Rockstar Games made waves when it was announced that Grand Theft Auto 5 would have three playable protagonists which players can switch between on the fly to experience multiple different side of a mission at once. Take-Two, the publisher behind the game, is confident that this unique setup will soon become commonplace in future games.
According to Gamespot, Take-Two CEO Strauss Zelnick spoke about the feature at the Cowen Technology, Media, and Telecom Conference and had this to say:
"We think Grand Theft Auto V is going to redefine what an open-world game is and will be. We also think that you're going to have to have multiple protagonists in video games going forward...And we actually know how to do it because we're the first ones to do it. It's going to be very, very difficult for our competitors to do this. And they're going to have to do it in our opinion."
Zelnick also believes that the three protagonist approach, combined with the ability to switch between them instantly, will allow Grand Theft Auto 5 to tell a story like never before.
"This is going to be the first video game where you can shift seamlessly among three protagonists and if you think about it, one of the complicated factors in a video game has been the first person has to play all the emotional roles in the story; the good guy, the bad guy, the victim, the policeman, the cop, the hero...And, for the first time, you're going to be able to have three protagonists and that will actually drive the story forward."
It will be interesting to see if fans and critics both respond to the story of GTA5 as enthusiastically as Zelnick when the game is released. The sequel will be available September 17 for the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360.