Having played quite a few hours of Grand Theft Auto IV, the latest game in the series, I’ve become convinced that future evolutions of the game are far more likely to bring virtual worlds to the masses than Second Life ever will.
I’ve experienced the whole GTA series, including the original 2D games for the Playstation, the original switch to 3D, and the gradual expansion of the gaming universe and variety of missions, side missions, and alternative exploits (Why is it the press always focuses on the hookers, rather than the fact you can play darts, pool, or go bowling?). And now there’s a range of really enjoyable multi-player missions.
It’s a consistent world, with rules loosely based on those of reality – but bent for more fun. All it takes is a mechanism for an ongoing economy, and suddenly it’s a virtual world.
Second Life, by contrast, has the barrier of requiring a reasonable PC, a sign-up procedure, and learning how the world works…as opposed to ‘insert cd and play’.
This might be a risky prediction, but some figures do back it up. March 2008 saw 13 million Second Life accounts registered with no idea of how many were active.
By contrast, GTA IV sold 3.6 million copies on the first day of release, and 6 million in the first week. The previous instalment, GTA:San Andreas hit 21.5 million units in total. (Figures from wikipedia.org)
And with copies of the game costing around £40, people are definitely going to play it until they get their money’s worth. It already became the most played game on Xbox Live for the week of it’s release.
It’s got the fans, the brand reputation, and mainstream appeal on consoles which offer easy online access alongside home entertainment. And I know I’m not the only person who bought his copy on the day of release – and without reading a single review.
If GTA hasn’t become a persistent virtual world within the next couple of years, I’ll eat my copy of GTA IV!
You’re absolutely right Daniel – ease of use is what makes or breaks widespread use of any technology product. I have baby boomer clients who want to use LInkedIn and find it challenging! Fortunately, the younger the consumer, the more savvy they seem to be!
Tried Second Life… my PC just wasn’t up for it. Not quite into GTA! Shooting Snoods is more my speed!
LVA
I haven’t play GTA IV cause I don’t have a ps3 or xbox 360!
But I’m very curious about this new chapter of GTA! I have played GTA from the start (on PC) and GTA San Andreas was the best and from the stories and reviews which I’ve read GTA IV should be even better.. 😀
Can’t wait till it’s released for the pc!! 😀
It’s ease of use, and in this case, a very popular and recognisable brand name, which is readily accepted by consumers.
As Behrad, and my own purchase have shown, we’re happy to buy GTA based on previous games, and instantly we can enjoy it. That’s not the case with Second Life.