Grand Theft Auto V (re-release)

Grand Theft Auto V
Developer(s)	Rockstar North
Publisher(s)	Rockstar Games
Distributor(s)	Take-Two Interactive
Series	Grand Theft Auto
Engine	RAGE, with Euphoria and Bullet
Platform(s)	Microsoft Windows PlayStation 4 Xbox One
Release date(s)	PlayStation 4, Xbox One 18 November 2014 Microsoft Windows 14 April 2015[1]
Genre(s)	Action-adventure
Mode(s)	Single-player, multiplayer
Distribution	Optical disc, download

Grand Theft Auto V (also known as Grand Theft Auto V: Remastered in Asian territories) is an open world, action-adventure video game developed by Rockstar North and published by Rockstar Games. It was first released on 17 September 2013 for the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360. It was re-released for the PlayStation 4 and Xbox One on 18 November 2014, and for Microsoft Windows on 14 April 2015.

Gameplay

Grand Theft Auto V‍ '​s re-release changes little from the basic gameplay of the original version. As such, it is an action-adventure game set in the fictional open world of Los Santos. Players progress through the single-player mode by completing missions as three controllable characters (Michael De Santa, Trevor Philips and Franklin Clinton). The player count in the online multiplayer mode Grand Theft Auto Online has been increased from 16 to 30 in the enhanced version.^[2] It includes a new on-foot first-person view option. Players may configure the camera to personal preference (for example, by making the view toggle to third-person when taking cover).^[3] Content available to players returning from the PlayStation 3 or Xbox 360 versions includes exclusive activities, weapons and vehicles in the enhanced version.^[4] It features more than 100 new songs across the game's radio stations.^[2] Players may transfer characters and progression of Grand Theft Auto Online from the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 over to the new platforms. The Microsoft Windows (PC) version features a replay editor that lets players create video clips of their gameplay.^[5] The PlayStation 4 version uses the DualShock 4's touchpad to navigate camera options and speaker to play smartphone calls.^[6] The Xbox One Controller's "Impulse Triggers"^[7] may rumble while players use vehicles.^[8]

Development

A comparison of the PlayStation 4 (left) and PlayStation 3 (right) versions of the game. The enhanced re-release features greater draw distances and higher-resolution textures than the original versions.

At E3 2014, a re-release of the game was announced for PC, PlayStation 4 and Xbox One. This enhanced version of the game features an increased draw distance, finer texture details, denser traffic, upgraded weather effects, and new wildlife and vegetation.^[5] It runs a native 1080p resolution at 30 frames per second on PlayStation 4 and Xbox One; the PC version is 4K resolution compatible^[9] and supports 60fps. The PlayStation 4 and Xbox One versions were released on 18 November 2014.^[2] The PC version, initially scheduled for simultaneous release with the console versions,^[5] was delayed three times: first to 27 January 2015,^[10] later to 24 March 2015,^[11] and again to 14 April 2015.^[12] According to Rockstar, the game required extra development time for "polish".^[10][11][12] The pre-order became available on Steam shortly after.

Animation director Rob Nelson said that a first-person option was raised during development on the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360, but that the consoles' relatively smaller banks of memory were already being pushed, such that adding new first-person animations would have inhibited the open world render. According to Nelson, the first-person view required more development effort than simply repositioning the camera, because of the need to adapt combat to a different view. The weapons were upgraded to a higher resolution, and new animations including weapon recoil, reload and switch were added. "I think we created 3,000 animations on weapons alone", said Nelson.^[3]

Art director Aaron Garbut said that the enhanced version's graphical upgrade came largely from the addition of first-person.^[6] Remodelled cars feature interior effects including functional speedometers, fuel gauges and dashboard handbrake lights.^[3][6] The team added new particle and lighting effects, "like fireflies at night in the countryside, or ambient light pollution over Los Santos at night", according to Garbut.^[6] Red Dead Redemption (2010) inspired the team to add more vegetation to "break up the hard edges [and] straight lines" of the open world.^[6] The original version's vegetation was replaced with more detailed equivalents in the enhanced version. An upgraded weather system lets tree branches and leaves blow realistically in the wind. The team hand placed weeds along fences and walls, and placed grass over many of the open world's terrains. They then layered flowers, plants, stones, leaves and litter over the grass. An upgraded screen space ambient occlusion system renders dynamic shadows that may cast through weather effects including volumetric fog, and particle effects including light reflections in water bodies or neon reflections in cars at night. The ambient light pollution over nighttime Los Santos may dissipate in poor weather. A dynamic depth of field system sharpens and softens images to emulate camera autofocus, and improved shaders produce new colours in skin and terrain textures.^[6]

