[GTAO] In 2018, How Much Time Are You Playing?

[fw3]

Back in 2013 when the game was first released, it was difficult to break away from playing until 2-3am to get enough sleep so I could be productive at work the next day.

And even at that, I spent most of the day thinking about the game so when I got home, I could jump back in, foregoing my family, bills, household stuff, etc. I was all-in for GTAV/O back then.

Over time, I leveled up to a respectable number, acquired lots of GTA$ money, and was able to buy whatever I needed to make the game last, while enjoying Death Matches, Survivals, and all things both in and out of Freeroam.

But, by 2016, the game had run its normal course and the DLC released was always entertaining, even if sometimes it didn't feel that way initially. It seemed a lot of people were dropping away. For me, personally, I went through a job change, kids were getting older, responsibilities weren't so easy to shed off in favor of a game... and honestly, I didn't want to, either.

Now, in 2018, I'm actually surprised I'm still playing. The time I spend in Los Santos, though, is severely limited to maybe a few hours in a month, if I'm lucky. Real life demands get my attention, as do other interests. I still love jumping in and having a good 2-3 hour session, but again, it's only 2-3 times a month in a good month.

 

TL;DR

After years of playing GTAV/O, life changes. Time, for me, to play has been reduced both by interest and obligations.

How has it changed for you? Do you still play as fervently as you did when you began? Were there reasons for any change?

Also, what would it take to bring you back to playing on the scale of how you did when you first started, if anything?
Do you still have a burning passion for GTAV/O?

As always, just a thread for interesting discussion. Stay well and cheers!

Edited January 21, 2018 by fw3

[Sanches]

I bought game at the end of 2015. I wasn't playing it much, since i didn't have friends to play with.
2016 brought me ~700 hours of gamplay and mostly screwing around in freeroam and roleplaying. The best year of my Online journey. A whole new map to explore with a great companion.

2017 was the year, when i made most of my GTA$. CMM and tons of hours i helped my friends with grinding. Here's probably my true game enjoyment disappeared.

In 2018 i was playing Online just 2 or 3 times yet. Irl stuff plus friends lost interest to it.

Edited January 21, 2018 by Sanches

[Mach1bud]

I play less than I used to. 2-3 hours a day instead of 4-6 hours a day.

[ThaBirdCoot]

Still play about each day. Probably will stop when Red Dead Redemption 2 comes out.

[Gaffa]

If someone told you to stick your hand in a fire, would you go and do it?

I've still got a few things to test and even more to write up about it.

[REXX]

I play daily and just as much as I did at launch. It has yet to bore me and I plan on continuing to play exactly the same

[fw3]

I play daily and just as much as I did at launch. It has yet to bore me and I plan on continuing to play exactly the same

That's how I was with GTAIV, REXX. Got it at launch and it was such a huge advancement over prior iterations of the game, that I was hooked. But, it was the multiplayer aspect that kept me coming back right up until GTAV was released. I went back to GTAIV a while ago and there was nothing exciting about it anymore. It felt like a chore. But, I suppose if it were the only thing available, I could do another five years of it. I'm glad you are still thoroughly into the game! That's just awesome!

[Dr.Rosenthal]

Interesting to see this topic as I've pondered it to myself lately..

 

I'm a long time fan etc, been playing GTA since top-down, have played most games released by R* these last few years. Since October 2013 I've been a part of GTA Online.

 

I was going to say I played a lot of GTA Online in the beginning, but that's an understatement. I still enjoy the game and play almost daily. Maybe 2-3 hours daily or every other day. To me there have been times when my interest has diminished, but I've always come back for new content. The Witcher 3 and Fallout 4 has had a lot of my attention when it hasn't been focused on GTAO. Not to mention other stuff in life like family and career.

 

Of late I've begun to really ask myself why I "grind". The other day someone was hogging VIP Work when I wanted to do it, and I was honestly a bit lost for a moment. Like, I didn't know how to pass the time. Could take a sports classics for a spin. Could go to the ocean for a bit. Could start any other of the gazillion jobs that are available. But I didn't feel like it. Sometimes I honestly only want to grind. I don't know what I'm saving up for either, really. I just like seeing the account balance increase. Well, I know I save up for the next update, so I'll be able to buy whatever I want when it releases.

 

But of late I've felt a lot like "And then what?". I bought the Facility, the Pariah, the Autarch, the Stromberg, the Akula, clothes, Mk II weapon upgrades. And believe me, I like all of this, I'm happy with my purchases.

 

I don't know. I keep coming back for gameplay, and the fact that I got so many toys in the game. Maybe it's just that I've been grinding so much as of late, I should take a break from the game until it feels fresh again. That usually helps.

 

But I should also add that I sincerely had hoped that GTAO would have evolved into more of a drug kingpin/criminal imperium type of deal by now. More focus on business, deals, making profit (anyone remember that old Win95 game called DrugWars? You'd buy low, sell high and make a fortune. Chinatown Wars type of drug dealing basically). I'd wish there was more diversity and less grind but I can't explain how exactly. More random events. Less PvP.

