The game is played from either a third-person or first-person view[c] and its world is navigated on foot or by vehicle. Players control the three lead protagonists throughout the single-player mode, switching between them both during and outside of missions. The story is centred on the heist sequences, and many of the missions involve shooting and driving gameplay. Players who commit crimes may incite a response from law enforcement agencies, measured by a "wanted" system that governs the aggression of their response. Grand Theft Auto Online, the online multiplayer mode, lets up to 30 players explore the open world and engage in cooperative or competitive game matches.
Development began soon after the release of Grand Theft Auto IV and was shared between many of Rockstar's studios worldwide. The development team drew influence from many of their previous projects such as Red Dead Redemption and Max Payne 3, and designed the game around three lead protagonists to innovate on the core structure of its predecessors. Creating the open world constituted much of the development work, and several team members conducted field research around California to capture footage for the design team. The game's soundtrack features an original score composed by a team of producers who collaborated over several years.
A widely anticipated game, Grand Theft Auto V broke industry sales records and became the fastest-selling entertainment product in history, earning US $800 million in its first day and US $1 billion in its first three days. It received widespread critical acclaim, with praise directed at its multiple protagonist design, open world, presentation and gameplay. The game caused controversies related to its depiction of women and a mission featuring torture during a hostage interrogation. Considered one of the most significant titles of the seventh generation of console gaming, the game won year-end accolades, including Game of the Year awards from several gaming publications. It has shipped over 54 million copies and is one of the best-selling video games of all time.
Contents
[hide]Gameplay
Grand Theft Auto V is an action-adventure game[9] played from either a first-person[10][c] or third-person view.[11] Players complete missions—linear scenarios with set objectives—to progress through the story.[12] Outside of missions, players can freely roam the open world. Composed of the San Andreas open countryside area and the fictional city of Los Santos, the world of Grand Theft Auto V is much larger in area than earlier entries in the series.[13][d] The world may be fully explored from the beginning of the game without restrictions, although story progress unlocks more gameplay content.[2]Players use melee attacks, firearms and explosives to fight enemies,[e] and may run, jump, swim or use vehicles to navigate the world.[f] To accommodate the map's size, the game introduces vehicle types absent in its predecessor Grand Theft Auto IV, such as fixed-wing aircraft.[17] In combat, auto-aim and a cover system can be used as assistance against enemies.[18] Should players take damage, their health meter will gradually regenerate to its halfway point.[g] Players respawn at hospitals when their health depletes.[16] If players commit crimes while playing, law enforcement agencies may respond as indicated by a "wanted" meter in the head-up display (HUD).[19] On the meter, the displayed stars indicate the current wanted level (for example, at the maximum five-star level, efforts by law enforcement to incapacitate players become very aggressive).[h] Law enforcement officers will search for players who leave the wanted vicinity. The meter enters a cooldown mode and eventually recedes when players are hidden from the officers' line of sight (as displayed on the mini-map).[21][i]
The single-player mode lets players control three characters: Michael De Santa, Trevor Philips and Franklin Clinton—criminals whose stories interconnect as they complete missions. Some missions are completed with only one character and others feature two or three.[23] Throughout single-player, players may switch between the protagonists at will by means of a directional compass on the HUD. The game may switch between characters automatically in single-player missions to complete certain objectives. A character's compass avatar will flash red if he is in danger and needs help, and flash white if he has a strategic advantage.[24] Though players complete missions as any of the three protagonists, the more difficult heist missions require aid from AI-controlled accomplices with unique skill sets, such as computer hacking or driving. If an accomplice survives a successful heist, they take a cut from the cash reward[25] and may be available for later missions with improvements to their unique skills.[26] The game encourages differentiation in heist mission strategies—for example, in a holdup mission, players may either stealthily subdue civilians with an agent or conspicuously storm the venue with guns drawn.[27]
