Games

[icycalm]

http://kikizo.com/2011/07/14/grand-theft-auto-v/

That's a fine piece of speculative journalism.

[David]

Announcement trailer: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QkkoHAzjnUs

[icycalm]

Now THAT'S what I am talking about!

And fucking Braid is supposed to "be art" but this isn't, lol.

On topic, apart from the insane new engine (they FINALLY decided to put some of that money to good use, thank god), the main difference that stands out is how much more colorful it is than the brown-sludge tones of IV.

This just jumped up my most wanted list right under Ninja Gaiden 3 (I'd need to see more to rate it higher). If anyone can find any decent wallpapers/artwork post them here and I'll make the necessary modifications to the frontpage and this thread's header.

[David]

A few screens:











http://www.rockstargames.com/newswire/a ... uto-v.html
http://www.rockstargames.com/newswire/a ... sport.html

[icycalm]

The F-16 is getting ridiculous. If they don't find some awesome way to integrate it into the plot (and I don't see how they could, if you are piloting it), it will just make the game look dumb. For the rest, it looks awesome. Let's hope for a protagonist who's not ugly.

[David]

http://www.rockstargames.com/newswire/a ... isure.html

[Caster_Trash]

Looking good so far but I would be very surprised if it has a protagonist who's not ugly.

Now THAT'S what I am talking about!

And fucking Braid is supposed to "be art" but this isn't, lol.

Braid is art because it has some text between stages about a guys failed relationship, some guide on Game FAQ's said it's also about the atom bomb.
I think it has classical music in the background which is very art.

A couple of people told me GTA4 was art because of the spoof TV shows and sites.
Maybe if GTA5 puts a lot it's resources into spoof TV shows and sites it can also be seen as art.

[David]

Looking good so far but I would be very surprised if it has a protagonist who's not ugly.

Why? Claude and Tommy Vercetti were both fairly good looking, and the San Andreas guy was average looking, so Nico was more the exception than the rule.

[Caster_Trash]

Looking good so far but I would be very surprised if it has a protagonist who's not ugly.

Why? Claude and Tommy Vercetti were both fairly good looking, and the San Andreas guy was average looking, so Nico was more the exception than the rule.

Because of the visuals and the tone rockstar like.
It looks better than GTA4 but the NPC's look pretty much the same.
I'm not expecting a good looking protagonist.


[Banned for not using paragraphs in this and his previous post, and dumpquoting in this one. Also bad diction suggesting he's a child, etc. -icy]

[David]

First piece of artwork:

http://www.rockstargames.com/downloads# ... eries=5481

[David]

Lots of new information in this month's Game Informer. Here's the full article: http://imgur.com/a/8zTzP

pK1PD.jpg (160.61 KiB) Viewed 20685 times

A summary of the new details:

- GTA 5 "evolves nearly every mechanic" found in previous games in the series.

- Features the biggest open world in the series' history - GTA 5's world is bigger than the worlds of Red Dead Redemption, San Andreas and GTA IV combined.

- Three playable characters who you can switch between "at nearly any time".

- Each character has their own specific abilities and story arc, with all three stories intertwined.

- Camera zooms out to a "Google Earth-style" perspective when switching characters.

- Character 1 [on the right in the above artwork] - Michael, an ex-bank robber in his early 40s who retired after making a deal with the FIB. He has two teenage children and hates his wife Amanda. He's also the narrator of the original GTA 5 trailer.

- Character 2 [left] - Trevor, a former war veteran and a "drugged out psychopath". An experienced pilot.

- Character 3 [centre] - Franklin, a repo man in his mid 20s described as a "young and ambitious hustler".

- Focus on making more diverse missions.

- Heists and bank robberies are a big theme to the game.

- Characters will work together during missions, and you can switch between characters mid-mission to fulfill different roles. For example, during a chase sequence you can pilot the getaway helicopter as Trevor, snipe pursuing pilots as Franklin, or fire an assault rifle as Michael.

- Missions will have a "very different tone depending on who's on them, how many people are on them, and how much we're using switches", says Houser.

- Even when you're not controlling them, each character will still go about their own business across Los Santos. "You may be surprised by the situations they find themselves in should you switch back to check up on them," says Game Informer.

- Big advances to lighting and shader model. Greater draw distance.

- Improved vehicle handling and physics - "The cars hold to the ground better... It feels more like a racing game," Houser says.

- More vehicles than in any GTA to date, including BMXs, mountain bikes, road bikes, dirt bikes, cars, trucks, helicopters, planes, ATVs and Jet Skis, but vehicle manufacturers are still fictional.

- Improved shooting and melee combat. Melee combat "never going to be as big a deal as shooting," though, warns Houser.

- Pedestrians are fully mo-capped and more interactive.

- You can rappel down buildings, although it's not confirmed whether this is specific to certain missions.

- Los Santos is described as a "huge and diverse city", combining the best of Red Dead Redemption's "large open expanses" with GTA IV's "densely packed urban environment".