 

I'll start playing RDR Online (don't see why I should quit GTAO though), but I'll be reluctant to invest as much time as I did with GTAO. The more time you invest, the more the game is pulling you so to speak. On top of that, if there'll be the same focus on microtransactions, it'll have to be a goddamn AAA kickass online game for me to show any interest. I'm done with Shark cards for GTAO, not because I'm against them really but I felt that I've given R* the amount of money that I feel they deserve for making GTA V and Online.

[flexcreator]

To be honest, I'm playing more than I should. Still have clips to edit, still have projects in mind. Still not finished the Fallout 4 storyline

 

In 2015 I was expecting to see a gang-themed game with focus on stealing cars, street gunfights and car chases. GTA:O didn't live up to my expectations (I kinda gave up on freeroam PvP), but the game still have other things to offer.

[MisFit-138]

Far less than previous years. It really depends on what the event week is like or how recently DLC dropped. Generally im down to around 20 hours a week from spending every free moment playing in 2013-2016.

[elfoam]

I probably average 5 hours a week these days.

[Gnocchi Flip Flops]

1 to 1 and a half hours, one to two days a week. Despite there being two more dripfeed cars I want, despite me having 25 million dollars and no money worries for over a year considering how I spend, and despite me having everything I want, this game does not reel me in much.

 

If there was no dripfeed, 1 or 1 and a half hours of playing a week would turn to 6 months without playing like before. It's not a game with longevity to me. It's almost 5 years old and it took them almost 5 years to give me most of what I expected at launch. By then I'm like, meh. At this point I'd rather them scrap the rest of GTAO and do GTA 6. I fear that when DLC finally stops, this game will sit on the shelf and will only be played a few times a year. And that's extra bad considering the trend with modern games it to cut off multiplayer support years later. It might not be 5 years after the end of DLC but I'm sure that 10 years after, GTAO for V will be cut off. Making all of this a waste. Which is even more of a turn off.

Edited January 21, 2018 by Scaglietti

[Rashkovskys Shiv]

I bought Gta V on day one, after the

first month problems, I left for Bf4.

Returned later after the heists update,made a lot of cash and then transferred to Ps4 a week before they cut it off.

I play quite a lot, about 5 or more hours daily,a lot of heists, jobs and zero fooling around in free mode.

I haven't stopped yet,I set my goals for over $200m in the bank, including several goals for bunker and heist achievements.

[DeMinoTheDragon]

When I first got it on PS4 in 2014 I was excited and played almost everyday up until the beginning of 2016. Three reason why I quit where because I just got a decent laptop that could play more games that my old laptop could play, I ran out of PS+ and didn't want to bother paying it again, and I hate shooter games on console controls.

 

Now, go forward to early of 2017, I got an actual PC and was able to play GTA, which, like before, I played everyday.

 

Nowadays, I usually only play on three days out of the week, with 2 to maybe 3 hour sessions.

 

I'd honestly play more of this game if it wasn't so friendly to Free Roam Warriors and was toned down a bit.

Edited January 21, 2018 by That1Skeleton

[Anasterian]

Only when R* dripfeeds something I want.

 

And overall I just wait for them to dripfeed everything before moving in, I just can't accept this delayed release bullsh*t. It turns me off playing the game instantly, the minute you say "well actually those 5 cars are going to be released over 5 weeks rather than on release day" I go and play other games and support other developers.

[Kushology]

^ Very well said.

 

--

 

Definitely not as much as I used to.

 

I don't run work or anything either, it's become a rarity.

 

To put it into perspective, I went from 748 to 752 in I think 3 or 4 months.

Edited January 21, 2018 by Kushology

[Big Molio]

I play regularly, but I've been playing Skyrim again, and PUBG

[Black-Dragon96]

Well I bought the game in mid 2015 and I'm still playing 2-3 hours a day.

[Hellbendzor]

I think 2016 was my topyear. Played several hours a day (too much really). Grinding like crazy. In freeroam, solo, no matter... I hit it hard.

 

Then 2017, I continued, but the hacking forced me in solo public sessions for months on end. It changed my game experience and how I play the game to this day... By the end of 2017, I only play with friends in the session. I help them, they help me. I play way less... There are other games than GTA to enjoy. I keep returning though and I still play daily, but way less. Never in public sessions anymore, as I'm fed up with the hacking/griefing and the lack of a thorough and definite solution by Rockstar. It is what it is, I accepted that it will remain as is, or even worsen as time passes on. As long as I keep my gamingtimewithin the confinement of my own personal public session (with friends), I'm as safe as I can be.

 

I do miss the occasional (stunt)races with randoms, but it's infested with hackers and I do not like how Rockstar 'levelled' the playingfield by the catchup-feature. If it's not that, which messes up the races, it's hackers warping themselves forward... No fun. Just the mere fact that the listing of the best times, keep on being flooded by hacked world-records is a testimony to Rockstar's unwillingness to clear this mess up. I used to chase better times and loved doing that, but I can't compete/surpass 2 second lap-times.

 

So bottomline, I play less, still enjoy it, but at my own conditions. And my insane grinding days are over. If I run out of cash, I'll just buy more intelligently, so (much) less...

