So, heists...........

[Pb76 3,952]

What do you think so far?

Sh0tgunSur9ery23 hosted the first one (fleeca bank). It was good fun, paid well and unlocked the kuruma. No disconnections or usual r* nonsense. All good so far.

The next heist was where it went tits up. Sh0tgun launched the job and we all got disconnected, when I eventually arrived back in free mode, I had lost all game sound (apart from the noise my phone makes when scrolling), ended up rebooting, having to log back into rsc (which then said I wasn't in a crew and had no friends)

Anyone having better luck out there?

[Squirrel 5,180]

I'm online at last and trying the 1st set up job, completely unable to get anyone to join me as the download keeps failing. Tried to launch the job alone and it won't let me. Well done rockstar!

[maatuska_ 22]

Worse luck so far: first heist we did the first part and after that got disconnected / booted / whatever and couldn't relaunch it.

[zmurko 7,622]

Services are a total mess. Guess I was actually lucky to at least complete the first 2-player mini-heist and unlock and buy the Kuruma.

[PapOiteE 465]

I couldn't launch the Finale of the 1st heist. I got stuck on the loading screen, had to restart my ps3. Then I invited Ninja to join me but he kept receiving an error message and couldn't join.

 

My character's skin color changed from black to white.

 

It is messy...

[JustHatched 12,123]

Me, Wriagnbow, Burger and Ern got thru the 2nd without much issue with servers, a few disconnects but it was in the invite screen, no actual disconnects when playing.

[ronin 596]

First heist went like a charm, except for me taking ages to complete the second hacking mini-game ... sry Juve !

 

Second heist didn't work. All kinds of failures and connection errors.

 

This was all on PS3

 

On PS4 tried to do a 4 men heist earlier. Tried for one hour, didn't work out, again due to all kinds of errors.

 

In a way it was to be expected. After all, this is the biggest DLC since launch and yes, it's for free. But then again, I'm also seriously disappointed that a billion dollar company can't handle this sh*t from a technological/operational point of view.

 

Things will eventually settle down, but it might take a while ...

[LimeGreenLegend 4,275]

no snacks, scottyb, LN and I managed to do the prison bust heist smooth as eggs and it was frigging amazing. Then spent about two hours trying to launch the humane labs heist. Those R* servers putting in a good show again, although I am surprised they managed to hold up as long as they did.

[giustoe 30]

If you remember when they launched the online game for the first days it was a complete mess ... I think situation will become smooth for everyone in a couple days

[irathernot 18]

First Heist went fine and was good fun. I wanted to meet with my team in a bit but this looks like Christmas event all over again..

[ErnYoung 548]

First heist went smooth and was not too difficult aside from not knowing what to expect.

 

As Hatch stated we had a couple issues launching job for the second heist, but once in were able to work them.

 

I found the second heist to be pretty intense as the tactical objectives were not entirely clear during the jobs. I consider this a good thing as the jobs are fairly unpredictable and challenging.

 

E

[PapOiteE 465]

There's also something so stupid with this update: There's nothing new on single player

[SeymorScagneti 1,274]

@Every member of Team Hatch

[Jaggy 2,811]

Haven't tried them yet.  Planned to not play the game at all on the release of heists because of these exact problems.  It was predictable.  

 

Would love to play the first heist for that Kuruma though.  Maybe they will be working by tomorrow night, if not, Saturday night it is.

[Burgermauger 262]

Yes it was predictable that everyone wanted to play, but not everyone was having a bad go at it... We at team hatch had a pretty productive day, and I myself have to say that heists were definitely worth the wait. Strategic, Complex, Fun, only down side like hatch said was if you die the whole setup or main heist has to be restarted.

[Torrid 653]

Planning to wait until PS3 Saturday for the first attempt.  Not sure when I'll get a chance on PS4.  I'm just hoping servers will hold up well enough tonight for a playlist.

[LN-MLB 2,583]

Scotty and I played the first heist that unlocks the Karuma, and we were later joined by G-Town and some random with a bad mic.  We completed the Prison heist with Snacks and LimeGreen.

