Microsoft has landed streaming rights for Grand Theft Auto VI, but it is not exclusive and PC players will not be able to stream it.
Microsoft has secured the right to stream Grand Theft Auto VI on Xbox Cloud Gaming from the day it launches in November. Cloud gaming runs the game on Microsoft's servers and streams it to you, so you don't need a powerful console.
Two catches. Xbox says the deal isn't exclusive, and the game won't be streamed to PCs. And from November, cloud play gets monthly limits: 15 hours on Game Pass Ultimate, 10 on Premium and 5 on Essential.
Microsoft is also adding pay-as-you-go streaming, so you can buy blocks of hours without a subscription.
Grand Theft Auto VI will be playable through Xbox Cloud Gaming from the day it comes out in November. Microsoft has struck a deal for the game’s streaming rights, The Verge reports, after Xbox boss Asha Sharma teased employees that the company was planning something around GTA 6 that “no other platform holder is doing.”
Cloud gaming means the game runs on Microsoft’s servers and is streamed to your screen like a video, so you don’t need a powerful console to play it. You do need a good internet connection.
The first reports described the deal as exclusive. Xbox’s chief strategy officer Matthew Ball then corrected that on X, saying Microsoft won’t be the only company streaming the game, and that it won’t be streamed to PCs.
That last point disappoints a lot of people. Rockstar Games still hasn’t announced a PC version of GTA 6, and many PC players had hoped streaming would be their way in. Based on Ball’s clarification, the deal looks like it covers Xbox consoles. It is not yet clear whether phones, tablets, smart TVs or web browsers, which can normally use Xbox Cloud Gaming, will be included.
The timing is interesting. From November, the same month GTA 6 arrives, Microsoft is putting monthly caps on cloud gaming:
GTA games are known for keeping players hooked for dozens or even hundreds of hours, so these limits could run out fast for anyone who plans to play mainly through the cloud.
Microsoft is also adding a way to use Xbox Cloud Gaming without a Game Pass subscription at all. Starting next month, players will be able to buy bundles of streaming hours. That could suit someone who wants to try GTA 6 without buying a console, though the details on which devices can stream it still need to be confirmed.
At the same staff meeting, Sharma said Project Helix, Microsoft’s next generation of Xbox hardware, will be a “family of devices”, with some of them built together with partner companies. Microsoft and AMD announced a multi-year partnership last year to work on a range of devices, including the next Xbox console.
For now, the simplest way to play GTA 6 at launch is still on a PlayStation 5 or an Xbox Series X or S. Cloud streaming adds another option, as long as you keep an eye on those monthly hour limits.
No. Xbox has said the game won’t be streamed to PCs, and Rockstar hasn’t announced a PC version yet.
Not necessarily. Microsoft’s new pay-as-you-go option, arriving next month, lets you buy streaming time without a subscription.
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