How old is GTA 5 exactly?

As a passionate gamer and content creator, I‘ve been eagerly anticipating the 10th anniversary of Grand Theft Auto V‘s release coming up on September 17, 2023. It‘s hard to believe it has already been a entire decade since GTA V first launched!

Answering "How old is GTA 5 exactly?"

To clearly answer this question – Grand Theft Auto V is currently 9 years and 5 months old as of March 2023. It first released on September 17, 2013 for PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360.

In just a couple more months, it will officially turn 10 years old since its initial debut. That is quite remarkable for any video game to remain relevant for an entire decade in this fast-paced entertainment landscape!

The Early Success and Acclaim for GTA V

Within its first 24 hours back in 2013, GTA V generated over $800 million in sales globally. And within 3 days, it had surpassed $1 billion, a record achievement.

The game received widespread critical acclaim, with perfect or near perfect review scores praising its advances in gameplay, story telling, and technical prowess. Without question, GTA V was an instant classic.

The above table outlines GTA V‘s release timeline across various gaming platforms over the years.

Redefining Open World Games This Decade

Across gaming forums and publications, GTA V is consistently praised for redefining the open world genre. The vast and breathtakingly detailed map of San Andreas raised the bar in terms of the level of depth, customization, and emergent gameplay made possible.

As both a passionate gamer myself and industry expert through my work, I‘ve found the impact GTA V has had over gaming this past decade to be unparalleled. It set new standards for interactive worlds and provided a sandbox full of possibilities.

Developer Rockstar North specially focused on optimizing the graphics, gameplay, and online connectivity for the more advanced consoles. As a result, GTA Online has grown into a massively popular evolving platform that has kept the game feeling fresh year after year.

Ongoing Updates Over the Years

Rockstar has supported GTA V remarkably well with continuous updates, enhancements, and improvements made since launch across all platforms.

Just looking at the numbers, GTA Online alone has received 21 major content updates adding new weapons, cars, missions, properties, and much more. For context, that is basically 2-3 major updates per year on average!

Recent Next-Gen Upgrades

Most recently, Rockstar released expanded and enhanced editions of GTA V for PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X/S consoles on March 15, 2022. These feature graphics overhauled for 4K resolution, faster loading times, improved textures and draw distances, hardware-specific features like advanced haptics, and a range of other technical upgrades.

Having played it myself across console generations extensively as a gaming expert and enthusiast, I‘ve been blown away by how fantastic and modern GTA V still looks and feels to this day. The passion that goes into maintaining this 10 year old game at the cutting edge amazes me.

The Legacy of an All-Time Great Franchise

Through its long-running success and ubiquity in pop culture, GTA V has undoubtedly cemented its status as one of the most impactful video games ever created.

To celebrate its upcoming 10 year anniversary this September, I think it is important we acknowledge and reflect on the phenomenal legacy built by Rockstar Games here. Over 170 million copies sold globally makes it the second highest selling game ever behind only Minecraft.

With rumors swirling for years on what may be next for Rockstar‘s flagship franchise, GTA V somehow still feels as relevant as ever before crossing the decade mark. I don‘t see that changing anytime soon either as the community eagerly awaits official word on GTA 6!

Let me know your thoughts on GTA V turning 10 years old this year! For me, September 17, 2023 will represent a special milestone for Grand Theft Auto fans worldwide to look back on the magic created over the past decade.