At Long Last an Official GTA 5 Update is Forthcoming
We’ve been waiting ages for an official update from Rockstar Games on Grand Theft Auto 5—and checking out every rumor we can find in the meantime. We haven’t heard much from Rockstar since the release of the first GTA 5 trailer. Since then we’ve speculated on what we’ve seen and tried to draw some conclusions about the game’s protagonist, plot and features.
According to an article at Gameranx, a fan who emailed Rockstar about the game received a reply that he should stay tuned for a bulletin in the Rockstar Newswire next month. We don’t know whether the fan is telling the truth or not, but if he is, we hope that Rockstar will shed some light on our speculations about the trailer. Maybe we’ll learn a little more about GTA 5, and most importantly, perhaps Rockstar will allude to a release date. Once we found out that Max Payne 3 was going to be released in May, we realized we might not see GTA 5 until next year. Then again, Rockstar may still want to get in on the holiday rush with GTA 5 instead of waiting to release the game off season next year. With any luck we’ll have some real answers within just a few short weeks.
GTA 5 Release Planned for 2013?
Rockstar Games hasn’t announced the official release date for Grand Theft Auto 5 yet, but what they have announced is that Max Payne 3 will be hitting the shelves for consoles on May 15 in North American and May 18 in the rest of the world. The game will be released for PC on May 29 in the North American market and June 1 everywhere else.
What does this have to do with the release date for Grand Theft Auto 5? According to Mike Hickey, analyst for National Alliance Capital Markets, “It seems unlikely that Rockstar Games would launch both Max Payne 3 and GTA 5 in the month on May. Therefore, we have shifted our original expectation for GTA 5 to launch in May 2012, into the Company’s 2013 fiscal second-half operating period (release window: Sept. ’12 – March ‘13). Therefore, we have shifted our original expectation for GTA V to launch in May 2012, into the Company’s 2013 fiscal second-half operating period (release window: Sept. ’12 – March ‘13).”
So should we expect GTA 5 in 2012 or 2013? There are two main possibilities which we see in light of this analysis. If indeed we can expect the game to come out somewhere between September of 2012 and March of 2013, then it seems like the most likely release would either be a holiday release this year or a release next spring. It’s probably best for us to be patient and just expect the game to come out in 2013, but the holiday season still gives us a reason to be hopeful. In the meantime we’ll just have to keep up with the news and the rumors and keep anticipating what is sure to be the most awesome Grand Theft Auto game ever. We can also look forward to enjoying Max Payne 3!
Should GTA 5 Utilize MotionScan Technology?
One of the recent rumors to circulate surrounding Grand Theft Auto 5 is that the game will incorporate the use of MotionScan technology. This is the technique which is used to create realistic character faces and expressions in the context of CG animation in films. You’d think that this would be good news for fans of the action adventure franchise, but while initial reception was positive, there are a number of critics who feel that MotionScan does not belong in the game.
Critics of MotionScan in GTA 5 suggest that the technology will chew up too much memory, and that will mean the memory won’t be available for other game functions. Since MotionScan is a very involved process, though, it’s safe to guess the developers may only intend to use it for a few key characters or moments, not for the thousands of NPCs in the game. Other critics think that players will become distracted by the quality of the animation and perform poorly—of course, let’s face it—this is kind of ridiculous. Gamers like good graphics. We’re not going to play poorly because the graphics are good. As graphics cards and processors evolve, we’re going to see more and more realism. That’s part of the joy of gaming. Some critics have also protested that using MotionScan in a game which features sex and violence is inappropriate and may cause people to behave badly away from their consoles. This assertion is also ridiculous. We play these types of video games for catharsis—not because we think violence is appropriate in real life.
Rockstar Games has yet to make an official announcement about MotionScan, so most of this is just speculation. We’re also still not entirely sure when the highly anticipated game will actually hit stores, but we’re pretty sure that 2013 will be the big year. Who knows, though? Maybe we’ll get lucky and see a 2012 release anyway.
GTA Could Benefit from Modders in the Gaming Community
Grand Theft Auto 5, the latest release in the high octane, action-packed series by Rockstar Games, still doesn’t have a release date yet. It’s hard to say how much time is still needed for development, but one thing which we’d love to see is some of the talented members of the GTA community contributing to the next GTA game.
Many of us have not only enjoyed GTA 4 and previous games, but also the amazing mods created by other programmers who have extracted the game’s code, modified it, and created fantastic new content. Oftentimes this fan-created content rivals the actual original game for excitement and creative genius. If you haven’t yet played any of these mods, we highly suggest you download some and trying them out. You can also watch videos of the mods online.
Perhaps Rockstar Games already employs some of these people; but if not, we think they’d be able to provide amazing contributions to the official franchise and would fit in well with the development team. If it’s too late for modders to join the team for GTA 5, then maybe Rockstar will consider hiring some of them for the next installment of GTA. Regardless, we’re going to look forward to whatever mods are built by these creative GTA fans for Grand Theft Auto 5 whenever the game does finally come out. They’re sure to be able to create even more amazing mods than ever!
