Why GTA 5 is the perfect birthday present

By now you’ve probably heard the media storm surrounding the release of the video game Grand Theft Auto 5. You may not be a gamer and you may not understand why so many teenagers and full-fledged adults spend hours a day sitting around starring on TV, killing people or stealing cars or something. It sounds pretty awful. But you don’t have to get it; what you should do is buy the game for a friend or family member for their birthday, if they haven’t already!

So what’s so special about GTA 5?

If you haven’t been involved with video games since the days of pong or Pac-Man, you probably don’t realize how advanced these mini worlds have become on television. Grand Theft Auto is not so much a game, but a virtual reality. The kind that was once only portrayed in science fiction movies.

Yes, it’s violent, but it’s also an artistic masterpiece and cutting-edge technology. Graphically it is as close to real life as you can get. As for the details, it is simply impressive.

Rockstar has established an innovative franchise with Grand Theft Auto, which began over 10 years ago. The games are recognized in the video game industry, particularly GTA 3, for revolutionizing the way we play games.

You see where games used to be limited to a set of rules within a predefined context, the creators of GTA are the pioneers of “open world” gaming. Which means that they have designed entire cities from where the game takes place, and the player can explore this vast detail freely without having to start with predefined story elements.

GTA 5 puts players in a very accurate version of Los Angeles and from there it’s really up to them what they do. You can buy tattoos, smoke cannabis (hey, it’s legal in California with a doctor’s note), go to theme parks or movies, skydive, explore the countryside and mountains, hunt, buy houses, and more. The list is endless, however, the most fun is breaking the law, stealing cars and killing people. You can basically do anything you can in real life. And that’s the charm of it all.

Call it escapism, call it an outlet for aggression without the real-life consequences – whatever it is, it’s fun, and if you buy a penniless gamer a copy for his birthday, he might just love you as much as playing it!