server stability on launch night — i'm betting on a 48-hour meltdown

GTA Online's launch in 2013 was a complete disaster. Infinite loading screens, character wipes, the whole mess. And that was just a mode tacked onto a game that had already sold 30 million copies. GTA 6 is the full package, day one, with pre-orders that probably broke every record Rockstar had. The server load won't just be high, it'll be an extinction-level event.

Rockstar's had years to prepare, sure. They've scaled up infrastructure. But no stress test simulates 20 million people hammering the login at once. I'm a completionist, so I'll be deep in single-player for the first week anyway, but I still expect the online component to be a queue simulator for at least 48 hours. Maybe 72. The real question is whether they can avoid the progress-wiping bugs that plagued GTA Online's first month. I'm less optimistic there.

I'm putting the over/under at 48 hours of intermittent service, and I'm taking the over. Anyone who thinks it'll be smooth is delusional.

48 hours of intermittent service

I'll take the over. The "unprecedented demand" excuse is already copy-pasted.

from an RP server dev angle, login queues arent the problem. im more worried they rewrote the netcode and we cant hook our frameworks in for six weeks. rockstar's meltdown is just the opening act.

queue simulator

That's my worry too but I'm not losing sleep. I'll start Lucia's story at nine, pause to do dishes, and be in bed by eleven. If the servers are melting I'll read about it the next morning. Singleplayer doesn't need a login.