For those who remember what seems like centuries ago back when Rockstar’s Grand Theft Auto III released on the PlayStation 2 back in 2001, it may not surprise you to know the franchise is still generating arguably as much controversy today as it did back then.
However with Thursday’s release of Grand Theft Auto: The Trilogy – The Definitive Edition on almost every current console imaginable, including mobile, some fans are pointing out how some aspects of the games have aged decidedly worse than others.
The title packages GTA III, GTA Vice City, and GTA San Andreas into one collection. The latter of those games already had a notorious reputation thanks to its plot resembling the 1992 Los Angeles riots, dubbed as the fictional Los Santos Riots, and the infamous Hot Coffee minigame that was unintended for public access but uncovered by modders which enabled the protagonist to have simulated sex with an in-game girlfriend of their choosing.
However, one point of contention was singled out as being a particularly egregious example of the anti-social behavior the series is known for: a mission in which the protagonist must hunt down and murder a gay man so that his friend’s reputation is spared for having had sex with him.
As Twitter user @Bad_Durandal has pointed out, this mission holds “no importance to the story” and something developers perhaps should have thought twice about including as it was redoing the graphics and tossing out the tracks from the original soundtrack like they were pieces of trash.
What’s more, the horrified gamer went on to explain how the mission has the player “ruthlessly hunt down and slaughter” the character who taunts you with “an overly stereotypical ‘gay voice’ and talking about the character’s ass.'”
While there were plenty of people who thought the concern was overblown in the user’s responses, many gaming fans were equally as horrified at the discovery that the mission was not removed.
What are your thoughts on the new (but old) Grand Theft Auto game?
