Why GTA 6 And All Future Grand Theft Auto Games Will Stay In The US
Specifically, Dan Houser states "I think for a full GTA game, we always decided [...] that there was so much Americana inherent in the IP, it would be really hard to make it work in London or anywhere else. You know, you needed guns, you needed these larger-than-life characters. It just felt like the game was so much about America, possibly from an outsider's perspective. But you know, that was so much about what the thing was that it wouldn't really have worked in the same way elsewhere."
So, the justification is twofold: both a story-related reason related to over-the-top archetypes common in American media, and most crucially for a video game, the gameplay implications of easily-accessible guns and vehicles.
The United States naturally lends itself to open-world crime RPGs like the Grand Theft Auto series in a way that few other settings can provide, especially when one locks in on major cities and the histories of various mobs and gangs operating within them. Two major examples that stick out for me personally are Vice City and the portable-only Chinatown Wars. Vice City is of course based in Florida and drenched in appropriate cartel and Scarface influences, while Chinatown Wars adopts the classic top-down GTA gameplay to Nintendo DS & PSP but with a distinct Chinese Triad flavor. This combined with the cel-shaded style of the original release allowed Chinatown Wars to adopt some different cultural influences while still providing series-true Grand Theft Auto gameplay.
For those interested, the full Lex Fridman postcast episode uploaded to YouTube includes a deep dive on several other Grand Theft Auto and Rockstar Games-related topics. Dan Houser speaks of every major Grand Theft Auto release prior to now, his own anticipation to experience Grand Theft Auto VI from the eyes of a fan who used to work on the series, and even expresses an optimistic view of the future of video games as a medium. It's an insightful, educational, and even inspiring look behind the scenes of game development. Fans of playable Western series Red Dead Redemption will likely appreciate the 40-minute segment dedicated exclusively to discussing Red Dead Redemption 2, which Dan Houser has previously stated to be his magnum opus.
On a similarly optimistic note, Rockstar parent company Take-Two Interactive recently decried the idea of AI replacing its developers and creators, painting a vision of top-tier AAA games at most using AI to supplement existing game development talent, not attempt to replace them with a content generator. While Dan Houser parted with Rockstar on amicable terms, it's nice to see that his creator-driven mentality remains strong at Rockstar and Take-Two.
Image Credit: Rockstar Games
