With Grand Theft Auto 6 on the horizon, though still very far away, it’ll be interesting to see how the franchise will once again innovate its approach to characters and storytelling. Having the player swap between three main protagonists on the fly was a fantastic design choice that truly emphasized the series’ desire to satirize American life through multiple perspectives. Whether the next game will carry on this protagonist-swapping mechanic, or if it incorporates something completely new, remains to be seen.
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Three Protagonists Return
Having three playable protagonists in Grand Theft Auto 5 was near-universally praised for its trichotomy of storytelling. Truthfully, it was a genius narrative device that also served to justify and encapsulate every playstyle of Grand Theft Auto players. Each character had their own special ability that reflected their personality, which in turn allowed players to pick and choose who they liked playing as the most. Outside of gameplay, having three distinct personalities present throughout the story created a multi-faceted narrative that previous entries had never been able to encapsulate before.
It’s very possible the next game in the series could borrow some version of this system moving forward as well, and for good reason. Rockstar Games has proven its ability to write and connect multiple independent stories together masterfully in a cohesive story experience. Most recently with Red Dead Redemption 2, though formatted in a different way compared to Grand Theft Auto, featured multiple protagonists that changed according to the story. Some rumors suggest that there may even be four protagonists in Grand Theft Auto 6’s story, further enforcing Rockstar’s capability of telling a nuanced and complex narrative, but as with all rumors, that should be taken with a massive grain of salt.
A Strong Cooperative Duo
Rockstar Games could also draw inspiration from an often romanticized part of early American history for Grand Theft Auto 6’s story. The game’s story could instead focus on two protagonists in a relationship/romance, with a Bonnie and Clyde-like relationship. Or instead the two characters could be siblings, working together. Rather than dispersing the narrative amongst three unique and separate perspectives, instead the narrative could be interwoven between two characters who are connected and share a common goal. It’s an interesting approach, one that’s been rumored for Grand Theft Auto 6 before, that could dramatically change the way players interact with the world.
Where the trio in Grand Theft Auto 5 could be swapped between to act independently, having two characters who are closely connected could work together to accomplish tasks. A similar concept has been used in games like A Way Out, though on a much smaller scale. Grand Theft Auto 6 implementing a strongly bonded duo would make for some interesting cooperative gameplay, even if it’s just singleplayer. Each character could work together in many ways; either to get one or the other out of a bind, the two could work together to overcome an obstacle, or convince someone of going their way. Clever coop games were designed with this concept in mind, but it’s not far-fetched that this particular idea could be implemented in a longer form triple-A title.
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Teaming Up in a Bonafide Crime Crew
While this would be a more far-fetched and disjointed storytelling style, using more than three protagonists is also a possibility. Grand Theft Auto 6 could potentially focus on a specific group of people, each with their own unique stories to tell. Each character could be part of some squad or conglomerate where each has their own vignette-style individual narratives. Each individual’s story could even merge together in the end for an impactful team-up at the end of the game, or sprinkled throughout the story.
Grand Theft Auto 6 could further evolve Grand Theft Auto 5’s team mechanics into a full-fledged group, each with their own purpose in the gameplay. A perfect example would be the heists featured throughout Grand Theft Auto 5’s story, where occasionally the trio would hire an additional member for the heist crew that wasn’t part of the core group. Instead, Grand Theft Auto 6 could incorporate elements typically seen in RPGs into the way it approaches team-based moments in the story. Players could choose from a pool of main characters that all have their own respective impact on the story in a meaningful way.
Rockstar Games and Grand Theft Auto games have never been shy of implementing innovative ideas into the core gameplay loop fans know and love. It’d be interesting to see how the main characters of Grand Theft Auto 6 are framed in the narrative and how players can interact with them. Whether it’s a dynamic duo or an organized party of unique members, Grand Theft Auto 6 may surprise fans with who will be taking on the leading role(s) in the next game.
Grand Theft Auto 6 is reportedly in development.
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