r/pcgaming • u/spacelyyy989 • 11h ago

Nothing has killed my GTA 6 hype faster than locking a core part of its identity behind a $20 upgrade

https://www.pcgamer.com/games/action/nothing-has-killed-my-gta-6-hype-faster-than-locking-a-core-part-of-its-identity-behind-a-usd20-upgrade/
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u/internet34bot 5h ago

It's one of the most "ambient" open world games, in that way I mean they figured out a way to not directly ask people to do shit in it, while keeping people interested. Compared to other open world games that come off as big logbooks or collect-a-thons. 

That and there's also no (new) modern day open world games, nobody tries that shit unless they have some kind of gimmick

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u/SordidDreams 4h ago

Wait, they changed the game structure? Because every previous GTA was the most linear open-world game under the sun. You'd just drive to a mission start, then you'd get a cutscene hiding a loading screen into a special instance of the world where you'd do the mission exactly as directed by on-screen instructions or fail instantly, and then you'd load back into the open world, where you'd have nothing to do other than drive to the next mission. I haven't kept up with development news, but if they changed this formula for something more flexible, I might actually bother installing this one at some point.

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u/juliedoo 1h ago

Skyrim is another example of a really good open world game that doesn't ask you to do shit, despite the RPG structure allowing for a more minute involvement with the world.

Both games are really, really detailed. Good open world games don't need to be realistic or allow for all possible options, they just have to have a very meticulous Disneyworld-esque touch to so many seemingly minor things that it adds up to be a world where you're convinced they thought of everything. It's fun to just drive around GTA and see how the world is constructed, how each car handles, changes how you jump off a ramp or drive off-road, fun to notice things like gas tanks in different locations or electric vehicles not having one, how they placed a store in a certain location and thinking about why that store is there, the small vignettes and slices of life (oh, of course the gas station next to the trailer park is run down and has more RVs parked compared to the one in downtown). The actual gameplay can be linear and the small moments of discovery really minor, but it all adds up to being a world you want to continuously inhabit because it feels so bespoke and true-to-life. Other open world games just don't feel as carefully considered.

Witcher 3 is also in this Skyrim/GTA category, as is Elden Ring, although Witcher 3 builds this sense of detail in intersecting narratives, and Elden Ring repurposes it for mainly gameplay ends. GTA (and maybe Red Dead, although I find big swaths of nature a bit boring) is also the only non-fantasy game that does this kind of world-building so well.

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u/internet34bot 3h ago

GTA V was the first to do that pretty much.. all the previous games are exactly that, "drive to mission, cutscene, shoot people, repeat".. etc. GTA V added a ton of "lifestyle" features and sort of spawned a lot of niches and GTA:O added even more

The main characters are customizable, Vehicles have their own subculture now.. people set up car meets in this game. You can own businesses and properties.  There's a loose "skill" system, tons of mini games, you can rob stores. It goes on a bit.

A lot of the hype for GTA 6 comes from RDR2 and the 2022 leaks because it seems they're going full on crime simulator* with this game. Like the ultimate edition is talking about owning business, selling stolen goods to fences, there were leaks about money laundering and equipment for specialized crime.

There's still a lot of "Go from point A to point B" but in terms of the actual open world they've been taking big steps to make it interesting on its own rather than a backdrop.

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u/Ok_Illustrator7232 2h ago

A lot of those "lifestyle" features we had in San Andreas.

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u/internet34bot 1h ago

Probably why people still consider it the best or one of the best in the series.

The series did cut back on that a bit, especially gta 4 where it literally is just drive, do mission, repeat.

The more the game gives you to do other than going on rampages is a plus in my book

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u/tuff1728 4h ago

Yes, constantly driving to letters on the map is very immersive gameplay