Rockstar Games has finally revealed the release date, as well as a trailer, for the highly anticipated Gunrunning DLC for GTA Online. Naturally, in the hours since the video went live, the community has analyzed every single frame of footage to discover any new information about what to expect when the new content becomes available.
This reveal has confirmed a number of our own suspicions and predictions we voiced over the course of our extensive coverage of Gunrunning, including the release date. Hinted at by the duration of the currently running in-game bonuses, the DLC will go live on the 13th of June, next Tuesday.
The trailer confirmed some concepts and raised entirely new ones. First of all, the buggy-like vehicle seen in that one screenshot of the bunker interior is actually driveable, meaning that bunkers will be massive on the inside too, warranting the aforementioned mentioned vehicles. As opposed to the previous updates' game mechanic properties, where the main property such as the office or the clubhouse was separate from the warehouses, it seems you'll be storing your goods in your bunker as well this time around.
Planning rooms and the previously seen shooting ranges will join what look like workshops mixed with laboratories to fill out the vast amounts of space in your new nefarious underground HQ. Scenes depicting characters working on weapon parts and schematics posted on walls indicate that you'll be unlocking new weapons through the research mechanic that Rockstar teased earlier.
It seems that weapon customization will also be a major aspect of this DLC — think Benny's Original Motorworks, but for guns. One particularly eagle-eyed player has already pinpointed the location of one of the bunkers, which is located a just a lick south of the prison and west of the windfarm.
This new weapon customization feature seems to be limited to a handful of pre-existing weapons as well as some new ones, however it's possible that new guns will be made customizable in future updates. The wild and complex color schemes of the guns in the trailer are the first and most obvious indication of this feature, however a slew of new attachments will also give it a practical edge. That said, we can already see that the "matte-black primary color with mountain dew neon green" gun color scheme will be added to the list of ponce characteristics, right next to the chrome Zentorno with dollar rims.
The weaponized vehicles steal the scene, though. It seems as if the fins and wings on the rocket-powered bikes aren't just for show. Either they can jump really high and far thanks to the speed boost of the jet engine, or they can outright fly, which would be pretty ridiculous. Iconic, GTA-branded ridiculous, mind you. They have been confirmed to fire missiles, however.
We caught glimpses of new weaponized vehicles as well. A previously unseen large truck with a full-sized, four-barreled anti-air turret mounted on the rear makes a debut, and we get a better view of one of the vehicles seen in a previous screenshot. This is now identified as a weaponized buggy with a gun mount on the passenger seat. Some shots offer a view of an alternate loadout for the buggy where the MG is replaced by a minigun.
Players quickly concluded that the new vehicle with the AA turret is based on the Dartz Prombron. Dartz is a car company which, in spite of existing in the real world, seems like it would perfectly fit into GTA without any alteration. They sell armored luxury vehicles with a military vibe at ludicrous costs, use whale foreskin leather for their upholstery (we're not making this up) and use joke-marketing which plays up the company as selling mainly to dictators and tsars. One of their more recent ad campaigns features footage of Donald Trump, subtitled "dictator of the USA". Again, this is a real company. Somehow.
We also see the anti-air missile rack configuration of the APC in action as it takes out a Savage with a single shot. Of course, the Savage has a reputation of being made out of paper held together by spit and prayers, and we'd be more impressed if the trailer showed off a bunch of Hydras being mercilessly obliterated, but it's still an impressive show of force — and hey, the Savage appears many times in the trailer. Maybe it got a buff?
We're also shown our first non-weaponized new vehicle of the update. Seen for a slip second near the 0:36 mark is a single-propeller fixed wing plane taking off amid explosions. Even though it barely had a second of screentime, this plane caught the attention of many players who debated what we're looking at. Theories included a refitted World-War 2 era fighter, which had players getting excited about some good old dogfighting, however some maintain that it's just the Velum already found in the game.
Another scene sees the jet-powered bikes jump out of the lowered cargo ramp of what seems to be a new plane allowing players to drive vehicles inside, have the plane take off, then drive out of it. Similarly, it has been shown that the Mobile Operations Center can lower the ramp while mobile and another vehicle can drive off or in seamlessly.
This answers our technical question about instancing from the last time there was a press release about the update. It seems entering and interacting with the MOC will not be instanced at all, meaning no loading screens separating the interior of the truck. This means that Rockstar has really refined some of the underlying code and optimized world interaction behind the scenes.
People who haven't had experience trying to code something like this will be hard pressed to understand what a feat this is. In-game, this looks like one mobile dynamic object, which can be entered by player characters (another dynamic object) can possess an interior which, since the vehicle is moving, will also move. Then, another dynamic object (the smaller vehicle) can drive into the first and instantly switch its relative reference point from the game world itself to the moving object (the MOC). At the same time, the trailer shows that other player characters can move around the interior freely and interact with objects. This is art. Oh, and keep in mind that other games can get thinks like pathfinding wrong, just to put it into perspective.
Additionally, it is shown that players can control the defense systems of the mobile operations center from a terminal inside the vehicle. Only the targeting system is shown, but it seems like guided missiles can be fired at selected targets. There is also a weapons locker and armor rack inside the truck, and based on a toolbox you'll be able to upgrade vehicles on the go as well. If course it goes without saying that the MOC is customizable.
The Juggernaut armor also makes an appearance in the trailer. It's unclear if the armor will be available in freemode by any means or if Rockstar snuck footage of a new Adversary Mode into the trailer, but we're holding out hope for the former. Aside from the Juggernaut outfit, a wide range of new clothing items will be available, of which we got a better look thanks to snippets of player characters in the trailer. There seems to be an abundance of new masks.
Gunrunning is definitely shaping up to be an extremely action-packed DLC, and we're looking forward to next Tuesday to finally dive into this new form of crime on offer.
