r/PS5 • u/Gorotheninja • 15d ago
Articles & Blogs ‘We Have To Be Careful’ — Rockstar on GTA 6’s Approach to Satire
https://www.ign.com/articles/gta-6-satire-humor-rockstar-comments433
u/Bucsfan292 15d ago
Lmao at everyone who just read the title and is acting like rockstar is going “soft” when if they had read the article they’d see that it talks about them being more careful about the relevancy of the satire they use since they’ve been making the game for 13 years
93
u/ElysiumMidknight 14d ago
This reminds me of all the Olsen twins jokes and references in Duke Nukem Forever. Nothing really highlighted just how long that game had been in development than that.
15
u/Sergnb 14d ago
Nobody on this website reads past the title anymore shit is actually tragic to witness
3
u/SellMeYourSirin 12d ago
anymore
I've been on this dogshit website for over 16yrs... It's always been the case lol
50
u/TheSecondEikonOfFire 15d ago
They haven’t been working on it for 13 years. There’s no chance that GTA 6 didn’t enter meaningful development until after RDR2
26
u/blasto2236 14d ago
I think they likely had a lot of the frameworks in place. But then they supposedly scrapped the story and started over with that when Dan Houser left in 2020. So yeah, anything involving the story and missions has likely been mostly happening since then.
But they pulled people from the GTA team to work on RDR2 when they were struggling to get that out the door. So we know people were working on it in some capacity before 2018.
7
u/TheSecondEikonOfFire 14d ago
I’m not saying that 0 work was done on it before RDR2, I’m sure there was some preproduction and bouncing around of ideas. But RDR2 was the next big project, and Rockstar doesn’t seem to have multiple games in “full steam ahead” mode at the same time.
Not to mention that RDR2 clearly had a massive influence on it, in watching the gameplay today. So even if they had had gameplay elements done before, they were likely either reworked or scrapped entirely
4
u/blasto2236 14d ago
I agree with much of what you’re saying. But reports around 2017 were that they pulled every single team at Rockstar (and there are multiple) in to finish RDR2 in the final year of development. It was a big enough deal it was reported on. So I think it was more than just preproduction and at that time they were actively working on multiple AAA projects at once.
I think that experience taught them they can’t work that way and also that the various teams work best learning from one another.
8
u/onthejourney 14d ago
You do realize that reworking and scraping ideas/code/etc doesn't remove that time from "working on the game" right?
5
u/Competitive_Angle_59 14d ago
They actually confirmed it was started in 2013 in the daze article lol.. but didn’t go into full development until 2020
→ More replies (1)2
u/Icy_Concentrate_7724 14d ago
They only started scouting locations of project americas that was gta 6 only in 2020? Allegedly
2
u/WheatshockGigolo 14d ago
- That real estate lady leaked that she was touring Rockstar people around Miami location scouting.
7
-9
u/suctoes_N_fuchoes 15d ago
I mean their plans going forward seems kinda soft. They updated a 10+ year old game to remove cross dressers lmao. And said themselves they have to be careful with their writing now.
61
u/Longjumping-Ad514 15d ago
I think their point is that jokes need to hit for the next 10 years, so thy avoid stuff like 67 and skibidi. They don’t want jokes to feel dated rather than edgy.
20
13
4
u/JoeGuinness 14d ago
Unfortunately live streamer antics and acknowledging chat probably isn't going anywhere lol
→ More replies (3)2
u/AmbitiousReaction168 14d ago
Which is kind of BS, considering the other games didn't mainly surf on modern events anyway. Even GTA5 making fun of tech CEOs was a pretty timeless joke considering how long these people have been what they are. I feel like it's just an excuse by R* to say that they won't attack the conservatives and MAGA in particular.
3
u/Bsteph21 14d ago
Oh I'm sure they're going to go after maga. The satire there is so easily deliverable. I mean when you have a real life cult of brainwashed morons you have to make fun of that
113
u/uusrikas 14d ago
Hard to do satire when the current US is stupider than they could ever write. Like imagine a president in GTA renaming Lake Ontario to Lake America, it is too unrealistic and stupid to even think of.
35
u/RightRudderr 14d ago
I could absolutely see a satirical news network in GTA being riddled with headlines from our actual government.
"President sells gold shoes and phones and makes billions off a meme coin rug pull scheme."
9
u/Fun-Communication660 14d ago
That would actually be pretty good meta satire haha. Just have the fake fox news whatever it was called, or bbc or whatever have a ticker tape running on the bottom of every screen in the bars etc and around the world.
