Best Cloud Gaming Platforms for GTA 5

Grand Theft Auto 5 is one of the biggest games ever. With being close to 10 years old, GTA 5 is still being played regularly by many. We are all waiting patiently for GTA 6 but until then, GTA 5 will have to do.

GeForce Now removed the game from their game list several years ago so this has limited the choices for easy access cloud gaming services. We tried many cloud gaming platforms so here is our experiences on the platforms we covered. We’ll continue to add to this list as we cover GTA 5 on more platforms.

Playing GTA 5 on Boosteroid

Boosteroid was our first choice to play GTA 5 since GeForce Now is not available so we are glad that a solid cloud gaming platform like Boosteroid was able to offer it on their platform. Without further ado, let’s see what you’ll be getting into when playing GTA 5 on Boosteroid.

Multiple Third-Party Platforms Offered

Boosteroid also understands the massive popularity of GTA 5. So, they offer it not just for Steam but for the Epic Games platform as well. I am surprised that it is not available on the Rockstar Games Platform as they have Red Dead Redemption 2 under Rockstar Games. Maybe they will add GTA 5 for this platform in the near future. I have it on Steam so I am going to login and play the Steam version.  

Using the Boosteroid App

I started playing GTA 5 on the Boosteroid Desktop App and everything ran fine until I got to the point where I was actually playing. I started stuttering like crazy and the game was completely unplayable and I have no reason why. I then switched to playing on the browser and everything worked out fine. I am not sure if it was because my latency is bad since I am in the US or if it is something with the app itself but playing on the browser gave me no problems whatsoever so keep this in mind. I’ll give it a pass for now because it is still in Beta but I might avoid it in the near future until these issues are fixed.

This was long ago and since then they have fixed the problems I was having so you should have no issues.

Signup for Boosteroid here

Quick Benchmark

You are probably wondering how well the visuals hold up on Boosteroid. Since Boosteroid doesn’t want you to change any graphics settings, I ran a quick benchmark to see what kind of frames I would get on the default graphics settings. As I mentioned before, after I switched to the web browser, gameplay was quite smooth.

Boosteroid displays the game at a steady frame rate of about 60fps at 1080p. I have no complaints here. But to be honest, I expected Boosteroid to handle this with no problem – especially for a 9-year-old game.

Game Mechanics

I played GTA 5 on Boosteroid with basically no issues. Gameplay is smooth with little hiccups and the lag is surprisingly very manageable. I thought I was going to have a really hard time playing GTA 5 because of the distance I have between Boosteroid servers and I could play just fine.

Diving was okay and I managed to get where I was going without crashing into everything. Shooting took a second or two to get down but even that just took a few shots for me to calibrate. I also had very little hiccups play GTA Online as well.

Overview

All in all, playing GTA 5 on Boosteroid is a solid experience. Even checking out the girls is easy. If you have Boosteroid just to play GTA 5, you made a good choice. You will sure get your monies worth playing GTA 5 on Boosteroid.

Playing GTA 5 on Shadow Tech

Since Shadow is one of best or maybe the most leading cloud PC rental on the market, it would be a good idea to see how well GTA 5 runs on the platform. Let’s see how things look with this almost 10 year old game.

Graphics and Benchmark

First thing first – Graphics. GTA 5 is was released in 2013. Shadow should have no problem running this game. That’s why we are trying on 4K. I have a 4K monitor and well crank up the graphics to see how we are running.

The benchmark varies the FPS from 40s to 60. I would say the average was about 50ish. Since the benchmark doesn’t have a final average overall, we’ll have to go with that. I’ll keep with 4K at these settings.

Gameplay

I have the steam FPS counter up in the corner in game to showcase what the FPS is really like in game. What the actual FPS is in game is a kinda a different story in a good way. What gets me is the stream. I don’t know if it was the game or the Shadow app but the game doesn’t seem like it is running at the FPS the game is presenting. And it’s not why? This is a game that needs Vsync. If this is not on the game will be choppy.

I would say the average during gameplay is around 45. Now this is still higher than when I came out on consoles initially so you OGs should be used to this frame rate. Just make sure to turn Vsync on and things should be pretty smooth.

