It’s been ten years since the release of GTA V and the game industry has changed monumentally. The main money-maker is now platform games, like Fortnite and Apex Legends. Back when GTA V was released (around the time the meteor wiped out the dinosaurs), the industry was invested in mobile games. The most exciting and interesting thing about this new GTA instalment is how different it should be compared to its predecessor.
In the announcement tweet Sam Houser, the president of Rockstar Games, says that the studio is excited ‘for the next Grand Theft Auto’. Rockstar is one of, if not the best, entertainment companies when it comes to choosing their words. Nothing this company does is accidental, it is almost always deliberate. When Red Dead Redemption 2 was announced, all that it took was for the company to update its cover photo on Twitter to include the colours of the original game; which consequently sent the internet into a meltdown. So, for the Company’s president to not refer to this next game as GTA VI but just as Grand Theft Auto, has to be indicative of what is to come. So it seems apparent that this game is going to be a foundational game and will not tie itself to a digit. By doing so, this game is becoming the future of the series for the next 20 years. For a studio that has changed what it means to be an online game, an open-world game, a narrative-driven game and so on and so forth, an innovative decision like this is only fitting. So why would their next game not be majorly influential in the space of video games, become the first true series to revolutionise the industry, and become the first open-world foundational game that is continuously alive and growing?
So, for the Company’s president to not refer to this next game as GTA VI but just as Grand Theft Auto, has to be indicative of what is to come.
With that being said, if the game is going to become a true foundational online-first game, does this harm the classic narrative-drive style of the series? This is something that Rockstar has become world-renowned for, and with the story of Red Dead 2, they probably established themselves as one of the best storytelling groups in all entertainment, not just in gaming. With this being said, the loss of Dan Houser as one of the key writers for the studio, is quite concerning for what this narrative could be. Houser was the head writer for many of Rockstar’s games including Bully, both Red Dead games, and GTA V. There isn’t much cause for concern yet, if there is any studio that could replace their head writer seamlessly, it would be the company with an infinite pool of money, especially considering they are piling 2 billion dollars into their new development.
However, we could be seeing a divergence of the company away from the story-driven games and into a different territory, and maybe this is why Houser left. We don’t know this for certain and we probably aren’t going to know this for sure, possibly ever. But we will be able to speculate on what the truth is, once we begin to hear more about this and there is a legitimate chance; that this game isn’t narrative-driven and we may see a new era of this studio. Whether this is for good or for bad, is probably down to the personal taste of each person, but it is worth remembering that Rockstar has already changed tacts several times already. The first two GTA games were top-down, follwing this they switched to the third person silent protagonist, then they switched to the charismatic protagonists and added in the online aspect, and finally they became the first studio to ever use three playable protagonists in one open-world game. This studio has built its brand on change and innovation, so if there is anyone who could do it, it’s them.
However, we could be seeing a divergence of the company away from the story-driven games.
The game and the studio have a tantamount of challenges to face up to, this game will probably be the most-purchased game of all time, and there will be countless other games that will delay their games in fear of being eaten alive by Rockstar. But, in terms of meeting and exceeding the challenges and expectations placed upon themselves by themselves and others, Rockstar is the industry definition for "been there done that". No one would have thought that a Western series would be popular the way it was. No one would have thought that they could follow up the original Red Dead with a second one and still make the narrative fresh and new. Currently, no one thinks it’s possible to make a game worth 2 billion dollars in production. No one would think it possible to make a constantly online and growing game that lasts for twenty years.
Personally, I would never bet against the studio that has already defied every expectation and made them look like an ant in their rear view mirror.