Grand Theft Auto V

"Developed by series creator Rockstar North, Grand Theft Auto V heads to the city of Los Santos and its surrounding hills, countryside and beaches in the largest and most ambitious game Rockstar has yet created."

- Rockstar Games



Grand Theft Auto V Main Theme (Oh No - "Welcome to Los Santos")



Grand Theft Auto V (also known as Grand Theft Auto Five, GTA 5 or GTA V) is a video game developed by Rockstar North. It is the fifteenth installment in the Grand Theft Auto series and the successor of Grand Theft Auto IV. The original edition was released on September 17th, 2013 for the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3. The Xbox One and PlayStation 4 versions were released on November 18th, 2014, and was later released on April 14th, 2015 for the PC.

The original edition was announced on October 25th, 2011, the game's first trailer was released on November 2nd, 2011, at 4:00 PM GMT. The game was initially slated for a Spring 2013 release, but was pushed to September 17th the same year. Then, on July 15th, 2013, Rockstar announced the Japanese release date for the game: October 10th, 2013, almost a month after it was released in the West. The enhanced edition was announced on June 9th, 2014, with pre-orders made available on June 10.

Grand Theft Auto V is set circa 2013 in the city of Los Santos and its surrounding areas and tells the stories of three protagonists: Michael De Santa, Franklin Clinton, and Trevor Philips. It takes place about five years after the events of Grand Theft Auto IV, and four years after the events of Grand Theft Auto: Chinatown Wars.

As one of the most awaited video game titles to be released in 2013, the game was widely anticipated prior to its release. Grand Theft Auto V was released to universal acclaim, holding scores of 96 and above on MetaCritic and GameRankings, as well as receiving perfect scores from over 30 reviewers. The game sold 11.21 million copies and grossed $800 million on its first day, setting many records, and eventually making $1 billion within 3 days of the game's release.

Gameplay
Grand Theft Auto V evolves nearly every mechanic that was in the previous Grand Theft Auto games. As far as driving goes, the vehicles have been greatly improved, with Rockstar running more complex physics on them. The cars can even hold to the ground slightly better. The driving mechanics feel more like a racing game, particularly the Midnight Club series, compared to  Grand Theft Auto IV' s rocky, boat-like handling system. The shooting mechanics are better in terms of the feel of the mechanics and larger compared to the melee mechanics in the game, but that doesn't mean that the melee combat won't be fun, as it as been improved over the previous titles as well. Weapon selection has now also been changed. Instead of the old way of selecting through all the weapons, there is now a Weapon Wheel, which is similar to the one featured in Red Dead Redemption, another Rockstar game. Grand Theft Auto V draws inspirations from many different Rockstar titles in the past, including Max Payne 3, Midnight Club, Manhunt, and Red Dead Redemption.

There are many unique features in the game, one of those features is that when the players are playing as one of three protagonists in the game, the other two are living out their daily lives, and you will be surprised by what you find the characters doing when you switch back into them. Another unique feature is that the character swapping feature is executed in a Google Earth-styled manner and was displayed during a Game Informer demo, which was showed to have ran smoothly and without lag. The PC, PS4 and Xbox One versions present an exclusive feature, the first person mode The whole game can be played through the eyes of the protagonist. This gameplay mode presents a whole new way to play the game. Cars have detailed interiors different from one another, shooting is like that of a FPS game.

New activities have been added, such as yoga, triathlons, jet skiing, parachute jumps, tennis, golf, and scuba diving. Random events have also been added to the game and can appear any time, while the player is exploring the map. The mobile phone has returned from Grand Theft Auto IV but is now only used for calling the player's contacts, surfing the web, and quick saving. Giving people the middle finger is another new feature the player can use while in a vehicle (which Rockstar recommended you do in various locations around Los Santos to see the outcome of this effect, depending on where the player is at, they will get different reactions from pedestrians).

Rockstar has also made changes to the pedestrian mechanics; some pedestrians can be seen at the bus stops in East Los Santos, and the same people can reappear in Rockford Hills working on rich peoples' lawns and gardens. Some minor mechanics that help out the environment and looks of Los Santos come on at certain times, such as a sprinklers system coming on in the morning in rich areas like Morningwood.

The map is larger than Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas, Grand Theft Auto IV, and Red Dead Redemption combined. After some calculations by members of GawdAlmighty.com, that would equal to around 27.5 square miles/71.2 km2 when land and sea are combined. 