The game played just fine though. Response time was good on controller and mouse and keyboard due to my latency being around 17 which is some of the best latency I have ever had from my Shadow machine.

Driving was easy, aiming your shots became second nature, and hitting on chicks ain’t no thang.

Overview

Overall, Shadow plays GTA 5 great. It holds up on 4K very well with the frame rate being close to 60. If you play on a resolution less than 4K, you should have no issues, even on max settings.

Playing GTA 5 on NetBoom

For the first game we tried on NetBoom, it had to be GTA 5. Why? Because I know you guy love your GTA. Is NetBoom a suitable cloud gaming platform to play one of the biggest games of all time? Or is it posing just to take you money? Well strap in cause we’re going for ride.

Graphics

To be honest, I wasn’t expecting much from NetBoom in terms of performance. I initially had the graphics all set to normal but, I had to turn the heat up just to see what NetBoom is capable of doing. So I did and ran the benchmark. Let’s see how everything goes.

The benchmark ran exceptionally well at 1080p. I wish NetBoom supported streams higher than 1080p cause the hardware can handle it – at least in this game.

Gameplay

Once I get into the story game, things look okay. The stream could be better – a lot better. This is unfortunate because my server is close, probably closer to me than GeForce Now servers. Take a look at the in-game network monitoring tool they have. The RTT stands for Round-Trip Time and it’s close to latency but not exactly. The time dips below 20 ms which makes response time great.

I started playing on my Xbox controller. I do believe something is wrong with the plugin because won’t allow me to use some buttons on the controller. It’s pretty weird. I couldn’t shoot out of the window. I switched to mouse and keyboard after this and played with no problem.

The stream is the worst part about this. The game FPS remains 60 but the stream encode and decode frequently dips well below 60. It is very playable though.

Mobile Gameplay

Mobile gameplay on the Android app was surprisingly good. I was on a 5Ghz WiFi network which I suggest to play the game. I recommend using a Bluetooth gamepad rather than the touch controls.

Overview

I actually would recommend playing GTA 5 on NetBoom. It’s not my preferred method of playing but, I had a decent time once I switched to mouse and keyboard. I would pass if you have bad latency though. But I guess you can only find out once you pay for the service unfortunately.

Playing GTA 5 on Vortex

One thing most of these Pickup n’ Play cloud gaming platforms have in common is that they have some of the most popular games on their game list. GTA 5 is one of the most anticipated and most played games of all time. It’s nice to see that even Vortex has it on their platform for not just Steam but for Epic Games as well.

So if you take one good thing away from the Vortex platform, the only “one up” they have on the likes of GeForce Now is that they offer GTA 5. So let’s see how it plays.

Note: Vortex is currently SHUT DOWN

GTA 5 Benchmark on Vortex

The first thing I wanted to know about GTA 5 on Vortex was how well it ran. This is an 8 year-old game and in reality, the system should have no problems running this game. Let’s see.

I really shouldn’t be surprised but I am. The FPS was all over the place and dropped to almost single digits a number of times. The average FPS looked like it was somewhere between 30 and 40 FPS at 720p which is much too low. I don’t get it. I really don’t. But this is the true reality of gaming performance on Vortex. Please don’t expect much.

If you want to see exactly what Vortex is working with, click here to check out our Vortex benchmark.

Game Mechanics

The gameplay actually held itself together for the most part while playing in-game. It surprisingly ran okay doing normal activities. Ride through the streets, viewing cut scenes, and taking on the cops runs perfectly fine on Vortex. It’s not until you hit a densely populated area or start flying is when you will get serious FPS drops.

Playing on both controller and mouse and keyboard work fine but playing on a controller will work better for you.

Playing GTA 5 on Android

We also tried playing GTA 5 through the Vortex app on Android. Overall, I wasn’t happy with it. It was slow and clunky. The in-game controller didn’t work well. I highly suggest a Bluetooth controller to play if you do. Also, make sure you have 5GHz Wifi connection or it will be painfully choppy. It’s just better to just save this for another platform.

Overview

Overall, GTA 5 actually doesn’t run that bad on Vortex. This is one of the few that we didn’t have too much of a problem with as long as you are playing on the desktop app with a solid connection. If you want to sign up for Vortex to play GTA 5, have at it. The link is in the description.

