Your ideas for a protagonist

[Official General]

I wouldn't want a 21 year old either for a protagonist, that's too young for a GTA protagonist in my opinion. You still have a lot of sh*t to figure out at 21, I feel like the character might come off as incomplete or naive if he's that young. On the flip side of he's over 40 then I feel like you have less of an impact on who he will become, most people have figured themselves out by that age and there's not a lot of room for growth or change. I want to be able to affect in someway who the character is or will become through out the story

Both good points, I especially share your sentiments on an early 20's protag, it's just to young.

 

I still think someone in their early 40's could work, say someone who wanted to retire from criminal life, moved and was about to settle down maybe start a family, but got dragged back into the life of crime, and decides to roll with it. (In that scenario he has no family he was contemplating starting one, but it never happened)

I'm pretty sure Esco stole that point from me, the about being in his mid-late 20s lol

[SoupCard]

For gods sakes 43 isn’t that old.

 

Personally I'd prefer someone in their 30'2 to 40's over someone in their 20s, who for the most part is inexperienced in the more organized crime areas.

You made my point bro. A younger protagonist would sound more interesting and exciting for a storyline, because he would become much tougher, smarter and more experienced as a career criminal as you progress further through the game. It would immerse the player even more in the game to play a controlling part in the protagonist's character development, as we follow him on his life journey within the game.

 

An older, middle-aged, washed-up gangster who has been there, done that and now he wants to go back to his old criminal life for one last hurrah and retire and live happily ever after ? We've seen this scenario played out many times before in various visual media entertainment forms and it just sounds a bit boring.

 

No thanks.

Yes because the young guy rising in ranks and making a name for himself has never been done before.

 

Give me a break, the middle-aged gangster archetype is not nearly as overused, and has yet to really be the focus of a GTA game. Looking at characters like Tony Soprano or Walter White, I wouldn't be surprised if Rockstar wanted to work on their own interpretation of the family dynamic.

 

And honestly I really haven't seen that scenario in the media very often. Care to share some examples of a middle aged washed up gangster who gets back in the life of crime, then retires and lives happily ever after? Just curious.

[MrcTOtheJ]

For gods sakes 43 isn’t that old.

 

Personally I'd prefer someone in their 30'2 to 40's over someone in their 20s, who for the most part is inexperienced in the more organized crime areas.

You made my point bro. A younger protagonist would sound more interesting and exciting for a storyline, because he would become much tougher, smarter and more experienced as a career criminal as you progress further through the game. It would immerse the player even more in the game to play a controlling part in the protagonist's character development, as we follow him on his life journey within the game.

 

An older, middle-aged, washed-up gangster who has been there, done that and now he wants to go back to his old criminal life for one last hurrah and retire and live happily ever after ? We've seen this scenario played out many times before in various visual media entertainment forms and it just sounds a bit boring.

 

No thanks.

Yes because the young guy rising in ranks and making a name for himself has never been done before.

 

Give me a break, the middle-aged gangster archetype is not nearly as overused, and has yet to really be the focus of a GTA game. Looking at characters like Tony Soprano or Walter White, I wouldn't be surprised if Rockstar wanted to work on their own interpretation of the family dynamic.

 

And honestly I really haven't seen that scenario in the media very often. Care to share some examples of a middle aged washed up gangster who gets back in the life of crime, then retires and lives happily ever after? Just curious.

These are also reasons I'd like to see an older (Mid 30's to Early 40's) protag, they could make it work rather easily, even if he isn't a family man, there are things to work with there.

 

It really doesn't matter at this point to me ethier, I'm going to enjoy the story of the game ethier way, so I'll just wait and see what they do.

[SoupCard]

For gods sakes 43 isn’t that old.

 

Personally I'd prefer someone in their 30'2 to 40's over someone in their 20s, who for the most part is inexperienced in the more organized crime areas.

You made my point bro. A younger protagonist would sound more interesting and exciting for a storyline, because he would become much tougher, smarter and more experienced as a career criminal as you progress further through the game. It would immerse the player even more in the game to play a controlling part in the protagonist's character development, as we follow him on his life journey within the game.

