It seems like yesterday, but it’s actually been seven years since GTA Online launched. What at first was presented to us as the multiplayer aspect of GTA V was decoupling from that game until it acquired its own entity. In fact, it has been confirmed that Rockstar’s online adventure will have a solo version for PlayStation 5, in what is a definitive move on its untying from any other product. It is already a completely independent experience, and as such it will behave in the future, adding its own content.
That is the reason why Rockstar has worked so hard on this project, through numerous updates that have added new content to the online experience, with cooperative hits like Doomsday or Diamond Casino. As some of its main developers tell me, such as Tarek Hamad (Director of Design Production) or Scott Butchard (Design Director: World & Content), the initial development of GTA Online was very different and smaller. However, he says that with the passage of time and the introduction of the hits “it became a similar experience, in terms of quality, to that of a single player video game”.
Within this expansion process, Golpe a Cayo Perico has the objective of precisely striking a blow on the table and clearing up all the doubts that exist about Rockstar’s support for this project. It’s the biggest update to GTA Online, with a complex infiltration mission that takes place on a Caribbean island. The question is: is content as important as promised? The players will have to decide on this, but at the moment it is doing something very important: listening to the community, and that is that you can not only play in company, but also individually.
GTA Online’s Biggest Heist
From Rockstar they define this content as “a complete evolution”. It involves content that can be played in co-op with four players (up to eight in preparatory missions), but also individually (something that happens for the first time in GTA Online). It is an important move, since it somehow blurs the barrier between the single player and multiplayer experience . But the most interesting thing is that this hit is promised that it is not only complex, but also replayable. Once you’ve done it, you can come back and find a fresh experience.
How does it work? Cayo Perico is a separate territory from GTA Online that is accessed through a series of preliminary missions to be completed in Los Santos. In this sense, one of our first stops is The Music Locker, an underground dance club that helps us learn about the murky plot behind this content. To summarize it, the drug lord Martín Madrazo has entered into a dispute with the drug trafficker El Rubiofor the new conditions of your merchandise. And of course, as you can imagine, we will be the ones who infiltrate the latter’s private island to find privileged information with which, in some way, to make him see reason. You know, this is GTA, so mafia affairs are the order of the day.
Cayo Perico blurs the barrier between the single player and multiplayer experience
What I liked the most about the approach is that it fits perfectly with the GTA approach, since it has crime, drama, but also comedy. The island of El Rubio regularly holds private parties, so we will pretend to be the Tour Manager of a group of DJs to access. And not only that. Our base of operations is an old Soviet submarine called Kosatka (we will have to buy it), which is run by a most peculiar Russian operator. In other words, the Grand Theft Auto show returns with plenty of narrative content.
The developers did not know how to tell us how many hours of content includes Hitting Cayo Perico, and it is really difficult to assess. It is a shot with more freedom and complexity than usual. To begin with, inside the submarine we can design our strategy within the control panel. For example, you can complete optional preliminary missions to access a greater amount of content, such as weapons, vehicles or access possibilities to the island and its different locations. There is a lot of variety when it comes to assaulting Cayo Perico, hence the creators ensure that a game is not the same as the previous one.
But the best thing is that the island works as a small open world , with its own rules, as well as inhabitants and vehicles. Do not expect large dimensions, but large enough to find a surveillance system with patrols and security cameras. It is a powerful fortification, so a direct attack may not be the best solution (although it is possible, we are told). The most orthodox option is to study the situation and do things like eliminate the traffickers who supply the island with resources, or directly take down the patrol helicopters before they come after us.
Basically, we can go more Rambo or James Bond 007. The content is designed for you to play in different ways, since there are many dynamic content : hacks to access security cameras, codes to access certain accesses … and even the Opportunity to have caches of weapons, drones and military support in case we are veterans of GTA Online. Besides, there are several escape routes, with the aim of ensuring that each game offers a unique and unrepeatable experience.
In the words of those responsible, Golpe a Cayo Perico is “a new adventure that represents an evolution in the playability of the blows”, with expanded options in terms of planning, preparation and execution. To give another example, access to the island can be done in several ways, either by using the landing strip, a landing point or even a drainage tunnel. Once there, players will be able to take pictures and use the security cameras to plan their own access strategy to the complex, in order to obtain the necessary documentation to complete the mission.
They comment from Rockstar that, the greater the recognition of the area, the greater the possibilities and also the rewards. There is even the opportunity to unlock preparatory missions that allow you to access new areas of the island , either through the use of explosive charges, parachuting in a certain area or a fingerprint hacker. The aim is, again, to get users to want to play again to discover everything they had missed. Also, the more they play and the more they prepare for missions, the better the outcome of the coup.
Therefore, Hitting Cayo Perico could be seen as a sandbox hit , which includes a powerful variety of experiences, with content that changes according to our actions. If we carry out a great preparation, the enemies will have fewer troops, armor and weapons. Also, depending on our performance, we can get more money, drugs and works of art throughout the island. Also, if you go in company, you will get more rewards than going alone , since certain tasks require the help of a partner.
The downside of all this? Although you can spend a lot of time on the island, it will become increasingly difficult to stay alive. However, this is more of an incentive for more dedicated players. As if that were not enough, there are also easter eggs and a good handful of secrets , according to the developers themselves. Come on, it’s not bad: a highly dynamic, replayable and adaptive mission, since it can be played both alone or in groups of up to four participants.
I could tell you many more things, such as the options of the submarine, with which we can fire torpedoes and even unlock guided missiles or a sonar. There are also collectibles in the form of radio towers, new vehicles, weapons, and equipment. But let’s say that one of the strengths of Golpe a Cayo Perico is its integration with music, which acquires a relevant role. Due to the theme of the content, which has the DJ parties as protagonists, we received 240 new songs that belong to three new stations.
Some of them can be heard in The Music Locker , which is the new social gathering point that has been introduced this time (remember that this idea of socialization was introduced in the After Hours update ). There you can dance with new movements and as a couple, something that could not be done before. In addition, you can enjoy the presence of five DJs , each with motion capture. That is to say, a very elaborate work, as has been customary in Rockstar, and that in this particular case makes perfect sense, given the theme being defended.
All content is available for free from this December 15
What is left now? That you try it. All these contents are available for free with the possession of GTA Online, and also from this same December 15, when it has been made available to users. The arrival of a new region was really longed for, and we would like to know what your opinion is about it. Was it what you expected? Do you think this will give Rockstar online multiplayer a boost? It may be a more important addition than we think, and it may set the path the company will follow in the future with its powerful license. We will see it.