Vehicles
Grand Theft Auto V has more vehicles than in any other Grand Theft Auto game to date, with a variety of vehicles, including airplanes, helicopters, cars, utility vehicles, emergency service cars, motorcycles, and jet skis. Players are able to fly planes, which impossible in Grand Theft Auto IV because of the size of the map, but the feature is now in Grand Theft Auto V because of the much larger map. There are also submarines that players are able to use to explore the Pacific Ocean. The Rhino from previous GTA titles has returned, including a new complex aiming system and a realistic depiction of a tank. A new feature allows the player to roll-over a vehicle when the car is flipped upside down.

Businesses
Businesses from Grand Theft Auto IV re-appear. New businesses also appear, such as the Bugstars fumigation company and Up-n-Atom Burger fast food restaurant. The option to eat from restaurants such as Burger Shot is no longer available. Instead, the player can only buy drinks from the various Vending Machines across the map.

Weaponry
The game features a large variety of weapons, like the Norinco Type 56-2 assault rifles with sound suppressors, mounted flashlights, olive drab polymer furniture, and side-folding stocks. There is now the option to mount attachments onto various different guns, each one affecting the performance. Melee weapons like the nightstick and the golf club that weren't present in Grand Theft Auto IV have also returned to Grand Theft Auto V.

Character Customization
In the game, the player has the option to customize the three protagonists' wardrobe and appearance. There is less customisation available compared to that of Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas (e.g. changing the body mass of the 3 characters isn't available as it was with CJ in San Andreas). The availability of tattoos, haircuts and ability to apply and change facial hair has returned from San Andreas after being missing from previous titles in the HD universe.

Multiplayer
Grand Theft Auto V expands the multiplayer feature that was present in Grand Theft Auto IV. The multiplayer is treated as a additional title and is known as Grand Theft Auto Online. In GTA Online, multiplayer crews from Max Payne 3 can be carried over to Grand Theft Auto V. Grand Theft Auto V has multiplayer features linked to Rockstar's Social Club.

Multiplayer holds up to 16 people on Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3, and 30 players in Xbox One, PlayStation 4 and PC versions.

Downloadable Content
DLCs have been released regularly since the launch of GTA V and GTA Online, adding new vehicles, weapons and other content. They are however more advanced in Online with the availability of jobs and properties along with additional character customization options like tattoos, clothing, masks, hairstyles etc.

Additional content is unlocked if the player buys the Collector's Edition of GTA V. It features a classic hot rod, a sports bike, an electric sports car, a shotgun and a hammer. This is available when the Collector's Edition is installed.

On November 19th, 2013, the first update was released, titled the Beach Bum Update, which featured four beach type vehicles, and two weapons, a pistol and a broken bottle. Since then, there has been five extra DLCs as follows;

On December 24th, 2013, a holiday themed DLC was released, it had limited time masks and featured snow, though the masks and snow were removed from the player's inventory after the update.

On February 13th 2014, a Valentine's Day DLC was released, referencing 1929's Valentine's Day Massacre. It featured a classic Cadillac-style 20's limo and a remake of the M1928A1 Thompson machine gun. Unlike the Beach Bum Update, content in Online was limited edition and was removed on March 3rd, 2014, a day before the next DLC.

On March 4th 2014, a business-style DLC was released. It featured three high end sports vehicles, and a private jet. It also featured two advanced weapons, a Carbine Rifle and a pistol.

On May 13th, 2014, another business-style DLC was released. This featured a hypercar, a sports car, a luxury SUV and a motorbike. It also featured another assault rifle.

On June 17th, 2014, a hipster style DLC was released. This featured six vehicles including two hatchbacks, a supermini, a lowrider, two sedans and an off road truck, an adapted version of an already present SUV. It also featured another pistol and knife.

On July 1st 2014, another special was released, this time in commemoration of Independence Day. It featured a monster truck, motorbike, a classic Musket rifle and a firework launcher. Like Valentine's Day's DLC, it was limited edition. The content was removed on August 3rd 2014.

On August 19th, 2014, a flight-school themed DLC was added to GTA V. This featured four new vehicles : the Swift returning from The Ballad of Gay Tony, the Besra trainer jet, the Miljet military passenger jet, and the Coquette Classic, and introduced the Flight School for Online.

On October 3rd, 2014, The Last Team Standing update was released. It added a shotgun and a sniper rifle, two bikes and a sports car.