Each character has a set of eight skills that represent their ability in certain areas such as shooting and driving. Though players improve characters' skills as they play, each character has a skill with expertise by default (i.e. Trevor's flying skill).[28] The eighth "special" skill determines the effectiveness in performing an ability that is unique to each respective character. Michael enters bullet time in combat, Franklin slows down time while driving, and Trevor deals twice as much damage to enemies while taking half as much in combat.[29] A meter on each character's HUD depletes when an ability is being used and regenerates when players perform skilful actions (for example, drifting in vehicles as Franklin or pulling off headshots as Michael).[30]
While free roaming the game world, players may engage in context-specific activities such as scuba diving underwater or BASE jumping via parachute. Each character has a smartphone for contacting friends, starting activities and accessing an in-game Internet.[31] The Internet lets players trade in stocks via a stock market.[32] Players may purchase properties such as homes and businesses, upgrade the weapons and vehicles in each character's arsenal, and customise their appearance by purchasing outfits, haircuts, tattoos and jewellery.[33]
Plot
See also: List of Grand Theft Auto V characters
Nine years after a botched robbery in Ludendorff, North Yankton, former bank robber Michael Townley is living under witness protection with his family in Los Santos, San Andreas, under the alias Michael De Santa. When Michael discovers his wife, Amanda, has been sleeping with her tennis coach, he chases the coach to a mansion and destroys it out of anger. The mansion's owner turns out to be the girlfriend of a Mexican drug lord named Martin Madrazo. Madrazo demands compensation under the threat of further violence, so Michael goes back into a life of crime to obtain the money. Together with his accomplice, Franklin Clinton, they perform a jewellery shop heist to help pay their debt. Michael's sole surviving partner in the Ludendorff robbery, Trevor Philips, hears of the jewellery heist and realises that it was Michael's handiwork. The two reunite after Trevor tracks Michael down in Los Santos.The personal lives of the protagonists begin to spiral out of control. Michael's family leaves him, and his attempts to make something of himself bring him into conflict with Devin Weston, a self-made billionaire venture capitalist and corporate raider who develops a grudge against him and vows revenge after Devin's lawyer died in an accident and Michael was blamed for it. Franklin rescues his friend Lamar Davis from gangster Harold "Stretch" Joseph, who repeatedly attempts to kill Lamar to prove himself to his brethren. Trevor's reckless efforts to consolidate his control over various black markets in Blaine County see him waging war against the San Andreas chapter of The Lost outlaw motorcycle club, a number of Latin American street gangs, rival meth dealers, government-sponsored mercenaries and Triad kingpin Wei Cheng.
Federal Investigation Bureau (FIB) government agents Dave Norton and Steve Haines contact Michael and demand that he perform a series of operations with Franklin and Trevor to undermine a rival agency, the International Affairs Agency (IAA).[j] Under Haines' direction, they attack an armoured convoy carrying funds intended for the IAA and raid a bank containing the payroll for all corrupt police and public officials in Los Santos. As Haines comes under increasing scrutiny for his methods, he forces Franklin and Michael to infiltrate the FIB headquarters and erase any evidence being used against him from their servers. Michael takes the opportunity to wipe any data on his own activities, destroying Haines' leverage over him. The trio start planning their most daring feat ever: raiding the Union Depository's gold bullion reserve, and Michael makes amends with his family and they start living together again after returning to Los Santos.
Eventually, Trevor discovers that a former Ludendorff heist accomplice, Brad Snider, was not in prison as he was led to believe, but killed during the heist and buried in the grave marked for Michael. Trevor's feelings of betrayal cause friction within the group and threaten to undermine their Union Depository plans. When Michael and Norton, both of whom are betrayed by Haines, are caught in a Mexican standoff between the FIB, IAA and private security firm Merryweather, Trevor aids in their escape, holding that only he has the right to kill Michael. Despite not forgiving Michael, Trevor still wants to perform the Union Depository heist; the duo agree to part ways afterwards.
