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PC gamers who purchased Grand Theft Auto: The Trilogy – Definitive Edition are being given an additional game for free from Rockstar following the remastered trilogy’s disastrous launch.
Rockstar already promised to give PC players the classic PC versions of the games from the trilogy remaster for no additional cost, but now the game developer is going a step further by offering another free game of your choice.
As reported by Euro Gamer, PC gamers have the choice between claiming a Grand Theft Auto Online Great White Shark card, or 55 gold bars in Red Dead Online if you already own most of the Rockstar back catalog of games; alternatively, you have until January 5 2022 to grab one of the following:
- Grand Theft Auto V: Premium Edition
- Grand Theft Auto IV: Complete Edition
- Max Payne 3
- LA Noire
- Bully: Scholarship Edition
If something has caught your eye, you can redeem the offer here.
A plethora of technical issues forced the Rockstar launcher offline during the launch date for the anticipated trilogy, and due to restrictions that only allow games to be played when your PC or laptop is connected to a live internet connection, even those who had preordered the games were unable to play them for more than 24 hours.
In fact, the PC version of the game was pulled from the developer’s store entirely at one point during the fiasco, though this has since returned and is available to buy again. Handily, this means you can also claim one of these free games if you had your eye on buying the GTA remastered trilogy, as there doesn’t appear to be a limitation on when you purchased it.
Analysis: forgiveness is earned, not bought
Most of the frustration coming from the PC gaming community wasn’t just because of the quality of the games (which were hilariously bad compared to trailers for the remaster), but because of the Rockstar launcher’s restriction that means you can only play games when you’re connected to the internet.
This even applies to single-player games that shouldn’t require an internet connection at all, so the frustrations that were expressed across social media are more than understandable.
The games being given out by Rockstar as an apology are a great start, but the issue could be avoided entirely by removing what feels like an unnecessary requirement going forward. This would allow players in areas with a spotty connection, or who use a gaming laptop on the go, to access single-player offline games whenever they choose, and would go some way towards repairing the relationship between the game dev and its player base.
This isn’t to say that the gifted games should be snubbed; you’re not obligated to accept an apology, but in the event of future mishaps, game studios are less likely to try and make amends if they don’t think it’ll be worth it.
It’s also important to note that this gift is being offered in regards to the Rockstar Launcher downtime, rather than the poor quality of the game itself, which is why it’s only being offered to PC gamers.
With any luck, Rockstar will take a crack at repairing the remaster to the quality level that was originally promised for no additional cost, but for now we can at least play the originals, plus a freebie of our choice to calm us down a little.