Just wanted to bring this up for anybody who's interested.
This subject has already been mentioned several times in this subforum, but I thought it's worthy of its own topic because it was something that was mentioned in the run-up to GTA IV as well.
So here goes.
Make it do something, Rockstar! We know you're reading this!
By the end of GTA IV (a game supposedly about going from rags to 'slightly better rags') I had over a $1 million sitting at the top of my screen and bugger all to spend it on.
You can't buy or customise cars, weapons are handed out during every mission and in every alleyway in the game, and the character customisation options are frustratingly limited. On top of that, it isn't even necessary to eat regularly like it was in San An. The odd $100 Pay 'N' Spray, or bowling game with Roman barely makes a dent in anything.
There are a million and a half ways to gain money (missions, side missions, odd jobs, pedestrian whack-a-mole) but honestly once you complete the storyline all the feeling of accomplishment just leaves the game, even for veteran 100% junkies such as myself.
One of the great joys for me of a game like True Crime: New York City was collecting your daily pay, and then spending it on a new car or a better pistol, to make your job fighting crime that much easier. Nothing essential, just nice upgrades that make the game more engaging to play; to give you something to aspire to.
In the name of absolute freedom, GTA doesn't prevent you from keeping second-hand weapons (like True Crime does), and nor does it prevent you from garaging stolen cars and claiming them as your own. This isn't necessarily a bad thing, but GTA always makes such a big deal of the acquisition of wealth, like it's the most important thing in the world - then when you get it, you can't do anything with it. Why spend money if everything's free?
This, for me, is one of GTA's great design flaws (there are very few others, I'll admit).
I'm not suggesting for a second that Rockstar add anything as mundane or frustratingly limiting as safehouse rent money, or child support (our new protagonist has kids, after all), but something optional that adds direction to the post-100% experience (which is where a lot of us loners spend most of our time in GTA) would be super. Even lowering the amount of money we earn during the course of the game would be a start.
What ideas do you guys have on the subject?
(Pencils at the ready, R*)
Discuss.