Rockstar: GTA Online launch issues ‘will be ironed out as soon as we can’

Rockstar has provided a few updates regarding the issues plaguing Grand Theft Auto Online, the multiplayer portion of Grand Theft Auto 5 which went live (sort of) yesterday. They basically echo the developer's earlier remarks in which they are "working around the clock" to resolve the issues.

"Thank you everyone for continuing to bear with us since yesterday’s initial roll out of Grand Theft Auto Online – we’re aware that a variety of technical difficulties have made it difficult to get access and that the experience has been a bit less than smooth for many of you who jumped in straight away, so here are a few updates as of this afternoon to keep you all apprised," Rockstar wrote.

Rockstar's dedicated GTA Online hub page provides a listing of the most common technical issues being reported, but here are some of the latest updates as of this afternoon, according to Rockstar:

• For PlayStation 3 users, a PlayStation Network server issue was detected that was limiting the amount of possible concurrent users. This was preventing most players from accessing GTA Online altogether and as of this morning, that problem was resolved.
• There is an issue that is preventing some players from getting through the first tutorial mission across both platforms. Many players have been able to get through this with repeated retries, and we are working on unblocking this for everyone as soon as possible.
• This morning, we experienced some instability across the GTA Online services which is affecting even people who have progressed beyond the tutorial mission. We are identifying these issues now and are working to restore stability for users as soon as possible.
• For the time being and until we have been able to get everybody access to GTA Online and things are running smoothly, we have disabled the option of purchasable GTA$ cash packs. Players can however keep on earning GTA$ by pulling off Jobs and other profitable gameplay activities rather than purchasing cash packs.

"All of these initial technical issues will be ironed out as soon as we can," Rockstar promised. "Please know that the entire team here at Rockstar and all of our relevant partners are and will continue to be working around the clock to get the experience to be as smooth as possible, as soon as possible."

In the meantime, Rockstar encourages anyone experiencing technical problems to report them to the dedicated Support Team.

Here at GameZone, we've had mixed results accessing GTA Online. I was one of the unfortunate ones stuck on the tutorial mission, though my co-worker has been able to enjoy GTA Online freely.

[Rockstar]