On December 18th, 2014 a special holiday themed DLC was re-released. The DLC includes the Vapid Slamvan, returning from The Lost and Damned, a clean variant of the Rat-Loader and "racing" versions of the Massacro and Jester. Two new weapons were introduced, the Proximity Mine and the Homing Rocket Launcher. There was holiday themed clothing released as well as the ability to purchase a third property.

On March 10th, 2015, a long-time Heists Update was released, including a vast range of new heist missions, similar to them of Story Mode, with the highest theoretical gains in GTA Online. The update contained many new vehicles, which are unlocked after playing heists, they include a fast motorcycle, several armed helicopters, a returning jet fighter, several armored vehicles and two large trucks fitted with large machine guns. A motorcycle and a large jeep are unlocked after downloading the DLC. The only weapon added was a Flare Gun. Note that the content was only added to Grand Theft Auto Online, and cannot be accessed in Story Mode.

On June 10th, 2015, a money-orientated Ill-Gotten Gains Part 1 DLC was released. Part of a 2-part content update, the content included a new SMG, a new hyper car, a muscle car, a luxury coupe, a classic sports car and two gold-plated aircraft. Hundreds of new clothing items and accessories were also added to clothing stores across Los Santos.

On July 8th, 2015, the second part of the Ill-Gotten Gains content update, the Ill-Gotten Gains Part 2 DLC was released. The content included two new weapons, an off-road buggy, a muscle sedan, classic sports car, two-door hyper car, a new motorcycle and classic boat.

On September 15th, 2015, the Rockstar Editor will come to the Xbox One and PlayStation 4 ports of GTA V via the GTA Online-focused Freemode Events Update. It will introduce new features, which will also arrive to the PC version in the update.

Rockstar has confirmed future DLCs, including GTA V centered DLCs including new assassinations and property both for the older and enhanced editions.

Enhanced Version Content
Special unlockable content is also made available to PS3 and Xbox 360 users who bought the enhanced edition on PS4, Xbox One or PC featuring, a Rail Gun, Hatchet, a Picador-inspired monster truck, two returning muscle cars (the Stallion and the Dukes, the latter of which also comes in an armoured variant), a new Submersible (the Kraken Sub), a modified Blista Compact, and a seaplane.

Setting
On November 3rd 2011, Rockstar Games confirmed that the game would take place in Los Santos and the surrounding countryside - and will not feature a recreated rendition of an entire State of San Andreas - in a statement on their Newswire:


 * "We are very proud to officially announce that Grand Theft Auto V is in full development."

Developed by series creator Rockstar North, Grand Theft Auto V heads to the city of Los Santos and surrounding hills, countryside and beaches in the largest and most ambitious game Rockstar has yet created.


 * "A bold new direction in open-world freedom, storytelling, mission-based gameplay and online multiplayer, Grand Theft Auto V focuses on the pursuit of the almighty dollar in a re-imagined, present day Southern California."

During the Game Informer Grand Theft Auto V Cover Story, the vice president of creativity for Rockstar Games, Dan Houser, has stated that Los Santos this time around is different and a lot more developed (having cities, wilderness, deserts, farmlands, towns, a Mount Chiliad, a military base and a fully detailed ocean floor (including coral beds). The state of San Andreas is also about five times larger than Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas, Grand Theft Auto IV, and Red Dead Redemption. After some calculations by members of GawdAlmighty.com, that would equal to around 27.5 square miles/71.2 km2 when land and sea are put together.

Characters and Premise

 * Los Santos: a sprawling sun-soaked metropolis full of self-help gurus, starlets and fading celebrities, once the envy of the Western world, now struggling to stay afloat in an era of economic uncertainty and cheap reality TV. Amidst the turmoil, three very different criminals plot their own chances of survival and success: Franklin, a former street gangster, now looking for real opportunities and serious money; Michael, a professional ex-con whose retirement is a lot less rosy than he hoped it would be; and Trevor, a violent maniac driven by the chance of a cheap high and the next big score. Running out of options, the crew risks everything in a series of daring and dangerous heists that could set them up for life.


 * - Game's Description

Grand Theft Auto V features three playable protagonists: Michael, Trevor and Franklin.

