If you’re new to GTA Online, you may feel intimidated by the fact that you’re jumping into a game that has been evolving for almost a decade. GTA Online started as nothing more than a game where players could do some petty crimes, races, and buy apartments and cars. It was very simple and straightforward, but over time, it has evolved into a complex and layered gangster’s paradise. There are now grand-scale heists that range from big bank robberies to preventing world-ending events, multiple shady businesses to run, and much more. It’s daunting to start now, but Rockstar has made sure newcomers who picked up the game on Xbox Series X|S and PS5 can ease into it.
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Enter the Career Builder, a one-time use booster pack for GTA Online which allows new players to enter the game with a bit of a safety net. Previously, players would begin GTA Online in a true rags to riches crime story where they would buy (or steal) low-end cars and build their reputation in the city. Now, Rockstar hands new players $4 million and lets them choose from a series of items out of the gate. Similarly, players who don’t want to lose access to their last-gen characters now have an option to start fresh on Xbox Series X|S or PS5 without being completely broke.
With all of that said, Rockstar has ensured no one will be without some assets to start their GTA Online journey on Xbox Series X|S and PS5. For a proper step-by-step guide on how to use the Career Builder in the new version of GTA Online, keep reading this article.
GTA Online: How to the Use Career Builder
If you’ve never played GTA Online before, this is going to be relatively simple. Launch into the mode via either the main menu or through the character selection wheel that becomes available after the prologue of GTA V‘s story mode. From here, you’ll choose a save slot for your new character and enter the Career Builder. If you have played GTA Online before, but want to make a new character to take advantage of this feature, simply load into story mode or Online. Once loaded in, pause the game and go to the “Online” tab and select “Manage Characters”. You can have two characters at a time, which will allow you to keep any progress you’ve made with your current character while also having an alternate one.
This can only be done with new characters, so you can either overwrite an existing one if you already have two characters or fill an empty slot if you only have one.
GTA Online: Choosing a Career Path
After receiving your $4 million gift, you will be given the choice of 4 career paths: Executive, Gunrunner, Nightclub Owner, and Biker. You’re free to choose whatever you want, but we’d recommend the Executive career path because you get an office located in the city and a warehouse where you can buy and sell vehicles and special cargo. These are some of the most lucrative ways to make money, so it’s the most valuable path. The Gunrunner path will largely require more work, as the bunkers you have to operate out of are largely outside of the city and make for a hefty commute. The rewards for all of this aren’t necessarily worth the effort when compared to the Executive path.
The Nightclub Owner and Biker paths are also generally unfulfilling relative to the Executive path, but they all generate money and have their own benefits. Regardless, players aren’t limited to just one of these business ventures after they’ve completed the Career Builder. You can go buy and start up any of these other businesses alongside whichever one you choose here at a later date.
GTA Online: Choosing Your Career Builder Items
After choosing your path, you can choose your starting items which includes your properties, vehicles, and weapons. You’ll have four tabs of items to choose from, but the first two will vary depending on the career path you chose. You must choose at least one item from each tab and spend a minimum of $3 million. Some of the properties come with garages or beds, making them more expensive but also more useful. You can also pick multiple vehicles and multiple weapons to ensure you’re fully equipped, but it would be wise to save $500k – $1 million if possible so you can make additional purchases later. You will also be charged various fees for your employees and properties every 24 in-game hours, so players should always have a few thousand dollars ready to go.
The last step here is to review your Career Builder choices and finalize them. Remember, this is a one-time use feature, meaning you can’t make a new character and go through this process again. With that said, once you’ve fulfilled the minimum requirements and are certain about your decisions, you can move forward.
GTA Online: Making Your Character & Completing The Tutorial
You’re now free to make your character however you please. There are a variety of customization options, many of which can be changed later on as well. There are barber shops, tattoo parlors, and a plethora of clothing stores all across San Andreas, so a lot of this is temporary. With that said, things like your heritage, key facial features, and stats will require you to be more certain. These can all be changed later as well, but stats require you to train your character via things like exercise or target practice. Changing your facial features also costs $100,000 for cosmetic surgery.
From here, you’ll be released from the Los Santos Police Department and given a tutorial on how to play GTA Online. It’s not as cinematic as the original tutorial, which featured Lamar picking the player up from the airport and introducing them to the city, but it does get you into the action quicker. This tutorial will largely teach the player how to use their businesses before unleashing them on the open-world.
