GTA 6: 10 Core Innovations It Needs To Stay Interesting

4.More Fleshed-Out, Relatable Characters

Whereas Saint's Row went one way with their open-world tomfoolery, essentially taking the divisive jetpack-missions from GTA: San Andreas and going "Hey, we can do a whole game of that!", Rockstar instead went down the more serious route with part IV. Niko appeared to be their first attempt at a character who was well aware of just how bad his actions were, yet was more than happy to continually get involved in evermore ridiculously-violent scenarios for a spot of cash. It served to make him completely incongruous and utterly un-relatable, not to mention IV's batch of support characters (aside from Brucie) were some of the most unmemorable in any entry, instead attempting to make their mark on your subconscious by constantly texting you to go on dates or hang out. GTA V nailed the motivations of the characters in relation to player agency with laser-precision. By dividing your playtime amongst three different people all with differing levels of deviancy, depending on just how crazy you wanted to play there was always a character to suit you. However as I noted in this piece, I simply could not get on board with one Trevor Philips, and I would also say that these newer, more realistic GTA titles need better characters that you actually care about, not just allegories for nihilism or attempted wealth or whatever other image Rockstar decides to transform from their bizarro-American Dream into a full character. The characters of the GTA games always feel somewhat detached, most likely due to the world they're living in essentially being an alternate reality of our own, yet we are still waiting to take part in a really compelling narrative in terms of a character we all love and want to succeed, due to whatever their living situation is at the start of the game. Considering the many, many hours we're going to be spending around any protagonist they throw on screen, Rockstar need only sow a handful of seeds for the player-infatuation to do the rest.