Reception

PlayStation 4 / Xbox One version

Like the original PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 versions, the PlayStation 4 and Xbox One versions of Grand Theft Auto V were met with high critical acclaim. Metacritic calculated an average score of 97 out of 100, indicating "universal acclaim", based on 66 critics for the PlayStation 4 version^[15] and 14 critics for the Xbox One version.^[16] GameRankings assigned an average score of 96% based on 41 reviews for the PlayStation 4 version and 98% based on 12 reviews for the Xbox One version.^[13][14]

Game Informer‍ '​s Andrew Reiner considered the addition of first-person "another significant breakthrough for the series" in the vein of Grand Theft Auto III‍ '​s shift from Grand Theft Auto‍ '​s bird's-eye view to third-person.^[17] GameSpot's Mark Walton found that playing in first-person heightened the impact of Grand Theft Auto V‍ '​s violence, which made him reflect on morality and character motivation more than before.^[18] VideoGamer.com opined that players feel like inhabitants of the world, rather than a "gun attached to a floating camera".^[20] IGN's Dan Stapleton found the game more immersive in first-person, creating a "surprisingly different experience".^[19] He praised the "subtle little touches" in the first-person animations, such as when Michael is given a soft drink by his son and brings it up to the camera to take a sip.^[19] VideoGamer.com were similarly receptive to "finer details" such as camera lean when players take corners on motorcycles, or the navigational instruments in plane cockpits.^[20] Reviewers found playing the game more difficult in first-person,^[18][19] but Game Informer‍ '​s Reiner preferred the challenge.^[17]

GameSpot's Walton thought the graphics improvements made the open world "even more spectacular",^[18] especially because of improved spatial anti-aliasing. He freely roamed Los Santos in first-person to appreciate the level of graphical detail, finding that "at ground level everything looks bigger and more imposing".^[18] IGN's Stapleton considered the improved visual quality a "key difference" between the enhanced version and original release. He favoured the PlayStation 4 version's graphics, but thought both consoles rendered the game well and maintained mostly consistent frame rates.^[19] VideoGamer.com praised the increased native resolution, draw distance and population density, and called the frame rate so consistent it was "scarcely believable".^[20] GameSpot's Walton cited occasional frame rate dips.^[18]

On the game's multiplayer, IGN's Stapleton reported low player counts in matches, long wait times in lobbies, server disconnection and occasional crashes. "Because of that," he wrote, "I can't strongly recommend ... the multiplayer experience alone".^[19] VideoGamer.com found online character progression streamlined by comparison with the original version. According to them, the "grind of just doing PvP until co-op Jobs arrive with regularity"^[20] was lost, and newcomers would likely find multiplayer enjoyable and balanced. However, they wrote of frequent server disconnection, especially during load screens.^[20] GameSpot's Walton thought that Grand Theft Auto Online "still suffers from a lack of direction" for its open-ended and frenetic gameplay, while still being fun.^[18] Game Informer‍ '​s Reiner reported "minimal lag or issues in the expanded firefights and races".^[17]

As 31 December 2014, 10 million copies of the console versions of the game have shipped to retailers.^[21]

Microsoft Windows version

The Microsoft Windows version was released in April 2015 and was met with high critical acclaim. Metacritic calculated an average score of 97 out of 100, indicating "universal acclaim", based on 18 reviews.^[23] GameRankings assigned it an average review score of 97% based on five reviews.^[22] VideoGamer.com declared it "the definitive version of the game".^[25]

The enhanced visuals were commended by many reviewers. VideoGamer.com named the visuals "fantastic", considering them an improvement over the previous versions of the game.^[25] IGN's Dan Stapleton praised the graphics options, and appreciated the increased frame rate offered in the Windows version.^[26] Peter Brown of GameSpot commented that the Windows version allows players to "witness the full extent of Rockstar's admirable handiwork", but noted that the game still "retains evidence of its last-gen roots ... with simple geometry".^[18]

The in-game features added in the Windows version were well received. The addition of the Rockstar Editor was met with generally positive reactions; VideoGamer.com praised the accessibility of the tool, but criticised some of the limitations, such as the restricted camera angles.^[25] Critics also praised the customisable controls of the Windows version; IGN's Stapleton appreciated the ability to "seamlessly swap between the mouse and keyboard and a gamepad on the fly",^[26] and GameSpot's Brown felt that constant switching between the two available control options was necessary for "the best experience".^[18]

See also

• Grand Theft Auto V

References

External links

• Official website
• Official Grand Theft Auto Online website