Michael is a retired professional bank robber, who after making a sweet deal with the FIB, returned to the life of crime. Trevor is the loose cannon in this story, and is also a long time best friend of Michael's and a hothead psychopath as well. Last but certainly not least, we have Franklin, a young and grim repossession agent who has a large amount of experience behind the wheel, but no real experience with crime until he meets Michael while he was trying to hustle.

Other main characters include Amanda De Santa, Michael's wife; Jimmy De Santa and Tracey De Santa, Michael's children; Lamar Davis, Franklin's friend; Ron Jakowski, Trevor's paranoid friend; and Lester Crest, an associate of the protagonists.

Timeframe
Although it is not specifically stated when exactly in 2013 the game takes place, the following evidence suggests August - October 2013:
 * There's an advertisement on the the side of a strip mall in Davis stating that it's having a "Summer Sale on flat-screen TV's".


 * The calendar in Trevor's trailer is open on the month of August.
 * When Michael meets Lester to come out of retirement, the calendar in Lester's House shows September.
 * After Franklin moves into 3671 Whispymound Drive, a bank statement is opened on his entry sideboard. Close inspection in the enhanced version reveals it is his September statement for transactions in August.
 * During the mission "Cleaning out the Bureau", a calendar briefly seen in Harvey Molina's apartment is also open on the month of September.
 * Towards the end/completion of the storyline, one of the barbers in Sandy Shores might comment on how it is "October already".
 * Some houses have pumpkins on their front porches. Pumpkins are rarely seen at any time of the year other than autumn.
 * In the enhanced version, the text message that the creators of Space Monkey 3D send the player after completing Monkey Mosaics state that the film would be coming out in the holiday season, this again suggests that the story would take place in late-summer to fall.

Media

 * Radio Stations
 * Television in GTA V
 * Internet

Unique Features

 * The map is now one entire landmass, rather than several islands.
 * Players can ragdoll by pressing X/Square/SPACE (Xbox/PlayStation/PC) then B/Circle/R (Xbox/Playstation/PC).
 * Players can play as animals (enhanced version) unlike any other GTA game.

Hobbies and Pastimes
These are all the hobbies and pastimes listed in the Rockstar Social Club page, note that they are not all mandatory to achieve the 100% completion in the game.
 * Stunt Plane Time Trials (Only in the Special/Collector's Edition and Enhanced Version)
 * Shooting Range
 * Street Races
 * Tennis
 * Golf
 * Darts
 * Strip Club
 * Triathlon
 * Offroad Races
 * Bail Bond
 * Arms Trafficking Air
 * Arms Trafficking Ground
 * Hunting
 * Flight School
 * Sea Races
 * Yoga
 * Parachute Jumps

Next-Gen & PC Versions
Prior to the announcement of the eighth generation consoles and PC versions, there was wide speculation and anticipation regarding an official announcement from Rockstar. On change.org, there was a petition with 728,000+ signatures asking for a PC version at the time of announcement. Within the comments section of the Rockstar Newswire, and many other GTA related blogs, there were many comments asking for a PC/Next Gen release. After its reveal at E3 2014, the news spread like wildfire, and became one of the most talked-about announcements.

The enhanced version of Grand Theft Auto V was released on November 18, 2014 for the PS4 and Xbox One and was released for PC on April 14, 2015. With the release, there are many improvements and changes compared to the versions released on PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360. No major graphical changes from PS4 and Xbox One are seen in the PC version, other than further Draw Distance and 4K capable quality. The PC version also features 2 exclusive radio stations: The Lab (now available for all consoles from the Ill-Gotten Gains Part 2 update) and Self Radio, and the addition of the Rockstar Editor.



The biggest new feature was a first person view, which is not only available in vehicles, but is also for the first time available on foot. Several other features were added. These include (see edition comparison table for more information):

Screenshots

 * See more, Grand Theft Auto V/Screenshots

Artworks

 * See more, Grand Theft Auto V/Artworks

Controversy and Criticism
Like all previous GTA games, Grand Theft Auto V has courted controversy, though has been viewed by some as significantly more violent and offensive than its predecessors.

Controversy (missions)
A mission which requires the player to torture a target for the government has proven significantly controversial. The mission contains water-boarding, using a wrench on kneecaps and genitals, electrocution and even an action where the player can perform tooth extraction using pliers.

