In early May, Sony sent out an email blast to PlayStation 4 users that urged them to buy a PlayStation 5 in anticipation of Grand Theft Auto 6‘s November launch. Turns out, this was just the start of a much larger marketing campaign spearheaded by Sony Interactive Entertainment for Rockstar Games’ open-world adventure. Since the reveal of GTA 6‘s pre-order bonuses, Sony has started rolling out the red carpet for the game in a way it has never done before — even for franchises that it actually owns.
The first change was minor: On Thursday, Sony adjusted the PlayStation App’s icon to match GTA 6‘s color and branding. Kind of weird, but not a big deal. Later that same day, PS5 owners logged onto their consoles only to be greeted with a full-screen animation of the GTA 6 logo. This advertisement appears on the “Welcome” icon that players must scroll through before reaching an actual game installed on their system. That branding quickly turns into a call to action for GTA 6 that encourages fans to learn more about it.
If that weren’t enough, visiting the PlayStation Store within the console means being greeted with — you guessed it — even more GTA 6. The Bonnie and Clyde-inspired crime adventure takes up the entire PS Store page with its neon pink colors. Every selectable icon on this page leads to something about the game. The first button is for the $99.99 GTA 6 Ultimate Edition; there’s also a section to watch the trailers and subscribe to the franchise membership, GTA Plus. The PlayStation Store’s website is also topped with GTA 6 branding, but it’s not quite a full store takeover.
In the past, we’ve highlighted how Sony was subtly treating GTA 6 as if it were a first-party game on par with franchises like The Last of Us or God of War. This notion has been reinforced since GTA 6 was revealed, mostly in trailers that remind people that the gameplay was captured on PS5.
More recently, Sony has also started pushing the idea that GTA 6 is a superior experience on PS5. According to Sony, the game has PlayStation-specific features, like haptic feedback, adaptive triggers, Tempest 3D audio, and faster loading times on PS5. The marketing also suggests that the more powerful PS5 Pro will have some sort of GTA 6 enhancements, but as of this writing it is unclear what those are.
Still, Sony has never tried a type of marketing campaign that ensures that nearly every customer in its ecosystem will be notified or reminded of a specific game. The PlayStation company does try to advertise games that it owns or publishes, but it’s never quite as intense as what we’ve seen for GTA 6. If anything, Sony has seemed afraid to pit its own games against the behemoth that is GTA 6.
GTA 6 may be a multiplatform game that, with time, may release on a wider swath of hardware. But if you ask Rockstar or Sony, they’re going to tell you that GTA 6 is a PS5 game through and through.
Grand Theft Auto 6 launches on Nov. 19 for PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X.
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