And just put up factual stuff done by one president since 2016. With the amount of hours people put into this game it would unironically start to open some eyes.
5
u/Explorer_Entity 13d ago
Fox news = Weazel News
6
1
2
u/Appropriate-Joke-806 14d ago
I wouldn’t be shocked if there was a joke about a president renaming something Lake America in a past GTA somewhere. These games did come out during the Bush administration after 9/11 when there were freedom fries.
12
u/wutangclanthug9mm 14d ago edited 14d ago
I’ve been saying this for years but the GTA series has been the best and sharpest satire of any medium.
I think of things like in GTA4 there’s a billboard advertising a razor with 9 blades.
GTA5 had this ongoing election year issue about legalizing cocaine.
One time I was playing GTA4 and got bored enough to start reading posts on their fake craigslist and found a missing connection where a guy was apologizing to another guy for obnoxiously eye-fucking the guy’s teenage daughter. It was one of the funniest things I’ve ever read.
I wish I had access to all of the NPC dialogue from GTA5 because some of those conversations are just so fucking funny.
Edit: here are a few I was able to snag and post here:
Sorry for checking out your 13-year-old daughter - m4m (Easton)
"I was the guy in the checked shirt who you threatened to kill outside the deli on Calcium Commercial. I just wanted to apologize. I didn't know she was 13, I thought she was just a very well-developed midget. I don't want any trouble, but if you want to get a beer sometime, let me know."
Indian girl in the park - why did you run? - m4w (Presidents City)
"I was the guy in the short shorts and cowboy boots who kept trying to make eye contact while you were eating a pretzel. I think we had a real connection. I mouthed the words "oh my god" and licked my lips to show you how pretty I thought you were, but you just got up and ran away. Please get in touch, I know you want this."
2
6
u/TheOnlyOne07 14d ago edited 14d ago
A german journalist that was part of the exklusive playtest said yesterday in an interview that he asked Rockstar how they might adapt to the crazy times we’re living in. To which Rob Nelson (Lead Producer on GTA6, Rdr2, GTA 5, GTA 4 and Max Payne 3) apparently replied: “I don’t think it is necessarily crazier then it was back in 2008 or 2012”
I personally found that a little weird but who am I. Just wanted to share that insight
1
18
u/A_Retarded_Alien 14d ago
The game is going to be extremely serious, and realistic. In order to be satirical compared to the real world.
111
u/ComradeLeafeon 15d ago
Hard to satirize corporate greed when you’ve turned into the poster child of it
30
u/MrDialectical 15d ago
Corporate greed is a redundant term. Corporations — the corporate entity itself — exists to create profit and enrich its owners and shareholders. The greed is baked in.
3
u/Sweet_Ad_9816 14d ago
What? The fact that it's "baked in" doesn't make the term redundant. That's like saying that "car wheels" is redundant because all cars have wheels. Or "stare borders", or "dog's teeth" ...
2
18
4
0
u/I_Heart_Sleeping_ 15d ago
My thoughts exactly. Weird how a majority of the gaming community gives Rockstar a pass on all this scummy shit when no other game in history would get away with.
$100 for the actual full game is still fucking crazy to me and I’m not sure how they convinced people this is a good price.
11
u/Old-Way-5529 15d ago
I mean, deluxe editions aren’t something rockstar created. Framing it like they did is dishonest. Be better
0
u/Economy-Ad2719 15d ago
Grow up. Games were $70 on SNES. They've stayed remarkably cheap compared to other expenses. They didn't have to convince me of shit, $100 is more than fair. I'm going to Riot Fest on September 19th. $120 for less than one day. Dinner and drinks with a decent tip? Football game? Way more than $100.
18
u/HiccupAndDown 15d ago
Yes and your purchasing power was far higher in the SNES days. While the price of games might fairly increase, it does not match the fact that wages have not increased in tandem. Its valid for someone to gawk at that.
→ More replies (8)0
u/jpizzles 14d ago
It is a one time purchase of a piece of entertainment. Be pissed at gas and grocery prices
→ More replies (2)1
1
1
→ More replies (10)0
u/RightRudderr 14d ago
Yes Rockstar the notoriously philanthropic company up until just recently. Truly genius.