The Union Depository heist is completed successfully, but Franklin is approached by two parties separately who demand that he kill Trevor or Michael. Haines and Norton contend that Trevor is a liability, and Weston wants retribution for Michael's betrayal. Franklin has three choices: kill Michael, kill Trevor or kill neither and face their enemies together. Should Franklin kill either Michael or Trevor, he ceases contact with the survivor and returns to his old life.[35][36] Should he kill neither, the trio join forces to withstand an onslaught from the FIB and Merryweather before going on to kill Haines, Stretch, Cheng and Weston. With all their enemies disposed, the three cease working together, but remain friends.[37]
Development
Main article: Development of Grand Theft Auto V
Rockstar North began to develop Grand Theft Auto V in 2009, following the release of Grand Theft Auto IV.[6] Development was conducted by a team of more than 1,000 people, including Rockstar North's core team and staff from parent company Rockstar Games's studios around the world.[38] The game runs on the proprietary Rockstar Advanced Game Engine (RAGE), which was overhauled for the game to improve its draw distance rendering capabilities.[39] The Euphoria and Bullet software handle additional animation and rendering tasks.[40] Having become familiar with the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 hardware over time, Rockstar found they were able to push the graphical capabilities of the consoles further than in previous games.[5] Analyst estimations place the game's combined development and marketing budget at more than £170 million (US $265 million), which would make it the most expensive game ever made at that time.[41][k]The open world's design and in-game render constituted much of the game's early work.[43] The open world was modelled on Southern California and Los Angeles.[44] Key members of the game world production team took field research trips throughout the region and documented their research with photo and video footage.[5] Google Maps projections of Los Angeles were used by the team to help design the road networks of Los Santos.[45][46] To reflect and reproduce the demographic spread of Los Angeles, the developers also studied census data and watched documentaries about the city.[39] The team considered creating the open world the most technically demanding aspect of the game's production.[6]
A fundamental design goal from the outset was to innovate on the core structure of Grand Theft Auto games by giving players control of three lead protagonists instead of one.[43] The idea was first raised during Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas 's development, but contemporaneous hardware restrictions made it infeasible.[47] Having developed two Grand Theft Auto IV episodic expansion packs featuring new protagonists in 2009, the team wanted to base Grand Theft Auto V around three simultaneously controlled protagonists.[17] The team viewed Grand Theft Auto V as a spiritual successor to many of their previous games (such as Grand Theft Auto IV, Red Dead Redemption and Max Payne 3), and designed it to improve upon their gameplay mechanics.[24][48] They sought to improve the action gameplay by refining the shooting mechanics and cover system,[49] and reworked the driving mechanics to correct Grand Theft Auto IV 's difficult vehicle controls.[50]
After an audition process, Ned Luke, Shawn Fonteno and Steven Ogg were selected to portray Michael, Franklin and Trevor, respectively.[51] Their performances were mostly recorded using motion capture technology,[52] but dialogue for scenes with characters seated in vehicles was recorded in studios instead.[53] Grand Theft Auto V is the first entry in the series to feature an original score, which was composed by a team of producers collaborating with each other over a number of years.[54] Licensed music provided by an in-game radio is also used.[55] The team licensed more than 241 tracks shared between fifteen radio stations, with an additional two stations providing talk radio. Some of the tracks were written specifically for the game, such as rapper and producer Flying Lotus's original work composed for the FlyLo FM radio station he hosts.[7]
