Critical reception Grand Theft Auto V

1 critical reception

1.1 initial release
1.2 re-release
1.3 accolades

critical reception
initial release

grand theft auto v released critical acclaim. metacritic, assigns normalised rating in 0–100 range, calculated average score of 97 out of 100 based on 50 reviews playstation 3 version , 58 reviews xbox 360 version. game metacritic s fifth-highest rated, tied number of others. reviewers liked multiple lead character formula, heist mission design , presentation, did not agree on quality of story , characters. ign s keza macdonald called grand theft auto v 1 of best video games ever made , , play considered generation-defining , exceptional . edge wrote remarkable achievement in open world design , storytelling, while daily telegraph s tom hoggins declared colossal feat of technical engineering . became second ever western developed game awarded perfect score japanese video game magazine, famitsu.

cnet s jeff bakalar felt game encouraged players engage 3 characters. edge found switching players helpful avoiding long travel times mission start points. because of switching mechanic, game informer s matt bertz noted players kept in thick of action during shootouts. eurogamer s tom bramwell wrote switching added tactical element shootouts characters set in strategic outposts cause fewer shooting gallery situations previous instalments. ign s macdonald felt switching feature gave players more choice in approach , made missions less predictable.

giant bomb s jeff gerstmann considered heist missions welcome deviation series typical mission structure. eurogamer s bramwell likened them blockbuster set-pieces , gamespot s carolyn petit cited 1995 film heat stylistic influence on design. joystiq s xav de matos felt creativity , methodical approaches encouraged. polygon s chris plante likened rapid character switching during heist missions film editing, player serving editor, switching rapidly interesting perspective moment . computer , video games andy kelly felt overall mission design more diverse , lacked escort errands of predecessors.

los santos, city featured in game s open world. reviewers praised design , similarity los angeles. departure grand theft auto iv s liberty city received.

edge praised game s graphical fidelity , absence of load screens. play complimented draw distances , weather , lighting systems. eurogamer s bramwell considered lighting system game s biggest advancement. official xbox magazine (oxm) s mikel reparaz thought game xbox 360 s greatest technical achievement , , surprised open world render on console. reviewers lauded open world s design, further complimenting game streamlining los angeles geography well-designed city space. gametrailers brandon jones considered los angeles emulation authentic , open world full of voice , personality . ign , playstation official magazine (opm) made favourable comparisons between los santos , grand theft auto iv s liberty city. oxm s reparez felt los santos surpassed grey , gritty liberty city. reviewers praised world s satire of contemporary american culture—opm s joel gregory opined scathing social commentary is, of course, present , correct .

destructoid s jim sterling called sound design impeccable , praised actors performances, original soundtrack , licensed music use. ign , giant bomb commended music selection , felt original score enhanced dramatic tension during missions. gamespot s petit wrote score lends missions more cinematic flavour . edge said licensed music enhanced city s remarkable sense of space , original score improved atmosphere of gameplay. summarised game compendium of rockstar has learnt power of game music in past decade .

many reviewers found land-based vehicles more responsive , easier control in previous games. game informer s bertz explained cars have proper sense of weight, while retaining agility necessary navigating through traffic @ high speeds . in addition vehicle handling, reviewers noted shooting mechanics tighter had been in previous games, destructoid s sterling felt in spite of improvements, auto-aim twitchy , unreliable , cover mechanics still come off dated , unwieldy . reviewers felt game solved continual problem adding mid-mission checkpoints.

the story , characters—particularly trevor—polarised reviewers. felt narrative not written previous rockstar games , cited grand theft auto iv , red dead redemption s plot strengths. others felt protagonists contrasting personalities gave narrative tighter pacing. gamesradar s hollander cooper thought game negated inconsistencies in story of previous entries, single lead protagonists had muddled morality. gamespot s petit considered trevor in particular horrible, terrifying, psychotic human being—and terrific character . eurogamer s bramwell found trevor shallow , unconvincing , , felt eccentricities hurt narrative , overshadowed michael , franklin s character development. joystiq s de matos faulted protagonists lack of likability him, , found ambivalence between michael , trevor tired plot device conflict grew seemingly endless cycle . escapist s greg tito had difficulty connecting characters emotions since acted out of greed no sense of morality , gave players little reason support them.