 

An older, middle-aged, washed-up gangster who has been there, done that and now he wants to go back to his old criminal life for one last hurrah and retire and live happily ever after ? We've seen this scenario played out many times before in various visual media entertainment forms and it just sounds a bit boring.

 

No thanks.

Yes because the young guy rising in ranks and making a name for himself has never been done before.

 

Give me a break, the middle-aged gangster archetype is not nearly as overused, and has yet to really be the focus of a GTA game. Looking at characters like Tony Soprano or Walter White, I wouldn't be surprised if Rockstar wanted to work on their own interpretation of the family dynamic.

 

And honestly I really haven't seen that scenario in the media very often. Care to share some examples of a middle aged washed up gangster who gets back in the life of crime, then retires and lives happily ever after? Just curious.

These are also reasons I'd like to see an older (Mid 30's to Early 40's) protag, they could make it work rather easily, even if he isn't a family man, there are things to work with there.

 

It really doesn't matter at this point to me ethier, I'm going to enjoy the story of the game ethier way, so I'll just wait and see what they do.

Indeed, I believe multiple protagonists is very likely, based on how often the old guy and the hispanic guy show up in the trailer. The voice over may suit the old guy more, and yes he does get a close up, but I personally feel there's no denying the focus on the hispanic guy as well.

 

It would definitely make everyone happy, since I'm sure the hispanic guys story would be much more gang focused. I wouldn't be surprised if the next trailer revealed another character, but we'll see. The main reason I'm speculating this is because we're still unsure of what they mean by a "bol new direction". Perhaps, co-op, who really knows.

[MrcTOtheJ]

I don’t know if I believe the multi Protag’s theory, if done right yeah it could be awesome, but until I see more evidence I’m going to just assume that Balcony Man/Ned Luke, or the Hispanic guy in the red car are the protag, and that there’s only going to be one.

 

I guess though it could work out, we’d get to see two unique takes on the events of what’s happening in the story, but how would it work, would we start as one guy (say Balcony guy) get to a certain and then you’d get the option to play as the other guy? Would you pick which guy you want to play as after the game, and just play as them and go to the other protag at your leisure.

 

Then you have other factors limiting you, such as property, unless the protags happen to be business partners in the story line, then what would happen if you bought all the safe houses with one person? Where would protag B stay besides the default place? I guess if they’re business partners or friends of some sort they could just introduce Protag B being an associate of protag A’s and A says that B can use what he owns, and visa versa.

 

I don’t know I guess it can be done, but there are a few things that raise red flags on it for me.

 

[SoupCard]

I don’t know if I believe the multi Protag’s theory, if done right yeah it could be awesome, but until I see more evidence I’m going to just assume that Balcony Man/Ned Luke, or the Hispanic guy in the red car are the protag, and that there’s only going to be one.

 

I guess though it could work out, we’d get to see two unique takes on the events of what’s happening in the story, but how would it work, would we start as one guy (say Balcony guy) get to a certain and then you’d get the option to play as the other guy? Would you pick which guy you want to play as after the game, and just play as them and go to the other protag at your leisure.

 

Then you have other factors limiting you, such as property, unless the protags happen to be business partners in the story line, then what would happen if you bought all the safe houses with one person? Where would protag B stay besides the default place? I guess if they’re business partners or friends of some sort they could just introduce Protag B being an associate of protag A’s and A says that B can use what he owns, and visa versa.

 

I don’t know I guess it can be done, but there are a few things that raise red flags on it for me.

The property thing is a really great point actually. I wouldn't want to buy a bunch of really expensive houses/cars (assuming you can), only to start a the next play through as the second character and have all that (and my money) gone.

 

That aside, I would assume it'd work like EFLC, you start up the game and select which story you want to play. Or they could force you to play in a certain order, for the storys sake (I could see one character getting killed off The Departed style, then you play through as the guy who killed him).

 

The old guy and the hispanic guy could very well be close friends/partners so they share property, which could be Rockstars nod to Walter White and Jesse Pinkman's relationship, but I doubt it. I'm not going to rule out any possibilities just yet however.