Grand Theft Auto V was first announced by Rockstar Games on 25 October 2011.[56] They released its debut trailer one week later,[57] with an official press release acknowledging the game's setting.[58] Journalists noted that the announcement ignited widespread anticipation within the gaming industry, which they owed to the cultural significance of the series.[59][60][61] The game missed its original projected Q2 2013 release date, pushed back to 17 September to allow for further polishing.[62] To spur pre-order game sales, Rockstar collaborated with several retail outlets to make a special edition with extra in-game features.[63] Rockstar also ran a viral marketing strategy with a website for a fictional religious cult, "The Epsilon Program", that offered users the chance to feature in the game as members of the cult.[64]
Reception
Critical response
| Grand Theft Auto V reception | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Reviewers praised the character switching mechanic. Jeff Bakalar of CNET felt that the game encouraged players to engage with all three characters.[89] Edge found that switching players was helpful for avoiding long travel times to mission start points.[81] Character switching was considered to improve the pace of action sequences as well, and Matt Bertz of Game Informer noted that players are kept "in the thick of the action" during shootouts.[71] Tom Bramwell of Eurogamer wrote that switching added a tactical element to shootouts since characters set up in strategic outposts would result in fewer "shooting gallery" situations than previous instalments.[70] IGN's MacDonald similarly felt that the feature gave players more choice in their approach and made missions less predictable.[74]
Jeff Gerstmann of Giant Bomb considered the heist missions a welcome deviation from the typical missions structure of the series.[82] Eurogamer 's Bramwell felt that the heists felt like "blockbuster set-pieces",[70] and Carolyn Petit of GameSpot cited the 1995 film Heat as a stylistic influence on their design.[72] Xav de Matos of Joystiq felt creativity and methodical approaches were encouraged.[75] Chris Plante of Polygon likened rapid character switching during heist missions to "film editing, with the player serving as editor, switching rapidly to the most interesting perspective for any moment".[83] Andy Kelly of Computer and Video Games felt that overall mission design was more diverse than and lacked the escort errands of its predecessors.[84]
Los Santos, the city featured in the game's open world. Reviewers praised its design and similarity to Los Angeles. The departure from Grand Theft Auto IV 's Liberty City was also well received.
Reviewers praised the sound design. Jim Sterling of Destructoid called it "impeccable" and praised the actors' performances, the original soundtrack and the use of licensed music.[21] IGN and Giant Bomb also commended the licensed music selection and felt that the original score enhanced dramatic tension during missions.[74][82] GameSpot's Petit wrote that the score "lends missions more cinematic flavour".[72] Edge said that the licensed music enhanced the city's "already remarkable sense of space" and that the original score improved the atmosphere of the gameplay. They summarised the game as "a compendium of everything Rockstar has learnt about the power of game music in the past decade".[91]
Many reviewers found the land-based vehicles more responsive and easier to control than in previous games.[87][72][76][85][86] "Cars have a proper sense of weight, while retaining the agility necessary for navigating through traffic at high speeds", Bertz of Game Informer explained.[71] In addition to the vehicle handling, most reviewers noted the shooting mechanics were tighter than they had been in previous games,[71][72][74] but Destructoid's Sterling felt that in spite of the improvements, auto-aim was "twitchy and unreliable", and cover mechanics "still come off as dated and unwieldy".[21] Some reviewers felt the game solved a continual problem by adding mid-mission checkpoints.[70][74][88]
