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As we enter the final 25 days before Grand Theft Auto 5 hits shelves, hype for what is probably going to be PS3′s swan song has hit a fever pitch. Whereas gamers have grown accustomed to Rockstar Games’ syrupy speed in releasing information, these past few weeks have been such a barrage of new details that it’s almost hard to keep up.
Recent news dropped includes a list of the game’s 49 trophies and achievements, which allude to the fact that GTAV will feature spaceships, toxic waste and surly sharks that players are seemingly encouraged to get eaten by at least once. As well, we now know a lot more about Grand Theft Auto 5 online, which looks to be absolutely massive. We’ve also seen plenty of screenshots, one of Rockstar’s favorite mediums for conveying information. Just when you think the screenshots are as crazy as can be and that GTAV online can’t get bigger, leave it to Rockstar to out-crazy their crazy and reveal how much room gamers will have to play around in GTAV online.
First, let’s get the real doozie out of the way – GTAV online is slated to have 700 missions. Rockstar North head Lezlie Benzies recently told Spanish website 3Djuego that online will have a constantly renewed list of about 500 missions at any given time – and 700 missions overall.
Going more in depth about the nature of these missions, Leslie Benzies said the following (roughly translated):
We can get…tasks when exploring the world, or [by] receiv[ing] a phone call from some NPC. [Our] GTA Online characters…are also part of the single player campaign. You can call and ask us to help carry out some odd jobs. These are essentially the ways to find missions: through mapping or guests by telephone. And if you want to take action…more traditional[ly] or fast, it is also possible to open a menu and access to an extensive list of jobs.
The presence of phone-calls might worry some people who still have PTSD from Roman constantly trying to troll Honkers with you and Dwayne Forge’s proclivity for whining, but it’s likely Rockstar won’t go down that path again. These are going to be missions, after all.
Even if this reveal came in another language and translation is a little shaky, Leslie Benzies is and has always been one of Rockstar’s head honchos (he’s been with the company through nine Grand Theft Auto games as well as Red Dead Redemption and LA Noire) and is most certainly a reliable source.
The other new information comes directly from Rockstar’s official website, which was recently revamped to further reflect the impending release of GTAV. The page now looks like a travel website for curious tourists wishing to visit Los Santos, with the caption “Visit Los Santos and Blaine County, where fake people, fake places and fake problems collide.” Veteran Rockstar fans should be pleased to see some of that trademark cynicism still exists.
Scrolling down on the website, readers will find a bevy of clickable tabs, from “The Great Outdoors” and ”Shopping and Glamour” to “Friendly Neighbors” and “Leadership You Can Trust.” The most extensive seems to be the “Fast Cars At Your Fingertips” section, which reveals certain cars you will be able to drive. Three cars featured link to a 360° view of the vehicle, and they are the Feltzer Benefactor, The Tailgater Obey and The Coltic Coil. It really is fascinating to see in beautiful 3D a select few of the vehicles gamers will be able to utterly destroy to the point of unrecognizability come this September.
The 13 current tabs that lead to more information about the fictional Los Santos are all nearly as interesting as well as funny.
For example, “Thriving Economy And Commerce” leads to a more in-depth look at Los Santo’s BAWSAQ corporation and other tabs make references to the rumored presence of marijuana in the game and the known presence of flyable planes, stores like “CaCa,” politicians Jock Cranley and Sue Murray, and a whole lot of Kifflom.
We also get to see Michael’s long-suffering therapist Dr. Friedlander again.
Grand Theft Auto 5 is barreling towards its release date of September 17th, 2013 for the PS3 and the Xbox 360.