- Areas in the game world include beachfronts, mountains, the wilderness, a "Salton Sea" region, a military base and the suburbs.

- GTA: San Andreas was about gang culture. GTA 5 is about capturing the "contemporary culture of LA".

- There will be a "vibrant and fun" economy, but you won't be able to buy property.

- A variety of different side missions and "more sophisticated" minigames, including yoga, triathlons, Jet Skiing, base-jumping, tennis and golf. There's a full golf course in the game. You can go scuba diving along the coastline of Los Santos, or go to the gym on the seafront.

- Each character will have unique hobbies, including "one or two key minigame activities per character".

- San Andreas' RPG-like player customization is still absent, but you can customize the clothing of each character.

- GTA IV's romance feature has been removed.

- Like in GTA IV, players can make friends and hang out with certain NPCs, including Michael's wife Amanda and son Jimmy, Franklin's "crazy friend" Lamar, and Trevor's mate Ron.

- GTA IV's mobile phone returns, but a lot of its features have been altered. You can use it to access the internet.

- Dynamic missions - hidden missions dotted around the game world. "Going off-road in the desert, you may come across two parked cars and a sea of dead bodies around them... Investigate if you want."

http://www.videogamer.com/xbox360/gta5/ ... tails.html

[Tain]

New trailer: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vzue74y7A84

[icycalm]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Grand_Theft_Auto_V

A highly anticipated game, GTA V is slated for release in the second quarter of 2013, for the PlayStation 3 and the Xbox 360. A release for the PC or Wii U is being considered by Rockstar, but has not been officially announced.

After seeing IV on a triple-screen setup, I am a little bummed there's no mention of a PC version yet, though I am sure it will arrive eventually.

[icycalm]

By the way, I neglected to mention that the new trailer and the latest details have made my enthusiasm for this game almost hit rock-bottom. I mean, if 3 protagonists is better than one, why not go for 20, Rockstar? Or 63? Surely more is better? Or were there not enough cores in the 360 to handle them? And how about those protagonists! Can't wait to play as pudgy middle-aged white man, or pudgy middle-aged black man, or balding, decrepit old white guy lol! You thought they'd never top the orangutan protagonist of 4, but they sure as fuck did, from where I am standing! And not the slightest hint of any dialogue trees or plot interactivity whatsoever. Instead, we'll get to watch these three utterly uninteresting protagonists star in a bottom-of-the-barrel sitcom with a host of extras like the pudgy middle-aged black guy's long-lost son, or the pudgy middle-aged white guy's dysfunctional spoiled family. As if there weren't enough shitty sitcoms on TV already, now we'll have our cutting-edge free-roaming videogames inundated with them too! All the while the mission complexity goes down with every iteration! And you can't even play co-op with these 3 worthless, ugly protagonists!

Basically, I see no way that this game will be worth more than 3/5. I bet anything you want that it will be exactly like GTA4: a 2/5 game with an engine and a gameworld elaborate enough to warrant a little exploration, and hence push the score up to 3/5.

(And by the way, after a couple hours with Red Dead Redemption recently, I fear that's going to be exactly my verdict for that game too by the time I am done with it. I hope I'll be proven wrong because I am REALLY enjoying the engine, but so far things are looking rather bleak.)

[dinopoke]

http://www.rockstargames.com/newswire/a ... 72013.html

Dear all,

Today, we have an official release date to share with you: Grand Theft Auto V will arrive in stores on September 17, 2013.

We know this is about four months later than originally planned and we know that this short delay will come as a disappointment to many of you, but, trust us, it will be worth the extra time. GTAV is a massively ambitious and complex game and it simply needs a little more polish to be of the standard we and, more importantly, you require.

To all Grand Theft Auto fans, please accept our apologies for the delay, and our promise that the entire team here is working very hard to make the game all it can be. We are doing all we can to help ensure it will meet if not exceed your expectations come September – we thank you for your support and patience.

Yours,
The GTA Team

[David]

New screens:

http://www.rockstargames.com/newswire/a ... so-on.html

[icycalm]

Apart from the one with the ugly biker, wow. Even if they are pre-rendered, they are still wow.

[Qpo]

Official cover art, and some mural painting photos, from http://www.rockstargames.com/newswire/a ... r-art.html

[Qpo]

[rockman]

Michael Trailer: http://youtu.be/NmcevxJAvLg
Franklin Trailer: http://youtu.be/KoRYRcjHOz4
Trevor Trailer: http://youtu.be/1tf18QGsvrI
Gang Trailer: http://youtu.be/GrWkneu5g3Q

[David]

Edge preview:

Forget the new Grand Theft Auto V trailers – last week Rockstar invited select press to its London offices to lay eyes on the game. And before we go any further, let’s put one thing to bed: this is definitely a current-gen game, played with a DualShock 3 on a debug PlayStation 3.

