So which Grand Theft Auto: V rumours are true, and which ones are as plausible as a sustainable music career post-X-Factor? We've rounded up the biggest and the maddest rumours, cross-referenced them with the debut trailer, and analysed them to within an inch of their suspiciously anonymous sources. Want to know what's really going on? Here's where you find out.
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Grand Theft Auto: V's main character is Albert De Silva; played by Ned Luke.
Grand Theft Auto: V's main character is Albert De Silva; played by Ned Luke.
That late-middle-aged guy in the trailer with the greying, receding hairline? That's your iconic new action hero (perhaps one of several, but we'll explain later), that is. Even cooler? His name is Albert and he's played by a guy called Ned. De Silva is an aging mobster making an attempt to achieve retirement. A really, really poor attempt at retirement, as it turns out.
A leaked, code-named cast list named 'Rush', very probable for Grand Theft Auto: V; Also a few Tweetings from one of the protagonist's friends.
Last year, an online casting call went out for an unnamed project, codenamed 'Rush'. It read like a crime drama, with a cast of LA lawkeepers and countryside oddballs. The résumé of an actress involved later linked the project to Grand Theft Auto publisher Take-Two. Two characters were cast separately - Father; Albert De Silva and Brother; Simon - implying more prominent roles.
When the Grand Theft Auto: V trailer hit, it featured a man of fair age talking about settling down and being a father, while getting away from "that line of work". And then, via Twitter, actor Jimmy Taenaka outed his buddy Ned Luke as voicing the trailer. And a quick look on IMDB revealed old Ned to have the exact same face as the promo's protagonist. Coincidence? I think not.
When the Grand Theft Auto: V trailer hit, it featured a man of fair age talking about settling down and being a father, while getting away from "that line of work". And then, via Twitter, actor Jimmy Taenaka outed his buddy Ned Luke as voicing the trailer. And a quick look on IMDB revealed old Ned to have the exact same face as the promo's protagonist. Coincidence? I think not.
The setting will focus on the city of Los Santos and its surroundings, although not the whole area of GTA's previous San Andreas.
The Los Santos setting of the reveal trailer will be the primary location for the whole game. This is not a remake of Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas! You'll venture out of the city, but not as far as any new ones; such as San Fierro or Las Venturas.
A supposedly leaked map from a supposed 'Rockstar employee'. Also some rambling from a man claiming to be a journalist (no pun intended).
Back in November, a Twitter account credited to one @torontoJack233 (now deleted) posted a conveniently blurry map of the game, covering only Los Santos. However, Jack was later called out on an earlier discredited Grand Theft Auto: V hoax, making his 'evidence' very dubious.
At the same time, a guy hit GTAForums.com claiming to be a PS3 journalist (from PSM3, incredibly) with info based on a playtest. The truth? The map was likely a PC Grand Theft Auto: IV mod.
However, we reckon the duff sources got the location right by accident, or sane guesswork. While the official press release describes this as the biggest Rockstar game yet, it only references "Los Santos and surrounding hills, countryside and beaches". Last-gen's San Andreas was smaller than you remember, and not that big by modern standards, so a single, fleshed-out, current-gen city could easily compete. Expect Grand Theft Auto: V to be big and detailed rather than vast and bland... Don't be surprised if we get the other cities as fat DLC though.
At the same time, a guy hit GTAForums.com claiming to be a PS3 journalist (from PSM3, incredibly) with info based on a playtest. The truth? The map was likely a PC Grand Theft Auto: IV mod.
However, we reckon the duff sources got the location right by accident, or sane guesswork. While the official press release describes this as the biggest Rockstar game yet, it only references "Los Santos and surrounding hills, countryside and beaches". Last-gen's San Andreas was smaller than you remember, and not that big by modern standards, so a single, fleshed-out, current-gen city could easily compete. Expect Grand Theft Auto: V to be big and detailed rather than vast and bland... Don't be surprised if we get the other cities as fat DLC though.
Grand Theft Auto: V's gameplay has smoother, more cinematic gunplay lifted from a cancelled Sony game.
Grand Theft Auto: V's combat will have a much more solid cover system and far slicker animation. It will come partly via the input of Jim Jagger, an ex-Sony animator who has brought his previous work on a PS3 cover-shooter to the GTA franchise.