The story and characters—particularly Trevor—polarised reviewers. Some felt that the narrative was not as well-written as previous Rockstar games and cited the plot strengths of Grand Theft Auto IV and Red Dead Redemption.[70][71][75][86] Other reviewers felt that having multiple lead protagonists with contrasting personalities gave the narrative tighter pacing.[21][81][74][83] Edge thought the choice to host multiple leads was crucial, writing "what [at first] seemed like a gimmick ultimately proves to be the bedrock for the game as a whole".[92] Hollander Cooper of GamesRadar thought that the game negated inconsistencies in the story of previous entries, whose single lead protagonists had muddled morality.[73] GameSpot's Petit considered Trevor in particular a "truly horrible, terrifying, psychotic human being—and a terrific character".[72] Bramwell found Trevor "shallow and unconvincing", and felt that his eccentricities hurt the narrative and overshadowed Michael and Franklin's character development.[70] Joystiq's de Matos faulted the protagonists' lack of likability for him, and found the ambivalence between Michael and Trevor a tired plot device as their conflict grew into a "seemingly endless cycle".[75] Greg Tito of The Escapist had difficulty connecting with the characters' emotions since they acted out of greed with no sense of morality and thus gave players little reason to support them.[77]
Sales
Within 24 hours of its release, Grand Theft Auto V generated more than $800 million in worldwide revenue, equating to approximately 11.21 million copies sold for Take Two.[93][n] The numbers nearly doubled analysts' expectations for the title.[95][96] Three days after release, the game had surpassed one billion dollars in sales, making it the fastest selling entertainment product in history.[97][o] Six weeks after its release, Rockstar had shipped nearly 29 million copies of the game to retailers, exceeding the lifetime figures of Grand Theft Auto IV.[99] On 7 October 2013, the game became the best-selling digital release on PlayStation Store for PlayStation 3, breaking the previous record set by The Last of Us, though numerical sales figures were not disclosed.[100][101] It broke seven Guinness World Records on 8 October: best-selling video game in 24 hours, best-selling action-adventure video game in 24 hours, highest grossing video game in 24 hours, fastest entertainment property to gross $1 billion, fastest video game to gross $1 billion, highest revenue generated by an entertainment product in 24 hours, and most viewed trailer for an action-adventure video game.[9] A digital version was released on 18 October for the Xbox 360,[102] which went on to become the highest grossing day-one and week-one release on Xbox Live.[103] As of August 2014, the game has sold-in over 34 million units to retailers for the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360.[104] As of May 2014, the game has generated over $1.98 billion in revenue.[105] As of 31 December 2014, the game has shipped 45 million copies to retailers.[106] As of 10 August 2015, the game has shipped over 54 million copies across platforms.[107]In the United Kingdom, the game became the fastest-selling game of all time, selling more than 2.25 million copies in five days. This broke the record set by Call of Duty: Black Ops at two million copies over the same period. It also broke the day one record by selling 1.57 million copies and generating £65 million.[108] In two weeks, the game sold more than 2.6 million copies and generated £90 million, which accounted for 52% of games sold September 2013.[109] After three weeks on sale, it beat the lifetime sales of Grand Theft Auto IV in the United Kingdom.[110] In its fourth week, it became the fastest-selling title to break the three million barrier in the UK, thus overtaking lifetime sales of Black Ops II.[111] In November 2014, the game became the best-selling game of all time in the UK, overtaking Call of Duty: Black Ops.[112] The game was similarly successful in North America: Grand Theft Auto V was the best selling game in September, representing over 50% of software sales[113] and boosting overall software sales by 52% compared to September 2012.[114]
Awards
Main article: List of accolades received by Grand Theft Auto V
