2008 Woodie Awards
With bated breath doesn’t begin to describe how some fans have been waiting for the Roman numeral four to follow Grand Theft Auto. As of this Tuesday Xbox 360 owners and PS3 owners alike will be able to take on the role of illegal immigrant Niko Bellic as he pursues the American dream. It’s been seven long years since folks got the chance to step foot within Liberty City (I’m considering Liberty City Stories as a day-trip).
Why are people so into Grand Theft Auto and all of its respective imitators? Is it the draw of action without fear of consequences? Is it the critical success of the series? Is it a third thing?
One thing that is assured is that the open-world, sandbox-type game is here to stay. Although many games decide to run with the criminal overlay (i.e. GTA, Saint’s Row, The Godfather, Mafia, Infamous) there are those that go a different route (i.e. Spider-man, Crackdown, The Incredible Hulk, Mercenaries).
On a completely different note, there are some folks who don’t appreciate the grimy, gritty, criminal spin a lot of games have taken. The greatest offense though: no more blue skies. Welcome to the Blue Sky in Games campaign. To quote their opening statement, “Games need BLUE SKIES! Games need BRIGHT YELLOW SUNS! Games need RED AND BLUE THINGS in them!”
The whole idea of throwing games back to how they “used to be” might not appeal to the big game makers, but indie developers might have just the cure for the lack of blue skies and red things. Maybe next time, but for now go play your GTAIV and I’ll go play mine.
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