Boosteroid vs Vortex Comparison

Playing GTA 5 on Xbox Cloud (xCloud)

We got the chance to play GTA 5 on the Microsoft Xbox Cloud gaming platform that’s still in Beta. We had a great overall experience, but you guys are here for the specifics, let’s get started.

Launching the Title

Launching the title is as straightforward as any other title on the Xbox Cloud Gaming platform. You do have to be an Ultimate Game Pass subscriber to get access to Xbox Cloud games. Go to Xbox.com/play and login, select GTA 5, and from there a new window will load, which begins your stream.

GTA 5 was cut on Xbox Cloud on August 9th, 2021

As of right now, game availability on Xbox Cloud Gaming is limited. Microsoft refreshes its title list every so often like Netflix, and unfortunately GTA 5 was cut on August 9th, 2021. It should return eventually, so for future reference, any notifications for new game releases on Xbox Cloud Gaming should be played at your earliest convenience. 

Once the game loads, you go through the beginning steps like you would on console. Adjust brightness and gamma, select your language, subtitles etc. From here you immediately start the intro with the bank heist that starts it all. 

Gameplay

The overall game experience was fun, even though we experienced some difficulties. As far as controller usage, we were able to use both an Xbox controller (Elite Series 1) and even a Dualshock Playstation 5 controller. The input keys didn’t change based on the controller you used like other games, but once you understood that X=Square, Y= Triangle, B= Circle, things moved smoothly. The touchscreen-pad doesn’t register in-game, and there’s no button on the PS5 controller which allows you to utilize the Xbox Home button feature. 

Playing the game we did encounter some lagging and latency. Specifically during the first mission with Franklin. Driving was difficult, wrecking the beautiful Audi R8 that we chose to hijack. Even slightly flicking the joystick would make you B-line into another car, pole, or wall.

Rubberbanding was an issue as well, one minute you were in the turning lane, the next, stuck between a fire hydrant and a light pole, with a trail of dead pedestrians behind you. More than likely this was due to our personal internet connection, but we couldn’t figure out if it was that or the system itself for sure.

When Michael was recovering his boat, even tapping a car would cause Franklin to go flying off the hood. It took us a number of tries in order to make it to the next sections of the mission, before finally completing. 

Aiming in combat tended to be difficult in the beginning, and was an adjustment compared to other games. During the bank heist, work with the aim assist along with heavy scoping would cause your shot to be ever so to the left or the right of a target, causing you to miss. With practice, this became easier, as long as latency and jitteriness didn’t catch you with an extra couple bullets in your body. 

Playing through the first couple missions was fun for sure, we hadn’t played the title much at all when it was first released, and all the hype was well deserved. If it weren’t for the occasional, at times frequent, latency issues, our gaming experience would’ve been perfect.

Graphics

As for now, Xbox Cloud Gaming doesn’t have 4K compatibility, but 1080p didn’t necessarily take away from the gaming experience. It was one of those “it’s not here, so there’s nothing to miss” situations. Graphics were pretty clear, and the lower resolution even gave a San Andreas, though nowhere near as low resolution, feel to the whole experience. 

We were unfortunately unable to get a detailed look at the graphics nor were we able to acquire a benchmark of the overall graphic systems, but from a visual standpoint, we didn’t notice any significant changes to the game’s appearance. 

Conclusion

Overall GTA 5 still earns all the praise and love it’s given. A 4K upgrade in resolution would be welcomed for sure, and would only add to the game’s overall experience. The only issue we had with the game is the same with most games via cloud computing: latency, latency, latency.

With Cloud Gaming still in its developmental stages, this is just an unfortunate aspect of the gaming experience that we will have to be patient with until systems improve. Until then, don’t let a little rubberbanding stop you from jacking cars, and robbing banks in GTA 5.

Playing GTA 5 on Loudplay

GTA 5 is extremely popular. It is continually on the top 10 list of Steam’s most played games. So we’re guessing Russians love it too right? Da. So how does Russian cloud gaming platform Loudplay handle playing GTA 5? Let’s find out.