An anonymous source, a clandestine interview, and a developer CV that possibly said too much.
On October the 25th (2011); just after the Grand Theft Auto: V logo reveal but before the trailer, StickTwiddlers.com claimed to have spoken to an "industry professional" who had worked on the cancelled PS3-exclusive shooter Eight Days. ST's writer claims that upon commenting on Eight Days' undeniably meaty and cinematic character animation, he was told that the animator is now working on Grand Theft Auto: V at Rockstar.
StickTwiddlers then tracked down one Jim Jagger, a credited character animator on Eight Days, whose own site confirmed his employment at Grand Theft Auto-development Rockstar North since 2009, working on a then-to-be-announced... project.
Suddenly it sounds plausible. And given how good Eight Days' animation looked - a meticulous Google search reveals leaked early footage set in a desert - we hope that it is. Interestingly, they also focused on intricate co-op interactions, which adds great credence to the following rumour that...
StickTwiddlers then tracked down one Jim Jagger, a credited character animator on Eight Days, whose own site confirmed his employment at Grand Theft Auto-development Rockstar North since 2009, working on a then-to-be-announced... project.
Suddenly it sounds plausible. And given how good Eight Days' animation looked - a meticulous Google search reveals leaked early footage set in a desert - we hope that it is. Interestingly, they also focused on intricate co-op interactions, which adds great credence to the following rumour that...
Grand Theft Auto is no longer a single player-focused game
Grand Theft Auto: V will pioneer a new level of online co-op, not only for the series, but for open-world games in general. Think full drop-in, drop-out co-op in the main game (with maybe even a new mission and story structure to accommodate more players) and a bigger focus on multiplayer in general.
Some dubious 'insider' forum posts, and the fact it's the logical development of Rockstar's multiplayer offerings (outside of Grand Theft Auto) thus far. Also; the press release makes a suspiciously big deal out of it.
Towards the end of October, a post on the 4chan forum claimed to have insider knowledge of an expanded multiplayer and a co-op story. It also broadly nailed the Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas setting... before the trailer. However, it claimed that the protagonist would be a young Hispanic guy, which I suspect isn't the case.
That said, there were other elements in the post (a family-driven plot, a smoother combat system and a modern setting) that could be read as confused interpretations of what we believe to be true.
An online focus makes sense. Rockstar have openly lamented how few players finish the solo campaign, while Red Dead Redemption used its open world as a meeting-hub and playground for structured co-op missions. The Grand Theft Auto: V press release makes a big deal of the online component. It adds up. Which adds weight to the major theory that...
That said, there were other elements in the post (a family-driven plot, a smoother combat system and a modern setting) that could be read as confused interpretations of what we believe to be true.
An online focus makes sense. Rockstar have openly lamented how few players finish the solo campaign, while Red Dead Redemption used its open world as a meeting-hub and playground for structured co-op missions. The Grand Theft Auto: V press release makes a big deal of the online component. It adds up. Which adds weight to the major theory that...
Grand Theft Auto: V's story line will have multiple playable characters and a more abstract narrative
Rather than simple follow one character on the same old rags-to-riches-via-car-crashes-and-murder story, Grand Theft Auto: V will mix it up via several protagonists and multiple perspectives - various economic backgrounds - on the story. Think of it like Lost, The Wire or Oz, but with more knob jokes.
There's a very different protagonist this time around, and the reveal trailer has a very different focus. Also, Take-Two kind of said so.
Around a week before the trailer hit, Kotaku reported that "a source familiar with the game" had told them Grand Theft Auto: V would have multiple protagonists. No more detail than that, but we rather think the trailer confirms it, albeit subtly. Grand Theft Auto reveal trailers traditionally focus on one specific lead character, but this time it's different. 'Albert' comes up a lot, but he's not the only character who makes a prominent or repeated appearance.
Most notably there's a tattooed guy in a vest who looks a lot like San Andreas' CJ, and there's also a similar-looking guy in a red convertible. Given that 'Albert' is seemingly already at the top of the crime tree, the traditional Grand Theft Auto 'rags to riches' narrative model is out, so why not an ensemble story?
The Grand Theft Auto: V press release describes "radical reinvention" after all. And don't forget, Grand Theft Auto: IV experimented with multiple viewpoints itself, bringing Niko and DLC protagonists Luis and Johnny together more than once. And speaking of Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas throwbacks, some have claimed that...
