Demand for free GTA 5 causes Epic Games services to buckle Eurogamer.net If you click on a link and make a purchase we may receive a small commission. Read our editorial policy. Demand for free GTA 5 causes Epic Games services to buckle Car crash. News by Emma Kent Contributor Updated on 14 May 2020 53 comments After rumours and a rogue advert, GTA 5 is now finally available to claim for free on the Epic Games Store. Or it would be, if the launcher and website hadn't already buckled under demand. At the time of writing, booting up the Epic Games Store launcher when connected to the internet will only get you an error message. Epic has tweeted to confirm the issues, which it attributed to high traffic. "We are aware that users may be encountering slow loading times, 500 errors, or launcher crashing at this time and we are actively working to scale", Epic explained. "We'll provide an update as soon as we can." We are currently experiencing high traffic on the Epic Games Store. We are aware that users may be encountering slow loading times, 500 errors, or launcher crashing at this time and we are actively working to scale. We'll provide an update as soon as we can.- Epic Games Store (@EpicGames) May 14, 2020 To see this content please enable targeting cookies. Manage cookie settings Along with the launcher, it seems Epic's website is also experiencing issues, as both the store and other pages are unavailable. I searched for 'how to open the Epic Games launcher offline' and got hit with a 505 message when loading the website. Not sure what I expected, really. And here's the current state of my launcher. Along with making it impossible to immediately claim GTA 5, it's a bit frustrating for those who were hoping to play other online games this afternoon using the launcher. This includes Fortnite, of course, which is currently inaccessible from the launcher - although it's still possible to get in via opening the files directly. The Epic Games Store encountered similar launcher problems back in October last year, when Fortnite exploded its island in a spectacular season finale. More recently, Fortnite hosted its most popular event ever with 12.3m people tuning in to view Travis Scott - without any problems, that time. All of which gives you an idea of the level of strain free GTA 5 is currently putting on the system. Become a Eurogamer subscriber and get your first month for £1 Get your first month for £1 (normally £3.99) when you buy a Standard Eurogamer subscription. Enjoy ad-free browsing, merch discounts, our monthly letter from the editor, and show your support with a supporter-exclusive comment flair! Support us View supporter archive More News Splatoon 3 Amiibos will be out next month Ink-coming! 3 Fans think Phil Spencer's shelf is teasing the Xbox Game Pass streaming box UPDATE: Xbox confirms old Keystone prototype. 59 Modder dives into Demon's Souls files following PS5 jailbreak, discovers fabled Ring of the Chieftain Who knows what's nexus? 4 Google announces cloud gaming Chromebooks less than a fortnight after Stadia shutdown GeForce Now preinstalled. 11 Latest Articles Preview Football Manager's new Console edition is the best you'll get without a PC Getting Touch-right. Splatoon 3 Amiibos will be out next month Ink-coming! 3 Fans think Phil Spencer's shelf is teasing the Xbox Game Pass streaming box UPDATE: Xbox confirms old Keystone prototype. 59 Modder dives into Demon's Souls files following PS5 jailbreak, discovers fabled Ring of the Chieftain Who knows what's nexus? 4 Supporters Only Premium only Off Topic: Take a minute to appreciate Cookin' with Coolio's incredible scallops recipe. What a great book. Premium only Off Topic: Reading City of Glass in comic form "Where exactly am I going?" Premium only Off Topic: Il Buco is a transporting film about a really big hole Underlands. Off-Topic Netflix handled Sandman brilliantly It was Dreamy. 9 Buy things with globes on them And other lovely Eurogamer merch in our official store! Explore our store