GTA Online is coming - are you ready?

Next Tuesday, October 1, the online component for Rockstar Game’s most recent opus, Grand Theft Auto V, will become available to the masses. Aptly titled “GTA Online,” the mode promises to allow the same thrill of criminal enterprising online with friends in a massive persistent world, similar to the title’s single player narrative.

I’ve been enjoying GTA V since its release last Tuesday and it only keeps getting better and better. As you play, more and more activities, missions, side missions and random encounters become unlocked, keeping your experience fresh whether you’re just starting or have a number of heists under your belt. GTA V is visually stunning, presenting one of the best looking environments ever seen in an open world game as well as containing character models that put most cinematic action/adventure titles to shame. Powering those impressive visuals is an equally impressive engine that has refined the shooting and driving to an art, allows characters to move and react to situations in realistic ways and suffers from relatively little pop-in of textures despite the massive scale of the world and the far draw distance.

Before its launch last week, Rockstar announced that GTA Online would not be available until October. To my surprise, the announcement was met with little fanfare. I figured gamers would be up in arms about not being able to access a feature of a game that they had paid money for – but that outcry never came. It seemed that somehow, everyone came to the same conclusion that, “At least it will give us time to play the single player.” Because if not for these few, scant weeks, I may never return to the single player portion of GTA V because Online sounds like that much fun.

Despite not directly calling GTA Online an MMO, everything that Rockstar has said about the mode makes it sounds like a massively multiplayer online game. From the persistent world, to the ownership of property and the emphasis on not only completing missions but interacting with the world in the form of robberies, heists as well as offering competitive modes like deathmatches and races, GTA Online promises to be just as enthralling as the single player. You’ll even be able to buy a living space (an apartment for sure but maybe more) where you can invite friends over and throw parties. It’s basically a “Choose Your Own Adventure” book in video game form. Want to pull petty street crime like jacking cars and holding up liquor stores? You can do that. Want to organize a multi-stage heist with numerous friends? You can do that. Want to trick out a sports car (stolen or legitimately purchased) and race it against other real people on a course you designed? You can do that. Want to laze around in your apartment watching Republican Space Rangers and drinking beers with friends? You can do that too. All these options and so much more are yours to do in GTA Online, and they can be performed with up to 15 other people as well.

I read a rumor earlier that when you start GTA Online, you select past characters from the series to represent your family members and this determines the kind of character stats you start the game with. It’s an interesting idea, one that is probably to ensure that everyone doesn’t create the same kind of characters. If you’re playing GTA V now, you should already have a Rockstar Social Club account (you know, to store all those selfies you’ve no doubt taken) and with that account you can create a Crew for you and your friends to earn extra XP and cash during missions and heists.

There’s also been another rumor circulating that seems to have some validity. An eagle-eyed fan was trying to access the GTA Online portion of the game and came across place-holders in the game that suggest that GTA V will feature microtransactions, allowing you to spend real money for in-game money. While microtransactions of these sorts have been standard in many online games over the past few years, some gamers on the internet have lamented the fact that players will be able to spend real money to purchase items and vehicles that others will grind in-game to obtain. It’s unfortunate that the playing field is skewed by people who would rather spend money on unlockables than just, you know, playing the game and unlocking them but there are enough people out there willing to pay for in-game advancement and Rockstar would be stupid not to take advantage of them.

Earlier this week, Rockstar revealed a few of the first updates we can expect after GTA Online rolls out next week. These updates won’t happen right away but will be released gradually as time goes on. Rockstar also noted that these updates will be free, even the ones that include new clothing and vehicles.

-First, the promised Content Creator that will allow player to make their own deathmatches as well as their own races, will be available in the first few weeks of GTA Online. It’s a really interesting addition to GTA Online and we will have to wait and see what kind of other creation options are added over time.