When will GTA 5 be released? A lot of industry analysts have speculated that the game will come out this summer, but that might be a little sooner than the reality. As of yet no official release date has been announced for GTA 5. If Rockstar Games does drop any hints as to the release date, we’ll be the first to let you know!
Why Grand Theft Auto 5 is Going to be Huge
We all know Grand Theft Auto 5 is going to be a big release—it’s the next installment in one of the most popular and enduring video game franchise of all time. That much is obvious. But we think that GTA 5 isn’t just going to be big—it’s going to be massive, and massively successful. Why? Because even with just one trailer and a press release out, we already know that this game has all the ingredients of a classic.
We can start out by looking at the setting. Of course GTA 5 is set in San Andreas—specifically in Los Santos and its environs. But it’s also set in a realistic virtual world which mirrors the economic collapse of real-world Los Angeles. GTA 5 is a game which makes a real commentary on its times, and on the kinds of struggles which can drive people to do desperate things, including a man trying to redeem himself (unsuccessfully) of a lifetime of crime for the sake of his family. Family is yet another key aspect of GTA 5; we’re pretty sure that the main character of the game will be three brothers.
Even though GTA 5 will be confined to Los Santos and the surrounding countryside instead of spanning the whole of San Andreas, Dan Houser, co-founder of Rockstar Games, promises that the map will be big and detailed. There will be a lot to explore, and this atmospheric city will be more detailed than ever. As an open world action adventure game, GTA 5 will leave plenty of avenues of exploration and action open to the player. Outside Los Santos, we’ve already seen screen shots of fields, mountains, beaches and more, suggesting that there is a lot explore even outside the city’s boundaries.
The development of technology since the last GTA game also suggests that the game will be more realistic than ever, potentially utilizing Motionscan technology for more realistic NPCs. We’ll also probably be seeing more realistic combat and gunplay, and hopefully more interesting missions (GTA 4 really stood out on this front). Also moving with the times, GTA 5 will incorporate a multiplayer mode. We don’t know much about this yet, but it’s sure to take GTA fun and excitement to new levels.
What else is going to guarantee GTA 5’s success? Humor has always been a big part of GTA, and GTA 5 will be no exception. Despite the harsh look at the economic climate of California, GTA 5 won’t forget to poke fun at the society it is satirizing. We’ve already seen silly brand names in the trailer like STD Contractors, Mile High Club and SpeedoPhile. GTA 5 will be everything you expect from the classic series, but will also make a relevant statement about the times we live in. In other words, Grand Theft Auto 5 will bring the best features and familiar locations of the older GTA titles to the table but will also deliver a gaming experience which is more expansive, detailed, realistic, and exciting than ever before.
GTA 5’s Map “Very Big”
For those who are worried that Grand Theft Auto 5 won’t provide a lot of room for exploration, Rockstar Games has some reassuring news. Even though the game will only be set in Los Santos and the surrounding area (not the whole of San Andreas), the map itself will be large and plenty detailed. Dan Houser, co-founder of Rockstar, says, “I’ve got to be real careful here, or they will drag me through the office and whip me with barbwire. I will stick to exactly what’s in the press release. It’s Los Santos and the surrounding countryside – and a very big map.”
The previous press release from Rockstar indicated that the game would take place mostly in Los Santos, but before now we didn’t know for sure if the map would be big or not. Now we know we can look forward to an extensive interactive environment with more detail than ever.
GTA 5 Wishlist
In any video game series, especially the Grand Theft Auto games, there is always room for improvement. What would you like to see added in GTA 5? What were the best and worst parts of GTA 4 and previous GTA games? Post your comments below.
Will GTA 5’s Realistic Violence Cause Controversy?
Recently it has emerged that Grand Theft Auto 5 may use Motionscan technology in its character animations. If you aren’t familiar with Motionscan, this is a process used in films (and some games) which allows for extraordinary realism in characters’ faces and expressions. While everyone is ecstatic about increasing the realism of games like GTA 5, many non-gamers are critical of the potential this creates for realistic violence. Critics state that allowing gamers to commit acts of violence against a realistic NPC is not the same as allowing them to commit acts of violence against a plasticy, unbelievable NPC.
Of course, as usual we’re stumbling into the usual argument from outsiders—the confusion of the gaming world with reality. It seems like it’s usually non-gamers who have trouble with this delineation, which is pretty darn clear for most gamers. The reason people play violent video games is because they want an outlet for exploring sex and violence in a safe environment. Indeed, some gamers who are sensitive may very well decide not to commit the violent acts against the NPCs at all because of the realism of their features. They have the freedom to make that decision—it’s an open world environment. Yet others may commit those acts in game only to realize how vile it would be to commit them in reality—if they didn’t already know that, which of course, most people do! Most gamers have a very clear moral compass. Those that don’t would still commit crimes in real life regardless of whether they played video games like GTA 5 or not.
