Rockstar apologizes for GTA Definitive Edition issues, will bring back classic PC versions

Rockstar Games has broken its silence over the messy launch of Grand Theft Auto: The Trilogy – The Definitive Edition, the remastered games that, to many fans, weren’t up to the level of quality expected. Rockstar said Friday that it plans to release updates for Grand Theft Auto: The Trilogy – The Definitive Edition to address technical issues with the games, and that it will re-release the classic Windows PC versions of the trilogy that were removed alongside the Definitive Edition’s release.

“Firstly, we want to sincerely apologize to everyone who has encountered issues playing these games,” Rockstar said in a statement on its website. “The updated versions of these classic games did not launch in a state that meets our own standards of quality, or the standards our fans have come to expect.

“We have ongoing plans to address the technical issues and to improve each game going forward. With each planned update, the games will reach the level of quality that they deserve to be.”

The first update for Grand Theft Auto: The Trilogy – The Definitive Edition is due “in the coming days” and will address a number of issues, Rockstar said, but did not specify which.

Rockstar said it also plans to address another major criticism: the removal of the existing PC versions of Grand Theft Auto 3, Vice City, and San Andreas to make way for the Definitive Edition re-releases. “We will be adding the classic PC versions of Grand Theft Auto III, Grand Theft Auto: Vice City, and Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas back to the Rockstar Store shortly as a bundle,” the publisher said. “Additionally, everyone who has purchased Grand Theft Auto: The Trilogy – The Definitive Edition for PC from the Rockstar Store through June 30, 2022, will receive these classic versions in their Rockstar Games Launcher library at no additional cost.”

The company also asked its community to “maintain a respectful and civil discourse around this release as we work through these issues,” citing reports of harassment of its developers on social media.

Rockstar Games released Grand Theft Auto: The Trilogy – The Definitive Edition on Nov. 11 for Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Windows PC, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X. Fans quickly soured on the supposed remaster, pointing out major visual and technical issues — which were compounded by a major outage of the Rockstar Launcher — that sometimes worsened the presentation of the trio of beloved open-world crime games.