December 23rd 2023.
Is Rockstar big enough to admit its faults? This is a question that has been on many people's minds since the release of the GTA 6 trailer. A reader worries that Rockstar is too proud to admit that the gameplay needs to improve and that GTA 6 could suffer the same issues.
I recently set up my PlayStation 4 again, just before Baldur's Gate 3 released on PlayStation 5. I got Divinity: Original Sin games in a bundle, just to see if I'd enjoy them and if I should buy Baldur's Gate 3. After watching the GTA 6 trailer, I decided to try out GTA 5 again. It wasn't the best experience.
When the trailer was released, I dismissed the letters about graphics over gameplay. I never had a problem with the gunplay, even though it is often critiqued with every new GTA release. But I always hated the driving challenge missions that were part of the main campaign. I think Rockstar are aware that the handling of the cars isn't great, which is why they added Franklyn's special power to slow time when he's driving.
The mission where Michael's wife gets caught shoplifting and he has to steal a police car to get her out of it was quite difficult for me. I also dismissed the Reader's Feature about GTA 6 being bad for society. I never bought into the idea of video games corrupting the people who play them. But I called my GTA 5 revisit a day when I got to the mission where we play as Trevor and have to torture a guy. I had played through it on PlayStation 3 but this time it was too much and left me wondering what made Rockstar think it was a good idea.
I played The Witcher 2 for the story and lore but it wasn't great in terms of gameplay. I also played Horizon Zero Dawn again, which was enjoyable. The difference between Horizon Zero Dawn and Horizon Forbidden West isn't as big, but they made some significant tweaks. Both developers saw there were issues and put them right and the sequels they released were all the better for it. But Rockstar have never done that.
From GTA 3 to 5, the only evolution has been Rockstar taking advantage of the available technology. The gunplay and driving are still as bad in GTA 5 as they were in 3. There was a motorcycle mission against the clock in Vice City and it was the ropey handling of the bike that made it difficult. It was exactly the same in GTA 5 when any character, other than Franklyn, was driving as the playable character.
After all these years, I see no reason to think Rockstar will have put aside their ego, listened to the criticism and changed any of that stuff for GTA 6. The gunplay and driving are going to be as slack in that as they have been in every previous GTA from the 3D era. Despite this, I'll still buy it.
At the end of the day, Rockstar needs to take a step back and look at the criticism they have received. They need to be open to the idea of making changes and improvements to their games. Only then will they be able to create a game that lives up to the hype.
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