GTA V Preview & New Info Round-Up

Preview Articles

• Biggest world in the series' history. Aaron Garbut says it is larger than RDR, GTA IV, and SA combined including interior spaces - that's friggin' big!
• Map includes city, wilderness, desert, Mt. Chiliad, military base, and fully detailed ocean floor including coral beds
• Can switch between three protagonists at any time off-mission, certain missions allow changes during them
• Multiple protags chosen due to IV+EFLC success
• Switching reduces "flat spots" during stories
• Play as protagonist and antogonist, stories cross each other
• Switching protags is like entering Google Earth
• Michael: Old guy from first trailer, retired bank robber, in witness protection, lives in Rockford Hills (Similar to Beverly Hills), has wife (Amanda) and children (Tracy the teen and Jimmy the 20-year-old)
• Trevor: Balding guy living in a trailer in the desert of Blaine County, friend of Michael
• Franklin: repossesses cars, possibly one of many tasks from his boss.
• Pedestrians have more reactions to you (giving the middle finger, etc)
• Can douse things in gas and leave a trail for later ignition
• Ammunation is back
• All protags have lives outside of your control
• Each protag has skillsets and personalities
• Complex missions happen earlier
• Many heist missions
• Protags can work together in certain missions, sometimes all three
• Rappeling, possibly off-mission ability
• Planes available very early
• Many side missions and minigames including yoga and a full golf course. Some minigames specific to a protag.
• No RPG elements (fat/muscle) but you can change clothing like GTA IV
• TV will return among other "odd" things for a video game
• No girlfriends but there are regular friends/family for each protag:
• Lamar: crazy friend of Franklin
• Amanda: Michael's wife in a rocky relationship
• Jimmy: Michael's pothead son
• Ron: Trevor's paranoid neighbor
• Some familiar faces from GTA IV will return but no Niko and no PS2-era characters.
• No property but plenty of other stuff to do with money throughout your gameplay experience
• The phone makes a return
• Random, optional side quests like in RDR will return. Talk with hitchhikers, nab a purse-snatcher, etc
• Crews will be improved for GTA V's multiplayer
• Less celebrities in the cast like GTA IV
• Extremely detailed world including pedestrians and lawn sprinklers
• Most vehicles of any GTA game.

• While some missions will require you to use the different characters, there will be solo missions for each of the protagonists.
• Like past GTA games you can't permanently kill of your character, so any deaths each of the three experience will be non-permanent.
• You can walk into any of the main characters houses, and in at least Michael's case, interact with their family.
• The entire map will be open from the games beginning, mostly because each of the characters live in different parts of the map.
• The Los Santos metro area will be larger then IV's Liberty City, but the actual city of Los Santos will be a little bit smaller then LC.
• There will be a lot of variety in the missions than there was in IV.
• You can use gasoline to light cars on fire as Trevor anytime you want, not just on missions.
• Each character has their own inventory, but that could be changed closer to the release date.
• GTA's trademark humor will be back in terms of in-game TV, radio, internet, and of course the characters actions (Trevor especially!)
• The wanted system may be different, but at this time it's unknown by how much.

• The Guardian (UK)
• Gamer.nl [translated]
• Meristation [translated]
• Jeuxactu[translated]
• Multiplayer.it[translated]
• Liberation[translated]
• Spiegel[translated]
• InsideGamer[translated]
• NU.nl[translated]
• Elmundo.es[translated]

• Single player and multiplayer are being developed by separate teams.
• For the first time ever - full game map open from the start.
• The 'switch menu' is a radial menu similar to 'Red Dead Redemption's' weapon wheel.
• A fully functional wildlife ecosystem, including Coyotes.
• The story will revolve around six heists.
• Use the phone to call up the other protagonists to hang out with.
• 'Radar Love' by 'Golden Earring' - in game music, on radio.
• Each of the protagonists will have their own separate money pool.
• Cover mechanics have been greatly improved and cover will be very important in the gameplay.
• Alamo Sea is the name of the Salton Sea area.
• Franklin is employed by Armenian gangsters
• First time ever for GTA, scored soundtrack during missions. Radio as always while off mission.
• Farmlands, deserts and villages.
• More flying focused missions.
• The city of Los Santos is 4-5 times bigger than Liberty City.
• GTA V is 5 times larger than Red Dead Redemption.

• Police chases among random events that happen in the world
• Franklin works for an Armenian luxury car dealership
• The Salton Sea area is named Alamo Sea
• Protag switching is from a menu that displays which character is available to switch to. Camera zooms out from the current protag, pans across the map in an aerial view, and then zooms in on the chosen protag.
• GTA V is about 5 times bigger than IV
• Mini-map/radar displays horizon for flying
• Switching protags during missions can make the mission play out in many different ways depending on your actions
• All protags involved must survive missions
• Story mission co-op is very unlikely

Interviews

• Dan Houser Talks with NY Times
• IGN Interviews Leslie Benzies
• IGN Q&A With Dan Houser