Edited January 21, 2018 by Hellbendzor

[Bloodytears1666]

If I unemployed again and have no money for survival horrors and other new games I play it a lot, like all day. Otherwise I come for deathmatches and adversary modes for couple of hours few times at week. It was the same all way long.

 

I've been at my old account but forget to look from when I exactly started, but I believe is was 2014 NY.

Edited January 21, 2018 by Bloodytears1666

[Liyah Jade]

Not nearly as much as I used to when it first came out. It doesn't give me the same feel anymore.

[HeavyDuke]

An hour or 2 a week max before i get bored and start playing some old GTA such as GTA Vice City. Its funny how GTA Vice city's bike handling and car damage models are a sh*tload better then GTA V's. GTA V has some of the most disguisting and worthless bike handling ever put into a game, and these days dlc vehicles only have scraps and scratches which imo boring as fck. I'm pretty much done with the game nowadays

[Lonely-Martin]

It's an option each time I log on to the PS4 for sure, but I found myself getting more and more fed up with the cheating and glitching around me again, and the grief I got trying with those businesses forced me away before so I just stopped playing. Money was never an Issue, heists and 2x events always saw me good there.

 

But with DDH, they added awards and bonuses for playing these new heists, so in turn, I put in much more effort and indeed played a hell of a lot longer too. It became a hell of a lot more fun for me of late again, and it see's me not wanting to play any other game other than this again.

 

I've still to do CMM II, so that'll take my attention in the near future, (I hope), but I've relished this last month with this heist, and hit old heist awards too.

 

But, outside of this, no reason to play other than if I fancy something spontaneous, like racing some randoms or something like that, as I'm good for cash, and have been for a very long time now. It frustrates me that I have no garage spaces to spend this money on. And now that there's other places to race, this part of GTA is also fading. Most of my friends have slowly walked away, and though I add more all the time, as I'm completely done with freemode through sheer frustration, I limit myself by this and end up lone wolf on everything in the end, plus, because I won't glitch finale's, I end up out a few buddies for the evening there too.

 

Great game though. Great challenges too. I look to help with those to make it mean more to others so I get a good game of it at times too. I hope for more like DDH in future.

[IceDree]

I play GTAO a lot more than I used to early on. Despite being a day 1 player, I wasn't interested in GTAO (Multiplayer is not for me) & I kept playing V instead until I moved to Xbox 1 & R* pulled the plug on V. I was level 21 when IGG came out, I'm 832 today.

 

 

Due to real life obligations I play less than I used to say last month, I went from 4-5 hours a day to 2½ hours max a day, by the time I'm done with my obligations I can barely keep my eyes open.

I still play daily & I'll continue doing so for the foreseeable future. Regarding other games, I play GTA almost exclusively, but I start Forza Horizon 3 if they have an interesting car during their Forzathon events & even then, I can't wait to go back to GTA & that's all I can think of ... #TheAddictionIsRealz

[HamwithCheese]

I used to play daily, but these days I can barely be bothered. Most of my friends stopped playing and I just cant be bothered to grind anymore.

 

This week, gt sport will be getting a free update including a mk4 supra, viper gts, Pagani Huyara, and a proper Diablo. I might be playing even less.

[spincther]

I do a long play session and live stream until the dripfeed content comes out. (Monday 10:00pm through Tuesday 4:30am)

 

Others days less than 2hrs, sometimes not at all.

Edited January 21, 2018 by -RP-

[Guest]

I still play a few hours every day (until I find something else to play), and I'll keep coming back for updates. Obviously I used to play a lot more back when I brought the game- I had loads of fun just robbing stores with my bro, classic GTA stuff, cars and guns. We made so many friends, 98% of who are now inactive FFS. But, the game is devolving. People just fight each other for the sake of it.

 

Sometimes you meet fun people, like this one time I took on a bunch of dudes, just using sticky bomb traps, and we had a brilliant fight in that building with the maze garden- they were good sports about it. But most of the time, people are just hellbent on getting kills, so they use the most extreme OP weapons and the fighting is just a series of ear-deafening explosions and sniper wiggling. No fun.

 

So nowadays I just get on for a few hours, pretend it's Test Drive Unlimited, because R* completely f*cked up the whole crime and heisting aspect to the game. If R* just expanded on that frigging store robbing mechanic and let us earn real money from it (i.e. Fleeca bank robberies), and without being nuked from orbit and chased by Batman and Marty McFly, I'd play this game a f*ck-ton more.

 

tl;dr stopped playing gradually due to the playerbase and R*'s design choices.

[Shadowfennekin]

I played 1-2 hours barely during Smuggler's Cum.

The drip feed was SO boring and no good events. Didn't give a sh*t for anything they were dripfeeding apart from my WW II plane

 

I've been playing the usual 6-8 again after Doomsday though.

[III-Ari-III]

I bought the game in may 2016, and since then i have played 2 or 3 hours a day with some occasional day out, doing mostly businesses in free roam and some user created races (would do more if ppl created more).

[TheLordMarvel]

I played for a couple of hours a day when Doomsday came out, but since i completed the heists, I've slowly been slowing down with it. Today I played for like 45 minutes or so, before I jumped back onto AC: Origins and Injustice 2.