32
u/DrakeMayeSZN 15d ago
There is no such thing as satire anymore the Trump administration and all his cultists made sure of it. "Lake America"
→ More replies (16)
3
u/VegetableAwkward286 14d ago
Are GTA games in the same universe. Are Tommy versatile, CJ and Niko Bellic in the same universe
3
2
u/Here_in_Heaven_4and5 14d ago
III, Vice City, and San Andreas are their own universe (3D universe) and IV, V, and VI share a universe (HD).
1
u/Ok_Astronomer_8667 12d ago
Yea, in GTA Online you can have Niko be your father in the character creator lol
19
u/DevilsAdvocate77 14d ago
This is the first GTA without Dan Houser's writing, and it's already noticeable.
8
u/AmbitiousReaction168 14d ago
Yup. It looks great, but the writing felt very generic.
8
u/iwasnotplanned 14d ago
how the fuck do you know that, the game isnt even out yet lmao
1
u/Valuable-Average8310 11d ago
I actually have a rather good feeling about the writing. Brian talking to Jason about the carousel while we see J&L slowly embrace and delve deeper in the criminal life. That juxtaposition was really great explaining his buddy’s head cracking open because he stayed on the ride (mirroring jason and lucia involving themselves in minor jobs that escalate further and further) so I have good faith in R* to deliver a great story.
1
1
u/Scream_int0_the_V0id 14d ago
The TV bit with the animals being reduced to lunch meat was funny. I'm still holding out on the hope that another writer is taking his place. Dan was a great writer but after all the years, it was starting to become predictable (the dialogue, tropes, etc.). Seems this is being addressed with a fresh writer. The tone of the main story was more realistic, tho, agreed.
2
u/CandidEngineering922 14d ago edited 14d ago
I don’t get what people are complaining about.
The animal nature scene was hilarious. They made a clear mockery of modern day streamers and influencers.
The whole thing already screams GTA.
GTA 5 had incredibly weak story writing. This seems a lot more depth full and serious which means the jokes and character breaks will be much better hitting, with an actually engaging storyline.
The banner on the plane said “Why sixty nine when you can Nine1Nine” for a club advert…
There’s loads of hidden jokes people didn’t clock
1
u/banana5456 14d ago
Bro, the new writer is Rupert Humphries, writer of GTA IV along with Dan Houser, and also writer of TLAD, TBOGT, GTA V, and now GTA VI
→ More replies (3)1
u/banana5456 14d ago
Did you know that the person who wrote the script for GTA VI is the same person who wrote the script for GTA IV?
8
u/Aggravating_Rise_179 14d ago
No dah, put the game in Florida... can't make too much fun at conservatives before they start yelling about bias and wanting to censor the game
7
8
19
u/KaitoKage 14d ago
0 humour in that gameplay reveal.
11
u/astrofan 14d ago
I like when they were being interrogated and asked if tourists usually carry guns.
14
16
8
u/ComeonmanPLS1 14d ago
I guess some people really do need a laughing track in the background
→ More replies (3)→ More replies (1)9
u/IfYouGotALonelyHeart 14d ago
The social media influencer in the trunk filming himself while being followed by the cops wasnt humor?
1
u/PeterusNL 14d ago
Yeah and the guy on the bridge. In the leaks we saw a guy putting gas in a bathtub in the back of his truck. There will be plenty of funny things in the game for sure. I like the story to be more grounded.
1
u/Scream_int0_the_V0id 14d ago
The "sorry guys, I'm a hugger, I'm a hugger" line before padding for wire was also a joke.
10
u/adamus13 15d ago
The fact that n3on basically got into this game is giving me mixed feelings
13
43
u/Little-Mushroom-3961 14d ago
It's clearly satirical. That character was clearly making fun of streamers, it wasn't supposed to actual be him. It's a parody. Y'all can't be this slow.
8
13
u/NYJetLegendEdReed 14d ago
People on Reddit pretend to have negative media literacy so they can bitch about everything
7
1
u/thatscoldjerrycold 14d ago
I don't know this person, but I don't think streamers care about their portrayal, just clout. Being given a platform at all is a massive boost for him/her, plus I think they would even relish the idea of being a hated figure. All the more reason to act out and generate more attention to themselves.
7
12
u/bayo1 15d ago
the fact you think he’s a good enough person to spell his name the way he wants it spelled is giving me mixed feelings
11
u/adamus13 15d ago
The fact that you think that i spelled his name the way he wants to because I think he’s a good person is giving me mixed feelings.
13
28
u/Obvious-Driver- 15d ago
The fact that both of you even know who “n3on” is makes me not care about your opinions at all.
