Popular Kick streamer Adin Ross has announced plans to create a custom server infused with cryptocurrency for Grand Theft Auto 6. He intends to collaborate with gaming influencer and FaZe Clan CEO and co-founder Richard “FaZe Banks” Bengtson once the highly anticipated game is released.
However, this plan may face significant obstacles. During a livestream on Monday, Ross stated, “When GTA 6 drops, me and Ricky are going to make the biggest server together. And I promise you, it’s going to be completely crypto. Everything pro-crypto about it. It’s going to change the game.”
Banks further suggested that the server would feature an in-game crypto economy fueled by a newly-created coin. Ross also mentioned that they would invest a substantial amount of money into it.
Unfortunately, if history is any indication, the server is likely to be banned. In 2022, Rockstar Games, the creator of the GTA franchise, published an article stating that player-run servers on Grand Theft Auto Online and Red Dead Online could no longer utilize cryptocurrencies, crypto assets, or NFTs in any capacity.
At that time, users had been running GTA 5/GTA Online “role-playing servers” with fan-made modifications. Some of these servers incorporated NFTs and crypto to enhance in-game assets or provide exclusive benefits to players.
As a result of Rockstar’s prohibition on crypto usage, many GTA servers were forced to shut down. This included the NFT-centric GTA server called The Trenches, launched by Chicago rapper Durk “Lil Durk” Banks. Lil Durk’s Only the Family Gaming organization claimed to have received legal counsel from Rockstar’s parent company, Take-Two Interactive.
Nevertheless, there are rumors circulating that GTA 6 may mark a change in Rockstar’s anti-crypto stance. Speculation has been circulating since 2021 that the upcoming game would offer in-game Bitcoin rewards and potentially enable crypto payments.
However, both of these rumors have yet to be substantiated, and Rockstar has not commented on the subject regarding GTA 6. Some believe that crypto may simply be the subject of jokes in the game’s story mode, aligning with the series’ history of satirizing pop culture and society.
Take-Two Interactive has shown interest in the crypto industry through its acquisition of mobile publisher Zynga in 2022, which developed the NFT mobile game Sugartown. At the time, Take-Two CEO Strauss Zelnick expressed belief in the “Web3 opportunities” that the two companies could tackle together.
However, in late 2024, Zynga’s crypto gaming team spun out of the company and formed a new firm called D20 Labs to delve deeper into the world of crypto gaming.
Considering Rockstar’s current stance on crypto assets, it is likely that Ross and Banks will not be able to operate a crypto-fueled GTA 6 server once the game is released later this year. However, circumstances can change—former crypto skeptic Donald Trump even launched a meme coin.
Decrypt reached out to Rockstar Games for comment but did not receive an immediate response.
Edited by Andrew Hayward.