The most recent GTA 5 update sees Rockstar’s sandbox game get into a joyful but typically brutal mood, adding a new random event inspired by Die Hard and the chance to hunt down and murder the beloved Dr. Seuss character The Grinch. This is the perfect way to spend Christmas in GTA Online, and it serves as further evidence that there is still plenty to come as we wait for the release of GTA 6.
As snow falls across the whole GTA 5 map, between 8am and 6am game time, if you’re waiting around within about 400 metres of the gigantic Weazel News Tower, a random event will spawn hostile NPCs on the building’s roof, in homage to the ultimate Christmas film (and yes, it is a Christmas film) Die Hard.
Zoom up there in a chopper, and you might notice that one of the armed goons, sporting a sharp suit and a goatee beard, even looks like Hans Gruber, the terrorist uber baddie played so memorably by Alan Rickman.
Take them all out and you’ll get a special weapon drop in the shape of the WM29 pistol, which after you’ve finished the random event, will be buyable and customizable at every Ammunition store. The name itself might also be a little reference to Die Hardflip ‘29’ around and you get 92, potentially a nod to the Beretta 92FS handgun toted by cop hero John McClane.
But that’s not all. A second Christmas-themed random event is now live in GTA 5, allowing you to hunt down and kill pesky yuletide villain The Grinch – who in typical Rockstar fashion is renamed ‘The Gooch.’ At any point over the festive period, The Gooch can sneak up on you and steal a big hunk of your in-game cash.
Chase them down, deal with them as you see fit, and not only will you be able to recover your lost money, but The Gooch will drop a Christmas present containing some bonus loot. Lose track of them, however, and your money is gone for good.
If you want to spawn the random Gooch event (there’s a sentence) you need to be in a lobby with two players or more, and have spent around 48 minutes in the same session.
The GTA Online Christmas event runs from December 22 to December 29 and also offers double money and RP for completing races, acid lab jobs from the recent Drug Wars update, and the Beast versus Slasher mode. You’ll also get a couple of little Xmas presents in the form of a reindeer hat and a free candy cane. Aw.
The Ocelot Ardent, Vapid Clique, and Maxwell Vagrant are also available now at the showroom in exclusive Christmas-themed liveries, and there’s 30& off the Ocelot Stromberg. You can also hunt around the entire Los Santos area for collectible snowmen. There are 25 in total, and if you should find and destroy them all, you’ll earn the bonus snowman outfit plus $125,000 GTA dollars.
Check out our full rundown of the GTA Online Drug Wars update to get the cash coming in, or maybe some other great open-world games or multiplayer games on PC.