Do Grand Theft Auto Games Actually Need Strong Protagonists?

UM writes: Story and characters are usually the last thing on everyone’s mind when a new Grand Theft Auto game is announced. Usually, people want to know: A) Where is it being set? B) Is there any new fun stuff I can do? Yet, when the games are released, all reviewers seem to fixate on the playable characters. GTA IV was lauded as having an amazing character arc, chock-full of pathos and emotion. GTA V went so far as to include three playable characters, who all met with mixed reception. Some reviewers bent over backwards to praise their effect on the game, others heavily criticized their personalities and personal choices.

[NukaCola]

Yes. The story is a major part of it.

[scark92]

I agree, Its what I personally enjoy most from GTA.

[SonyWarrior]

the story is why i play gta every thing else is just a extra

[badz149]

protagonist? like Sleeping Dogs?

[3-4-5]

GTA 5 Main cast was not likable at all.

Franklin was alright, but Trevor was a whinny & annoying and just yelled all the time.

Trevor's "cool factor" lasted about 2 minutes, and then he became annoying and predictable.

[Elwenil]

Agreed, the characters and story are as big a part of the game as the setting. Unfortunately for Rockstar, they set the chanracter and story bar pretty high with Red Dead Redemption. Like it or not, even Niko was an excellent character with conflicting issues that made him feel more like a real person. For me, GTA 5 was a step backwards in both character quality and story depth. Granted all the characters were likable and Trevor was a lot of fun, they felt very shallow and superficial to me. There seemed to be so much more they could have done with 3 characters as well as some things we could have done without.

Take Franklin's sudden and illogical rise from his poor neighborhood to a mansion on the hill. Why was this done? What purpose did it serve in the story other than to give Franklin a 2 car garage and a more central location on the map? Did we really need a "rags to riches" story in there so badly that we just skip most of the steps to get to the end? It just doesn't make any sense.

I would much rather that Rockstar concentrate on a single character and make it count rather than dilute the story for three separate characters. I did enjoy the character swapping mechanic during missions but I hope Rockstar takes a bit of what they have learned and either make the multiple characters more meaningful, have deeper connections and stories more entangled or stick to one story. Perhaps they could make multiple characters all from the same family, as in brothers and sisters. That would make all their stories the same story, but could tell it from the different angles of each character with each of their own issues and conflicts within. They need something more than just a few heists to tie them together and to tear them apart.

[troylazlow]

Yes they do

[desertpunk86]

after destiny,watchdogs and the evil within...yes we do.

[SonyWarrior]

i liked watchdogs story

[LOGICWINS]

Yup. Tommy and CJ were awesome! But Luis Lopez is my favorite GTA protagonist.

[goldwyncq]

Who was that again?

[The_Blue]

Gay Tony's little play thing.

[Concertoine]

I have to ask why. I found him really forgettable.

[LOGICWINS]

He was the most relatable of all the GTA protagonists IMO. He wasn't a psycho like Tommy or a gangbanger like CJ. Dude was just a glorified bodyguard that sold drugs on the side. And he could DANCE!

[Chard]

>Thinks back to when I first played GTA1, where characters didn't matter one bit, and it was all about tearing sh*t up and having fun.
>Looks at comments above.
I feel old.

[mixelon]

*laughs at the disagrees*

The people have spoken. Stop feeling old, Alf.

[goldwyncq]

Definitely.

[Summons75]

every game does to bab GTA doesn't have a real story or strong character .

[mochachino]

Yes, story and characters are 95% the reason why i buy these games

[StrawberryDiesel420]

My favorite next gen GTA protagonists in order:

1. Niko Belic
2. Trevor
3. Luis Lopez

[hkgamer]

strong emphasis on main character is neccesary. which was why i liked gta from iv onwards. previous games just didnt really push main characters like iv did.

obviously you would probably disagree but its just my opinion.