GTA 5 is the epic conclusion to a gaming generation that we have all been waiting for...
Over the past decade, this formula of the living, breathing sandbox has been crafted, refined, improved and imitated to the point now where we, as gamers, have extremely high expectations of what we will find when we enter them. Red Dead Redemption was not so much a game about a man on the trail of his kidnapped wife and son, as it was about a world on the cusp of change – inhabited by men and women trying to eke out a living in a harsh environment that cares little for them or their dreams. It moved beyond the realms of games to tell a story many movies and books would be jealous of.
GTA V takes the same inspiration, and drops 3 protagonists into a world that would be little affected by their lives or their deaths. It places them into a population that once again is simply trying to live a life that is commensurate with the dreams they have been force fed through media, peer pressure, and advertising. All 3 of the lead characters have the same dream, of a better life, but their pathways and journeys take vastly different roads from others walking the streets – and often very different from each other as well.
This American Dream is thrown at us constantly, through flashy cars, exotic motorbikes, million dollar homes and businesses, and all the trappings we came to see and covet in our day to day lives. Phones, clothes, entertainment are all on display, gaudily flashing by us as we pass on our way to the next job, the next mission, the next big score. It is reinforced by the stream of advertising billboards, the radio and TV, and by the thoughts and musings of Michael, Franklin and Trevor – the men we help on their way to success through the gritty world of Los Santos.
This lavish picture is beautifully rendered, not just in the way the city itself is constructed and designed, or the polish and detail of cars and bikes – but also through contrasts. In one of the earlier missions, you are tasked with retrieving a car from a buyer who has defaulted on his payments. Franklin travels to the upscale mansions that litter the beach, trading rap and gangster stereotypes back and forth with his companion, and eventually easing himself into a car that would be worth $100,000 if real. From here he travels back to his workplace, through twisty streets that meander gently from the havens of the rich, under bridges that clamor with the sounds of homeless people fighting over a bottle of vodka, and back to a car dealership full of exotic and expensive automobile glory.
Yet, as we leave the mission, we escort Franklin only a few blocks to his house – set in a suburb that is tagged with graffiti, broken fences, liquor stores, and the angry hum of rap music spilling from car speakers. We listen to Franklin lament his lifestyle, hitting all the tropes of the upcoming gang-banger, but wanting more for himself and a life he would be proud of. Franklin displays a sense of nobility, a drive and desire to be more than the sum of his parts, and this is a feeling that continues to pervade as we travel with him.
The main characters display this contrast as well, with Michael introduced to us in a scene that at first highlights his success and wealth, and then undercuts it with his brutality and yearning for a life more exciting than the one of scotch soaked sunshine he finds himself lost in. His growing friendship with Franklin after their initial meeting allows both the opportunity to grow, develop and forge a new understanding of how they came to be where they are, and where they see their futures taking them.
Greater contrast is provided by Trevor, a man once involved with Michael in a daring bank robbery gone wrong, and now peddling meth from a rundown shack in Blaine County. While his background and circumstances differ greatly from the urban poor, and suburban wealth of Franklin and Michael, Trevor is also at odds with their general laid back approach to life – Trevor is essentially a psychopath.
On a day in the life of GTA V, a switch between all 3 characters may find Michael at the lushly beautiful golf course, before heading home for a drink by the pool. Franklin may be stumbling out of the local bar after a few beers, before being accosted by a local crack junkie and roped into towing some cars to an impound lot. Trevor, on the other hand, may find himself mostly naked, surrounded by dead bodies and gleefully watching something (anything) on fire.
This character switching mechanic is the core element in giving the players the chance to develop a bond with all 3 characters. We are not constrained to story arcs that allow us a few missions and move us to another character. In GTAV you generally have the option to control who you want to be, and when. A simple button press drops you out of one character, and sweeps you into a satellite view that scans across the city before gently depositing you into whatever mess or situation your chosen character has worked themself into. The mechanic also operates during group missions, allowing quick jumps that offer the chance to drive and maneuver each character through the scenarios.
I cannot think of a game that has handled the character switching mechanic more elegantly. The ability to use this switching as a tactical option, whilst combining it with the robust story telling nature of Red Dead Redemption that encompasses a solid arc for each character involved. Done incorrectly the whole system could have felt contrived (or at worst pointless) – but Rockstar have managed it with aplomb. I picture this being one of the major elements that will be stolen *AHEM* imitated by other games a lot in the coming years.
Having the opportunity to move between characters quickly and efficiently through a gun battle, or a mission, would lose a lot of its usefulness if the firefights and driving systems were not robust. In this instance, GTA V has taken the lessons learned from its predecessors and improved on them dramatically. Gone are the frustrating gun battles and tacked on cover mechanics from GTA 4. Gone are the boat-like physics of the cars. Instead we have a solid cover system that sticks quickly and well, offering a great amount of flexibility and movement that complements the quick fire nature of the lock on weapon targeting. The car physics have been tweaked to be faster, more responsive, and better at sticking to the road – while at the same time applying a solid drift element that allows for intricate and highly enjoyable racing and fleeing.
This new car control scheme is necessary in order to compete with the new environments. The roads, highways and alleyways of Los Santos teem with life. Cars and pedestrians jostle for space, streetlights and intersections create bottlenecks, hills and terrain features create natural obstacles. For each of the characters there is a Special Skill, and for Franklin the ability to slow down time whilst driving allows players to snake cars, bikes and trucks through gaps and breaks in traffic – pulling off moves that Gone in 60 Seconds would have been proud to call their own.
In gun battles, the now common place bullet time makes an appearance, with Michael able to slow down the flow of the shootout. It's a pretty solid copy/paste from the excellent system employed by Max Payne 3, but it fits the context well, and gives the player the chance to experience some extremely well developed bullet ballet.
