How GTA Casino Has Broken Records
By Chloe Sunderland 07-Aug-2019 15:58 UTC+02:00
After years of rumors and people doubting that it would ever exist, Grand Theft Auto Online launched its newest expansion, the Diamond Casino & Resort earlier this summer. The casino only opened its doors for the first time on July 23 but the game’s makers, Rockstar Games, have already revealed that it has broken records.
Source: Pexels
Grand Theft Auto V first launched back in 2013 and fast became one of the biggest-selling video games ever – it’s sold over 90 million copies and has made more than $6 billion. GTA’s online multiplayer mode, GTA online, followed suit a month later. Even back then, the game featured a casino but with locked doors and a sign nearby reading “Opening Soon.”
Fans of the game have waited six years for the casino to open and, this year, their wishes came true. Now, gamers can play everything from poker and blackjack to roulette and slot machines. The casino is also home to a spa, a private bar, a swimming pool, and a rooftop helipad if you want to beat the traffic.
A week after the casino update was released, Rockstar Games revealed that it was the online game’s biggest launch ever. Although Rockstar haven’t announced the official player counts, they’ve said that, after the Diamond Casino update was released, the game has had more online players in a single day and week than in the past six years.
It’s no surprise that the makers of GTA wanted to build their own casino and it’s no surprise that it’s proved as popular as it has either. Online casinos are increasingly popular and the worldwide industry is growing each year. With more and more online casinos appearing all the time, websites like Bonus.ca round up some of the best and list all of the biggest welcome bonuses on offer.
In 2017, only a few short years ago, the worldwide online casino industry was estimated to be worth at least $45 billion. Experts are already predicting that, by 2020, it could be worth $94 billion.
Source: Pexels
The casino’s launch also came with a range of missions for players to complete to unlock new vehicles, buy a penthouse suite, or even get a job at the casino. Even though the update has attracted record numbers of players, it’s already attracted some controversy in the short amount of time it’s been available to play.
Players have to buy their own chips to play in the casino. While they can use GTA Online’s own virtual currency, they can also spend their own money to convert into chips. Some countries have deemed this gambling and the casino update has already been banned in more than 50 countries around the world, including Luxembourg, Mali, and Saudi Arabia.
When GTA Online was first released, no one could have predicted that six years later, it would still prove to be incredibly popular and attracting record audiences. It shows no signs of stopping, though, and there’s no sign that this is the last update. The sky’s the limit – especially if you’re parking on the casino’s helipad.
