What Is The Next-Gen GTA5 Enhanced Edition?

It’s 2021 and that means the GTA 5 Enhanced Edition release is supposedly this year!

Last June, Rockstar Games announced that they were releasing an “enhanced and expanded” version of GTA 5 and GTA Online for PlayStation 5 consoles in the second half of 2021.

However, since then… We haven’t actually heard a whole lot. Here’s everything we do know about the GTA 5 re-re-release and what it will bring to next-gen consoles.

GTA 5 Enhanced Edition?

This is the speculative title we’re giving to the next-generation launch of GTA 5.

In their Announcement Trailer from last year, we don’t really learn anything new. You can check it out below, but for the most part, it looks like a shinier GTA 5.

To put it plainly in writing, Rockstar Games have said the following about their next-gen Enhanced Edition of GTA 5.

The new generation versions of GTA 5 will feature a range of technical improvements, visual upgrades and performance enhancements to take full advantage of the latest hardware, making the game more beautiful and more responsive than ever…

There’s nothing too specific included and Rockstar Games are keeping characteristically tight-lipped about everything.

However, if we look at what the PS5 and Xbox Series X can do we can speculate on the kinds of things we’ll see from the GTA 5 Enhanced Edition release.

What Does Enhanced Mean?

At the end of the Announcement Trailer and in any other discussions about the next-gen release of GTA 5, we see the phrase “enhanced and expanded” pop up.

But, what does this actually mean?

Well, looking to other next-gen titles can give us some insight into what we should see.

READ MORE: More GTA Remasters Could Be On The Way

Ray Tracing, native 4K rendering, a solid 60fps, and faster loading times are the main features we should be seeing.

However, rumours from a Rockstar insider suggest that the re-re-release of GTA 5 could run on Red Dead Redemption 2’s RAGE engine; at least partially anyway.

You can check out what they suggest here, but it essentially boils down to suggesting that the GTA 5 Enhanced Edition UI would run on the RDR2 RAGE engine alongside the GTA 5 Enhanced Edition gameplay running on the original engine.

This might not sound like it will mean much, but it will essentially help to optimise the title for the newer technology and ensure everything that’s being enhanced works well.

READ MORE: Could GTA 6 Become An MMO Title?

Of course, this is all speculation and we should be wary of taking anything as gospel without an official Rockstar announcement. However, it doesn’t sound impossible.

What About Expanded?

This is the part that has everyone somewhat confused.

The GTA V Enhanced Edition is supposedly going to be “enhanced and expanded” when it arrives on PS5 and Xbox Series X consoles. But, what does this mean?

READ MORE: Is GTA Online Going To Launch On Nintendo Switch?

Grand Theft Auto 5 hasn’t received any single-player expansions ever and the only map expansion it did get was added as a GTA Online are exclusive to the Cayo Perico Heist.

There has been additional vehicles and weapons brought into the game over the years, but these are already available in GTA 5.

Could Rockstar be hinting at additional single-player content? Or, perhaps, just be making all the extra GTA Online content available to play optionally in GTA 5’s single-player mode.

If there’s one way to keep GTA 5 going for another few years, additional single-player content would be it. In particular, adding a series of heists could be the winning ticket.

Release Date

Sadly, this information is a little bit up in the air at the moment.

With Grand Theft Auto 6 presumed to be a long way out, fans are still awaiting some release date news for the Enhanced Edition of GTA 5.

So far, all we know is that it’s coming in the second half of 2021. However, this is subject to change like any vague launch window is.

READ MORE: Are Fans Delaying The Release Of GTA 6?

GTA 5 does run on both next-gen consoles at the moment via backwards compatibility, but it is an old game.

Originally released on the Xbox 360 and PS3 in 2013, GTA 5 was then re-released on the Xbox One and PS4 in late 2014. That’s still over six years ago!

It still looks fantastic for a game of that age, but fans are rightfully looking forward to seeing Los Santos in a higher resolution with smooth framerates at the least.