Grand Theft Auto 5 (or GTA 5 for short) is considered by many to be Rockstar Games' magnum opus. It sold over 150 million copies worldwide, officially making it one of the best-selling video games of all time. And it is praised by critics and fans for its detailed plot, engaging characters, and addictive open-world gameplay that kept players coming back even after nearly a decade.
GTA 5 was first released in 2013 for the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3, and has since then been ported onto the Xbox One, PlayStation 4, and PC. Now, it will be ported onto the next-gen Xbox Series X|S and PlayStation 5 consoles on March 15, 2022, with graphical upgrades suited for modern audiences. If you wish to know exactly when you can revisit the chaotic streets of Los Santos, we've got you covered. Here's everything you need to know on the launch times for the next-gen release of Grand Theft Auto 5, as well as information on pre-loading, day one patches, download sizes, and more.
What is the release date and launch time for Grand Theft Auto 5?
Grand Theft Auto 5 will release for the Xbox Series X, Xbox Series S, and PlayStation 5 at midnight on March 15, 2022, worldwide. Release dates may slightly vary depending on your country's time zone.
Here is the full GTA 5 launch table.
| Region/country | Local time | UTC |
|---|---|---|
| Australia | 11 a.m. AEDT, March 15 | Midnight UTC, March 15 |
| Brazil | 9 p.m. BRT, March 14 | Midnight UTC, March 15 |
| China | 8 a.m. CST, March 15 | Midnight UTC, March 15 |
| Columbia | 7 p.m. COT, March 14 | Midnight UTC, March 15 |
| Egypt | 2 a.m. EET, March 15 | Midnight UTC, March 15 |
| France | 1 a.m. CET, March 15 | Midnight UTC, March 15 |
| Japan | 9 a.m. JST, March 15 | Midnight UTC, March 15 |
| Mexico | 7 p.m. CST, March 14 | Midnight UTC, March 15 |
| New Zealand | 1 p.m. NZDT, March 15 | Midnight UTC, March 15 |
| Poland | 1 a.m. CET, March 15 | Midnight UTC, March 15 |
| Portugal | Midnight WET, March 15 | Midnight UTC, March 15 |
| Saudi Arabia | 3 a.m. AST, March 15 | Midnight UTC, March 15 |
| Singapore | 8 a.m. SGT, March 15 | Midnight UTC, March 15 |
| South Africa | 2 a.m. SAST, March 15 | Midnight UTC, March 15 |
| South Korea | 9 a.m. KST, March 15 | Midnight UTC, March 15 |
| United Arab Emirates | 4 a.m. GST, March 15 | Midnight UTC, March 15 |
| United Kingdom | Midnight GMT, March 15 | Midnight UTC, March 15 |
| United States | 5 p.m. PST, March 147 p.m. CST, March 148 p.m. EST, March 14 | Midnight UTC, March 15 |
Can I pre-load or pre-install Grand Theft Auto 5?
Pre-loading allows players who pre-ordered a game to start playing the exact moment it becomes available. Rockstar Games have confirmed that pre-loading for GTA 5 is available right now if you have pre-ordered the game on the Microsoft Store or PlayStation 5's online store.
What is Grand Theft Auto 5's download size?
Being an open-world game, Grand Theft Auto 5 is massive and will require lots of space on your console's storage to be installed. On the Xbox Series X|S consoles, GTA 5 will need 87.81GB of storage space, and on PlayStation 5, it will need 86.84GB.
Will there be a day one patch for Grand Theft Auto V?
Day one patches are relatively commonplace when creating video games these days. They allow developers to refine a game for its launch, catching any overlooked game-breaking bugs and fine-tuning the gameplay. However, there has been no information at this time whether or not the PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X|S versions of GTA 5 will receive a day one patch.
What is Grand Theft Auto 5?
Grand Theft Auto 5 is the fifth major entry of the Grand Theft Auto franchise, a series of open-world, action-adventure games where you play as criminals trying to make it big. In GTA 5, you play as three characters that you switch back and forth with throughout their adventures in the corrupt city of Los Santos. These characters are Franklin, an ex-gang member stuck in the ghetto with a dead-end job, who, one day, gets into trouble after he messed up a repossessing job. Michael, an ex-bank robber who is forced out of retirement after accidentally crossing a crime lord. And finally, Trevor, a mentally unstable drug dealer/gun-runner who has a tendency to go on violent, murderous rampages.
The next-gen versions of GTA 5 will feature all the original game's content along with some extra features. These new features include performance modes that will enhance the game with ray tracing, 1080p and 4K resolutions, 60 FPS frame rates, and more graphical upgrades. If you happen to have an old Xbox One or PS4 save file of GTA 5, you can transfer it to their next-gen successors to continue playing.
Grand Theft Auto V also has a standalone multiplayer game called GTA Online, where you get to create your own gangster and wreak all sorts of mayhem in Los Santos alongside your friends to build a criminal empire. It will receive all the next-gen enhancements and save-transfer features of its singleplayer counterpart and be released on the same date of March 15, 2022, for the PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X|S consoles.
All this and more awaits you in Los Santos. The original GTA 5 is still to this day lauded one of the best Xbox games of all time, and with these next-gen upgrades, it will no doubt continue to preserve that pedigree when the next-gen remaster launches on March 15, 2022.
Pull off the biggest heists to bring in the hard cash
Relive the crazy adventures of Franklin, Michael, and Trevor in the remastered, next-gen edition of Grand Theft Auto 5. Explore an expansive open world where you commit all sorts of crimes ranging from bank robberies, drug dealing, grand theft auto, and more to pay off your debts.
