Get Hype

So now that Grand Theft Auto V (or Five, if you're one of those nit-wits who thought the last one was called Gee-Tee-Eh Eye-Vee) has been revealed, I'm personally excited for it to hit already. Rockstar is one of those developers who keeps on giving in term of quality worlds. There's a few hopes I have for this next instalment, however, especially after the string of open-world successes not named GTA that have transpired and materialized in the years after GTA IV.

For one, I'm hoping this latest trek through Los Santos is more like Red Dead Redemption than it's previous namesake. I hope it delivers more on the emotional and exciting front rather than the realistic. While GTA IV was fun (and I guess this blog entry for today is going to turn into more of a criticism of that game rather than a hype machine for the new one), it certainly spent way too much of its time focusing on the realistic, the grit, and the technology. Hopefully, now that Rockstar North has had some time to mediate on the usefulness of its RAGE engine and ingesting stellar hits like L.A. Noire and Red Dead, GTA V will incorporate more of what made Vice City and San Andreas more enjoyable and memorable; deep customization, a plethora of side missions, and a bizarre but still socially conscious sense of dark humour.

The tantalizing teaser (which was traditionally only around a minute in length, keeping in line with previous reveals) was just that: a teaser. But it showed some impressive stuff. Like Red Dead, there are beautiful vistas in which you can go hiking. I'm hoping for some interesting game-play ideas that use these open areas, just as Red Dead did with its survival challenges and treasure hunts. There's also the tease of the idea that GTA V may include some sort of customization in terms of buying and selling houses, with the image of a man nailing a foreclosure sign in front of his dilapidated home. While this was a feature that was briefly touched upon in previous games, I'm hoping it's a lot more fleshed out in this one, maybe taking some inspiration from the Fable games. Those were the two most interesting things I found in the trailer.

That, and golf. Pardon my sadistic side, but I can't wait to beat down some virtual pansy ass with a bloody club again.

Regardless, I'm looking forward to the game. I know the developers can do no wrong in this instance, even though the last GTA was kind of "meh" in terms of fun, but I have enough trust in them after how well the publishers handled other open world games.

Now give me my Red Dead Revenge game.