re-release

grand theft auto v s re-release, similarly, received critical acclaim. metacritic calculated average score of 97 out of 100 based on 66 reviews playstation 4 version , 14 reviews xbox 1 version, , 96 out of 100 based on 48 reviews pc version. game informer s andrew reiner considered addition of first-person significant breakthrough series in vein of grand theft auto iii s shift third-person grand theft auto s bird s-eye view. gamespot s mark walton found playing in first-person heightened impact of grand theft auto v s violence, made him reflect on morality , character motivation more before. videogamer.com opined players feel inhabitants of world, rather guns attached floating camera . ign s dan stapleton found game more immersive in first-person, creating surprisingly different experience . videogamer.com praised finer details in first-person animations camera lean when players take corners on motorcycles, or navigational instruments in plane cockpits. reviewers found playing game more difficult in first-person, game informer s reiner preferred challenge.

gamespot s walton thought graphics improvements made open world more spectacular , because of improved spatial anti-aliasing. of first-person view, said @ ground level looks bigger , more imposing because of improved graphics. ign s stapleton favoured playstation 4 version s graphics on xbox one, thought both consoles rendered game , maintained consistent frame rates. praised increased frame rate , graphics options offered in pc version. videogamer.com called console version s frame rate consistent scarcely believable , although gamespot s walton cited occasional frame rate dips. gamespot s peter brown opined pc version let players witness full extent of rockstar s admirable handiwork , noted retains evidence of last-gen roots ... simple geometry . videogamer.com praised rockstar editor s accessibility on pc criticised of limitations, such camera angle restrictions. ign s stapleton appreciated pc version s customisable controls, , gamespot s brown felt constant switching between mouse , keyboard , gamepad necessary best experience . pc gamer s chris thursten called game beautiful, expansive , generous of series.

on game s multiplayer, ign s stapleton reported low player counts in matches, long wait times in lobbies, server disconnection , occasional crashes. because of that, wrote, can t recommend ... multiplayer experience alone . videogamer.com found online character progression streamlined comparison original version. according them, grind of doing pvp until co-op jobs arrive regularity lost, , newcomers find multiplayer enjoyable , balanced. however, wrote of frequent server disconnection, during load screens. gamespot s walton thought grand theft auto online still suffers lack of direction open-ended , frenetic gameplay, still fun. game informer s reiner reported minimal lag or issues in expanded firefights , races .

accolades

grand theft auto v received multiple nominations , awards gaming publications. prior release, received anticipated game @ 2012 spike video game awards. game review aggregators metacritic , gamerankings highest rated year 2013. game appeared on several year-end lists of 2013 s best games, receiving wins independent journalist tom chick, cnet, edge, 31st golden joystick awards, 5th annual inside gaming awards spike vgx 2013 awards, slant magazine , time. named best xbox game canada.com, gamespot, , ign, , best multiplatform game destructoid. rockstar games , rockstar north won best studio , best developer edge, , bafta academy fellowship award @ 10th british academy video games awards.

various in-game elements recognised awards. 2 characters, trevor philips , lamar davis, received numerous nominations best character, , lamar won award giant bomb. music received awards spike vgx, hardcore gamer , daily telegraph. grand theft auto online won best multiplayer gametrailers , bafta, , best xbox 360 multiplayer ign. online nominated biggest disappointment game revolution , hardcore gamer. grand theft auto v won best technical achievement in telegraph video game awards, , best technology @ 14th annual game developers choice awards. graphical , artistic design received awards ign, daily telegraph , bafta, , nomination @ game developers choice awards.

the game received numerous other awards. awarded title of immersive game @ inside gaming awards. general public voted game receive user choice award @ playstation awards 2013 , community choice award destructoid. game received platinum award @ playstation awards, , named best british game bafta. @ ign s best of 2013 awards, received multiple wins, including best xbox 360 graphics, best xbox 360 sound, , best action game on xbox 360, playstation 3 , overall.

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