BERLIN: Millions of Grand Theft Auto fans pre-loading the long-awaited GTA VI at the same time is causing noticeably more data traffic at Internet service providers around the world.
The latest instalment of the blockbuster action game series is due for release on Nov 19, but has been available for pre-load since Nov 10 due to the massive size of the game (212GB).
The traffic increase began after midnight, continuing into Tuesday (Nov 10) morning, when many broadband companies reported spikes in data traffic.
In the UK, broadband provider Virgin Media O2 said it had its highest-ever daily data volume on Nov 10. In the first hour of pre-loading, Virgin Media O2 recorded a 51% increase in broadband traffic between midnight and 1 am on Nov 10 compared with the previous week.
In Germany, telecommunications company 1&1 reported an "unusual increase" on Monday (Nov 9) night. Significant rises were recorded in data traffic from users of the online services of the PlayStation and Xbox game consoles.
"Compared with ordinary nights, the increase was at times about a factor of 10," a spokesman said.
German provider Telekom made similar comments. "In the first night of the pre-load, we saw very high data traffic," the company said. The volume had been many times higher than usual.
In the United States, telecommunications giant Comcast said it had expected the pre-load and launch window to drive the highest weekly traffic volume in the history of its Xfinity network, with senior vice president Kohposh Kuda stating that the provider had built its infrastructure specifically for millions downloading simultaneously.
Most pre-ordered game of all time
According to Sony, GTA VI is the most pre-ordered game of all time on the PlayStation Store. Large billboards advertising the game have been seen in major cities around the world.
So far, it appears that the pre-load is spreading out over several days, European telecommunications company Vodafone said. This eases major peaks in load. However, the base load remains elevated.
"When many people download more than 200 gigabytes at the same time, a lot of data traffic adds up. Our network is prepared for such peaks," said Marc Hölzer, head of network development.
Internet providers also expect higher data volumes on the official release day, Nov 19.
How long the download takes
While gamers won't need the full 10 days that Sony and Microsoft are allowing for pre-loading, the scale of the open-world game means that it can take more than a day to load, depending on the Internet connection.
The severe strain on broadband infrastructure stems from the game's file size of 212GB. Telekom calculated that while a high-speed gigabit connection can complete the download in around 28 minutes, users on standard 50 megabit-per-second lines require roughly nine and a half hours, stretching to over 47 hours on slower 10 Mbit/s connections.
The GTA series from Rockstar Games is one of the best-known video game series worldwide and was first released in 1997. Its predecessor came out in 2013 and has since sold more than 200 million copies. GTA VI is likely to become the most expensive entertainment product in history, with an estimated budget of well over US$1bil (RM4.07bil). – dpa
