GTA 6 PS5 marketing may be at risk, as more devs complain about PlayStation backlash

Complaints over Sony’s move away from physical games didn’t intensify until after the first round of GTA 6 PS5 marketing. Still, insider Moore’s Law Is Dead learned that publishers are growing impatient over the social media backlash. The gaming giant’s partners are not receiving the kind of exposure that they paid for.

As GTA 6 pre-orders began on June 25th, PlayStation launched a “Plays Best on PS5” campaign. Those ads disappeared shortly after announcing that it would print fewer discs in early 2028. However, the shift in focus was likely scheduled, rather than influenced by the news.

Going forward, Rockstar may reconsider allocating so many resources to PlayStation social media. Moore’s Law Is Dead revealed in a new podcast that an anonymous developer contacted him about the situation. The source shed light on how titles end up being featured on the gaming giant’s various accounts.

How PlayStation marketing may work

According to the dev, Sony typically provides a free tweet when a PS5 title debuts or for another major announcement. Even so, facing intense competition, publishers may pay “10s of thousands of dollars” to choose a specific time slot or additional exposure. MLID’s contact expects that most companies would object to negative comments about the death of physical games dominating posts.

Sony took a hiatus from social media, possibly hoping that the outrage would die down. That hasn’t happened, and although GTA 6 PS5 marketing is in a lull, more promotions are to come. A third trailer still hasn’t surfaced, and there are rumors of console bundles. The PS5 Pro could offer the best performance and highest frame rates.

The online presence of Take-Two and Rockstar is large enough to drive sales on its own. It’s worth noting that the disc-less code-in-box format has dampened enthusiasm surrounding physical GTA 6 pre-orders. Nevertheless, even with the outrage now directed at PlayStation, MLID says Rockstar is “going to want this to be over” sooner rather than later.