-The Beach Bum pack promises four new beach vehicles and over three hundred new clothing items. These clothes are described as “down tempo leisure wear” and being part of the Beach Bum pack, I can only assume that these articles of clothing will be swimsuits, flip flops, sunglasses and the like. Oh and I nearly forgot, two new weapons will be included as part of the Beach Bum pack as well.

-Part of the competitive modes, Rockstar has promised a Capture the Flag mode that they are calling “GTA Online’s take on the classic CTF mode.” It will be interesting to see just what the “flag” will be that teams fight over and the size of the maps that will be playable in this mode. With enough players, I can see games of CTF in GTA Online being incredibly fun and challenging. Rockstar also promises that you will be able to create your own CTF games in the Content Creator.

-The final noted update was that Heists will not be available at the very beginning of GTA Online but a number of fully cooperative heist missions will be available in the next few weeks. The heists in the single player game are pretty intense so I can see the online heists where you need to rely on your friends to perform their duties under fire being even more heart-pounding.

With an undertaking as ambitious as GTA Online and taking into consideration the sheer number of people who have bought GTA V, its completely likely that there will be growing pains when GTA Online comes online next week. The Rockstar Social Club was experiencing problems most of last weekend and if that is any indication, GTA Online will suffer from more than a few hiccups at its outset.

First Impressions: Grand Theft Auto V

It has been a long, long time coming but the last game that many of us will play on this current generation of consoles is here and has already made a huge impression on the gaming community. Rockstar’s “Grand Theft Auto V” hit the market Tuesday and people all around the internet have had nothing but praise for the title. Rockstar had announced that the title had made its money back in preorders alone before its release on Sept. 17 and announced that in one day of sales had passed the $800 million mark. And now, according to internal estimates by publisher Take Two Interactive, GTA V has passed $1 billion dollars in sales just three days after first going on sale. If that’s true, it would mean that GTA V reached $1 billion in sales faster than any other entertainment property, ever. Experts initially estimated GTA V would reach $1 billion in its first month on shelves, making its rise to the top of the sales charts meteoric. COD: Black Ops 2 was previous record holder, reaching $1 billion in 15 days.

I’ve been playing GTA V since Tuesday and I have to agree that its blistering sales pace is completely warranted. GTA V is not only the finest game Rockstar has ever made, but legitimately one of the finest games ever made. Between its breathtaking scenery, diverse characters, and myriad activities and missions, GTA V is a true achievement of the highest degree.

Taking place in the city of Los Santos and the surrounding counties, GTA V follows the lives of three very different characters who have similar goals – make lots and lots of money by any means necessary. You start off as Franklin, a young guy struggling to find ways to make legitimate money on the streets of Los Santos. But before long, we’re introduced to the second protagonist, Michael, an ex-bank robber living a life of luxury in a swanky mansion in the hills surrounding the city. We come to find out that Michael’s family despises him and so does his therapist and it isn’t hard to see why – he’s abrasive, controlling and a little bit nuts, but then again he makes no real effort to try and conceal these traits. Michael and Franklin eventually cross paths and decide to go into business with one another. It’s not long after this that the final protagonist is introduced – Trevor Phillips, Michael’s former partner and a complete psychopath. Having three different playable, main characters, three different perspectives, is a unique twist on the GTA formula and gives players numerous options for tackling objectives or while exploring the massive city of Los Santos and the surrounding counties.

GTA V is not only amazing because of what it presents but what it represents. Aspects of almost every other Rockstar game can be seen in GTA V. The shooting and character movement are very reminiscent of Max Payne 3 – and not just reminiscent but an improvement on. The driving mechanics have been refined over years of making GTA games and have also benefitted from Rockstar’ racing series, Midnight Club. The exquisitely detailed scenery as well as other bits like randomly occurring events and a multitude of animal life were highly touted features of Red Dead Redemption and are mere bullet points on the long list of creative features in GTA V. In short, GTA V can be seen as the culmination of almost all of the work Rockstar has done to date – and it shows. GTA V is incredible.