[MrcTOtheJ]

Yeah those are good ways to make it work.

 

Story wise I could see it happening, you start as the Old Guy or something get about 50% of the way though his story and unlock the Hispanic guys, some missions will require you to do cirtain things with the other protag, such as a mission that sets the ground work for another mission that protag B is about to do.

 

I'd like them to be partners of some sort, since that could sort out some of the issues, though one killing the other would work too, though it would be a bit of an FU to the fans who liked the one protag but despised the other.

[EscoLehGo]

I wouldn't want a 21 year old either for a protagonist, that's too young for a GTA protagonist in my opinion. You still have a lot of sh*t to figure out at 21, I feel like the character might come off as incomplete or naive if he's that young. On the flip side of he's over 40 then I feel like you have less of an impact on who he will become, most people have figured themselves out by that age and there's not a lot of room for growth or change. I want to be able to affect in someway who the character is or will become through out the story

Both good points, I especially share your sentiments on an early 20's protag, it's just to young.

 

I still think someone in their early 40's could work, say someone who wanted to retire from criminal life, moved and was about to settle down maybe start a family, but got dragged back into the life of crime, and decides to roll with it. (In that scenario he has no family he was contemplating starting one, but it never happened)

I'm pretty sure Esco stole that point from me, the about being in his mid-late 20s lol

It's not hat deep bro, I didn't "steal" anything, I can only assume we have a similar opinion

[GTA-King]

I don’t know if I believe the multi Protag’s theory, if done right yeah it could be awesome, but until I see more evidence I’m going to just assume that Balcony Man/Ned Luke, or the Hispanic guy in the red car are the protag, and that there’s only going to be one.

 

I guess though it could work out, we’d get to see two unique takes on the events of what’s happening in the story, but how would it work, would we start as one guy (say Balcony guy) get to a certain and then you’d get the option to play as the other guy? Would you pick which guy you want to play as after the game, and just play as them and go to the other protag at your leisure.

 

Then you have other factors limiting you, such as property, unless the protags happen to be business partners in the story line, then what would happen if you bought all the safe houses with one person? Where would protag B stay besides the default place? I guess if they’re business partners or friends of some sort they could just introduce Protag B being an associate of protag A’s and A says that B can use what he owns, and visa versa.

 

I don’t know I guess it can be done, but there are a few things that raise red flags on it for me.

The property thing is a really great point actually. I wouldn't want to buy a bunch of really expensive houses/cars (assuming you can), only to start a the next play through as the second character and have all that (and my money) gone.

 

That aside, I would assume it'd work like EFLC, you start up the game and select which story you want to play. Or they could force you to play in a certain order, for the storys sake (I could see one character getting killed off The Departed style, then you play through as the guy who killed him).

 

The old guy and the hispanic guy could very well be close friends/partners so they share property, which could be Rockstars nod to Walter White and Jesse Pinkman's relationship, but I doubt it. I'm not going to rule out any possibilities just yet however.

Vice City stole aspects from Scarface, so whose to say V won't steal aspects from Breaking Bad? It could happen, and would make an interesting story.

[EscoLehGo]

Vice City stole aspects from Scarface, so whose to say V won't steal aspects from Breaking Bad? It could happen, and would make an interesting story.

That's a good point, Diaz's mansion was heavily influenced by Scarface's mansion and there's no denying that for GTA SA there were heavy references made towards movies like Boyz n The Hood and Menace To Society. But in the HD era I see less connections like this, it seems like they only parody tv shows and movies now instead of directly being influenced by them.

[hockeysauce]

a 43 year old family man who had a criminal past in Liberty City. He moved to Los Santos to start a new life. Years go by and the economy makes a dramatic turn. His mortgage is about to flop and the bills are long overdue. He sees no choice but to return to his criminal past in order to provide his family with a comfortable lifestyle in spite of the economic crisis. But how will they react when they find out the truth about his past and what he did? That my friends, is what would make the story great!

 

He's a family man with the same ambition as Tommy Vercetti. Just stop and think for a moment what kind of story that would offer!

I pretty much agree with all this.

