3. Drunk Driving
R* are clever. They
know controversy sells video games; they've always known it. That's why they're so unafraid to push the envelope, so unafraid to p**s people off in their droves, because they know for all the flak they'll receive, for all the criticism they suffer, their sales will be driven up exponentially.I'd argue that that was clearly one of the factors behind including drunk driving as a gameplay mechanic in GTA IV. This mechanic has received some fairly vehement opposition from the
Mothers Against Drunk Driving organisation (MADD). The thing is, no one is
for drink driving. No one says "hey that law that says I can't get tanked and drive my car has got to go". People do it because they're drunk and stupid and/or completely selfish, not because they were encouraged to by a f***ing video game. In short, no amount of lobbying against GTA IV will change the number of recorded drunk driving incidents, I'd stake my entire reputation on it. Again, I can only come back to my own experiences. I'm a huge GTA fan and I'm a driver; never once have I sat behind the wheel drunk and never once will I. Why? Because I value human life. No video game, no matter how violent, controversial or vilified could ever change that.