Grand Theft Auto V received multiple nominations and awards from gaming publications. Prior to its release, it received Most Anticipated Game at the 2012 Spike Video Game Awards.[59] The game was review aggregators Metacritic and GameRankings' highest rated for the year 2013.[115][116] The game appeared on several year-end lists of the best games of 2013, receiving wins from independent journalist Tom Chick,[117] CNET,[118] Edge,[119] the 31st Golden Joystick Awards,[120] the 5th Annual Inside Gaming Awards[121] the Spike VGX 2013 Awards,[122] Slant Magazine[123] and Time.[124] It was also named the Best Xbox Game by Canada.com,[125] GameSpot,[126] and IGN,[127] and the Best Multiplatform Game by Destructoid.[128] Rockstar Games and Rockstar North won Best Studio and Best Developer from Edge,[129] and the BAFTA Academy Fellowship Award at the 10th British Academy Video Games Awards.[130]Various in-game elements were recognised with awards. Two characters, Trevor Philips and Lamar Davis, received numerous nominations for Best Character, and Lamar won the award from Giant Bomb.[131] The music also received awards from Spike VGX,[122] Hardcore Gamer[132] and The Daily Telegraph.[133] Grand Theft Auto Online won Best Multiplayer from GameTrailers[134] and BAFTA,[130] and Best Xbox 360 Multiplayer from IGN.[135] Online was also nominated for Biggest Disappointment by Game Revolution[136] and Hardcore Gamer.[137] Grand Theft Auto V won Best Technical Achievement in the Telegraph Video Game Awards,[133] and Best Technology at the 14th Annual Game Developers Choice Awards.[138] The graphical and artistic design also received awards from IGN,[139] The Daily Telegraph[133] and BAFTA,[130] and a nomination at the Game Developers Choice Awards.[138]
Grand Theft Auto V also received numerous other awards. It was awarded the title of Most Immersive Game at the Inside Gaming Awards.[121] The general public also voted for the game to receive some accolades, such as the User Choice Award at the PlayStation Awards 2013,[140] and the Community Choice award from Destructoid.[141] Grand Theft Auto V received the Platinum Award at the PlayStation Awards,[140] and was named the Best British Game from BAFTA.[130] At IGN's Best of 2013 Awards, it received multiple wins, including Best Xbox 360 Graphics,[139] Best Xbox 360 Sound,[142] and Best Action Game on Xbox 360,[127] PlayStation 3[143] and overall.[144]
Grand Theft Auto Online
Main article: Grand Theft Auto Online
Developed in tandem with the single-player mode, the online multiplayer mode Grand Theft Auto Online was conceived as a separate experience to be played in a continually evolving world.[145] Up to 30 players[p] freely roam across a re-creation of the single-player world and enter lobbies to complete jobs (story-driven competitive and cooperative modes).[146] The Content Creator toolset lets players create their own parameters for custom jobs, like racetracks and deathmatch weapon spawn points.[148] Players may band together in organised player teams called crews to complete jobs together. Rockstar Games Social Club extends crews formed in Max Payne 3 's multiplayer mode to that of Grand Theft Auto Online. Players can create their own crews and join up to five total. Crews win multiplayer matches to earn experience points and climb online leaderboards.[149]Grand Theft Auto Online launched on 1 October 2013, two weeks after Grand Theft Auto V 's release.[150] Many players reported connection difficulties and game freezes during load screens.[151][152] Rockstar released a technical patch on 5 October in an effort to resolve the issues,[153] but problems persisted the second week following launch as some players reported their character progress as having disappeared.[154] Another technical patch was released on 10 October combating the issues[155] and Rockstar offered a stimulus of GTA $500,000 (in-game currency) to the accounts of all players connected to Online since launch as recompense.[156] Because of the widespread technical issues present at launch, many reviewers bemoaned their experience with Grand Theft Auto Online, but generally recognised the open-ended exploration and dynamic content as its strength.[157][158][159][160][161] Post-release content is continually added to Grand Theft Auto Online through free title updates. Some updates add new game modes and features,[162][163] and others feature themed gameplay content, such as the Independence Day Special update that added patriotic-themed content on 1 July 2014.[164] The widely anticipated[165][166] Online Heists update launched on 10 March 2015 and suffered some initial technical difficulties due to the increased user load.[167]
Re-release
A comparison of the PlayStation 4 (left) and PlayStation 3 (right) versions of the game. The enhanced re-release features greater draw distances and higher-resolution textures than the original versions.
