Playing Style and Second Play Through

[Mister Pink]

I'm playing my second play through of GTA V and I found something very interesting.

 

My first playthrough, I was amazed at some features and details but felt a little let down that I wasn't in love with this game. I enjoyed playing it but never really got to the heights of addiction or love of Vice City or San Andreas. I wasn't really enjoying MP but I don't think I'm a real MP guy. I wasn't on the forums much and it felt like I just couldn't get in to the game like I could - the others.

 

So what changed? Well, I started reading some topics on the forums again. Reading about the "cool things you didn't know about" thread which is great. I was reading but not playing. It got me psyched about playing GTA - a sort of absence makes the heart grow fonder scenario.

 

Anyway on the second playthrough, I slowed it down. I wasn't rushing to see what happens next. I was soaking in all the interesting and beautiful details Los Santos/San Andreas has to offer. I had more of a game plan. I'd do all the side missions and then play a main mission as the finale of that particular game session. So I might play for 3-4 hours after work but really only play one storyline mission. I really believe this is almost how Rockstar would want a player to play.

 

If I'm playing as Trevor, I have him driving a car you might expect a guy like Trevor to have.

 

 

I try to wear mission-specific attire too. Like when I had to meet the Chinese guy at the bar for the first time, I change my clothes to look slightly smarter as if I was really going to meet someone new to try do business with - even if it is meth dealing. As the game progresses, I will give the characters longer hair and beards.

 

My driving style is more realistic. I stick to roads and don't take short-cuts over hills or through grass. I try make the driving look realistic. I'm basically immersing myself in GTA V by trying to make the experience more cinematic and slightly more realistic, taking my time and soaking in all there is.

 

I did this with RDR too. I'm finding that the second play through is more fun. Not having that excited, rushing to find out what happens next, is good. I'm actually being very immersed in GTA now. It took a long time but it's good.

 

Has anyone else ever got this? Anyone else agree that second play-through can be more enjoyable?

 

For those of you with short attention-spans that will just post to say "TLDR" please, f*ck off in advance. We don't need you to spam my topic.

 

To those who read, thanks.

Edited March 31, 2014 by Mister Pink

[BLOOD]

that good OP,but as time goes on you will really appreciate and Love V,btw i am on my 4th playthrough (but unfortunately i havent finish it yet plus i dont play the game that much these days).

[Mister Pink]

that good OP,but as time goes on you will really appreciate and Love V,btw i am on my 4th playthrough (but unfortunately i havent finish it yet plus i dont play the game that much these days).

 

That's nice. 4th playthrough is quite a bit. Hopefully, I'll go for 100% this time. Haven't 100%ed a GTA since San Andreas.

[Guest]

I thought I was the only one who played like that.

[woggleman]

I played like that on the first try and maybe that is why I fell in love with that. This game should not be rushed through because many things are not noticed at first.

[BLOOD]

I played like that on the first try and maybe that is why I fell in love with that. This game should not be rushed through because many things are not noticed at first.

Exactly.

[pcpastel]

Hey I like to play it more realistic too. I also try to play depending on each of the 3 characters personalities! Rushing just doesn't feels right..

[xeth004]

You could go as far as obeying traffic laws. I do. Although people think I'm crazy when they find out how I play certain games. (I don't blame them honestly)

 

I "wasted" countless hours just to go on a trip, visiting some countryside locations or a nice hiking spot, or just to swan dive off some cliffs. I used to go out a lot to the running track, or the beach to have a nice jogging day. I even swam around (no sprinting) the Alamo Sea.

 

I really loved doing these. My favorite trip was when I first went to Chilliad. I parked my car near the bike rental and climbed the mountain on foot (no running). Then took the cable car on the way down. Took like 2 days and got interrupted by 3 damn cougars but I really enjoyed it.

[Jimbatron]

 

Anyway on the second playthrough, I slowed it down. I wasn't rushing to see what happens next.

 

This is one of my theories as to why some people were disappointed. They rushed through it - easily done as V was easy to play for anyone who had mastered IV. I know I was guilt of blasting through it in a few days, but I did exactly the same as you, went back, and played it slow.

 

R* produces worlds of depth, detail and beauty. Rushing through them in a weekend is the computer game equivalent of necking a glass of 1961 Petrus in one.

