On July 28, Australian players of GTA Online began reporting they could no longer access gambling features at the Diamond Casino, including blackjack, roulette, three card poker, and other mini-games. Attempts to use these features now trigger a message stating "this feature is not available for you." Some players also reported losing access to the casino's free wheel spin, a feature that costs nothing and rewards items like cars and clothing.
GTA Online dataminer Tex2 (also referred to as TexFun) found code confirming the block was a deliberate, territory-based restriction covering Casino House, Three Card Poker, Inside Track, Lucky Wheel, Blackjack, Roulette and Slots, rather than a glitch. Despite the ban on active gambling, some players reported they can still trade in and cash out existing casino chips.
In GTA Online, players buy Casino Chips using in-game GTA$, which can be earned through gameplay or purchased with real money via Shark Cash Cards, though winnings cannot be converted back into real-world money. Because of this, and because the game has always carried the R18+ classification Australia requires for simulated gambling content, the in-game gambling has technically been legal there. The reason for the sudden restriction hasn't been officially confirmed—Rockstar has been contacted for comment—but the change comes as the Australian federal government has been cracking down on online gambling harms, and a GTA Forums user noted GTA Online was reclassified on Xbox on July 22 without the "high impact gambling" descriptor, suggesting the casino features tied to that rating were being removed.
Australia now joins a list of other countries where GTA Online's simulated gambling is unavailable. Sources differ slightly on which countries are included: one report lists South Africa, Poland, China and Argentina, while another cites Poland, Greece, Israel, Vietnam and Portugal. The Diamond Casino and Resort was added to GTA Online in 2019, and similar regional restrictions on its gambling features have existed in various countries since then.
Reaction among Australian players has been largely frustrated and confused, with many pointing out that real-world sports betting advertising remains widespread and permitted in the country while the in-game casino feature has been cut off. Some players have also raised concerns that if GTA 6's online mode includes a similar casino feature, Australians could be locked out of it from launch, a possibility both outlets suggest seems likely given the current restriction.