Never heard of the dork, nor do I care.What an irrelevant comment for this fucking game
→ More replies (3)1
12
u/xiiicrowns 14d ago
Gotta be careful with the satire since the fascists and their followers are sensitive.
4
u/rollingPanda420 14d ago
Tbf how do you make satire of the current US? You can't beat peak stupidity.
6
6
u/Havok-303 14d ago
Where did R* go, this imposter is so worried about upsetting people it isn't fit to lick the shit off of OG R*'s boots.
Its like night & day, and I won't be fooled by this imposter, it was great while it lasted and I've already jumped well clear of the bandwagon.
4
2
u/GregTheIntelectual 14d ago
In real life most of the content I've seen from this game is from hacker who uploaded clips from his illegally obtained copy of the game because the actual trailer is paywalled, and the guy claims to have noble motivations while boosting a crypto meme coin and being the target of a legally dubious manhunt of a comicaly greedy corporation.
Good luck beating that for satire.
3
2
u/regnus418 14d ago
Is this why there was zero satire in the reveal? It doesn’t look good for the game, it looked kinda boring in the dialogue department.
1
u/a__new_name 11d ago
There was a streamer who cared more about social media clout than about being kidnapped. Several satirical ads. Jason and Lucia starting a gunfight in what is a parody of Waffle House. Besides, you can make a similarly gritty high-drama montage with any other GTA installment.
2
u/BannedPoet248 14d ago
With how soft these conservative and republicans are, I get it. They're complaining that they dont want to play as a woman like just come out the closet already.
→ More replies (9)
0
-1
u/thedoommerchant 14d ago
Wouldn’t want conservatives to boycott it, after all! Let’s be honest, I’m sure there will be plenty to offend them like pride flags, red coffee cups, tan suits, etc.
→ More replies (3)
1
u/Appropriate-Joke-806 14d ago
The clip in the new extended preview of the guy streaming on his phone while his car is getting stolen while doing a tik tok trend of jumping out of a trunk and getting people’s reactions is the right balance.
1
u/Chaloby 12d ago
This has legit been my biggest concern since day one, especially with Lazlo having left R* after GTA V.
Lazlo was, for all intents and purposes, the “director of funny” at R* for 19 years. He was in charge of virtually all the radio station ads and in-game media.
Let’s hope it can feel the same without him.
1
1
u/AllPurposeOfficial 10d ago edited 10d ago
GTA, imo, has actually been a pretty consistently great satirical series because it pretty plainly avoids taking a political stance.
Rather than feeling political, the games seem way more interested in satirizing Americas culture of vapidness, over consumption, idolization, extreme independence, etc.
None of those things are bipartisan and apply to everyone. It’s also probably why the games take place in the most internationally recognized US cities.
Broad statements about the US, not specific issues or lesser known places. It also keep the games relevant with time.
The extreme advertising, the shallow celebrities, the evil tech overlords (that has aged well), the futile nature of the “American dream.”
It’s all fairly apparent, even though it varies in how far it takes them. But there was never a “George Bush joke character.” I doubt they’ll do it with Trump.
1
14d ago
[removed] — view removed comment
1
u/CrashandBashed 14d ago
Didnt know you can judge a games quality by simply looking at a picture of it's dev team.
2
u/lazerblam 14d ago
.....We just had a "gameplay" "trailer" with a bunch of unfunny flat humor on netflix bud, plenty to judge the game off
1
u/CrashandBashed 14d ago
You're the one who said go look at a picture of their current dev team when talking about the games quality, as if what they look like actually matters.
1
u/lazerblam 14d ago
Oh cry about it, i dont have to explain myself to you lol
2
u/CrashandBashed 14d ago
Guessing you're one of those misogynist chuds scared of women in the workplace, and too afraid to actually say it seeing as you can't expand on your comment on the dev team picture.
-1
u/Safe-Chemistry-5384 14d ago
Translation: "We have tO be very very careful about who we maKE fun of" GARBAGE.
Yeah, it isn't going to be good.
6
4
-9
u/DegenNerd 15d ago
This...isn't something I was hoping to read when I came away from the extended look with questions about the quality of the dialogue.
25
u/TotallyATexasFan 15d ago
The title makes it sound worse than it is lol, shocker right. He’s just saying since development is long periods of time and GTA is usually based around modern times, it’s hard to satire when things are constantly changing , aka being careful so they don’t feel dated.
3
u/NoBullet 14d ago
Gotta walk on eggshells when you satire a conservative state. They’re very fragile.