It’s going to be hard to hit on all of the amazing things that GTA V does in my full review so I’m just going to list some things off right now that I’ve been most impressed with:

-There is a full 18-hole golf course to visit in Los Santos as well as several tennis courts. Essentially, you get a full golf video game and tennis video game inside your copy of GTA V. (I saw a meme earlier that I can’t find but will relay the message. Paraphrasing, it said “I was gonna buy Payday 2, Tiger Woods and Need for Speed – but I decided to just get GTA V instead.”)

-The player movement, driving and shooting mechanics are outstanding. Cars feel suitably heavy and e-braking around every corner is no longer a viable option as the driving mechanics feel as close to real as they ever have. Aiming and firing weapons is steady and smooth and the soft auto-aim feature works better than ever.

-Don’t want to lie, cheat and steal (yes, that was an Eddie Guerrero reference) to make your millions? Why not play the stock market, because, oh yeah, GTA V has a full stock market that ebbs and flows with the events of the game.

-Your character’s phone is an invaluable tool. Not only do you get several notices about missions and access to the internet (where you can do your day trading) but there is also a Quick Save feature that is pure brilliance. It saves your game at your exact location so you don’t need to take a trip to a safe house if you need to finish your session. There is a camera function as well that uploads your shots to the Rockstar Social Club and even lets you take selfies. And honestly, I’ve taken way more selfies in GTA V than I ever have in real life.

-When San Andreas came out, there were rumors that you would be able to own a dog. Well, that didn’t happen in San Andreas. Or in GTA IV.  But Rockstar has been listening an in GTA V, Franklin eventually comes into ownership of an awesome Rottweiler named Chop. You can take Chop out on walks and through the use of the iFruit app (apparently an app you can get for your real smart phone) teach Chop new tricks.

-The police in GTA V are actually incredibly intimidating. No longer the incompetent oafs of previous games, cops in GTA V are serious business. I’ve seen then use all manner of tactics to bring pursuits to an end like PIT maneuvers and using teamwork to box drivers in and they have no quarrel about breaking out the firearms to take you down. Luckily, they also operate on a new “line of sight” mechanic for pursuits so if you commit a crime and escape the area quickly enough, you stand a higher chance of evasion. Some might think this makes them too easy to escape but considering how brutally effective they are otherwise, it pretty much only levels the playing field.

Keep a look out for my full review upcoming. Though it’s hard to say when that will be exactly. GTA V also promises a robust online mode, simply titled GTA Online, that promises to be bigger and better than anything an open-world, online mode has ever presented – though this mode won’t be available until October.  

Video games - the constant scapegoat

Police: 8-year-old shoots, kills elderly caregiver after playing video game

It’s an unfortunate story but one that has been told many times, too many times, just with the names and places changed – the media at large places the blame for a murder on video games.

In a trailer park in Slaughter, Louisiana, it was reported that an 8-year-old boy shot and killed his grandmother after playing “Grand Theft Auto 4.” According to police, the young boy was playing the game just minutes before picking up a loaded weapon and shooting his grandmother in the back of the head. The child claims it was an accident but the large news outlets which picked up the story, saw things differently –the young boy deliberately killed his grandmother because he had been playing “GTA 4.”

Now, I usually don’t like commenting on serious, tragic stories like this. The world is full of enough horror and awfulness that recounting it on a blog that focuses on a fun hobby doesn’t really help anyone. But the way this story has been presented to the public just does not sit well with me. Rather than focusing on, “How did this child have access to a loaded firearm,” the story seems to be revolving around, “He was playing a violent video game before he murdered his grandmother.”

The entire way this story has been presented smacks of the media at large looking to put an alarmist spin on what appears to be a tragic accident. In the CNN story linked above, it’s stated that there is no known motive for the crime at the moment but the sheriff’s department “implied” that because the boy was playing “GTA 4” sometime before the incident, that the video games must have been what prompted the boy to kill his grandmother. Despite the fact that there has never been one valid study which can scientifically say for sure whether or not video games influence behavior, the focus of this story is squarely on the fact that this child was playing video games before, somehow, acquiring a loaded gun and killed his grandmother.