 

Overall, I would say they are quite interesting and a lot of fun.  Patience, a full supply of body armor, sufficient amounts of ammo, bullet proof tires, and excellent communication are a must.  There is truly never a dull moment per say, as every individual involved in the job is busy doing something.  If you happen to die, well, you must re-start from a pre-determined checkpoint, as everyone on the team must survive until the very end.  The payouts are decent, but the leader must provide the upfront costs, and if I remember correctly, they do not earn anything from each individual step of the full heist.

 

I'm looking forward to trying all of these and giving each specific role in the heist a try.  Each person involved takes away something entirely different from the experience, and it's great if you have a solid group of people who communicate well with each other.  We had an excellent time giving this a try, and to make it through without one person dying is a hell of a lot more complicated than most people believe.  NPCs are numerous and there is only so much body armor that you can hold.

 

As for the update itself without mentioning heists--well, it's ok, I suppose.  The tutorial bug is back, and I could only invite or join certain people from the menu.  I don't know if it's just me, but Scotty and I both seem to believe that the graphics have been updated for the game as a whole.  Everything looks so much clearer and has great detail.  Garages and animations have been changed, and the garage itself is very well lit and bright.

 

The cars are interesting, but I only have the Karuma (armored) and the truck.  We unlocked the new sports classic after the heist, and I love the way it drives, so that is next on my list to buy.  I haven't tried the new game modes, but I haven't heard anything positive about them.  Oh and going on-call for a job does not seem to be available any longer.  When you launch a quick job from the phone, it gives you a timer and the name of the job, but you don't see the lobby.  If you want to go directly into the lobby of a random job, you have to do this from the pause menu.

 

Overall, it's not bad, but I really hope they iron out some of the issues that have been haunting us in the past.  Not being able to join or invite people sucks on about 65 million different levels.

[Pb76 3,952]

I tried the hasta la vista mode with some randoms, It was so-so. Only room for 2 trucks and 2 bicycles though, someone could probably do better in capture creator.

Re heists......I have already given up with getting the bonus awards. I'm not part of a team so won't achieve that part, I'll never get through 'em all without dying and tbh, I don't really want the money either. I happy just playing them whenever, so if you're stuck for a 4th man and I'm online, feel free to invite me

[zztop911 1,609]

Well, the servers came back on line late and couldn't find anyone from this crew. A new friend invited me to the Prison Break, so I joined for my first multi-player game and first heist. Naturally their was teething pains, but we eventually got everything done and were able to regroup fine for each stage. I really enjoyed it. Like most said, mikes are a definite must.

 

I sure can't see doing this with randoms though.

[DjNogaro 14]

Just think R* should pick their staff up...they should have money to hire people to handle mass server issues.

[djw180 6,977]

I've not had chance to do anything organized in advance with other XDBX members yet, so mainly just responded to random invites. I wouldn't recommend that. I've attempted 4 heists so far. Two never even started because, I assume, one of the other players got disconnected or quit. (One of those after waiting the full 5 minutes on the outfit / mask picking screen, why does it need 5 mins?). Another one started but there was no attempt at coordination, one player raced off ahead of everyone else and got themselves killed, so mission failed. We tried to restart, and again I assume someone quit or disconnected because I eventually ended up back in free-roam. The one that did succeed was with another XDBX member.

Edited March 11, 2015 by djw180

[G37 3,445]

Alright. Some thoughts.

 

Heists, Toys and Work

 

After completing GTA 5, I resigned myself to the fact that R* had pretty much given up on the whole narrative bit regarding their games. In GTA 4 I could feel it starting to lose grip but the story mode for 5 - it wasn't there. There was a new approach. I see it in Heists as well. Plot wise they're all completely disjointed and feel just as superficial as the campaign mode itself. That's a story for another time though. What they lack there, they more than make up for with decent enough voice acting, but more importantly, involvement. There's certainly a real sense of engagement and co-operative game play. A team is a team for a reason now. Your own success, really the success of the mission, is as individual as it is team based. There seems to be a solid balance between doing things on your own in contrast to doing them in small teams. The real stand out in that regard are the roles you're to assume for the whole process. Set-ups for each Heist make it that much more rewarding (and frustrating).