That the platform that powered Tuesday’s trailers was even up for discussion shows that this is a huge step forward from Grand Theft Auto IV, and not just visually. It’s a mechanical refinement of the GTA formula, too, and it’s clear that Rockstar has learned something valuable from every game it has made in the four-and-a-half years since GTA IV’s release. You can see Red Dead’s influence in the beautiful Blaine County sky, and its countryside, too. Max Payne 3′s legacy is apparent in GTA V’s vastly improved cover shooting, and there’s even a hint of LA Noire – though not its tech – in the game’s improved facial animation.

The protagonists

Grand Theft Auto V’s playable trio – retired heist mastermind Michael, car-loving adrenaline junkie Franklin and the unhinged Trevor – have their own lives, and tastes too. Switch from one to the other when off-mission (by pressing down on the D-pad to bring up the character wheel) and they could be doing one of any number of things. Franklin kicks off our demo 1000 feet up in the Blaine County sky, ready to jump out of a helicopter. Michael is stepping out of the Von Crastenburg hotel in Vinewood in the early evening. Trevor, meanwhile, is just waking up on a remote beach, blood-spattered with bottle of whisky in hand, wearing only his underwear.

In other words, they don’t just hang around waiting to be summoned, and time will often pass between transitions. All this means Rockstar can subtly nudge time and story forward during downtime, and it’s a smart way of surfacing certain activities, side-missions or even TV shows that players might otherwise miss.

Waterworld

From the moment Trevor gets in a motorised dinghy and sets off up the coast it’s clear that we’re not in Vice City any more. The dinghy, buffeted about by waves powered by overhauled water physics, comes to a rest just offshore, and Trevor hides his socks-and-pants modesty by donning a set of scuba gear he finds on board.

He dives off the side and the Blaine County sun does its best to follow him down, its rays refracted by the water’s surface. Rounding the bow of a sunken ship we swim right into the path of a couple of sharks – dangerous enough to warrant their own icons on the radar, but tamed for the purposes of our demo. The sea is as alive as the land, then, and just as well. GTA V’s landmass is three-and-a-half times the size of Red Dead Redemption‘s; include the sea and the world is five times as big – and this time, the whole thing is fully explorable from the word go.

Heists and crew management

These are the beating heart of GTA V. They’re woven into its narrative, spread across multiple missions and requiring planning and prep work. The demo mission begins with Michael, Trevor and Franklin convening at a suburban truck stop, donning disguises and driving a garbage truck into town, which Michael uses to block a road, forcing a security van to come to a halt. Franklin rams the van with a tow truck, turning it on its side and blowing its doors off with a sticky bomb. We steal its cargo just as the police show up, and the shooting begins.

It won’t just be the three of you going out on heists, either. For the bigger jobs, you’ll need to hire a crew, and split the takings between those who survive. There’ll be a fine balance of risk and reward: do you hire in numbers and take a smaller cut of the payout, or try and pull a more lucrative heist with a bare-bones crew?

Skills and special moves

Like Skyrim, each of the protagonists’ skills in certain disciplines – shooting, driving, flying and so on – improves the more they are used. So while Franklin will start the game as the most accomplished driver and Trevor’s time in the military means he’s the best pilot, you’ll be able to redress the balance simply by playing the game. Stamina, lung capacity, strength and stealth are also tracked, and Rockstar says new tools and boosts will be unlocked as you improve.

Each of the three characters also has a unique special move, use of which is limited by a meter under the minimap. Michael can slow down time in combat in a refined version of Max Payne 3′s bullet time; Franklin can do likewise from behind the wheel of a vehicle, comfortably taking tight turns at high speed. Trevor, fittingly, has a Rage mode of sorts, doling out double damage and taking less himself until the meter is spent.

Modern warfare

Here’s your headline: the gunplay is Max Payne 3′s, broadly speaking, right down to the turning circle and the kill-confirming reticule X. This is no copy-paste from Rockstar’s 2012 shooter, though: there’s a new evasive roll, and a ‘combat jog’ that lets you move at speed with your weapon drawn, but not raised.

Again, the three-character setup proves its worth: no longer are you sat behind cover popping off heads until all the red dots are gone from the radar. Franklin stays behind a chunky concrete bollard for the most part, taking potshots and calling out enemy targets to his allies. This is hardly Michael’s first rodeo, so he’s more mobile, running and gunning from cover to cover. Trevor has the most fun, switching to a sniper rifle to dispatch an enemy team setting up across the street, and taking out an RPG to dispose of a police chopper and squad car.

The mechanics are the first thing you notice, but it’s the pacing that makes the stronger impression. The constant character switching ensures the action doesn’t let up until the shooting stops, while regenerating health, another series first, encourages ballsy play. The trio of protagonists doesn’t solely mean Rockstar gets to tell three stories at once; there are genuine gameplay benefits to the system, too.

http://www.edge-online.com/features/gra ... next-epic/

[Some guy]

New screenshots:

[alastair]

Screenshots:

http://www.gtaforums.com/index.php?show ... 264&st=0&#

[Qpo]

[Evo]

New screenshots: