What a complete and total humiliation for Rockstar Games. GTA Trilogy: The Definitive Edition is an overpriced, archaic mess that should not be tolerated by a company that prides itself on releasing the highest quality experiences.
Like many others, I was overjoyed when Rockstar finally announced the remasters of the original trilogy of 3D Grand Theft Auto games, anticipating a level of polish and refinement that would truly bring those games into the modern era.
It’s been more than eight years since GTA V was released, and fans have been clamoring for a new installment in the series. While GTA Online has received updates, it has been communities of modders who have filled the void left by the absence of new content.
While GTA RP has been a lot of fun to watch and participate in, modders were also in charge of updating the single-player games GTA 3, Vice City, and San Andreas.
Rockstar’s decision to close these communities and mod projects makes sense in retrospect. They couldn’t have fan-made mods that were better than their own remasters, which they planned to sell for the same price as a new game.
In essence, the modders are like House Atreides in Dune, while Rockstar Games is the Emperor: envious and unwilling to be compared to them. And, boy, does Rockstar’s “remaster” look dreadful. However, it performs even worse.
Let’s get this over with as soon as possible. The graphics are a bit of a mishmash. Aside from the obvious major flaws, such as character models that are off, and the rain handicapping the player, Grove Street Games clearly wanted to pay homage to the originals.
For the most part, the games appear cleaner, perhaps to the point where Liberty City and San Andreas lose their dirtier aesthetic that gave them life.
However, one might wonder why this update was even made in the first place. It isn’t a substantial enough upgrade to appear contemporary. It’s like ripping down some obnoxious wallpaper only to replace it with something even more obnoxious. Why are you doing this in the first place, anyway?
Instead, I’d prefer that each game retain its original look and that all updates focus on improving the gameplay, which currently feels dated.
It’s a nice touch to give each game a weapon and a radio station wheel. That is true, I will admit. It’s also a nice touch to have GPS on the map. I wish I could continue, but I’m afraid I won’t be able to do so.
The first GTA games were challenging. That’s all right. Dark Souls is an example of a difficult game that exists because gamers enjoy a challenge. However, there is a distinction between a game being difficult by design and a game being difficult due to poor design. Allow me to elaborate.
If you failed a mission in the original games, you had to drive back to the beginning of the mission to restart it. Back in the day, that was a pain. In GTA Trilogy, you can now restart the mission from the beginning. Isn’t that a good thing? Yes, but only half-heartedly.
You must still drive to the location where the mission actually takes place after starting a mission. Let’s say this takes two minutes. If you fail, you’ll have to repeat those two minutes of driving. If you fail five times, you’ll spend 10 minutes driving back. Do you follow where I’m going with this? While San Andreas has improved checkpoints that are more in line with GTA V, it is still not fully modernized.
That’s just one of the missions. If you have three missions that take the same amount of time, the game has just wasted 30 minutes of your life. We used to put up with it, but today’s gamers are accustomed to and deserve better.
It’s one thing to keep the look of the original games, but it’s quite another to keep the archaic design. From the lack of checkpoints to the gunplay, this is true.
The gameplay had to be improved in order for this to be “definitive.” This is the very least you can do.
Baits and more baits
Rockstar didn’t show us the gameplay to begin with, so I can’t say they pulled a bait and switch. They did, however, catch a lot of people off guard.
Sorry, but this isn’t exactly Rockstar-worthy. GTA Trilogy is a mediocre cover band opening at an elementary school dance, if Red Dead Redemption 2 is Metallica headlining a massive festival.
There has to be a reason why Rockstar didn’t show any gameplay footage before the game’s release. Rockstar must have had a reason for not sending review codes to the press. There must be a reason why the games aren’t available separately. Is it possible that Rockstar was aware that they were releasing a mediocre product?
It’s a rip-off to sell this collection for $60. To make matters worse, you can no longer purchase the original games, which included mods that improved the experience.
Rockstar needs to do the right thing and allow refunds in this situation. The L must be taken by R*.