 

Each Heist is progressively more difficult and thoughtful than the last (of course still lacking a certain .. mortar to hold it all together, a cohesive story line). There's a certain hook, line and sinker with this system that keeps you on edge for your own duties, but also rooting for the success of your team as they attempt to complete their own tasks (even being able to go help once you're free and clear). The pacing is pretty well set and it all leads up to the finale as you work up to this climax. It's rewarding as I mentioned and it's most certainly satisfying. This is the content .. no, the substance, we've been looking for and missing ALL this time. Was it worth a year and a half wait? I guess that depends on the person. It's definitely breathed new life into the game even if it's so limited in how many you can bring (strongly wish it was 4-6 players). I'm more so leaning towards "yes, it was certainly what I hoped it to be (maybe because I had low expectations). 

 

Touching back on the roles of each Heist and set up, there is certainly some serious replay-ability present. Some roles aren't so different in the sense that even if you're on guard duty at a bank (1st Heist/Tutorial), I wouldn't be so inclined to become the "hacker and driller" for it. What's done is done there, IMO. However the more you progress, the more diverse you find your roles where you WILL experience something completely different. If you like variety then that spice of life will absolutely entice you to try out the other roles within your team. Take Humane labs for instance. Without any spoilers on the final Heist you have your grounds and infiltration team and you have your security team. One is all about breaching the facility while the other, with a team mate, whom is  in a very precarious situation with you, work together to keep enemies at bay (it's like a Survival on steroids). Communication is nothing short of essential to your group's success and walking away with a paycheck. Chemistry and being able to work well alone and in a team is what makes this such a memorable experience. Ultimately what you get out of it, like any online game, is what you put into it with the people you meet.

 

Time wise, 2-3 hours per Heist (set up to finale) seems like a bit of an exaggeration to me, although I can see players taking that long. That's not necessarily to say that someone is slow, no, don't get me wrong, but I can see a group of people completely submersing themselves for that long to get every single detail correct. From my perspective (finished Humane Labs), they seem to add a bit more time to each one and from start to finish it's probably running us about 75 minutes. So there is certainly some meat to the bone here, you better grab hold.

 

Regarding the toys you work to unlock, it's a novel idea. It's ultimately far more thought out than their level system (I.E. can't buy this jacket until your level 50 type nonsense). You're really only given access to most of the clothes and 2 rides up front, encouraging you to put in the effort to get everything else. Make NO mistake about it, that's another layer to this experience that gives people drive, something to work toward. The money is nice, surely, but this is constructed in such a nice way that you can't help but feel good when you've unlocked something (granted, you still have to buy it). Ultimately, if you're looking to do this for the cash pay out, you're gonna be disappointed. Do Heists with the mindset that this has been the missing component for making this as close to a complete game and experience as possible. 

 

Speaking of the toys, there's a great variety (I still can't help but yearn for more because it HAS been a 5 month hiatus of getting any content like that). I wish for more customizations as well, but that's a minor complaint. Some of the Pegasus vehicles are an absolute hoot and I would definitely acquire them if they were storable inside your garage. Take the Insurgents for example. One comes with a roof mounted gun while the other does not. They're an absolute blast to toy with and can definitely layer in wonderfully with some kind of free roam take over (but at the same time they might not, free roam having the nature it does). Then there's the long awaited and speculated Hydra plane. I was able to purchase this last night. Having played San Andreas I was a bit disappointed with it. There it seemed far more fluid and capable. The vertical and horizontal propulsion systems are locked to a "flick of the switch" on the d-pad. They move on their own to get into the proper position, there's really no manual control so to speak (unless you count flicking that switch back and forth multiple times). It feels old, it feels slow (as you're told in the Heist). It's still a fantastic addition but I can't help but wonder why they haven't added the Lazer to the list of Warstock Cache and Carry vehicles. I'm not done with all the Heists, still a couple more to go but there is a serious anticipation here to do them and kudos to R* for nailing that aspect down cold.

 

Alright, TL;DR: Heists are here and they're here in a big way. You would have the wrong mentality if you're going into this simply for the pay check. This is far too involved. You will get the most out of this experience with a group of people you know, like a crew, and it's strongly recommended you have a way to communicate audibly. It's not without it's flaws, but the system on the whole works well enough and you will have plenty of memorable experiences as you pave your way through set up to finale. There's a strong replay factor present here and the various roles and engagement from a team and individual perspective finally lets GTA:O be a (almost) complete online experience. Let's just hope it doesn't stop here.

Edited March 11, 2015 by G37