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Could UK Tax Breaks Pave the Way For GTA London?
BanjoTed writes "An interesting — if tongue-in-cheek — bit of speculation is up at MCV about the possibility of a Grand Theft Auto title across the pond. 'Chancellor Alistair Darling's pledge to support the video games development industry with tax breaks could do more than simply protect the future of the UK dev sector,' the site claims. 'It could also have dictated the setting of the next Grand Theft Auto.' Its reasoning? That developers will only be eligible for new UK tax breaks if their games can be proven to be 'culturally British.' Being based in the UK alone is not sufficient for this — instead, the games in question must promote Britishness. Hence MCV's conclusion that Grand Theft Auto V may well be set in London — saving Rockstar an estimated $16m in the process."
Yes, even the article mentions that. It doesn't mean there couldn't be a new GTA London, using the same engine as GTA IV. I'm not sure if they really want to promote "Britishness" with a game series like GTA though, even if its a fun game.
How about it?
GTA Moscow?
In the free world the media isn't government run; the government is media run.
It wasn't a great game, but what they did do pretty well was the first model of the centre of London, with accurate-ish streetmaps. I spent a lot of time playing that game, having not driven around London much, and was a bit freaked out to realise that when I drove up to see a Londoner mate a few months later that I actually knew my way around some of it!
Indeed, characters like Boris the Blade from Guy Ritchie's Snatch could supply the weapons instead of a Guns 'n' Ammo on the street corner, and more heavy duty weaponry could always be liberated from the military later in the game. Actually the idea of everyone being armed with slightly shoddy sawn-off shotguns instead of AR-15's makes it sound a bit more edgy and fun - especially if there's a chance of your gun back-firing during a bank raid, etc.
It would be too difficult.
In American GTA, I can drive carefully down the pavement past a cop car so long as I don't kill any pedestrians.
In GTA V: London, the police would randomly start chasing me because one of the following reasons will have been met:
1. I look like a Geezaaaaah.
2. My MOT is out of date.
3. My Tax disc isn't on display because I sold it for the Hot Coffee scene.
4. I didn't pay the congestion charge.
Oh, and every street wider than 10ft in London is a car park of traffic...
GTA Meets DCI Gene Hunt... Fire up the Quattro... I am there!