Criticism
GTA V received criticism both for the game and its Online counterpart. One part was missions, as only three made the player profit, and only one of them topped $1,000,000. Missions were longer, more taxing and low to non-paying. Only seven non heist missions gave a payout; Franklin and Lamar gave the player $250, Nervous Ron gave the player $62,000 and Lester's Assassinations gave the player varying amounts of between $3,000 and $10,000. Further criticism included the recent lack of an actual discounted price of the game during the Steam Summer Sale events for the PC version of GTA V, which retained the price at $60, resulting in a major backlash among other customers.

Copyrighting and Lawsuits
After the game was released, actress Lindsay Lohan claimed that Rockstar had used her likeness without permission for in game celeb Lacey Jonas, which Rockstar denied.

In October 2013 Daz Dillinger claimed Rockstar used two songs from Death Row Records without permission, the songs in question being Kurupt's C-Walk and Tha Dogg Pound's Nothin' But the Cavi Hit featuring Mack 10. However, Dillinger was not signed to Death Row at the time, and had an ongoing feud with Kurupt. The lawsuit was eventually dropped and the songs stayed in the game.

Title Update Notes
To see a list of GTA V's patch notes history, see Grand Theft Auto V/Title Update Notes

Trivia

 * For the first time, certain cars can retract and deploy their soft top/hard top covers. In previous games, convertibles were stuck with the roof they had or didn't have (with the exception of being able to install a permanent cover on low-riders in Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas).
 * Grand Theft Auto V is the first game in the franchise to feature in-game incidental music (not counting cutscenes, credits and pause menus, as several earlier games had incidental music for these sequences).
 * The registration plates have orange stickers on the top right. The same plates are used for 2013 California registration plates. The same was also used in California in 2008.
 * Each protagonists' character was made to fit a specific Grand Theft Auto player:
 * Michael initially represents the player who has already "beat the game", now living out their life as a successfully retired criminal.
 * Trevor is a complete psychopath, representing the type of player who prefers to kill and cause chaos when they free roam.
 * Franklin is a small time thug wanting to rise through the ranks of the criminal underworld similar to the traditional protagonists that the player controls in previous games.
 * Each protagonist seems to represent a different Rockstar game. Michael represents both Max Payne and Red Dead Redemption, seeing as he is a troubled retired middle aged "family man" with a criminal background and bullet-time ability. Franklin represents Midnight Club: Los Angeles, due to him being an ambitious young man with an impressive driving ability. Trevor represents Manhunt, mainly, because of his psychotic personality and reckless behavior that defines his character.
 * In addition, the protagonists' personalities can be determined by how long they sleep. Michael sleeps for 6 hours, Franklin sleeps for 8 hours, and Trevor sleeps for 12 hours. This could mean that Franklin is the most "normal" of the characters.
 * The game Saints Row IV has a DLC pack of weapons and clothes named GAT V, which is a reference to the initials of Grand Theft Auto V. The publisher, Deep Silver released it for free on PC, mocking GTA V's absence from the platform at the time.
 * The script for Grand Theft Auto V is 10,000+ pages long, according to Dan Houser in an interview in 2012.
 * The name of the theme song ("Welcome To Los Santos") might be a reference to the first lyrics in Young Maylay's "San Andreas Theme Song" being "Welcome to San Andreas".
 * Also, if you listen to the two theme songs simultaneously, the buildup and beats of both songs are very similar. The main difference of course is the use of instruments as the "San Andreas Theme Song" has a much more "gang oriented" feel to it with a heavy reliance on acoustics (electronic piano, chimes), while "Welcome to Los Santos" is infused with more bass and horns in addition to acoustics to give it a much "grander and open" feel (saxophone, trumpet).
 * In the game, there is an animation for if the player gets stuck under a vehicle, but it is almost never used.
 * The animation is used if the player is stuck under a truck, but if the player is stuck under a car, they will simply teleport next to the car.
 * Grand Theft Auto V has similar mission structures to Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas such as heists requiring setup, as did the main heist in GTA San Andreas and introducing characters by name. Also many flying missions resembled ones from San Andreas such as Nervous Ron which required dropping equipment from a plane later on in the mission like N.O.E. in San Andreas. Minor Turbulence also had similarities to N.O.E. but also Freefall and Stowaway.
 * There is a noticeable similarity between the GTA V logo and the icon on the 1899 five-dollar bill.
 * GTA V is the third game in the series to start with a bank robbery, with Grand Theft Auto III and The Ballad of Gay Tony being the first and second respectively. Unlike the two, however, the bank robbery is playable instead of just an entire cutscene.