 

Based on the voice-over in the trailer, and the financial situation of the USA over the last 4 years (and R*'s tendency to parody such things) I think this is pretty close to what the final game will be.

 

Retired old-school criminal loses his criminal fortune to the new-school criminals (aka bankers) and is forced back to crime to make it back (and hopefully take out some of these SOBs in the proces).

 

I'd love it.

[Jewstinian]

I would love to see an African or Hispanic protagonist again. But not like Luis though, he acted too much like a pimp to me.

[vijay.genius1]

Well I guess R* knows best when it comes to story and the protagonist.Only we dont know about the game.But the guys at Rockstar already know everything about the game.hundreds of people already knwo about the game!!think of it like that

[Meekail]

Maybe i change my mind. Randy Orton will be good IMO. He is sneaky and is perfect for stealth. He can RKO anyone anytime with more melee-attacks as he is a pro-wrestler and plus, he is a complete bad-ass. But i doubt R* will put Randy Orton as the protagonist. Just my idea.

Edited April 30, 2012 by MetalisticMCena

[Official General]

For gods sakes 43 isn’t that old.

 

Personally I'd prefer someone in their 30'2 to 40's over someone in their 20s, who for the most part is inexperienced in the more organized crime areas.

You made my point bro. A younger protagonist would sound more interesting and exciting for a storyline, because he would become much tougher, smarter and more experienced as a career criminal as you progress further through the game. It would immerse the player even more in the game to play a controlling part in the protagonist's character development, as we follow him on his life journey within the game.

 

An older, middle-aged, washed-up gangster who has been there, done that and now he wants to go back to his old criminal life for one last hurrah and retire and live happily ever after ? We've seen this scenario played out many times before in various visual media entertainment forms and it just sounds a bit boring.

 

No thanks.

Yes because the young guy rising in ranks and making a name for himself has never been done before.

 

Give me a break, the middle-aged gangster archetype is not nearly as overused, and has yet to really be the focus of a GTA game. Looking at characters like Tony Soprano or Walter White, I wouldn't be surprised if Rockstar wanted to work on their own interpretation of the family dynamic.

 

And honestly I really haven't seen that scenario in the media very often. Care to share some examples of a middle aged washed up gangster who gets back in the life of crime, then retires and lives happily ever after? Just curious.

@ SoupCard

 

When did I ever say anything about GTA V featuring a young guy protagonist rising through the ranks ? Read my post again, and this time very carefully. I was talking about how interesting to would be to see the character development of a younger protagonist unfold as the player progressed further through the game. Whether that means a younger guy rising through the ranks is open to question, it does not necessarily have to be that, it could another kind of storyline, I did not exactly specify which one. You jumped the gun on that one bro.

 

I can definitely give examples of that scenario I talk about. I have seen many movies play it out, but i won't name all of them. Heat, Godfather 3, Carlito's Way, Leon, Unforgiven, - these are all movies where the main character is an ageing, middle-aged gangster/criminal/assassin and they all either wanna do one last great job before they retire or they come out of retirement one last time for some major revenge or vendetta to carry out.

 

In any event, how many young guy-rises-through-the-ranks story has been done in GTA ? Not many, you can say that the one real story like that was CJ's in San Andreas, as he was in his early or mid 20s. Tommy was not exactly young, even though he rose through the ranks of Vice City's underworld, Luis was on the younger side, but he did not start off poor in the Ballad of gay Tony, he starts off already living well. The clearly young-looking Claude in GTA III did not really rise through any ranks, he just made a little name for himself during his quest for revenge against Catalina.

 

 

[Algonquin Assassin]

For gods sakes 43 isn’t that old.

 

Personally I'd prefer someone in their 30'2 to 40's over someone in their 20s, who for the most part is inexperienced in the more organized crime areas.

You made my point bro. A younger protagonist would sound more interesting and exciting for a storyline, because he would become much tougher, smarter and more experienced as a career criminal as you progress further through the game. It would immerse the player even more in the game to play a controlling part in the protagonist's character development, as we follow him on his life journey within the game.