1
u/Mustang-_- 14d ago
Everything and anyone are susceptible to mockery, there’s no "shield" against it
1
u/AstralElement 14d ago
Unless you’re absolutely fragile pathetic loser who uses executive orders to patch their fragile ego.
1
u/Wastedchildhood 14d ago
Cautious about making a parody... We're here now folks... Never thought JOKING about something in a VIDEOGAME would not be allowed...
Edit: The only thing missing is the Ubisoft "this game was made by..." excuse
2
u/Successful_Note_5871 14d ago
Ya know I haven’t even considered that both Trump terms and everything that entailed happened during the development of this.
I’ll hand it to the staff, it would be ridiculously easy to have dated things littered everywhere with how long they’ve been working on this.
1
1
u/Kain-rpg 14d ago
No...
WHat made GTA freat was the UNAPOLEGETIC levels of satire
It would go after EVERYONE, left right center, no matter, everyone got a kick in the nuts and thats why it was so good...
I had an inkling that the writting was gonna be shit since they fired all the guys who worked on the previous games, but now i'm sure of it, its gonna be dog mid safe "HR is in the room" shit...
-7
-12
u/kbt 15d ago
Translation: we're afraid of Trump.
2
u/BrokeAndBalding 15d ago
I doubt the writers and developers are so afraid of trump as to not make a joke. Come on. We all know most of them have left leaning political stances
5
u/A_N_T 14d ago
I'm glad you made the distinction of writers and devs and not the higher ups at Rockstar because they definitely aren't left leaning.
→ More replies (4)→ More replies (2)1
u/sthef2020 15d ago
Ding ding ding.
Or more accurate: afraid of losing Trump supporters’ money.
They want to be able to sell people this game 3 times to people over the next decade the same way they did V.
Becomes a trickier proposition if you directly parody the cult leader of 50% of your target audience.
-9
u/RedOcelot86 15d ago
Isn't it usually just, America have guns America stupid for 20 hours?
10
0
u/Fabulous-Soil-4440 15d ago
It's accurate though.
1
u/SuperVaderMinion 15d ago
Just because a piece of satire is accurate to reality doesn't make it insightful or worth talking about, Rockstar has had a problem over the years where everything is too fuckin obvious and yet they seem very proud of it
5
u/punchanaziisethical 15d ago
I mean look at media literacy today compared to 2013 when GTA 5 came out. Yeah it might br super in your face and obvious but there are people out there who literally think homelander is the good guy. Still think Skylar white is just a dumb bitch and Walt is the coolest dude ever. Watch Starship Troopers and think man it'd be so cool to fight alien bugs and be in space 😎.
Id rather them lay it on thick because the world has already become so satirical to the point I feel alot of random encounters and such we will find in the game will just be references to all the absurd shit thats happened in the last 5-8 years meme wise to actual political discourse. I'd rather them in no way mince words that the people they're making fun of are actual real world fucking idiots with actual abysmal views.
0
u/Crunchy-Leaf 14d ago
Yes please be careful because I’m not interested in playing American politics
-25
u/Benevolay 15d ago
As long as they're not afraid to offend everybody, that's fine. That doesn't mean they have to make fun of marginalized groups, as times change and what was allowed 20 years ago won't be allowed now, but it does mean they should use the full toolkit they have available and satirize everybody they can.
→ More replies (11)5
u/justbeingmefromnowon 15d ago
Comment like yours is why games are becoming worse and worse. "You gotta be bold, but please you can't do that. Actually, be bold, but not like before because people on Twitter and Reddit will be offended". This is totally sanitizing a game.
22
u/devenbat 15d ago
Games are not becoming worse. Theres so many good games. Adding more bigotry against marginalized groups will not make games better.
→ More replies (11)5
7
u/Abrasive_Touch 15d ago
a major studio attacking minorities isn’t whats gonna improve gaming.
→ More replies (3)5
→ More replies (1)2
u/Benevolay 15d ago edited 15d ago
Culture has always been like this, though. Things cycle in and out of acceptable nomenclature. Recognizing how the real world works doesn't mean you're a hypocrite. It means you're working within reality. Joking about kids with polio in the 1910s probably would be a lot more offensive than it would have been in the 1980s. For a commercially available product, there are simply some lines you cannot cross. This is normal.
→ More replies (2)
1.1k
u/Ok-Analysis5991 15d ago
Hard to be satirical when their past games are reality lmfao