The latest instalment of infamous smash ‘n’ grab gaming franchise Grand Theft Auto is on its way to Xbox 360, Playstation 3 and Windows PC. The new GTA from Brit developers Rockstar is yet to get an official release date but we were teased with a trailer launched on November 2nd which revealed a juicy glimpse of what we can expect when the game drops at some point in 2012 – these including the familiar Los Angeles setting, the Hollywood sign and copper chopper chases, even an Aston Martin looks set to become one of the slick new vehicles available to joyride. These things are confirmed.
But a new list of details for GTA 5 has been outted online, which could be simply rumours or could actually be leaked from Rockstar. We’ve trimmed the fat and picked the best bits from the list and until we know for sure the information we provide below should be regarded as SPOILER!
• Grand Theft Auto 5 will be the biggest GTA yet, at four times larger in scale than GTA 4. Despite being limited to Los Santos and it’s surrounds it’s still a bigger free-roaming playground that Liberty City and features massive countryside with forests and beach settings and it’s said that to get from the city’s center to the wilds will take over 15minutes.
• Scenery includes farmhouses with livestock, wind farms, an oil refinery and with over 100 non-playable characters including party-going teens, beach-bound weight-lifters and members of the neighbourhood to interact with (or shoot!). There will never be children NPCs in a GTA game – “Ever”.
• The lead playable character will be African-American in his early 30s.
• Animation for diving, crawling and climbing (which will be used required more in GTA 5) will become more realistic with less lag and the shooting mechanism has also been vastly improved with new animation for the ammo display.
• Animals will be included in the games environment, but it’s not yet known if they will be harmed by player’s actions (We’re not talking cow tipping here!) And as recently discovered by Nintendo – you don’t P off PETA!
• Planes can be hijacked and flown into buildings (Really?)
• New interior environments include a shopping mall, college campus, police station a hospital and a massive network of underground sewers. One mission will end with a jet-ski chase and a waterfall leap.
• Cars will need refuelling in GTA 5 and can also be repaired and upgraded.
• There will be no “dating” in the game and much of the inter-person contact and mission details will be delivered by mobile phone.
• Flamethrowers, remote mines, laser trip wires and claymores are included in the weapons arsenal and it will be possible to use a variety of everyday objects as weapons. This also includes a selection of ancient weaponry from the new museum setting – such as swords and axes!
• Players can now shoot out a fuel line or fire at a trail of gasoline to cause a vehicle to explode.
• Mini-games including bowling and darts have been dropped, but basketball and weight training are included to built stamina. The game will also allow a player to arm wrestling and cage fighting amongst other physical competitions.
• Characters are limitedly customisable with clothing and body weight options. However, the characters race, age and height cannot be altered.
• Burglaries will now only be part of missions and won’t include neighbourhood houses.
• GTA 5 will allow you to grab members of the public to use as a human shield.
• Rain fall and sunshine will affect game play with more realism than in previous GTA games.
• No more super cops. Police will now employ tears gas, dogs, rams and riot gear, but killing someone won’t instantly get you the one star, meaning much more realistic pursuits. Not that we’ve ever killed someone to know this!
• Doors of building will be lockable, and objects can be used to block and barricade the way into buildings.
• Experience in certain vehicles (regularly using a motorbike for instance) will better your control as the game progresses. This also applies with player’s weapon skills.
• Some weapons will be customizable or home-made.
• An iconic GTA character will return in one mission and will need to be busted out of the ‘joint’.
So that’s the list of possible things we could see happening in Grand Theft Auto 5. Once again, the information here is purely speculation and could or could not be leaked directly from Rockstar Games. We think you’ll agree there’s not much on the list that sounds impossible and every detail is feasible. The Gadget Helpline would like to know the readers thoughts on this information – So please leave us a comment below or via our @Gadget_Helpline Twitter page or Official Facebook group.
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The Gadget Helpline: RETRO REPLAY feature brings you a weekly throwback to the days of old school gaming and will present a little history on the new wave of classic titles currently getting a revival on our modern gaming gadgets. We recently covered the tenth anniversary of Grand Theft Auto III. It’s been in the garage for a few years now, but is readying for a return to the streets on mobile gadgets in 2012!
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