 

An older, middle-aged, washed-up gangster who has been there, done that and now he wants to go back to his old criminal life for one last hurrah and retire and live happily ever after ? We've seen this scenario played out many times before in various visual media entertainment forms and it just sounds a bit boring.

 

No thanks.

Yes because the young guy rising in ranks and making a name for himself has never been done before.

 

Give me a break, the middle-aged gangster archetype is not nearly as overused, and has yet to really be the focus of a GTA game. Looking at characters like Tony Soprano or Walter White, I wouldn't be surprised if Rockstar wanted to work on their own interpretation of the family dynamic.

 

And honestly I really haven't seen that scenario in the media very often. Care to share some examples of a middle aged washed up gangster who gets back in the life of crime, then retires and lives happily ever after? Just curious.

@ SoupCard

 

When did I ever say anything about GTA V featuring a young guy protagonist rising through the ranks ? Read my post again, and this time very carefully. I was talking about how interesting to would be to see the character development of a younger protagonist unfold as the player progressed further through the game. Whether that means a younger guy rising through the ranks is open to question, it does not necessarily have to be that, it could another kind of storyline, I did not exactly specify which one. You jumped the gun on that one bro.

 

I can definitely give examples of that scenario I talk about. I have seen many movies play it out, but i won't name all of them. Heat, Godfather 3, Carlito's Way, Leon, Unforgiven, - these are all movies where the main character is an ageing, middle-aged gangster/criminal/assassin and they all either wanna do one last great job before they retire or they come out of retirement one last time for some major revenge or vendetta to carry out.

 

In any event, how many young guy-rises-through-the-ranks story has been done in GTA ? Not many, you can say that the one real story like that was CJ's in San Andreas, as he was in his early or mid 20s. Tommy was not exactly young, even though he rose through the ranks of Vice City's underworld, Luis was on the younger side, but he did not start off poor in the Ballad of gay Tony, he starts off already living well. The clearly young-looking Claude in GTA III did not really rise through any ranks, he just made a little name for himself during his quest for revenge against Catalina.

Probably not the best comparison, but I thought it was brilliant in Assassin's Creed II how Ezio grew up from a 17 year kid chasing girls to a 40+ year old skilled assassin. Obviously GTA V wont span 20 years, but perhaps we could see a similar concept if a younger protagonist is used. He'd grow a lot more mature by game's end.

[Psychotic Mind]

Some type of killer, or serial killer, a "real" "bad guy". I would like to see a "different" type of protagonist that has some very deep and disturbing psychological issues. The kind of protagonist that you would almost be wanting to see the police kill or arrest the bastard.

[GhostFaze64]

-Young (early 20's)

 

-athletic & strong

 

-Charming personality

 

-Badass

 

-looks cool in sunglasses

 

-skin color white

 

 

 

If the rock climbing guy was the protagonist, I would be very amazed and love the game.

No need to be racist, kid.

[GlaswegianOutlaw]

None of that was racist.

[tobu24]

 

-Young (early 20's)

 

-athletic & strong

 

-Charming personality

 

-Badass

 

-looks cool in sunglasses

 

-skin color white

 

 

 

If the rock climbing guy was the protagonist, I would be very amazed and love the game.

No need to be racist, kid.

Why would this be racist? He probably wants immersion because he's white. I have to admit though, I could not bond with a white serbian so skin color doesn't matter. I bonded more with CJ.

Edited April 30, 2012 by tobu24

[GlaswegianOutlaw]

Or maybe because young black guy in Los Santos sounds too much like a 'gansta', hip-hop theme.

[EscoLehGo]

Or maybe because young black guy in Los Santos sounds too much like a 'gansta', hip-hop theme.

The majority of young blacks in LA aren't "gansta" as you say

[GlaswegianOutlaw]

Or maybe because young black guy in Los Santos sounds too much like a 'gansta', hip-hop theme.

The majority of young blacks in LA aren't "gansta" as you say

I said Los Santos, not LA.

[EscoLehGo]

Or maybe because young black guy in Los Santos sounds too much like a 'gansta', hip-hop theme.

The majority of young blacks in LA aren't "gansta" as you say

I said Los Santos, not LA.

What real life city is the inspiration for Los Santos?