Graphics

If you have seen previous videos we have done on Loudplay, you’ll know Loudplay doesn’t perform the best, even with their latest hardware upgrades.

Everything is set to Normal, which are actually Low settings. Everything is the advanced settings is set to off. Even though everything is set to the lowest settings, I’m still not expecting much. Let see as we run the benchmark.

Wow. I am absolutely speechless. Over 100 fps consistently. Maybe we could bump the settings up a bit. Feel free to try it on your end because I want the best performance. I know I won’t be razzeled and dazzeled with anything coming from Loudplay.

Gameplay

As you might know, Loudplay servers are in Russia and we are in Ohio of the US. How does this effect gameplay performance? Surprisingly, not as bad as you would expect. Not with this game. You still have lag but with a game like GTA, it’s manageable. Yea driving takes minute to get used to and shooting might take even longer to pinpoint but it can be done. Heck, you might even be able to master both at the same time.

Loudplay’s current hardware configuration seems to be perfect for this game. I got no hiccups or stutters like I did with a more modern game like Battlefield 2042. I guess that why it’s the first game featured on the app.

Overview

GTA 5 is actually a winner on Loudplay. I actually recommend playing it on the platform – even for US players. Make slight adjustments and you’ll be just fine. If you do sign up for Loudplay, I would only play older games that are not demanding because Loudplay seem to handle them better.

Promo code: D9M1-OXP6-7BDD-FKSS

If you are looking to sign up for Loudplay on the desktop, I have a gift code in the description for 10% off your credit purchase. This only works on the DESKTOP version so be aware of that.

Playing GTA 5 on PLAYKEY Cloud Gaming

Playkey is also a Russian made cloud gaming platform that performs much better. Does one of the most played games of all time, GTA 5, play well on the Playkey cloud gaming platform? Let’s see.

Launching the Game

Launching the game is pretty straightforward. After following Playkey’s instructions to install their desktop client window, you will choose between Steam, Rockstar, or Epic Games to run through. The platform runs the game through the  client window, and then GTA V launches like any other session on a local desktop. As always its best to play connected through an ethernet cable or on a 5G connection for the best streaming experience.

In-Game Graphics

Taking a look at the graphics settings, you have the option of adjusting 3 graphic menus, and I personally recommend you work from the outside inward. I started with adjusting Playkey’s built-in graphics menu. Press the CTRL and F2 button together to open their list of options, then change the settings to your liking. I was playing on a 2K monitor, but PlayKey can stream up to 4K.

The in-game graphics menu is pretty standard. One thing to note is that although Plakey allows us to increase our resolution up to a max widescreen 4K (4096×2160) and a 120hz refresh rate, GTA V can only stream a maximum resolution of 1080p60fps. The advanced graphics menu does not adjust essential settings like resolution and refresh rate, but allows players to enhance their overall experience. Depending on the maximum amount of video memory your Playkey machine can handle, players can increase the detail of shadows, map resolution while airborne, and frame scaling. 

Playkey Benchmark

We ran a benchmark test to see how well these settings would work in actual gameplay. In addition to the in-game fps counter, I also activated Steam’s built-in counter as a second measurement. For some reason I wasn’t able to get an overall report for the benchmark, as the game warns you from the beginning that the game requires a reboot after its completion. Now if there is a way to access this completed report, let us know down in the comments because I was unable to find it after the game relaunched and repeating the benchmark. 

From what I could tell the counter never dipped below 59 fps and stayed around a maximum of 61. Without the official average from the report we don’t know for certain, but visually, the average was about 60fps which is exactly what we want.

Playkey GTA 5 Gameplay

When it came to testing actual gameplay, Playkey ran the game very well. For a nearly 10 year old game, Playkey makes GTA V seem like it really hasn’t aged at all. I mostly played GTA Online, to see how well the platform could handle the game’s demands and the constant spawning of new players and vehicles. Other than rare latency issues when it comes to aiming your weapons, the most you’ll have to work on is navigating the key bindings on your keyboard or controller. We got a chance to play around in a 4-person crossplay doing some of the missions. Even with 4 different platforms being used, we didn’t have any issues meeting up together, so we could immediately start causing destruction all throughout Los Santos. 