When outnumbered or just feeling grumpy, as frequently happens, Trevor has the ability to slide into a beserker mode that befits his personality – he deals a significant amount of extra damage while being able to shrug off bullets and fists with little impact. This is a skill that is made for GTA Vs open sandbox, and players who enjoy the creation of chaos will certainly fall in love with this part of the repertoire.
The glory of the sandbox is dotted with missions. The story comprises a rough 20 hours or so, taking Michael, Franklin and Trevor through a series of increasingly complex heists and swindles in an effort to assuage an enraged mob boss. Throughout the campaign, there are complex twists and turns that offer a satirical view on the interplay between crime and government, business and corruption, and the plight of the people caught in between. Outside of the story, there a ton of missions that offers a chance for extra money, extra henchmen, or just pure entertainment. Those missions are not the only options, as the art of verisimilitude creeps back into Rockstars Los Santos. From mountain climbing, base jumping, parachuting, scuba diving and cycle racing to gun ranges, golf, tennis and playing the stock market – there is a plethora of ways to while the hours away with the world.
When taking a break from extras and diving into the stories, you are offered complex and varied mission structures with multiple success routes. Each heist must be planned in detail, prepared for by acquiring equipment, weapons and henchmen, and then carried out to completion. Each person involved takes a cut of the profits, with skilled drivers, hackers and gunmen demanding ever increasing slices of the pie. If you want to keep more for yourself, you can hire from the bottom of the barrel, but each problem that arises from the mistakes they make can bring more and more of the police forces on your back.
This can be a problem. The police have been reworked as well, and are now a lot less dumb than they were in GTA IV. They have patrol routes that give them a greater chance of reacquiring you after an alert, and they are a lot more deadly in a gunfight. While they can still be outsmarted or outraced in some ridiculous ways they tend to be a lot more balanced than previously.
Enemies as well can display a combination of intelligence and outright lunacy. You'll find that flanking moves and rushes are common aspects of firefights, but also find the occasional enemy blindly standing in the open, or firing his weapon into a wall. These are minor, and don't cause much frustration, however they can detract a little from the immersion created by so much else the game has to offer.
There are some other issues. While the American Dream mentality is one that undercuts the whole theme of the game, the world itself is presented as a satire. It plays heavily on elements that may be offensive or difficult to adjust to within the context. Misogyny is a theme that has been thrown at GTA V, as well as the acceptance of violence, torture and drug use. These are all valid issues within our current society, however they are used as tropes and stereotypes within the game, the intention is to invite discussion not imitation. However, separating yourself from that can be difficult at times, and it is likely that everyone who plays will find at least something that makes them a little uncomfortable.
The overall presentation of the game is as polished as any I have seen in 30 years of gaming. The fact that the game itself is running on hardware with less power than a laptop from 2003 is near miraculous. The draw distance of the game is epic, stretching across vast numbers of buildings, houses, deserts, hills and lakes. The textures are highly detailed and rendered quickly. The character models are excellent, although they are not as intensely detailed as some of the other elements of the game. Sound is fantastic, it creates the ambience of a real living place – added to that is the huge range of licensed music spanning over 15 radio stations and including modern pop, classic rock, rap, reggae, and talk back radio. Each character is voiced with passion and skill, each is believable in their dialogue.
So, it is down to business. Graphically the game is astounding when considered that it is running on hardware from the mid 2000's. I doubt there is much more that could be pulled out of the XBOX 360 or PS3 at this point; and combined with the huge draw distance, good models, great textures, well maintained framerate and overall polish there is nothing here to criticize.
Soundwise, nothing stands out as amazing, but it all layers together to create a believable world. The sound of the car engines, tire squeals, gun shots, and explosions all carry a sense of weight. Character voices are outstanding, as is usual for the GTA series, and the ambient sounds of birds, rain, animals, leaves, grass and footsteps all fit seamlessly into the world.
Musically it is a mixed bag, it is undeniable that Rockstar has put a substantial effort into creating realistic satires of modern radio stations, and teamed with the outright staggering number of choices of styles and tunes, there is bound to be something here for everyone to love, but also plenty for you to hate depending on tastes. The ambient score that pervades the game is very solid, giving nuance and depth to scenes and actions.
For the story, I was impressed with the length and breadth of the core missions. While the overall character arcs are nothing new or groundbreaking, they work very well within the context and keep you "turning pages" with just one more mission. The multiple choice style ending doesn't feel cheap, but also doesn't offer as much satisfaction as you might hope. However this could be symptomatic of the desire to not have the game end. At times throughout the game as well, I was left wondering how/why something had happened or why a certain choice had been made. I also found myself feeling a little locked into a certain course of action at times, but this is likely due to the immense freedom I was offered everywhere else.
Lastly gameplay. I was extremely impressed with the new character switching mechanic, as well as the overall tightening up of the shooting and driving. The reworked stealth mechanic, the addition of bullet time and driving time skills, the option to build up character skills in an RPG lite fashion, and the increase in character and car customization from GTA IV are all superb. With nearly 40 hours invested in the game, the core story, collectibles, freaks and strangers, and all the other activities will keep me coming back to my original save – and I will likely be playing the whole story through again next week. Value for money wise, there is a huge amount of play time for your dollar and nearly every single part of it is fun and funny.
GTAV does not reinvent the wheel, but it certainly attaches them to a Bugatti Veyron and rips the competition to shreds. While it may be offensive, and it may be violent, this is the most fitting way to finish a console generation, and is a technical achievement on a scale not likely to be seen again until the next Rockstar GTA style game.
10/10