Considering the high profile of the gun control issue in America today, it baffles me that people are not more concerned with the fact that this kid had access to a loaded firearm than the fact that he was playing video games. I know I might be alone on this but I’m gonna put it out there – 8-year-olds should not have access to loaded weapons. I know, that might be a controversial statement but it’s one I stand by (ok, ending the generous helping of sarcasm).

But seriously, how did this story become about “video games made him kill his grandmom” and not, “Why and how did this kid have a gun?” “Where did he get the gun?” “Why wasn’t his grandmother paying attention to what he was doing and supervising him?” or even, to a lesser extent, “Why was an 8-year-old allowed to play GTA 4 in the first place?”

From the way the article is written – from the very first line – a careful reader can tell that CNN (and most other outlets covering this story) are using the tired old “video games cause violence” theory to troll for as many hits as they could get – skewing the real issue (why did a child have access to a loaded gun) into something more simple (playing video games makes you a murderer).

“What! An 8-year-old intentionally shot and killed his grandmother after playing video games!?!” an easily outraged reader probably saw, without taking into account there isn’t one shred of evidence that proves the boy murdered his grandmother on purpose. The article goes on to quote the sheriff’s department’s fundamental misunderstanding of how “GTA” works, saying players are “awarded points” for killing people.

It’s an unfortunate side-effect of the 24-hour news cycle but sometimes, too often depending on who you ask, the media will present stories in a way that ensures they get the most the views and rile up the most attention rather than delving into what caused the issue and how it can be changed for the better. And, for some reason, the issue of “whether or not video games cause violent tendencies” is always sure to get attention – turning a tragic accident in a small town in Lousiana into an issue over whether a portion of our pop culture turns people into violent, killing machines.

There’s no question at all that some video games aren’t meant for children, in the same way that some movies and TV shows aren’t meant for children. But all too often, parents and caregivers seem to view video games as something universally meant for children, allowing them to play games that are on par with films like “Full Metal Jacket” or “Goodfellas.” Parents need to be the ones who moderate what their children are exposed to and an incident like this should only prove that point further.

Recently, I was in a local GameStop, coincidentally, reserving a copy of “Grand Theft Auto V.” There was a woman with a child in front of me, an older woman (I’m assuming the child’s grandmother), talking to the store clerk about a video game aimed at children called “Skylanders.” It’s actually an ingenious property – to unlock new characters in the game, physical action figures must be purchased, then scanned into the game – but that’s beside the point. My point is that while a few Skylander figures were being rung up, the grandmom asked the boy with her if he wanted the new “Call of Duty” game as well. (If you don’t know, the “COD” series is a violent, military-based first-person-shooter.)

Now, I’m not the kind of person who sticks my nose into business that isn’t mine in the first place. I wasn’t about to tap the woman on the shoulder and say she shouldn’t buy that game for her grandson, nor was I going to mention to the clerk that the kid was way too young to be playing “Call of Duty” games. All I could do was sigh and shake my head (while sending out a disappointed tweet) and wonder how she could think that a violent game like “Call of Duty: Ghosts” could be appropriate for a child who couldn’t have been out of elementary school.

Then it hit me – she probably doesn’t know a thing about “COD.” Maybe she doesn’t even know about the self-enforced rating system the video game industry has in place that clearly states what age group a game is appropriate for. And that is the heart of the problem – that too often today, parents and caregivers aren’t as aware as they could/should be of what their children are watching or playing. It’s one thing to understand whether your child is mature enough for certain content, but it’s a completely different story when you don’t know a thing about the games, movies or shows your kids are watching but allow them access anyway.

Parents and the media can be upset about the violence they see in video games all they want, but until more parents actually take an interest in what their children are spending time on or with, incidents like the story of the child in Lousiana will continue to occur and video games will continue to be an easy scapegoat.