[The Quench]

I read, and I agree OP. That's exactly how I played my second (and current) playthrough.

[Tlaneloli]

Someday I wanna put in those Let's Play videos but really do it in a way that I feel is realistic for the characters y'know, keep it real canon. It bugged me watching SA replays when they'd make CJ look ridiculous or keep him in the same clothes the whole time, he was supposed to get some colors at Binco, I'd watch trailers and sh*t and he ain't dressed the same the entire time, I don't know guess I'm nitpicky, I also don't like them cutting conversation by rushing over, I want to do it realistic in character too.

[M22]

At first i did exactly the same as you OP, but on my second i slowed down as well, even just the smallest things like sometimes as Michael i pretend i'm grabbing Chinese takeaway in Vinewood for the whole family, or dropping Amanda off at a shop in Rockford Hills or shopping myself, what also makes the game more immerse, is if you find a car park with the opening garage doors or the boom gates that open, it makes me smile every time not having to smash through them and wrecking my car and then i just go for a walk.

P.S

should check these out as well if bored

http://gtaforums.com/topic/695996-struggling-with-things-to-do-now-since-100-those-who-mainly-sp/

http://gtaforums.com/topic/697031-the-perfect-role-play/

[I will pwn you newbs]

I'm gonna do this on my second play through too. I'm also gonna turn off the radar and try to not look at the map either. I'll probably do free aim as well.

[xeth004]

I'm gonna do this on my second play through too. I'm also gonna turn off the radar and try to not look at the map either. I'll probably do free aim as well.

That's another amazing thing, I really recommend that. When I first turned my radar off I was amazed how much I wasn't paying attention to anything else but the minimap before. I realized my eyes used to stuck on the radar in ever other second, following waypoints. Now I'm really in the world, on the streets, seeing the scenery, not just looking, memorizing landmarks... The only down side is that your health bar is also gone with it, and makes the police chases even more unfair.

[HOW'S ANNIE?]

I myself did a somewhat canical play though my second time (.e.g Always went to the strip club as Michael until his family came back, did regular gun running to increase the repuation of TPI, etc)

 

Only issue is listening to Channel X so much with Trevor. But normally I would just switch to Rebel Radio, which still does suit Trevor doesn't it?

[Mister Pink]

Great to know there all plenty of other like-minded people out there.

 

@xeth004: That's cool man. Sounds like you are really enjoying GTA the way you want. As for the radar thing, I made a topic about that some time ago before V came out. It's interesting. I played RDR like that for a while and the random encounters seemed genuinely random as there was no marker on my HUD, just some randomer calling me for something. On my second playthough of GTA V, I've turned the GPS off mainly for reasons of not looking at the HUD so much and to learn the map quicker by seeing the environment around me and not just the map.

 

@tlaneloli: Yeah dude, I always dressed CJ relatively to the storyline. When he was exiled from Los Santos and had to live in the countryside, I dressed him up in camo so he's fit in and not stand out so much as it looked a bit ridiculous looking like a total country G.

[Xerukal]

If I'm playing as Trevor, I have him driving a car you might expect a guy like Trevor to have.

 

 

I try to wear mission-specific attire too. Like when I had to meet the Chinese guy at the bar for the first time, I change my clothes to look slightly smarter as if I was really going to meet someone new to try do business with - even if it is meth dealing. As the game progresses, I will give the characters longer hair and beards.

 

My driving style is more realistic. I stick to roads and don't take short-cuts over hills or through grass. I try make the driving look realistic. I'm basically immersing myself in GTA V by trying to make the experience more cinematic and slightly more realistic, taking my time and soaking in all there is.

 

I did this with RDR too. I'm finding that the second play through is more fun. Not having that excited, rushing to find out what happens next, is good. I'm actually being very immersed in GTA now. It took a long time but it's good.

 

 

 

 

 

This is EXACTLY what I've done on my first (and so far only) playthrough. I try to think like the characters and fully understand the world and the events transpiring within it. I have also done this with past GTA games, as well as other games in general.

 

It helps the immersion an enormous deal and just makes the whole experience so much more enjoyable.

 

I would really like to repeat this once the PC version is out, with extended knowledge of the game's missions and themes thanks to my console playthrough.

