As the release of Grand Theft Auto V for Playstation 3 and Xbox 360 draws closer more and more gamers are eager to get their hands on the latest title in the franchise. So eager in fact that many gamers and release groups find ways to get their hands on the latest title as early as possible, sometimes even weeks before the official release of the game.
Even though their methods remain a bit of a mystery, one can only guess that retailers secretly sell the game to either employees or interested fans of the series. Usually uninformed part-time employees are to blame, though they can't take the full blame.
Retailers use systems to keep track of the copies, though some retailers do not keep track of release dates or embargos. The items that get shipped to them will simply show up in their system as available after which a helpful store worker might just give inquiring gamers what they were looking for.
Interestingly this does not happen just at the retailer level, shipping services such as UPS and wholesale distributers also partially account for the leaks that we have seen in the past. Back in April 2008 a copy of Grand Theft Auto IV fell into the wrong hands and was posted online 6 days before the release of the game on April 23rd.
Release group iCON released Grand Theft Auto IV online
6 days before the official release of the game
Interestingly, back in October of 2004 Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas was also leaked 6 days before the release of the game on October 20th. Furthermore popularity of the franchise seemingly skyrocketed after the release of Grand Theft Auto: Vice City as we have seen no leaks prior to Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas.
Rockstar Games initially announced in October 2004 that it would go after those who were responsible for the leak of their title, Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas, though later never publically commented on that statement.
Last week we have seen the release of several Grand Theft Auto V assets as Sony made Grand Theft Auto V available for preload on Playstation Network. The files that were available were seemingly not enough to actually launch the game though the entire soundtrack of the game has been posted online, not to mention ingame TV commercials.
It seems that it is not a question of 'if' the retail discs of Grand Theft Auto V wil leak but rather a question of 'when' they will leak. If a similar trend continues, that we have clearly seen over the past 9 years, and especially with the overly-hyped release of Grand Theft Auto V, mark your calendar for September 11th 2013, as that day marks 6 days until the official release of Grand Theft Auto V.
Even though their methods remain a bit of a mystery, one can only guess that retailers secretly sell the game to either employees or interested fans of the series. Usually uninformed part-time employees are to blame, though they can't take the full blame.
Retailers use systems to keep track of the copies, though some retailers do not keep track of release dates or embargos. The items that get shipped to them will simply show up in their system as available after which a helpful store worker might just give inquiring gamers what they were looking for.
Interestingly this does not happen just at the retailer level, shipping services such as UPS and wholesale distributers also partially account for the leaks that we have seen in the past. Back in April 2008 a copy of Grand Theft Auto IV fell into the wrong hands and was posted online 6 days before the release of the game on April 23rd.
Release group iCON released Grand Theft Auto IV online
6 days before the official release of the game
Interestingly, back in October of 2004 Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas was also leaked 6 days before the release of the game on October 20th. Furthermore popularity of the franchise seemingly skyrocketed after the release of Grand Theft Auto: Vice City as we have seen no leaks prior to Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas.
Rockstar Games initially announced in October 2004 that it would go after those who were responsible for the leak of their title, Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas, though later never publically commented on that statement.
"The proper authorities are investigating the theft and are continuing to investigate all possible leads to ensure there is no further dissemination of our creative content," read the statement.
"Downloading, possession and distribution of Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas, including making the game available on the internet, is theft." Then came this warning from the company: "We take the theft of our intellectual property very seriously and we are and will continue to diligently and aggressively pursue this matter." a spokesperson said.
Last week we have seen the release of several Grand Theft Auto V assets as Sony made Grand Theft Auto V available for preload on Playstation Network. The files that were available were seemingly not enough to actually launch the game though the entire soundtrack of the game has been posted online, not to mention ingame TV commercials.
It seems that it is not a question of 'if' the retail discs of Grand Theft Auto V wil leak but rather a question of 'when' they will leak. If a similar trend continues, that we have clearly seen over the past 9 years, and especially with the overly-hyped release of Grand Theft Auto V, mark your calendar for September 11th 2013, as that day marks 6 days until the official release of Grand Theft Auto V.
