Summary
The internet has been ablaze with excitement, rumors, and speculation ever since the reveal trailer forGrand Theft Auto 6dropped last year. The rapid levels of hype are warranted, not only becauseGTAhas one of the strongest track records of any video game franchise, but also becausethe record-breakingGTA 6trailerhighlights some very titillating and unique parts of the game, sending expectations for the final product to the moon.
This next-gen version of Vice City certainly looks captivating, as the in-game footage shown off in the trailer paints a picture of a dense, atmospheric sandbox dripping with personality. But players know what to expect from Vice City, more or less, since the setting has been featured in the franchise before and is almost a one-to-one recreation of real-world Miami. The more intriguing, less illuminated aspect ofGrand Theft Auto 6that everyone is talking about is itsBonnie and Clydestory, which will follow a criminal couple on their ethically dubious escapades.
GTA 6 Will Hopefully Focus On Lucia’s Incarceration Backstory
Lucia Will Probably Start GTA 6 In Prison
It looks likeGTA 6will focus on more modest criminal endeavors, at least in comparison to the epic, explosive heists ofGTA 5. It would appear that one of these smaller crimes has landed Lucia in prison, with the game’s reveal trailer showing her in an orange jumpsuit, talking to some sort of counselor or correctional officer.
A promotional image shows Lucia wearing an ankle monitor, implying that the end of her prison sentence doesn’t necessarily mean absolute freedom.
That Lucia is an ex-convict is clear, but what’s less certain is the context surrounding her incarceration: details like how long she has been locked up and what landed her behind bars in the first place. These key details couldinform the gameplay ofGTA 6because, if she’s been locked up for a long time, possibly in a high-security prison based on the severity of her crime, Rockstar may opt to make this chapter of her life playable instead of just a summary cutscene.
GTA 6 Could Have a Proper Prison Level
Although it arguably has a greater focus on criminal activity than any other gaming franchise,Grand Theft Autohas never featured a proper, playable prison section. Even if a player commits heinous acts, they will just respawn outside a police station, like nothing ever happened. This is a bit of absurdist humor, but it also serves a practical purpose:GTA’s core gameplay loopsimply wouldn’t work if players had to go through a fully simulated prison system that eats up both in-game and real-world time.
But an isolated, linear level set in prison could work. Other games, likeYakuza ZeroandMafia 2, have shown that such levels can add texture and novelty to a crime drama narrative, allowing players to live through the consequences of criminal actions. In the case ofGTA 6, the advantages of an early prison level could be twofold: it would be a nice way to set the tone and pace of the narrative by keeping players from theentire Vice City sandboxearly on, and it could offer immersive tutorialization.
Red Dead Redemption 2hinged its core game design philosophy on its sense of radical immersion, and while it’s safe to say that things like hunger meters won’t be making a return inGTA 6, the game may attempt to capture a similar immersive spirit. Improving upon longtimeGTAmechanics like melee combatand physics would be one way to do this, but giving players direct control during narrative moments that might be slower or more restrictive is another method. ThoughGTAisn’t known for its linear levels, making Lucia’s jail sentence interactive would be a gripping and valuable in-game experience, from both narrative and gameplay perspectives.
Grand Theft Auto 6
WHERE TO PLAY
Grand Theft Auto VI heads to the state of Leonida, home to the neon-soaked streets of Vice City and beyond in the biggest, most immersive evolution of the Grand Theft Auto series yet.Jason and Lucia have always known the deck is stacked against them. But when an easy score goes wrong, they find themselves on the darkest side of the sunniest place in America, in the middle of a criminal conspiracy stretching across the state of Leonida — forced to rely on each other more than ever if they want to make it out alive.
