No 'Guardian Angels': Mutual Dependence

[RandomNoun]

Straight to the point:

 

In past games the protagonist has always been 'protected' by some higher force, leaving their rash actions go unpunished and often unseen.

 

See Niko: for example: Francis McReary, the mafia involvement, the U.L.P.C. etc. (The U.L.P.C. is one of the more obvious--a thing we've seen again and again through the series: an implied mysterious security blanket).

 

Particularly in Niko's story, it felt as though you were always protected. This worked because Niko's story was about trying to break out of that and find independence and freedom [the whole irony of the theme: the land of opportunity and liberty]. But in V, I'd like to see less of this. A big part for me--when I realised how much more tense the story and the gameplay could be when that security blanket is suddenly taken away--was in Johnny's story when Ray retaliates and sends out the teams of hitmen after you. That was quite a moment. On my first play-through, I had no idea what to do. It was a rare moment. It was ... scary.

 

In V, we see that Michael seems to be bound to one of these 'higher forces' already. Also we've been told that the story will focus around six heists, also implying that the three protagonists are their own independent team. This concept could lead to a lot of interesting situations, if they are left to depend only on one another and no protecting force.

 

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Not only would this strain loyalties in the plot (how tempting does an offer need to be for one of the characters to double-cross the others), but it also leads to a lot of gameplay and mission opportunities.

 

Here's one simple example, though admittedly flawed, that could really add to the gameplay if it were done correctly:

 

When one character is 'busted' (chiefly in free roam), you have the chance of rescuing / busting that character out with another one of the characters. This could be purely optional as a little side mission--you simply pay the fine otherwise. But the system could be structured so that that character is put into a police car and taken to a police station. As you're being 'busted', the 'switch' button could pop up as a 'call for help' prompt, allowing you to make the choice to 'alert' another character (if you don't 'switch', you simply go through the conventional motions). That character then has to opportunity to come and help, hunting down the police vehicle the other character is being transported in. And this could be varied by wanted system and offences. For example, hijacking an armoured truck is harder than a police car, and even a helicopter could jump it to a new level ...

 

I know many people are going to be opposed to this idea and I admit myself that it would perhaps not work, but I offer it as an example for what potential there is in a story and theme that emphasises this three-way dependence.

[jogy]

Oh I like this! I'm with you!

[Microwave]

I would love it where after a heist Trevor is being hunted by Police and National Guard up in Mt. Chilliad. A series of missions where you must kill/ evade police in the wilderness. Could be an ode to the movie First Blood. I want to play as a character running for his life. A hunted character.

[vivalavendredi]

at first I thought "tl;dr" but then I read it and all I have to say is:

That's exaclty what I want!