This page documents the Official GTA Wiki Manual of Style on references.
Overview
The definition of a Reference, in this context, is "the use of a source of information in order to ascertain something." References are sometimes known as citations.
GTA Wiki strives to provide accurate, reliable and verifiable information on the Grand Theft Auto series and beyond. While not everything needs referencing, it is sometimes required that an additional piece of verification, such as imagery, file data or external references (videos, forum posts, etc) is provided alongside written content should the reader suspect the information is disputable.
While not as stringent as the rules on citing sources on Wikipedia, it is expected that users use common sense to assess whether something needs a reference or not; in general, if something seems obscure, unusual or otherwise difficult to prove in normal circumstances, it probably needs a reference. Common types of content requiring references include glitches and beta content and information or data that is obtained from game files via third-party tools.
When to use references
- Direct quotes: Direct quotations from outlets or companies, including Rockstar Games themselves. Examples include game reviews and Rockstar Newswire posts.
- Real-world figures: Any statistics pertaining to the real world, such as sales figures and game ratings.
- Controversial claims: Any statement that might be disputed or is controversial. Examples include Grand Theft Auto VI September 2022 leaks and Little Lacy Surprise.
- Game file data: Any data obtained from game files, such as vehicle handling information or object properties.
- Glitches, beta and leaked content: Any statement that cannot readily and easily be verified in-game. References used for leaked content should comply with the leaked content policy.
When not to use references
- Common knowledge: Any information which is fairly obvious to most GTA fans. Examples may include specific events in the plot, the way specific gameplay mechanics work in each game (Money, Reputation, Wanted Level, etc), background information on specific content (such as the main protagonists and antagonists, in-game locations, etc).
- Visual confirmation: Anything that can be easily verified from images already included in the article (infobox, galleries, etc).
- Popular sources: Further information pertaining to a topic which can be found on sites such as Wikipedia. This also includes links to real-world influences of in-game content, such as links to locations on Google Maps or vehicles, weapons and other topics on Wikipedia.
Formatting
General citations
General citations are found in a "Reference" section near the bottom of an article. These kinds of references should be placed directly after the information that needs additional verification. This can be achieved using the {{Ref}} template or by using reference tags <ref></ref>
, which adds a citation marker ([1]). Citation markers can then be clicked on to navigate to the citation in the References section. Multiple markers can point to the same reference by utilizing reference names.
References are automatically appended as a list in order of their position in the article. A "Reference" section (see MOS:HEAD) should be used to group this information; the {{Reflist}} template should be used in this section.
Inline citations
Inline citations, also known as bracketed references, are placed directly after information that needs further clarification. This is generally stylized as small, parenthesized text, such as by using the {{Small}} template or by using small tags <small>(citation)</small>
.
Inline citations are usually only found in infoboxes and lists and tables.
Marking something as requiring verification
If something is disputed, the {{Fact}} template can be placed where the reference should be (directly after the disputed statement). Additional information can be included in the template to further clarify what exactly needs verifying, as well as a date for when the dispute was created. This template will add the article to a list of pages requiring verification.
For content that isn't necessarily disputed, but is rather unclear or not specific enough, {{Vague}} can be placed after the statement. As with the {{Fact}} template, additional information can be included in the template to clarify what exactly is vague about the statement. This template will add the article to a list of pages with unclear information.
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