The re-release includes a new on-foot first-person view option. Players may configure the camera to personal preference (for example, by making the view toggle to third-person when taking cover).[10] Grand Theft Auto Online 's player count has been increased from 16 to 30.[147] Content available to players returning from the PlayStation 3 or Xbox 360 versions includes exclusive activities, weapons and vehicles in the enhanced version.[173] It features more than 100 new songs across the game's radio stations.[147] Players may transfer characters and progression of Grand Theft Auto Online from the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 over to the new platforms. The PC version features a replay editor that lets players create video clips of their gameplay.[168] The PlayStation 4 version uses the DualShock 4's touchpad to navigate camera options and speaker to play smartphone calls.[174] The Xbox One Controller's "Impulse Triggers"[175] may rumble while players use vehicles.[176]
Development
Animation director Rob Nelson said that a first-person option was raised during development on the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360, but that the consoles' relatively smaller banks of memory were already being pushed, such that adding new first-person animations would have inhibited the open world render. According to Nelson, the first-person view required more development effort than simply repositioning the camera, because of the need to adapt combat to a different view. The weapons were upgraded to a higher resolution, and new animations including weapon recoil, reload and switch were added. "I think we created 3,000 animations on weapons alone", said Nelson.[10]
There's something incredible about running around this world in first-person, glancing down at Trevor's hands, now your hands and seeing the tattoos, the dirt under his nails ... And then with a click you're in third person and there's your character again in front of you—it's a whole other new experience.
“
”
Aaron Garbut, Rockstar art director, IGN, 5 November 2014[174]
Reception
| Re-release reception | ||||||||||||||||||||||
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Game Informer 's Andrew Reiner considered the addition of first-person "another significant breakthrough for the series" in the vein of Grand Theft Auto III 's shift to third-person from Grand Theft Auto 's bird's-eye view.[184] GameSpot's Mark Walton found that playing in first-person heightened the impact of Grand Theft Auto V 's violence, which made him reflect on morality and character motivation more than before.[183] VideoGamer.com opined that players feel like inhabitants of the world, rather than a "gun attached to a floating camera".[188] IGN's Dan Stapleton found the game more immersive in first-person, creating a "surprisingly different experience".[185] VideoGamer.com praised the "finer details" in first-person animations like camera lean when players take corners on motorcycles, or the navigational instruments in plane cockpits.[188] Reviewers found playing the game more difficult in first-person,[183][185] but Game Informer 's Reiner preferred the challenge.[184]
GameSpot's Walton thought the graphics improvements made the open world "even more spectacular", especially because of improved spatial anti-aliasing. Of the first-person view, he said that "at ground level everything looks bigger and more imposing" because of the improved graphics.[183] IGN's Stapleton favoured the PlayStation 4 version's graphics over the Xbox One, but thought both consoles rendered the game well and maintained mostly consistent frame rates.[185] He praised the increased frame rate and graphics options offered in the PC version.[190] VideoGamer.com called the console version's frame rate so consistent it was "scarcely believable",[188] although GameSpot's Walton cited occasional frame rate dips.[183] GameSpot's Peter Brown opined that the PC version let players "witness the full extent of Rockstar's admirable handiwork", but noted that it "retains evidence of its last-gen roots ... with simple geometry".[183] VideoGamer.com praised the Rockstar Editor's accessibility on PC but criticised some of its limitations, such as camera angle restrictions.[189] IGN's Stapleton appreciated the PC version's customisable controls,[190] and GameSpot's Brown felt that constant switching between the mouse and keyboard and a gamepad was necessary for "the best experience".[183] PC Gamer 's Chris Thursten called the game "the most beautiful, expansive and generous" of the series.[187]
On the game's multiplayer, IGN's Stapleton reported low player counts in matches, long wait times in lobbies, server disconnection and occasional crashes. "Because of that," he wrote, "I can't strongly recommend ... the multiplayer experience alone".[185] VideoGamer.com found online character progression streamlined by comparison with the original version. According to them, the "grind of just doing PvP until co-op Jobs arrive with regularity"[188] was lost, and newcomers would likely find multiplayer enjoyable and balanced. However, they wrote of frequent server disconnection, especially during load screens.[188] GameSpot's Walton thought that Grand Theft Auto Online "still suffers from a lack of direction" for its open-ended and frenetic gameplay, while still being fun.[183] Game Informer 's Reiner reported "minimal lag or issues in the expanded firefights and races".[184]
