GTA Online Players Are Mourning the Loss of the Harmless Telescope Glitch

Grand Theft Auto Online is filled with harmless glitches, many of which have been part of the game since its release. They’re not game-breaking, which probably explains why Rockstar doesn’t bother with them – usually. A good example of this was the “Telescope Glitch”, but thanks to a new GTA Online background update, this glitch is no more.

According to GTA insider Tez2, Rockstar released a background patch for GTA Online as it addressed several known in-game issues under the hood as it were, including new bugs added to the game as part of the Bottom Dollar Bounties Update. Here’s a list of everything that Rockstar fixed with the latest GTA Online update:

• Enhances the variety of Dispatch Work by disabling the variant you launch, enabling you to explore new mission types.
• Fixes an issue where players don’t receive loot from paintings if they collected the safe cash first during the Cayo Perico Heist.
• Fixes an issue with tattoos overlapping between characters upon switching.
• Fixes an issue with the delivery cutscene of bike shop deliveries showing the Hermes instead of the customer’s bike.
• Fixes an issue with incorrect positioning of the Bail Office entrances/blue markers.
• Patches a glitch that allowed players to unlock the Stun Rod (The Shocker) early through modded jobs.
• Patches player-created Ludendorff Cemetery Survivals that enabled early access to drip-feed content.
• Patches the workaround for clothing glitches that merged both masks and helmets/hats, such as the Telescope glitch.
• Patches a workaround for an Avenger Vehicle God Mode glitch.

As expected, the GTA Online community had things to say about the decision to patch a glitch that’s been a useful and beloved part of the game for nearly a decade. “The f*ck was the point of patching the Telescope glitch? That shit did no harm to anyone, including them” said one user.

What harm does a mask and hat merged together cause 💀 Also why bother with it now????

— Lexycuh (@MulletHairstyle) July 2, 2024

The Telescope Glitch, in a nutshell, lets players wear multiple clothing items, particularly headgear, on top of each other. The glitch gives no player any kind of unfair advantage, nor does it give you easy access to anything – it simply functioned as a workaround for certain limitations of the way outfits work in the game.

So, if you wanted to wear goggles on top of your masks, which GTA Online doesn’t let its players do for some reason, this glitch removes that restriction. It’s a cosmetic bug many GTA Online players have come to accept as part of the game.

According to Tez2, the fix applied means players can still keep their glitched outfits, but the patch makes it impossible to use the same glitch to get new similar outfits from now on. The same non-retroactive fix applies to the same bug that gave players early access to The Shocker, a new melee weapon type added to GTA Online on June 26.

On a more positive note, with the latest GTA Online background update, players can explore new mission types when they take on Dispatch Work, a series of new missions added to GTA Online last week.

This isn’t the latest stunt by the developer to provoke criticism among the fans. Recently, Rockstar drew the ire of some fans for adding paywalled features and shadow-banning certain words in GTA Online.