Introduction
Grand Theft Auto is essentially a video game series produced by the Australian programmers Mike Dailly and David Jones and then later by Zachary Clarke and the English brothers Sam and Dan Houser. Basically, it is it is developed by Rockstar North and its publisher is Rockstar Games. The series name is actually derived from the term, “grand theft auto,” which is a term referring to the motor vehicle theft. Loved by many for its open-world gameplay, loathed for its controversial and adult content, the GTA series has in fact established a cult following in the entire world. To be straight forward, the series has really influenced gaming industry as well as its customers. In view of that, this evaluative essay focuses on evolution of GTA V.
GTAV was released on 17th September, 2013 for Xbox 360 consoles and Play station 3. It is the 15th title in Grand Auto Series as well as the first key entry since GTA IV in 2008. In terms of gameplay, this series is an action-adventure video game that is played in an open world setting from a 3rd person perspective. The player uses weapons, firearms, explosives, and melee attacks to fight the enemies, and can jump, swim, run, or use cars to navigate game’s world. In fighting, cover system and auto aim can be utilized as assistance against the enemies. A permanent objective for a player is to accomplish missions to advance through the story, however much like the other open-world games, the missions can be accomplished at player’s leisure (Bogenn, Tim, and Rick, 26). If a player commits unlawful acts while playing, the law enforcements agencies in the game may respond that is represented by “wanted” meter in HUD.
Single-player mode of this series is played through 3 player-controlled protagonists: Franklin, Trevor, and Michael who are criminals. Michael corresponds to the west, Trevor to the East, Franklin to the north, and player’s multiplayer avatar to south. During the missions, the game might switch the character of a player automatically as necessary so as to accomplish certain objectives. If a character is in danger and requires assistance, the avatar will flash red and flash white if the character is in strategical position that might aid his or her mission success. The game also includes Grand Theft Auto Online, which is a multiplayer mode. This mode allows up to sixteen players to easily roam a single- player setting recreation. The players can supportively engage in a number of activities like races and bank heists. GTA V game series brings exceptional war features of the Max Payne 3 and Red Dead Redemption in addition to other features (Bogenn, Tim, and Rick, 35).
In terms of the story, this game series focuses on pursuit of almighty dollar in unique modern Los Santos version. Rather than following a single story, GTA V follows 3 different protagonists who include Michael, Trevor, and Franklin as stated above with each one having their individual story, which intersects with others at given points. It is essentially a time honored tradition for one to work for the organized crime in GTA games. With this series strongly focusing on Los Santos city and not spreading out over to an entire state, the probability of playing missions, which revolve about the movie industry really increases. Nothing makes cash quite like a key heist, and this game series is recognized for its elegant heist mission lines.
As stated above, GTA V features 3 playable protagonists; Trevor, Michael, and Franklin. Trevor is loose cannon in the story, a hot-head psychopath, and a long time good friend of Michael. Franklin is a grim and young repo man having a great amount of expertise behind the wheel. Nonetheless, he has no real experience to the crime till he comes across Michael. Last but not least, Michael who is a retired professional bank burglar returns to criminal life after making sweetheart deal with the FBI. The other characters include Lester Crest, the mastermind behind heists pull off, Dave Norton, Michael’s friend and the FBI agent, Lamar Davis, a friend to Franklin and described as crazy, Steve Haines, an FBI agent, and Devin Weston, a billionaire businessman (Bogenn, Tim, and Rick, 54).
The main characters include Amanda De Santa, Michael’s wife, and mother of Tracey and Jimmy. Bradley “Brad” Snider who was murdered during the prologue. Harold "Stretch" Joseph, The Families’ veteran member. Wei Cheng, Tao’s father and Los Santos Traids leader. Other main characters include Martin Madrazo, Solomon Richards, wade Herbert, among others. The supporting characters include Simeon Yetarian, Fabien LaRouche, Isiah Friedlander, Denise Clinton, Tao Cheng, among others. The minor characters are Maude Eccles, D, Tanisha Jackson, Chop, Johnny Klebitz, among others.
Works cited
Bogenn, Tim, and Rick Barba. Grand Theft Auto V., 2013. Print.
Grand Theft Auto V. New York: Rockstar Games, 2013. Computer file.
Grand Theft Auto V Limited Edition Strategy Guide. Brady, 2013. Print.
