Grand Theft Auto: Society's Mirror

Videogames compared to 30 years ago are as dominant as ever. The billion dollar industry has developed through consoles such as PlayStation and Xbox, and most recently, mobile devices. Videogames still struggle to be openly accepted by members of society. “How To Do Things With Videogames” by Ian Bogost attempts to argue that videogames should be recognized as having an importance in society and that they broaden the medium. I feel that games like Grand Theft Auto 5 support Bogost claims. Grand Theft Auto 5 is an open world action game developed by Rockstar North, formally of Rockstar Games. It is only on the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 and was released on September 17, 2013. The game centers around three protagonists (Michael, Franklin, and Trevor) who are looking for ways to earn wealth. GTA 5 takes place in the fictional state of San Andreas which resembles modern-day California. The goal is to complete 69 missions (some on a time limit) that further the storyline of the game.

Videogame designer, critic, and researcher Ian Bogost brings up the question “Are videogames art?” (9), which is in his book How To Do Things With Videogames. I believe that GTA 5 should be considered art. In my opinion, an element that makes this true is how the game serves as a reflection of today’s society. This purpose is achieved primarily through the parodies of social and mainstream media.

GTA holds nothing back when it comes to parodying social media. The in-game internet features a site called “Bleeter”. On Bleeter, you can send bleets or rebleet another user’s bleets. It is an obvious play-off of social media giant “Twitter”. Instead of the bird logo Twitter uses, the Bleeter logo is that of a sheep. I think the developers of the game did this to call people who spend their day looking through celebrity tweets or following people they don’t even know a mindless herd of lost sleep. In the game, the site is described as “the perfect storm of blogging, social networking and text messaging. We're demolishing 100,000 years of complex linguistic development 140 characters at a time”. While the missions of the game are more strategy based, the free roaming aspects such as exploring social media sites allow for relaxation. I think that the social media in the game should be considered what Bogost calls “leaning back”. As Bogost describes it, “Leaning back is associated with relaxation, passivity, and even gluttony” (13). Being able to