Rockstar Games confirms players will be able to spend real-world money on "GTA$" through an in-game store, warns of "growing pains" at launch.

Rockstar Games today confirmed that Grand Theft Auto V's multiplayer mode--GTA Online--will support microtransactions. The confirmation comes after various leaks about the subject earlier this week.

The developer explained that cash can be accumulated through knocking over armored cars, winning street races, and doing stick-ups, but also by spending real-world money.

Players will have the option to purchase GTA$ through an in-game store in various denominations. Rockstar said the game and its economy have been designed and balanced with the expectation that the "vast majority" of players will not purchase extra cash.

"There is no in-game paywall and nothing that should disrupt the balance of the game. You don’t have to spend real money to attain the cars, guns, clothes, flash, and style of a high-roller in Los Santos, but can if you wish to get them a little quicker," Rockstar Game said.

The GTA Online economy is balanced differently than the single-player economy, Rockstar Games said. Cash earned in one mode cannot be taken over to the over. In addition, the developer said most players will earn cash "much faster" in GTA Online than in the main game.

When GTA Online launches on October 1, gamers should expect various "growing pains," Rockstar Games said. This includes, but is not limited to, crashes, glitches, "crazy bugs," and gameplay modes and mechanics that need re-balancing, the developer explained.

"This sort of thing is inevitable in a massive open-world game and there'll surely be lots more unexpected oddities like this in the Online world next week," Rockstar Games said. "Rest assured we'll be monitoring and actively doing all we can to smooth such things out as they happen, but we need your help to find them, as well as your feedback to help fine tune all of the game's systems so everything is perfectly balanced."

Rockstar Games also outlined currently planned GTA Online content updates, which will roll out in the "first few weeks" after launch. Some of these updates include the Content Creator, which players can use to create their own customized deathmatches and races; and the Beach Bum Pack, which features four new vehicles, 300 items of leisure clothing, and two new weapons.

Also coming to GTA Online through future updates is a Capture the Flag mode and Heist missions, where players can work together to perform a number of jobs.

These updates will be free, Rockstar Games said.

Overall, Rockstar Games said GTA Online is "something brand new for us," a world that will grow and take shape over time. The ultimate shape of GTA Online will be determined as much by players as Rockstar Games, the developer said. "What you like and don’t like, what you play and what you want will determine how the game develops and what it turns into."

To that end, Rockstar Games said it is "vital" that players provide feedback on GTA Online from the moment it goes live next week. "The first few months of Grand Theft Auto Online will be critical as everyone enters this dynamic new world for the first time," the developer said.

Rockstar Games said it is "working around the clock" to buy and add more servers to support the pressure of millions of players logging into the game. The developer admitted that this "increased scale" may lead to the first few days of GTA Online being "even more temperamental than such things usually are."

"We apologize in advance for this and thank you for your patience in this area," Rockstar Games said.

Players can send feedback to Rockstar Games at GTAOnline@rockstargames.com from launch day. In addition, the developer plans to launch GTA Online-specific forums through the Social Club sometime this fall after the online mode's release.

GTAV launched last Tuesday for the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3, generating a record-setting $800 million on launch day alone and $1 billion in three days. Versions of the game for the Xbox One and PlayStation 4 are likely to be released in 2014, according to one analyst.

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