Five Things I Learned from a Weekend in Los Santos

Written by: Adam "ManKorn" Korenman, CC2K Video Games Editor

4) Teamwork Must Be Forced on the Players

You will probably never do anything this organized, but damn if that isn’t a great shot.

My favorite moment from this past weekend came during a pretty simple mission. An NPC contact had called me regarding a group of hippies handling product out in the mountains. If I could get the drugs and bring them in, I’d earn a pretty penny. Unfortunately, another gang was also headed that way with the same intent. What happened next was the greatest game of capture the flag ever.

We raced toward the target on dirt bikes, mud kicking up in the air with each sharp turn or hard landing. When we finally arrived at the hippy camper, the other team had already taken the package. I ran for cover, firing my pistol wildly and taking a hit to the arm. Wounded and outgunned, I waited for the inevitable. One of the bad guys approached, sawed-off shotgun at the ready.

Just as he was about to perform a sudden and violent brainectomy upon me, a pickup zoomed in from nowhere and sent the thug flying off a cliff. My partner, firing his uzi out the window, called for me to get in. Together we chased down the drugs and got our take.

It was an incredible experience, and one that is definitely the exception to the rule. While playing this same level with a different group of people, trying to organize the team was like trying to herd cats. Everyone was in it for themselves, driving or even running toward the objective with all the planning of a zombie horde.

You can’t rob banks yet, but rest assured it will be either amazing or painfully frustrating

On a different mission, my team was sent to break up a drug deal and steal the product. I was riding shotgun, psyching myself up for an epic firefight. We arrived earlier than the rest of the crew and I could see twenty or so gang members standing around in a circle. Before I could try to get out of the car, my driver ran into the center of the fray and leapt out, leaving me playing with the radio while the car was riddled with bullets. Needless to say, I did not come out on top.

So maybe you do your missions solo to avoid this kind of chaos. That’s fine, but expect some lonely drives because…