San Andreas: Another Massive Update

Tattoos: As we've seen in previous updates, San Andreas allows for an amazing level of customization of the main character, CJ, allowing the player to alter his clothes, hair, and more. The player character really becomes a character you can fashion, customizing and modifying him to be how you want him to be, so that he can become a very different character for each person playing the game.

Taking this further in a way that really is a seamless part of the San Andreas of the 90s, CJ will also be able to get tattoos. This works in game in a manner similar to real life. CJ finds a tattoo parlor and selects a design for a tattoo and which part of the body will be inked. His choices will of course include gang affiliations and other tattoos in the heavy ink style emblematic of 1990s era Los Angeles.

Rockstar wants players to be in complete control of their characters. "If they didn't like the way he dressed, they could earn enough money to buy new clothes," explained Leslie Benzies, "the tattoo feature works the same way, only the motivation is different. If you were in a gang, you'd get a gang tattoo showing that."

Rockstar worked closely with Mister Cartoon, a legendary LA-based tattoo artist, to develop the look for in-game tattoos. The inks for Los Santos residents are often guns, gang names and girls and are heavy and black, the patterns and styling similar to iconography brought into mainstream culture by rap albums and films of the early 90s. In San Fierro you'd be more likely to find Aztec signs and drug iconography appealing to the more relaxed members of San Fierro society, and in Las ventures of course is all about Lady Luck and cards and dice for the high rollers.

The LAPD maintains an enormous database on gang members and their tattoos. If you're arrested and have a tattoo, it's photographed. They literally serve as a better form of ID than a driver's license, and they tell more about a person than DNA or a fingerprint. Certain tattoos say 'don't mess' from a distance.

So with this level of customization, who is Carl Johnson? For one person he is a fat guy in a vest with tattoos who runs around recklessly with an uzi, for the next he's a smart, fit guy in a suit with a flat top whose weapon of choice is a sniper rifle, quiet, methodical and controlled. The answer is, its up to you.

New Camera Controls: Rockstar North is promising a new intelligent camera and at the same time gave the player complete freedom over camera control if they choose to use it. The left analog stick controls the direction a character walks in. The right analog stick allows for complete camera control, both in-vehicle and on foot.

So I check the mirror, then indicate, right?

In weapons mode, the right analog stick allows you to freely target all ranged weapons, if you choose to, and no longer have to stay in a fixed position. Now players can choose to aim with the R-stick while running/STRAFING with the L-stick. This also means that you can look in a different direction while running or driving. So you can look wherever you need to, to get that perfect look at something that will improve your gameplay or performance on a mission.

Dirt on Cars: As you drive around in your favorite ride you'll find that the cars get dirty- generally people in San Andreas don't seem to wash their cars too often and there are actually a lot of filthy cars around the streets.

If you manage to acquire a nice, spotless car, be warned-constant use will dirty it up a bit. Dirt will appear in the obvious spaces-around the wheel wells, around impact areas after a traffic accident, and on the windshield if you've been going through alleys or parks. Look out for car washes if you want to keep your car clean and shiny.

Dirty cars are one thing, but San Andreas residents also seem pretty slack when it comes to fixing bumps and scrapes. You'll notice quite a few cars around San Andreas with varying degrees of damage - broken windows, loose bumpers, and bullet-riddled doors, presumably from previous battles!

Gang Members: You may think that gang members spend all their downtime just hanging out on street corners, but there is a wealth of subtlety to their actions. Look closely at a group of gang members you will see them drinking, smoking, greeting one another, and talking to one another.

Play your cards right and they'll also have your back when you're being chased by the police or a rival gang. If you are attacked by police or a rival gang while on your home turf, your gang members will come to your assistance without you even having to ask. Use this loyalty strategically to your advantage - lure your pursuers into friendly gang territory and let your guys help you out while you make your escape down a nearby back alley. The player now has a real sense of home turf.

Obviously there is a flip side to this... be careful when entering a rival gang's turf! They'll aggressively attack and destroy CJ's car if they see him driving through their territory! If on foot, the gang will approach CJ and try to attack. It's dangerous to think you can get to know their tactics and out-smart them, they wont necessarily come after you the same way each time, and they may not all come after you together. They may send a couple up ahead to tire you out before descending as a group to finish you off, then again some of them may stay back so just when you think you've beaten them, they've got fresh legs to chase you away, or finish you off!

Rockstar says it has spent a lot of time getting that level of interaction right, and making it unique. Leslie explained, "We wanted to convey very clearly that the gangs had a certain way of communicating, very definite mannerisms, and yet had to create signs and language all our own that was faithful to the world we're trying to depict. It was challenging, but it adds a startling level of detail to the game."

Rockstar is still keeping the storyline details close to its chest, to keep the experience totally fresh when people play the game. It will be interesting to see how all these new elements such as exercise and eating come together in the final game.

Stay tuned for a whole lot more on San Andreas, as the game's October release approaches.

Adam Doree
Director, Kikizo.com