Conclusion

Overall Playkey was on the ball with everything during our gaming session. If the game was able to stream in 4K, Playkey would be a perfect platform to play GTA V hands down. We look forward to future updates to the platform, but they are already on the right track. Try it for yourself, and let us know about your gaming experience. Any trouble with the cops is on you, so fire that first round at your own risk.

Crossplay with Boosteroid, Vortex, Loudplay, & Playkey

We finally have a 4 way crossplay on GTA 5! We are playing on cloud gaming platforms Loudplay, Vortex, Playkey, and Boosteroid.

Playing GTA 5 on AirGPU

What is the most powerful cloud gaming platform that you can get your hands on easily so you can play GTA 5 with? Would you believe you can spin up your own high-end cloud gaming PC and install GTA within minutes?

With AirGPU, you can spin up a Windows PC with the power of your choice to play just about anything you want. GTA 5 is a pretty old game and doesn’t need a ton of power these days but, I tried running the game on the V520 mid-tier and the A10G high-end tier just for kicks.

GTA 5 on AirGPU V520 Mid Tier

Let’s start with the V520 mid-tier first. Install was super fast through Steam and it was done in about 10+ minutes. AirGPU is using Amazon Web Services for their cloud infrastructure and they have great pipes. I have a 4K monitor so I ran the game in 4K which included the Benchmark at the default graphic settings. How does everything look?

Mid Tier Graphics

FPS hovers around 60 the entire time. Now things do look kind of fuzzy due to AirGPU limiting the bitrate for this tier to 20 mbps. This tier wasn’t meant for 4K gameplay. It runs the game just fine though at this resolution.

Mid Tier Gameplay

How is the gameplay? Since AirGPU is using Amazon Web Services for their cloud infrastructure, input lag is basically non-existent depending on where you create your machine. Driving through traffic, weaving through pedestrians, and cappin fools is second nature.

This tier is also great for mobile and tablet gameplay. The PC power is more than suitable and 20 mbps bitrate will provide a fine quality picture at a lower resolution.

Depending on your machine configuration, you might spend around $2 an hour to play on this tier. That’s the catch for AirGPU. It can rack up some high hourly fees.

10% off Coupon Code: CGBATTLE

We do have a 10% off credit coupon code if you are looking to try it out. We also have a getting started tutorial to help you get your cloud PC setup for you.

GTA 5 on AirGPU A10G High-End Tier

Now I bet you are wondering, what does this look like on the high-end A10G tier? Oh boy you are in for a treat! Spinning up this bad boy of a cloud machine also take just a few minutes. Connect this with streaming program Parsec, install the game and you are good to go. Or are you?

Resolution Problem

I got this message from Parse when I tried to start the game. This is a resolution error. If you get this error, don’t freak out. There is a work around for this.

You’ll have to remote in to your PC again using the Windows Remote Desktop Connection. Get to a point in the game where you can change the display type to Fullscreen. Close the game and the Windows Remote Desktop Connection and you should be able to get back in using Parsec. Start the game again and you should be good to go.

High-End Tier Graphics

I really want to test this tier so I will run the benchmark here with everything maxed out at 4K. How do things look?

The FPS is higher than 60 most of the time. I would say it averages out to around 80 FPS. This is the power I was expecting with a tier that is equivalent to running a RTX 3080 GPU.

High-End Tier Gameplay

Do things look the same in-game? I’ll have the in-game FPS counter in the top left corner for reference.

This is the way to play. The visuals are beautiful, the response time is great, and since this tier allows you to bump the bitrate up to 40 mbps, the gameplay is smooth as butter as well.

Now that is all fine and dandy, but be aware that I have configured this tier to be the highest configuration possible. How much does this set you back? $4.15 an hour.

So if you got the cash this might be your thing but if you don’t, you might have to end up robbing someone for that kind of dough. Remember our coupon code in the located in the description. You’re gonna need it.

Overview

Overall, I think the V520 Mid Tier is probably the best bang for your buck to play GTA 5 with. The high-end tier is nice but you really don’t need that kind of power to play GTA 5.

We’ll continue to add platforms to this list as we play GTA 5 on more cloud platforms. Keep this post bookmarked to see updates as time goes by.