 

It's a very pleasant way to play GTA, and I'm glad more people out there are doing it.

Edited April 1, 2014 by Xerukal

[Guest]

Anyone else who actually walks in games?

 

Not sprinting around like a headless chicken knocking everything over, but actual walking. I also try to move fluently when in combat. People on YouTube sprint around zigzagging everywhere with auto-aim firing their bullets all over the place.

 

But does anyone else move from cover to cover in free-aim, moving around smoothly?

 

zigzagging is fine in an MP deathmatch, but I'm on about singeplayer where it's easy enough anyway.

[autotheftgrand]

This is how I play too. I obey the traffic rules, walk around, go jogging with Franklin, go mountain biking with Michael. I only use a pistol unless the situation calls for more firepower, but I have to go back to my car and pretend I get the rifle out the back seat.

 

I feel if you take the time to walk around, follow the laws, it makes it even better when you do actually kill a ped.

 

I make things up to make the missions flow better. Example, before Franklin goes to see Michael, I rob stores and get in shootouts to make it seem he's desperate for a way out. After the secret encounter with Simeon when his goons try to kill you, I take a trip to the scrapyard to wipe out all the Armenians as a message to Simeon. Etc, etc..

[Cforumlbgfeva]

I beleive it's more enjoyable when you have a choice of what to wear and how to act than to be *forced*

[The Quench]

Turning off the radar does help a lot (I still kept the blips on though) because I caught myself simply speeding up roads with my eyes focused on the map the whole time...oblivious to any small details or buildings or alley ways that are there waiting for me to explore. Turning the map off also helps you explore new areas or roads or streets that you never knew were there because the nav always kept you on the main ones (for the most part).

[autotheftgrand]

Got to have the blips. I tried no radar and losing the police is practically impossible, and considering AI has ridiculous aim, blips is a must. No HUD though, nothing like street names popping up all the time to kill immersion.

[woggleman]

I find that doing the collectibles really lets you appreciate the map. Maybe it doesn't have some big empty forest but it has a lot of hidden details and nooks and crannies that make it feel alive. Shoot off a gun at the hobo camp in the countryside and you see all the rats scattering around. Also the amount of peds on the street depends on the time of day.

[Flexx]

If I'm playing as Trevor, I have him driving a car you might expect a guy like Trevor to have.

 

 

I try to wear mission-specific attire too.

I've played off character personalities since the beginning as far as attire, killing sprees, and even how often which character stole a car.

Didn't have to force it either, just had a genuine feel when carjacking an NPC as Trevor or Franklin as opposed to Michael for example.

 

Bought a Sandking and Vigero for Trevor, bought Michael a weenie early on in the game, later an Adder and Super Diamond, an got Franklin an Entity. Didn't buy many cars in my play through, obviously.

 

Anyway, rushing through a good game just to see "what happens next" is dumb, so no, I've never done this, and don't find second play-throughs more enjoyable.

Edited May 30, 2014 by Flexx

[Xerukal]

We aren't forcing anything, though. It's not some type of elaborate OCD. It's a playstyle made for enjoying the game in a way that compliments the characters you're spending time with.

 

Also, there are people that are heavily interested into the plot. And thus do nothing but the story missions "just to see what happens next". Hence the "rushing".

Edited April 1, 2014 by Xerukal

[Snoochie_Boochies]

I just completed my 3rd playthrough, and I felt pretty much the same way, OP. The 1st playthrough, all I cared about was getting through the story, on the 2nd one I took time between missions to get all the story caught up, like going to the therapist, calling lamar as franklin, etc. And on my 3rd playthrough I focused mainly on the same thing as my 2nd, except this time i'm shooting for 100% completion, and to get the most cash out of the assassin missions.

[twistedweather]

2nd playthru is always better for me when its comes to GTA. First one feels like sensory overload

[Capitalist Communist]

The game sucks, if I played it 1000 times it would suck more than a pornstar in a 1000 man cocksucking gangbang, RDR never sucked online or offline, the game was a masterpiece.

[MilezDawg]

I have been playing GTA like this since GTA3, and I complete/%100 the game many times

[EDSTEROK]

Shame you couldnt control yourself to play it slow the first time. Its good your enjoying the 2nd play through, but you already know where to go, what to do and what's going to happen next.