For those who missed out on last year's PS3 and XBox 360 releases, Rockstar North has finally brought Grand Theft Auto V: Los Santos to the new generation consoles just in time for the holidays. Sorry PC users, you're going to have to wait just a little longer.
Following the same format as its predecessors, GTAV provides an open-world, this time in the city of Los Santos ( if you're thinking Los Angeles then you're absolutely right ). The thing about the GTA games is that they're never sequels. You won't find the continuation of a story here. What you'll find is the same game, similar missions and the same amount of freedom to wreak havoc on a city and kill prostitutes for money. Just a different city with new radio station s. That said, Rockstar is never skimpy on the details, and certainly not in this new release .
Those with new generation consoles (and eventually PC users) will get an exclusive experience in GTAV that PS3 and XBox 360 owners didn't: a new perspective, literally.
That's right. First Person Mode. This is where the detail Rockstar North has painstakingly made manifest in the world of Los Santos will really stick out. Hijack a car, drive off and find a safe parking spot. Now look around your car and you'll find that the dashboard dials actually work. If you're being shot at, then duck under the wheel. You'll notice the same level on detail on boats and planes as well. For those of you who enjoy motorbikes, First Person Mode will have you looking through a helmet's visor (safety first after all).
With the new perspective comes a new targeting system, a traditional first person shooter control scheme, and a boundless assortment of new animations. First Person Mode is not just for roaming freely around the city. It's also available when you're completing missions.
But let's face it, there are SO MANY MORE things we can do in Los Santos besides the main missions. Bored and don't feel like a mad police chase? Go to the movies or start a street race. Not in the mood for that? How about some golf? Have some extra cash and an insatiable entrepreneurial spirit? Buy some businesses or play the stock market. Or why not switch between your characters and see what they're up to? Yes, you read that right. Characters.
You're not just a criminal this time around. You're three of them. Yes, the entire crew - and you're professionals. You'll certainly be switching between characters for missions - sometimes during the same mission. Not only do the different perspectives add to the overall exhilaration of these blood-pumping missions, but they also make for gameplay memories that mirror an incredible action movie sequence.
The first of the crew is Michael. He's kind of like the ex-criminal in that movie about the mobster who turns all of his friends in and ends up in witness protection. He lives in a mansion with his cheating wife and three children. He's bored to say the least, and itching to get back in the game.
Second is Franklin the gang-banger who comes from...wait for it...Strawberry. He's the guy they send after you when you can't pay your debts to your loan shark. While that might not be so interesting, it's worthwhile to know that this young newbie has dreams of making it into the big time.
Then you have Trevor the redneck, Michael's ex-partner and psychotic best friend. And he is just disturbingly bat***t crazy. So much so that Rockstar North came under fire for it just two days after the game was released on PS3. SPOILER ! Severed horse heads have nothing on Trevor. And you would expect to be very, very afraid of him, except for the fact that you are him.
The characters are apparently tributes to characters from the previous games, Michael is Tommy Vercetti from Vice City (GTAIII) while Franklin is Carl Johnson from San Andreas (GTAIV). But, here's an interesting take on Trevor from Tom Hoggins at The Telegraph :
And Trevor? Trevor may well be you. Trevor is the Grand Theft Auto player that causes carnage and squelches pedestrians just to achieve a five-star wanted rating and watch the following mayhem unfold. He is the twisted, ugly reflection of all the nasty stuff that GTA lets you do but rarely explicitly encourages. Rockstar wants you to look at his face and feel uncomfortable. And it works.
That is how twisted and screwed up Trevor is. He's all the crazy that the Grand Theft Auto series allow its players to be. Makes you think doesn't it?
Everything ever written about the GTA franchise in the history of ever will always mention some of the controversy surrounding a specific release of the game. We're happy to list them all for you, if only to bring the point home that Rockstar North really doesn't care.
While the games never really make a point of promoting some of this deviant behavior, looking at the above history tells us that the more we complain, the more outrageous the next game will be. After meeting and playing as Trevor, we'll admit, we're are a little afraid of what the next installment of GTA might bring us.