The Nintendo Switch is the third-best-selling video game console of all time. By the time its official run ends, the Switch could outsell the PlayStation 2 and the Nintendo DS. What’s more amazing is that the Switch did this without the help of two of the best-selling video game franchises of all time: Call of Duty and Grand Theft Auto. But, if we believe the rumors, this is changing with the Nintendo Switch 2.
Microsoft and Nintendo have already struck a deal to bring Call of Duty to Nintendo platforms. It’s unclear if this means the Switch will get a Call of Duty port or if the deal only takes effect on the Switch 2. We’re banking on the latter based on what Activision Blizzard just said about the upcoming console’s performance. As for the fate of Grand Theft Auto, the Editor-in-Chief of Universo Nintendo, Necro Felipe, made a claim that led to speculations about GTA 6’s arrival on the still-unannounced console.
Such a development, if true, would be a momentous feat for Nintendo, especially given the monumental popularity and scope of GTA. At the same time, the notion of GTA 6 being available on a Nintendo platform for the first time in over a decade might appear as implausible as the existence of Big Foot in Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas (hint: Big Foot wouldn’t be in the woods of Los Santos until Grand Theft Auto V).
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— 'Necro' Felipe #UnivNintendo (@necrolipe) October 19, 2023
It’s no secret that Nintendo’s hardware is inferior in terms of sheer power compared to its competition, namely Sony’s PlayStation and Microsoft’s Xbox, but this hasn’t stopped the console from welcoming heavy hitters like DOOM: Eternal, The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt, and Fornite. Although the ports of AAA titles haven’t always gone well (see Mortal Kombat 1), the point remains: games more graphically intensive than GTA have appeared on the Switch before. In fact, Red Dead Redemption, albeit it’s only the remaster of the first game, is available on the Switch.
Thus, this begs the question, is GTA finally coming to a modern Nintendo platform?
Emerging reports indicate that the Switch 2 might be closer to the PS5 and Xbox Series S/X in terms of its performance than the Switch was to the PS4 and Xbox One. If true, the Switch 2 would certainly be capable of supporting the massive, open-world video game dynamics characteristic of a GTA game.
Unfortunately, Felipe has since clarified that his statements are mere speculation, not the whole truth.
Historically, Rockstar Games has had limited engagement with hybrid platform. Its limited foray includes titles like L.A. Noire, released in 2017, followed by a remastered collection of the GTA trilogy, which, albeit popular, received negative reviews from players on the Switch. As a mater of fact, the only game Rockstar has released for the Switch that’s gone well for the studio is the aforementioned Red Dead Redemption port. The absence of any substantial evidence further clouds the possibility that GTA 6 will be available on the Switch 2.
It’s essential to weigh in on some practical considerations as well. Rockstar’s primary revenue generator has been the online version of the GTA 5, the now-standalone, GTA Online. To accommodate GTA 6 and its online counterpart on the Switch 2, Rockstar would not only need to port the main game but also ensure compatibility with its online component. Without prior experience in integrating GTA Online with the Switch platform, this could translate to significant resource allocation from Rockstar’s end. Moreover, the sheer size of GTA 6, both in terms of game mechanics and data, will be a challenge. Rockstar and its parent company, Take-Two, would venture into risky territory with a port that’s anything less than perfect, given the expectations and reputation of the GTA franchise.
Now, if Rockstar would port GTA 5 to the Nintendo Switch, then the entire conversation changes. If successful, Rockstar will have successfully laid the groundwork to bring GTA 6 to the Switch 2 even if it comes later in the lifecycle.
But, if that happens, Rockstar is better off porting Red Dead Redemption 2 to the Switch first, just to be safe. After all, all signs point to the Switch 2 being backwards compatible anyway.
With only a year left before the Switch 2 comes (at least, that’s if we believe the rumors), Rockstar would have to bring GTA 5 and RDR2 to the Switch first. Of course, who are we to say that Rockstar isn’t waiting for the Switch 2 to port the current-gen titles first before GTA 6? This is certainly one way of making sure that the quality of GTA 5 nor RDR2 is compromised by trying to pull off the video game equivalent of putting a square peg into a circle hole.
Ultimately, until official announcements from Rockstar or Nintendo surface, all we’re left with are the small crumbs of information to speculate on.
For now though, it’s safe to say that GTA 6, with its upgraded RAGE engine, is coming exclusively to the PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series S/X with a PC port likely coming later on.
