Rockstar Games officially announced that GTA Online support for PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 will permanently shut down on December 16. This gives you around six months to finish sorting your in-game businesses.
Rockstar also plans to discontinue selling its in-game currency, known as Shark Cash Cards (or Shark Cards).
After nearly eight years of game run-time, Rockstar is shutting down the first GTA Online servers for PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360. Instead, Rockstar would invest its resources in preparing for Fall launches of the "Grand Theft Auto V" Expanded and Enhanced version (GTA V E&E), playable on PS5, Xbox Series X/S and PC.
Closing GTA Online on PS3 and Xbox 360 comes in two phases. First, on September 16, Shark Cards for GTA Online would no longer be sold. Then, on December 16, GTA Online Services for PS3 and Xbox versions will be discontinued.
Changes would include:
- Removal of GTA Online Multiplayer Mode
- Removal of GTA Online Leaderboards
- Removal of Website Stat Tracking via Rockstar Games Social Club
Note, however, that none of these changes will impact access or progress in the "GTA V" Story Mode. You get to keep their data and play the game normally in the campaign mode.
Can You Refund Shark Cards Purchases?
As mentioned, Rockstar would discontinue selling Shark Cards on September 16. Unfortunately, the virtual currency and virtual goods purchases are platform-specific data and cannot be transferred to a different console. No refunds would be made for pre-existing and previously bought Shark Card credits.
If you still have a few credits in your account, you should splurge and enjoy your in-game purchases now. These data would automatically be deleted on December 16.
Can You Transfer Character Data?
Engadget reported back in 2014 that players could transfer GTA Online character progress from Xbox 360 and PS3 to Xbox One and PS4, respectively. However, the service encountered a lot of issues that prevented most character transfers.
This year, however, Rockstar Game Support said that no feature will be available to transfer character data or progress between platforms. All pre-existing data for PS3 and Xbox 360 GTA Online would probably be deleted in the shutdown process.
If you want to continue playing GTA Online, you have to restart and play using the new generation consoles like PS5 or Xbox Series X/S. You could also consider playing in PC format, which receives regular updates of all in-game content.
GTA Online shutting down for Xbox 360 and PS3 is no surprise to YouTuber MrBossFTW. He pointed out that Rockstar has long stopped updating GTA Online Xbox 360 and PS3 versions since September 2015. So, after six years of continuous runtime, it makes sense that Rockstar decides to shut the entire thing down.
Despite these updates, you should still look forward to GTA Online for the different gaming consoles. This development only confirms that Rockstar Gaming has exciting upgrades for GTA Online on PS5, Xbox Series X/S, and PC!
