Has 19 November been circled in red on your calendar for a while now?
‘Not really. In fact, I think I’ll wait until Christmas before buying the game, although my patience is being tested. I keep hearing more and more people around me talking about GTA 6, so it’s becoming increasingly difficult to escape the hype. It even came up during the recent Open Days. There wasn’t a single prospective student, or even a parent, who didn’t raise their hand when I asked whether they were familiar with it.’
How do you view this release?
‘It’s now thirteen years since the last GTA was released. The controversies of the past have largely faded, though. Rockstar used to market its games by saying: look at all the extreme things we’ll let you do, particularly when it came to gratuitous violence. This time, the focus is likely to be more on political controversies and exaggerated portrayals of life and people in Florida. Rockstar remains a master of that kind of satire, and I genuinely enjoy it.
I don’t expect the game to revolutionise the industry, however. Rockstar is primarily pushing realism. What you see here, as in games such as God of War and The Last of Us, is a distinctly eudaimonic approach: a game built around emotional and narrative depth. That reflects a broader trend in recent years. Gamers are no longer looking solely for superficial entertainment; they want to immerse themselves in characters. At the same time, that’s not what GTA makes its money from. And that is exactly why I’m watching this game with a critical eye.’
GTA 6 storyline
GTA 6 follows the playable protagonists Lucia Caminos and Jason Duval in a modern-day Bonnie and Clyde-style story. The narrative takes place in the fictional state of Leonida, based on the US state of Florida. At its centre is Vice City, a familiar location for longtime fans of the franchise.
What makes you sceptical?
‘Because the story is ultimately secondary to something else. The game costs €80 to buy, but most of the revenue comes from in-game microtransactions. You see the same thing in games such as Fortnite, where players purchase character skins, or in the football game EA Sports FC, with its various mechanisms encouraging players to buy paid packs.
I fear GTA will come loaded with all sorts of extras, including an online mode where players can spend money on additional content. I tend to spot the tricks quite quickly, the visual cues designed to steer you somewhere... usually towards a price tag. However sophisticated those monetisation mechanisms may be, they do not make a game better.’
Are you saying that as a fan or as a researcher?
‘A bit of both, I think. I see an industry that no longer necessarily rewards creativity, but rather prioritises generating revenue through fairly transparent psychological tactics. Those stand out to me as someone who researches communication in games.
As a fan, I sometimes feel the industry is slowly decaying. Rockstar itself recently announced a major round of layoffs, prompting some gamers to call for a boycott. Despite the passion and dedication many developers pour into their games, executives are often more concerned with shareholder value.’ [UTgta | Word]
And the alternative?
‘I’ve found myself gravitating more towards so-called indie games, developed by studios with little or no profit motive. Take Outer Wilds, Clair Obscur: Expedition 33, or the puzzle game Baba Is You. They were all made for the love of the game.
Personally, I grow tired of games that push you to spend a few extra euros just to progress. In the end, it’s a Gordian knot: without substantial revenues, you also lack the budget needed to create a game on the scale of GTA 6.’
Online forums are already full of stories about people strategically taking leave, or planning to call in sick on 19 November. Should we expect empty lecture halls?
‘A few colleagues and students have already mentioned it. Perhaps a couple of seats in my lectures will remain empty, but I’m not expecting a mass exodus or a campus-wide lockdown. It might be more noticeable in a programme such as Technical Computer Science, but I couldn’t say for certain.’
Finally, could the game itself become an interesting research topic?
‘Probably. Many of those ideas come from my students, particularly for graduation projects. I can easily imagine someone wanting to study the impact of the game’s marketing campaign, or examine the contemporary social critique embedded in the storyline.
As for me, I’d rather not rush in straight away. I prefer to wait until the hype has subsided. It’s easier to observe things clearly from a distance.’
