Clifford ”made it all happen” to keep Grand Theft Auto in the public eye and explode in sales when it released. DMA Design devs admit ”every word he said came true” about its reception.
Developer DMA Design created the original GTA, and it was published by BMG Interactive who contracted media manager Max Clifford.
”He designed all the outcry, which pretty much guaranteed MPs would get involved… He’d do anything to keep the profile high,” said Mike Dailly in an interview with The Sunday Times. The PR mastermind had stories planted knowing which politicians and press groups would react and give them ‘free marketing’.
”He told us how he would play it, who he would target, what those people targeted would say,” said David Jones, and ”every word he said came true”. Cha-ching! Grand Theft Auto pillaged the world’s doe eyed innocence back in October 1997, with DMA Designs becoming Rockstar Games North in 1999.
”We knew why every decision was made, and we were never, ever influenced by ‘let’s do something to create a bit of controversy,’” clarified Jones. ”We always did everything from the perspective of what’s going to be the most fun. It just naturally kept pushing us down the darker direction.”
Today Rockstar Games is ready to plunge us back into a decadent slide of moral decay with Grand Theft Auto V releasing next year. Details about the latest instalment will start arriving next month with Game Informer magazine.
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