GTA 5 update leaves fans furious as Rockstar removes content, inserts paywall

Fans of Grand Theft Auto Online are angry and confused with Rockstar’s decision to charge a monthly fee for certain vehicles.

GTA Online’s San Andreas Mercenaries update dropped yesterday, adding a new heist, missions, vehicles and quality of life improvements like changes to how sprinting works in-game. While the new content is pretty decent, it comes with a catch, as nearly 200 pre-existing cars and motorcycles have been removed from the in-game market - some of which are now gone forever, while others have been shoved behind a monthly subscription paywall, GTA+.

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GTA+ is a premium subscription service that costs around £4.99 per month, and includes several benefits like monthly in-game cash injections, discounts on items, free properties and more. The newest addition to the service is access to some of the previously removed vehicles, so you’re essentially paying £5 a month to buy cars and bikes that could be unlocked naturally through in-game progression previously. Some vehicles are simply gone altogether, though Rockstar has stated the cut content will be “occasionally be made available in other ways” on their website.

Keep in mind GTA+ is only available for Series X/S and PS5, which means new players on PC, Xbox One and PS4 won’t have the chance to buy them ever again.

Rockstar has provided an explanation as to why they’ve chosen to remove the old vehicles, saying it’s in an attempt to “streamline the shopping experience”. All the cars and bikes that were removed have been labelled as “lesser vehicles” with Rockstar saying the majority of players never used them, which is probably true, but many of them were more affordable to new players that haven’t sunk hours into missions and heists to earn in-game millions.

Players that already own the cut vehicles are safe, as you’ll still have access to them like any other vehicle, but you might want to hold off selling them anytime soon.

In other news, a new Grand Theft Auto IV remake trailer is blowing fans away, with the game recently celebrating its 15th anniversary.