaying scene. Fans are of course eager to get an official glimpse of Grand Theft Auto 6, and doing this would put huge amounts of attention on the game's potential RP accessibility while being a tasteful acknowledgment by Rockstar of the community-led success of the mode.
While GTA 6 is likely to be a comprehensive release, the continued success of GTA Online is indicative of the importance that needs to be placed on the release's multiplayer. If a lot of the game's marketing is to relate to its offered online modes, then RP should undoubtedly be front and center.
Grand Theft Auto 6 is currently in development.