You see Rockstar, this is what happens when you keep churning out event weeks back to back. You'll run out of ideas for names! In all seriousness, the newest event to grace GTA Online has seemingly broken the mold of taking inspiration from an older DLC pack that was going on these past weeks. The guy in charge of coming up with names for the events was probably passed over for promotion last week so now he was like "screw it, we're calling it bonuses week" and went to drink a coffee or something.
GTA Online's weekly/weeklong events are timed bundles of discounts, promotions and premium race cycles which often follow a common theme, though not always. They are usually employed in between major DLC releases to make sure that the game doesn't feel like it is getting stale, while the events during DLC releases are more of a means to drive hype.
While the back-to-back event schedule has become pretty common, it is not a constant. There have been times when a week went by without such an event, though these are growing ever more rare. This rapid-fire stream of GTA Online events has been employed often when there were longer stretches of time in between two major DLC releases. Considering how much effort was put into the four updates which comprise the Cunning Stunts "series" of DLCs, it would not be surprising if the devs at Rockstar took a breather.
Either way, here we are and yet another GTA Online event has been kicked off. As we mentioned earlier, the event lasting from the 9th to the 15th of September is simply called Bonuses Week, and features your standard lineup of a double RP and cash promo, some discounts, and the new premium race.
While the event this time around doesn't have a true unifying theme, it is clearly focused on making the expensive and high end luxury goods more affordable, with some of the most expensive items in the game on a massive discount. All three yachts introduced in Executives and Other Criminals, which are basically the ultimate end-game reward and symbol of wealth, are a massive 50% off, shaving millions from the price.
We say that the yachts are the ultimate end-game item because they are extremely expensive, however their functionality is somewhat limited. Many players claim they are overpriced, however, technically they are about as realistic as you can get. Think about it — in real life, you don't really need a yacht to do stuff, yet they are still expensive.
They're just status symbols, luxury items. The same is true in GTA Online. When someone has a yacht, it means they can spare 10 million for something that isn't actually worth 10 million. Plus, it unlocks one of the most fun jobs in the game, so it does have functionality! But even so, make sure you don't waste your cash, and read this before buying the most expensive yacht. You might reconsider.
The other main discount of the event is 50% off on apartments and offices. Of course, there are quite a few low-end apartments out there, however obviously this discount is aimed at making the best and priciest lofts more affordable. Offices, on the other hand, start at one million and go up from there, so the benefit is clear. The latter are necessary for any black market aspirations your GTA Online character may have, as the CEO missions are only available if you have both a HQ and at least one warehouse.
The same tier discount, meaning half price, is also valid for the Valkyrie and Cargobob vehicles, while a lower discount of 25% applies to high-end apartment interiors and office decor, just in case snatching a discounted new home left you without enough to make it homey and truly your own. The same discount applies to yacht customization options.
Another sweet discount on offer is 25% off the Banshee 900R discount at Benny's Original Motorworks. The discount comes in handy seeing as the upgrades at the lowrider chop shop are among the most expensive things in the game, and the Banshee 900R is a worth addition to your collection. Though it has since lost the throne, it was
As per tradition, there is a double GTA $ and RP promo going on as well, featuring a few maps from the newer Adversary Modes. You can get a piece of the bonuses either by jumping into the Adversary Modes 9 playlist or by manually selecting the maps from the Adversary Modes tab. The three maps on offer are Running Back II, Cross the Line IV and Inch by Inch III.
While Adversary Modes have had a long history of issues with player population, in recent times they have become marginally more popular due to some new Modes which the community enjoys. Every now and then a new AM is released which reverberates well in the community. Slasher, Sumo and most recently Power Play were often played long after release. It seems this promo wishes to increase the popularity of other Modes that have seemingly been forgotten.
A new event also means that a new Premium Race has been designated for the week. There was a reason Rockstar snuck that Banshee 900R discount in there, seeing as the Premium Race on offer for the best and most daring GTA Online racers is The Loop locked to Banshee 900Rs. Remember, Premium Races offer triple the RP gain for all participants, however only the top three finishers get any cash, with first place taking 100k.
With so many event weeks having passed since the release of the Stunt Race Creator, this GTA Online Bonuses Week means one of two things: we're either very near to a new release, or very, very far from one. If history is anything to go on, there really isn't any middle ground. Either the next content update is released the day after tomorrow, or we're going to have to wait until next month. Then again, we might be wrong.
Which promo do you like the most in this GTA Online event?
