Grand Theft Auto 6 is the most anticipated video game in years, but even it might not be able to beat its predecessor. More than a decade after the release of Grand Theft Auto 5, Rockstar has only released a single trailer for the newest entry in the iconic series. Beyond the limited information that the teaser revealed about the setting and main characters, all fans know is that the game is expected to be released sometime in 2025.

What’s clear in the run-up to Grand Theft Auto 6 is that Grand Theft Auto 5 is just as popular and lively as ever. Despite being released before Hamilton came to Broadway or Guardians of the Galaxy hit theaters, GTA 5 is still being regularly played by tens of thousands of gamers. GTA 6 will have a hard time displacing a game that players have invested over a decade of time and money in, especially since hardware requirements will limit new players.

GTA 5’s Average Playercount Shows No Signs Of Slowing Down

Years And Years With Hundreds Of Thousands Of Players

Grand Theft Auto 5 released on Steam on April 14, 2015 and reached its peak of 360,761 players immediately, according to Steam Charts, which still stands as the all-time record. After that initial huge start, the game slumped in the following months, with the lowest peak of 46,917 players in September 2015. Past that giant jump start and short-lived lull, the behemoth game has continued to consistently pull in huge numbers of players every month for nearly a decade. In fact, since April 2019, GTA 5 has hit a peak of at least over 100,000 players every month.

In October 2024, GTA 5 had a peak of 162,388 players on Steam alone. This number doesn't count console players, which means that the actual number of GTA 5 players could be significantly higher. According to Steam, GTA 5 is currently the eighth most-played game, beating out more recent titles like Baldur’s Gate 3 and Apex Legends.

GTA 6 Has A Tough Challenge Ahead

Hardware Requirements, Mods, And Memories

GTA 5 is one of the most popular video games of all time according to every metric of success. It has sold over 205,000,000 units across all available platforms, putting it in second place only to Minecraft in the best-selling video games of all time. This success hasn’t faded in the over ten years since its release, as players still flock to San Andreas to race, shoot, and explore endless custom minigames.

Tetris also has a claim to the best-selling throne, but its numbers take a lot of distinct releases into .

While GTA 6 might be expected to break any number of sales records upon release sometime in 2025, it will still have a tough job overtaking GTA 5 in player numbers. GTA 5 has over a decade of content and memories stored inside of it, as well as countless mods and custom game modes. Roleplaying alone, a massive category on Twitch, makes up a huge number of players who play in their own communities as anything ranging from cops and petty criminals to taxi drivers and small business owners.

The biggest challenge for GTA 6 will be how it can outdo the success of its predecessor. Obviously, GTA 6 won’t be able to immediately outshine a game that’s had a decade of success, but GTA 5 might prove more difficult to displace in popularity than is expected. It won’t be surprising if, after an initial wave of huge numbers, both GTA 5 and GTA 6 remain among the most-played games on Steam.

Fans Will Always Play GTA 5

Sunsetting Online May Be The Only Way GTA 5 Slows Down

If Grand Theft Auto 5’s success over the past ten years has proved anything, it’s that it’s here to stay. Players have proven extraordinarily loyal to the open-world game, and it’s unlikely that they’ll abandon their hundreds, or even thousands, of gameplay hours for GTA 6 right away. The consistent releases of new content, missions, vehicles, and weapons have encouraged players to invest heavily in their online experience. Their purchases of special edition cars and guns probably won’t transfer to GTA 6, so they might not either, at least until they have to.

The biggest factor for the continued success of GTA 5, even after the release of GTA 6, is what Rockstar will do with GTA Online. It seems unlikely that the publisher will sunset the service anytime soon, but that will inevitably happen as a second GTA Online accompanies GTA 6. Until then, GTA 5 could see consistent player numbers despite the shiny new competition. Even if Rockstar decides to slowly wind down on GTA 5 in the wake of Grand Theft Auto 6, many players will stay loyal as long as they can keep their own servers going.

Source: Steam Charts