What's so fun about 'Grand Theft Auto'?

Kristin Kalning Games editor • E-mail

On paper, the “Grand Theft Auto” games are shorthand for everything wrong with America: Violence. Prostitution. Drug smuggling. Gun-running. Political corruption. Racial tension. And — oh yeah — grand theft auto.

But despite the criminal themes, the “Grand Theft Auto” games are some of the best-selling and best-reviewed in the business. “Grand Theft Auto IV,” which is being released to ecstatic fans on Tuesday, could smash not only video-game sales records but opening-day box-office numbers, too.

What is it about “GTA” games that appeal to gamers? Why is it fun for otherwise law-abiding citizens to roll hookers, shoot at cops and steal helicopters?

“I get to indulge my dark side a little bit, but it’s more the story elements,” says Matt Slinger, a 36-year-old gamer from Seattle.  “You get attached to the character. I don’t feel like I am the character, but I empathize with the character, especially after 40, 60, 80 hours of gameplay.”

The characters you play in the “GTA” games aren’t good guys. They’re criminals — typically small-time criminals, whose objective is to rise up through the ranks to become The Big Boss.

These sorts of themes are well-established in other media such as film and television. We rooted for Michael Corleone in “The Godfather.” We hoped Henry Hill might outrun the Feds in “Goodfellas.” “Grand Theft Auto” games let you play the gangster in a safe, consequence-free environment. And it’s a blast.

In “GTA IV,” the main character is Niko Bellic, a former war criminal from Eastern Europe lured to the fictional Liberty City by his petty-thief cousin. Bellic does plenty of despicable things during his rise to the top of the underworld, but he’s also a multi-layered, sympathetic character with a noble motive.

Playing the criminal is just one appeal of the “GTA” games. Gamers also love the free-wheeling, so-called “sandbox” gameplay, which was pioneered by “Grand Theft Auto III” in 2001.

“’GTA III’ was such an astonishing game when it came out. No one had achieved what they had in having this kind of open-world game where you moved around so freely,” says Adam Sessler, co-host of “X-Play” on the G4 gaming channel.

Back in the day, most games were linear. You had a set list of objectives, and a set way to accomplish them. “GTA” turned that on its ear, allowing players any number of ways to progress through the game — and get in lots of trouble.

As a result, the “GTA” games, with their mature themes — and ratings — have been a lightning rod for controversy and criticism. Sure, video games had blood and gore and violence. But criminals as heroes? Think of the children!

When gamers found a hidden sex scene in “Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas,” politicians fell all over themselves condemning it, including Sen. Hillary Clinton.

“The disturbing material in ‘Grand Theft Auto’ and other games like it is stealing the innocence of our children and it’s making the difficult job of being a parent even harder,” she said.

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