Most notably there's a tattooed guy in a vest who looks a lot like San Andreas' CJ, and there's also a similar-looking guy in a red convertible. Given that 'Albert' is seemingly already at the top of the crime tree, the traditional Grand Theft Auto 'rags to riches' narrative model is out, so why not an ensemble story?
The Grand Theft Auto: V press release describes "radical reinvention" after all. And don't forget, Grand Theft Auto: IV experimented with multiple viewpoints itself, bringing Niko and DLC protagonists Luis and Johnny together more than once. And speaking of Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas throwbacks, some have claimed that...
Grand Theft Auto heroes of old, such as CJ, will be the playable stars.
While there will be one or more brand-new lead characters in Grand Theft Auto: V, we'll also see appearances from some iconic crims of yesteryear. Possibly all three last-gen Grand Theft Auto protagonists, including; Claude, CJ, Tommy Vercetti and Niko Bellic.
Rampant internet speculation and some very familiar character design.
Give obsessive fans of any series a scrap of new content and the ability to communicate online, and they'll spin that scrap into a daringly-designed royal wedding dress complete with matching bridesmaid set-ups in minutes. Such was the case with that guy in the vest, who we mentioned in rumor #5. If he looked like CJ and the game was set in Los Santos, he had to be CJ. The forums decided that within an instant.
And once the internet had set a course for Returning Protagonist City, the rumour-boat couldn't be stopped. Suddenly Albert was definitely an older Tommy Vercetti. And if he wasn't, then he was definitely an older Claude. But he is very probably neither.
Yes, Rockstar put out a (highly expensive) commemorative 10th anniversary Claude statue just before the Grand Theft Auto: V reveal, but as with most things relating to this rumour, we reckon it's coincidence. Also, Ned Luke sounds nowt like Ray Liotta (whose reps denied any involvement). Expect old faves in cameos, but not as the main stars.
And once the internet had set a course for Returning Protagonist City, the rumour-boat couldn't be stopped. Suddenly Albert was definitely an older Tommy Vercetti. And if he wasn't, then he was definitely an older Claude. But he is very probably neither.
Yes, Rockstar put out a (highly expensive) commemorative 10th anniversary Claude statue just before the Grand Theft Auto: V reveal, but as with most things relating to this rumour, we reckon it's coincidence. Also, Ned Luke sounds nowt like Ray Liotta (whose reps denied any involvement). Expect old faves in cameos, but not as the main stars.
Grand Theft Auto: V will bring hugely detailed RPG elements.
Love 'em or hate 'em, the controversial character management elements of Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas made a big impact when they landed. Character customisation has been limited to clothing ever since, but apparently Grand Theft Auto: V will bring bodybuilding, weight gain, tattooing and a whole lot more to boot.
An 'insider' forum post, and a few very suspicious props in the reveal trailer.
Someone who claims to know someone who's seen 30 minutes of game footage has posted online that character clothing and body weight can be altered, just like in Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas.
He also reckons vehicles can be repaired and maintained, driving and shooting skills can be levelled up, and home-made weapons can be fashioned together, Fallout-style. Unfortunately; all of this came from the fake journalist guy we mentioned in rumour #2, so his version of this is total balls.
What's less spherical though, is the appearance of gyms in the trailer. Rockstar rarely put anything in a GTA trailer that doesn't eventually turn up as a game mechanic, so we suspect that dynamically editing your character's physicality will be possible, a la San Andreas. The piercing parlour at 00:24 in the trailer backs up that idea too. The rest though? Doubtful, but we'll see.
He also reckons vehicles can be repaired and maintained, driving and shooting skills can be levelled up, and home-made weapons can be fashioned together, Fallout-style. Unfortunately; all of this came from the fake journalist guy we mentioned in rumour #2, so his version of this is total balls.
What's less spherical though, is the appearance of gyms in the trailer. Rockstar rarely put anything in a GTA trailer that doesn't eventually turn up as a game mechanic, so we suspect that dynamically editing your character's physicality will be possible, a la San Andreas. The piercing parlour at 00:24 in the trailer backs up that idea too. The rest though? Doubtful, but we'll see.
Article published by; Ross
Information gathered from: Source
Information gathered from: Source