[GlaswegianOutlaw]

The key word, there, is inspiration.

 

We all know GTA makes a skewed caricature full of stereotypes for a city, not just a digital rendition of a city/area and it's people. Thats why all the young black, african-american male peds in GTA IV fit the 'gansta' theme.

Edited April 30, 2012 by GlaswegianOutlaw

[EscoLehGo]

Thats why all the young black males in GTA IV fit the 'gansta' theme.

I think R* is more creative than to make a character completely one dimensional purely based on their skin color. It seems like you're taking your own prejudiced views and placing them on R*. You're consistently spelling "gangsta" wrong as well.

[Acky.]

The guy in the middle.

 

 

 

[GlaswegianOutlaw]

I'm not prejudiced at all, thats a pretty grand assumption for you to make. Wherever I can, I praise Rockstar for their story telling abilities - they are pretty much the best there is in the game industry, in my opinion. But you can't help but notice the only young black npc's in GTA IV are either 'gangsta' or work at clucking bell (another tired old stereotype).

 

I think it contributes to the satire of the series (In this instance, how people instantly judge people based on appearance and background) more than deliberately stereotyping blacks.

 

Actually, I believe the fact that a young black male from the poorer areas in Los Santos being able to break into Area 69 and rob a casino, was a story element crafted to very deliberately break the stereotype of 'gangsta' culture in LA.

 

I generally dislike the whole hip-hop culture (i.e. Ho's, rap music, 'bling', consitant use of the word 'Nigga'), but that doesn't mean I dislike Black people as a whole. Give me a black protag that doesn't conform to that stereotype in a GTA V, and I'll enjoy playing as him as much as any other race.

 

By the way, don't call me prejudiced again you prick.

[EscoLehGo]

I'm not prejudiced at all, thats a pretty grand assumption for you to make. Wherever I can, I praise Rockstar for their story telling abilities - they are pretty much the best there is in the game industry, in my opinion. But you can't help but notice the only young black npc's in GTA IV are either 'gangsta' or work at clucking bell (another tired old stereotype).

 

I think it contributes to the satire of the series (In this instance, how people instantly judge people based on appearance and background) more than deliberately stereotyping blacks.

 

Actually, I believe the fact that a young black male from the poorer areas in Los Santos being able to break into Area 69 and rob a casino, was a story element crafted to very deliberately break the stereotype of 'gangsta' culture in LA.

 

I generally dislike the whole hip-hop culture (i.e. Ho's, rap music, 'bling', consitant use of the word 'Nigga'), but that doesn't mean I dislike Black people as a whole. Give me a black protag that doesn't conform to that stereotype in a GTA V, and I'll enjoy playing as him as much as any other race.

 

By the way, don't call me prejudiced again you prick.

It's not a "grand" assumption to make at all and I think you have a misunderstanding of the message R* portrays through their storytelling. You're taking your views and placing them on R* which is a perfectly normal thing for a person who lacks insight to do. You've already revealed you are biased against black culture and have a skewed view of it so it's really not surprising that you feel this way. I don't mean to insult you, I only mean to reveal your true way of thinking. R* isn't as lazy as to use played out stereotypes for humor in their games, that's just you placing your own versions of how you view certain groups of people into the game.

[GlaswegianOutlaw]

Read my post again dumbass. Doesn't look like you actually understood what I was saying.

 

Actually, it looks like you've been backed into a corner, slinging insults and wont admit that you judged me, as a person, wrong.

 

And you called me prejudiced.

 

I'll re-iterate for you: "I generally dislike the whole hip-hop culture (i.e. Ho's, rap music, 'bling', consitant use of the word 'Nigga'), but that doesn't mean I dislike Black people as a whole. Give me a black protag that doesn't conform to that stereotype in a GTA V, and I'll enjoy playing as him as much as any other race."

 

When you said "I don't think Rockstar would make fun of black people blah blah", it just revealed to me that you have NO grasp of the concept of 'satire'. It's showing how ridiculous wealthy whites views on poor black people in LA and elsewhere are.

 

Get it yet?

Edited April 30, 2012 by GlaswegianOutlaw