GTA inspired FPS announces free Steam playtest

When it comes to the Grand Theft Auto series, perhaps none is more important for the open-world action genre, inspiring a plethora of wannabes that never quite capture the essence of the ever-popular franchise.

The Grand Theft Auto series began back in 1997 as a humble top-down action game for the PC and original PlayStation. However, it would be fair to say that few (including Rockstar Games) could have predicted the juggernaut that it would evolve into today following the launch of GTA III in 2001 for the PlayStation 2.

Check out the Crime Boss: Rockay City trailer below!

There are many pretenders who try to claim the throne that is so easily defended by Rockstar Games. However, one of the newest contenders is Crime Boss: Rockay City developed by INGAME STUDIOS.

To be fair to Crime Boss: Rockay City, while the Grand Theft Auto inspiration is clear to see, it seems that it also takes inspiration from co-op bank heist shooter Payday. Once exclusive to the Epic Games Store on PC in 2023, Crime Boss: Rockay City is coming to the Steam platform in just a week.

“Welcome to the 90’s Rockay City! Heist, loot and shoot your way to the top of the criminal underworld!” reads the synopsis of Crime Boss: Rockay City. “Build your criminal empire in the single-player rogue-lite campaign or put together a crew with your friends in action-packed co-op multiplayer heists!”

It’s no secret that Crime Boss: Rockay City struggled at launch with bugs, a repetitive gameplay loop and an uninspired story despite an amazing cast of actors including Michael Madsen, Kim Basinger, Michael Rooker and more. Thankfully, from what we hear the game has vastly improved following a series of updates since launch.

Now, with the Steam release just around the corner, the developers at INGAME STUDIOS want to ensure that its launch goes as swimmingly as possible and to give it the best chance, you can take part in its free playtest.

The playtest is to test run the latest Update 9 but if you want to take part, you better act fast because it ends tomorrow 9 June at 4pm UK time/5pm CEST. What’s more, all of the Crime Boss: Rockay City DLC is free for a limited time.

Crime Boss: Rockay City is out now on PC (Epic Games Store), PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X/S. It will be released on Steam on 18 June 2024.