Usually when someone puts together a fake leak they put a smidgen of effort into making it look vaguely realistic and believable. We've previously warned that this would happen.
In recent months, Rockstar has been in rapid fire mode with new GTA Online content which, based on experience, means that they're gearing up for some big release. Add to that Take-Two Interactive's CEO alluding that Rockstar will have a massive presence at this year's E3, the biggest gaming event on the globe, and you've got the perfect recipe for rumor-fuel.
Story DLC for GTA V has been "leaked" several times before, each leak turning out to be a fake of varying authenticity. In some cases the leaks seemed impeccable — until the creator themselves admitted that it's fake. Alongside that, before each major GTA Online DLC, there are at least a dozen leaks. Granted, at least two of these are usually genuine however many fakes still circulate. The GTA community has seen some laughably fake "leaks" in the past.
None as blatant as this one though.
Whoever put this together just tossed every headline-maker out there into one "insider" e-mail with no indication of authenticity. According to the e-mail, Red Dead Redemption is getting a re-release with a PC port, a new Red Dead game subtitled Renegades is in development, GTA V is getting single-player DLC, Las Venturas is appearing either in GTA V or in VI and there are two new GTA Online DLCs coming.
The only attempt made at making this seem more genuine is the alleged denial of Liberty City appearing in GTA V. We'v had several fake leaks regarding the addition of that new location. However after all the fakes, the community has more or less agreed on it not happening.
The two GTA Online DLCs mentioned in the e-mail are "Shakers and Movers" and "Clandestine Operations". The first is supposed to be a typical luxury DLC full of expensive, flashy items. With two separate Ill-Gotten Gains updates and the recent Executives and Other Criminals, chances are Rockstar is going to mix things up a tad. The second one allegedly focuses on Merryweather as a new contact.
This is the second red flag. For some time, the playerbase of GTA Online has been asking for more contact missions, meaning more contacts. This peaked with the recent week-long event that focused explicitly on contact missions. Leaking something regarding a new contact in GTA Online just after such an event is a tad convenient.
The Red Dead Redemption re-release is also an obvious grab at low-hanging fruit along with the new installment. RDR getting a PC port has been a popular request in the entire gaming community since the original game was released. The recent reference to the developer's E3 presence files this in the same convenient category as the Merryweather DLC.
The other thing which debunks this is the whole e-mail itself. No matter how loose, how unofficial, how off-the-book you are, no one ever talks like that when discussing company matters, especially if its classified. This email is filled with all sorts of info on various levels of security clearance. If this is being sent to someone working on some aspect of the upcoming content, half of this info is irrelevant and the rest is too general. Isn't it so nice of Rockstar employees to group classified info into a neat bulleted list containing all of the secrets regarding upcoming releases that would break all the headlines?
Add to that the fact that no multinational company worth its salt would use a free email service, let alone Windows Live...
Which leak in the history of GTA V was the least believable for you?