This controversy is probably inevitable as graphics become more and more realistic. Tyrannical attempts to censor content are as old as time, however, and their arguments against adult content are as baseless as ever.
Industry Analyst says GTA 5 will be “Biggest Game” of 2012
With so many more open world choices available in the gaming market these days, a lot of people think that the Grand Theft Auto brand may lose some momentum in 2012. While GTA 4 dominated in 2008, many people still felt that the game underperformed compared to sales expectations. Nonetheless, industry analyst Jesse Divnich of EEDAR believes that GTA 5 will dominate in 2012 as well. “It goes without saying that GTA 5 will be one of the year’s biggest releases, but I will take it one step farther and say GTA 5 will be 2012′s biggest release. Don’t get me wrong, Call of Duty will undoubtedly be huge, as it is every year and it may even grow, but if I had to call what will be a photo finish race, I will go with GTA 5.” Regardless of which game outsells the other, one thing is certain, which is that many fans are eagerly awaiting both!
Grand Theft Auto 5 Rumors: Sorting Fact from Fiction
With Grand Theft Auto 5 on its way and the first trailer released on the web, we’re seeing new rumors flying faster than ever. Here we’ll address a few of those rumors and let you know what we think based on actual information available on the web!
Rumor 1: The Protagonist
The lead character of GTA 5 is rumored to be Albert De Silva, played by Ned Luke. This rumor is absolutely true. We’ve seen Albert De Silver, an aging mobster, in the GTA 5 trailer, talking about retirement from crime (a retirement which fails of course!). We also remember the casting call codenamed “Rush” which went out last year for GTA 5. At the time it wasn’t confirmed that it was the GTA 5 casting call, but since then Jimmy Taenaka, a friend of Ned Luke, has spilled the beans on his friend’s participation in GTA 5 on Twitter.
Rumor 2: The Location
The rumor is that GTA 5 will be set in Los Santos and its surrounding environment—but not the entirety of San Andreas. This theory has been based on not only the trailer but also a map which was supposedly leaked by an employee of Rockstar. The person who produced that map was later discredited, but may have been right anyway, at least according to the official press release for the game. According to Rockstar’s press release, the game is set in “Los Santos and surrounding hills, countryside and beaches.” If you’re annoyed that the game probably won’t explore the whole of San Andreas, don’t be—more detail can be packed into just the city and environs, and that means more to explore.
Rumor 3: Gameplay
It is rumored that GTA 5 will feature smoother, more realistic animation than previous installments, including more cinematic combat action. The theory was originally based on a statement from an anonymous “industry professional” that Jim Jagger, a developer who worked on the cancelled Eight Days FPS game for Sony, was working on GTA 5. Eventually Jim Jagger himself confirmed the rumor of his involvement. Even though Eight Days was never released, the leaked animation from the cancelled game looked fantastic, so it may well be that GTA 5’s action will be better than ever with Jagger on the team.
Rumor 4: Multiplayer Mode
Previous GTA games have been single player only, though Rockstar has mentioned that it is well aware that many players fail to finish the single player campaigns. Their other offerings have tended toward multiplayer recently, and along with pervasive rumors on 4chan, this resulted in the rumor that GTA 5 would be a multiplayer co-op game with an open world but structured missions. So far this rumor has neither been confirmed nor denied, but many of the other assertions in the 4chan post have proved true, so there is a good chance that this rumor is true as well.
Rumor 5: Playable Characters
While previous GTA games have largely focused on one main character, there are rumors that GTA 5 will feature multiple playable characters and tell multiple interconnected stories. Will the game have an ensemble cast or not? Right now there is still no hard proof one way or the other on this rumor, but considering the trailer shows not only Albert but also other prominent characters repeatedly, the rumor does seem plausible. GTA 4 also experimented with multiple points of view, which increases the odds that now Rockstar is taking that ensemble concept to a new level with GTA 5.
Rumor 6: Old Character Cameos
Will old heroes of previous GTA installments make a comeback in the new game? If so, will they be playable? There is no real basis for these rumors aside from the hopefulness of many fans who want to see their favorite characters come back. The only shred of evidence which we can take at all seriously is the prominent appearance of a character in the trailer who bears a resemblance to CJ. Nonetheless, we can’t be certain he is CJ. Old characters are likely to reappear in cameos, but we have no real reason to suspect they’ll be playable or prominent.
Rumor 7: Character Customization
In the past there have been minor character customization elements in GTA games; for example, the ability to alter clothing. Now there are rumors floating around the internet—sadly circulated by a discredited fake “journalist”—that GTA 5 will allow for more customization. The good news is the trailer may back this up; in the trailer we saw a gym as well as a piercing parlor. GTA rarely features game elements which don’t also function as game mechanics in their trailers, so there is a good chance that character physiques will be customizable and that piercing will be possible as well.