Controversies
Main article: Controversies surrounding Grand Theft Auto V
The game has generated several controversies related to its violence and depiction of women. A mission that requires players to use torture equipment in a hostage interrogation polarised reviewers, who noted its political commentary but felt that the torture sequence was in poor taste.[74][191] The mission also received criticism from politicians and anti-torture charity groups.[192] The game became subject to widespread online debate over its portrayal of women, particularly in the wake of backlash against GameSpot journalist Carolyn Petit after she claimed the game was misogynystic in her review.[72][193] After Petit's review webpage received more than 20,000 largely negative comments, many journalists defended her right to an opinion and lamented the gaming community's defensiveness towards criticism.[194][195] Television personality Karen Gravano and actress Lindsay Lohan have both filed lawsuits against Rockstar in allegation that characters in the game were based on their likenesses.[196][197] Australian department store Target pulled the game from their 300 stores following a Change.org petition against depictions of violence toward women in the game.[198] Shortly after the game's PC release, some players reported being banned from Grand Theft Auto Online for using field of view and cosmetic mods in single-player.[199] Rockstar stated in their official blog that nobody had been banned from Online for using single-players mods, but that recent updates to the PC version had the "unintentional effect" of making such mods unplayable. They stated that mods are unauthorised and may cause unforeseen technical problems and instabilities.[200]Legacy
Critics concurred that Grand Theft Auto V was one of the best games of the seventh generation era of video game consoles,[32] and a great closing title before the emergence of the eighth generation.[201][202] Plante of Polygon observed that the game would be "a bridge between games' present and the future", and declared it "the closure of this generation, and the benchmark for the next".[83] VideoGamer.com's Simon Miller considered it "the ultimate swansong for this console cycle" that would "cast a long shadow over the next".[203] Three days after its release, the game ranked second on IGN's list of "The Top 25 Xbox 360 Games". Editor Ryan McCaffrey considered that the scale and detail of the open world succeeded the majority of other Xbox 360 games. He wrote that the game is "a triumph both for gamers and for the medium itself, and it deserves its runaway success".[204] Hardcore Gamer placed it at number three on their "Top 100 Games of the Generation" list. They cited the game's improved shooting and driving mechanics over its predecessors. They also considered that the multiple protagonist design "was a welcome change of pace" and could become a benchmark for the eighth generation of gaming.[205] In December 2013, The Daily Telegraph listed Grand Theft Auto V among their "50 best games of the console generation". They called it a "cultural behemoth" and wrote that it "will be Rockstar's lasting legacy".[206]In January 2014, Computer and Video Games ranked Grand Theft Auto V fourth on their "Games of the Generation 20-1" list. Editor Rob Crossley said that for the first time, Rockstar created an open world that is "utterly beautiful". He found that the game did away with the repetitive mission design of Grand Theft Auto IV and focused instead on fun gameplay.[207] In May, IGN ranked the game eighth on their list of the "Top 100 Games of a Generation" and called it a "huge, raucous, and wildly ambitious bridge towards the [eighth] generation of console gaming".[208] The next month, the game placed at number three on IGN's list of the "Games of a Generation: Your Top 100" as voted by readers of the site.[209] In August, Game Informer ranked the game third on their "Top 10 Action Games Of The Generation" list. They compared the game's quality to that of its predecessor, but thought that its ensemble character set-up, varied missions and multiplayer superseded Grand Theft Auto IV 's placement on the list. They wrote of the story's absurd drama and the open world's vastness, and did not "regret a single second" spent playing the game.[210] In November, Edge named Grand Theft Auto V the fifth best game of the generation, and commented that the game set a high standard for the open world genre.[92] Grand Theft Auto V also ranked high on several best game lists determined by the public. It featured eighth on Empire 's list of "The 100 Greatest Video Games Of All Time", and fifth on Good Game 's "Top 100 Games" list, as voted by the audience of the magazine and show respectively.[211][212]
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