Remember when video games were an escape from politics and liberal communism wokeism? Well that’s gone. If you are a fan of the Grand Theft Auto series like I am, the next version, expect in 2023 or 2024 will feature two main characters as bank robbers. One of whom will be a female Latina. Not only that, but Rockstar, the company that makes Grand Theft Auto VI will be more “progressive” and also focus on making fewer jokes in GTA that ‘punch down’ at marginalized groups.
As part of a report on Rockstar by Bloomberg, sources close to the studio discussed the new female character, who will be Latina. The character will reportedly be part of a pair of bank robbers in a story influenced by real-life criminals Bonnie & Clyde.
Female protagonists have previously only been available as custom characters in GTA Online, never in the game’s single player campaigns. Rockstar co-founder Dan Houser (who has since left the company) previously indicated the company was thinking about a female lead as far back as 2013.
The report also indicates that the launch version of GTA 6 will begin with fictionalized Miami and surrounding areas (presumably a return for Vice City), but will be updated with “new missions and cities on a regular basis”. That launch version apparently already includes more interior locations than any GTA game previously.
The report also points to a more progressive mindset at the company in narrative terms, too. Bloomberg says that a mode called Cops ‘n’ Crooks was shelved before release following the 2020 police killing of George Floyd, and has not been considered for release since. The company is also focusing on making fewer jokes in GTA that ‘punch down’ at marginalized groups.
I’ll still play Grand Theft Auto VI when it comes out but if video games continue going in this direction, they will lose big chunks of their market share.