Who wouldn’t be excited for the announcement of a new Grand Theft Auto game? The series is one of the biggest out there and the quality of each future release keeps getting better and better. So when the first gameplay trailer for GTA V showed up yesterday, fans went nuts once again for another dose of unadulterated pandemonium the series is well-known for including.
But after a white-hot teaser video debuts, the only thing to do aside from waiting months on end for the game to come out, is speculate intensely. Re-watching the trailer a hundred times, to pick out the obvious images that determine what’s going on in Rockstar’s upcoming masterpiece, is an ordinary chore.
Rumors are fun, that’s for sure, but when they become a source of needless repetition it can become aggravating. The chitchat spreading across the internet is proclaiming that Tommy Vercetti, the player-controlled antihero from GTA: Vice City, is in fact the narrator heard throughout GTA 5’s trailer.
Let me get this straight, right off the bat. No, that is not Tommy Vercetti and sorry folks that isn’t Ray Liotta voicing him again either. As infamous and renowned as Vercetti was, ever since San Andreas people have been wishing for him to make another appearance. It’s not uncommon for different personalities from the series to show up as supporting roles (or even cameos) in multiple titles of Grand Theft Auto. Vercetti is mentioned in San Andreas too, a sign that his popularity knows no bounds.
But with GTA IV, Rockstar went back to the basics and crafted a revamped Liberty City with a whole new bunch of characters that had no relevance to GTA 3 at all. They believe that the games between GTA 3 and GTA IV were spin-offs occurring in the same universe as each other. Niko Bellic’s adventure was a fresh one that was separated from anything set before it, other than the name of Liberty City itself. Whether or not GTA V bears any similarities to its predecessors is open for debate, but the Vinewood sign seen in the trailer indicates that Rockstar is just reusing a familiar setting once more, and that’s about it.
Eager fans constantly hope to see Vercetti resurface in each new GTA game announced. So badly that with every latest trailer released, evidence of the gangster returning always seems to somehow magically appear. In other words, it’s gossip. Remember the trailers for GTA IV and the apparent shots of an aged Vercetti showing up within them? Nope, that was actually Jimmy Pegorino, another character who has no resemblance to Tommy Vercetti whatsoever.
Rockstar loves giving each GTA game a different protagonist with completely diverse looks and backgrounds. It’s what makes the series such a terrific storytelling experience and GTA V is no exception to this approach. The narrator from the teaser trailer may not be the main character but it’s easiest to assume that he is.
Yes, he may sound like Vercetti but the truth of the matter is he’s not. As thrilling as it would be to have Ray Liotta back in another GTA title, it probably won’t happen. Instead of hoping for Vercetti to make a return along with his colorful wardrobe, it makes a lot more sense to anticipate GTA V for what it represents: another fantastic game with all a new wacky cast of killers, crooks and shady individuals.