Since taking the gaming world by storm in 1997, Grand Theft Auto has found itself set in some of America’s most iconic cities, from New York and San Francisco to Los Angeles – with its latest adventure being staged in a reimagined version of Miami.
But the true roots of the multi-billion pound phenomena are from the glitzy settings of the Hollywood Hills or Florida’s sun-kissed beaches, with the series having in fact been created in Scottish coastal city of Dundee.
More than 25 years after the first game was released, gt5 it has been confirmed that GTA VI will be released in 2025 after the official trailer was released this week following a social media leak.
Pals David Jones, Russell Kay, Steve Hammond and Mike Dailly came together in 1995 to create the first Grand Theft Auto, slaving in a two-room office above a small shop in the city centre that sold baby clothes.
Mr Dailly – who was behind the 1991 classic puzzler Lemmings – had been playing with the idea of creating a ‘virtual 3D city’ that would allow gamers to roam freely and do as they pleased.
The initial idea was a far cry from the outrageous, debauched crime shooter that Grand Theft Auto has become famous for, filled with sex and unfettered violence.
DMA Designs were behind the original prototype of Grand Theft Auto and Lemmings. Pictured left to right is the team in 2011, Russell Kay, Mike Dailly, Steve Hammond, Gary Timmons, David Jones
Mike Dailly (pictured) was also behind the 1991 classic puzzler Lemmings. He had been playing with the idea of creating a ‘virtual 3D city’ that would allow gamers to roam freely and do as they pleased
At first, the team wanted their protagonist to be a police officer – before then flipping the idea on its head and making him a criminal instead.
‘You just can’t go around running over people if you’re a cop — nobody liked playing the cop,’ Brian Baglow, an early team member and writer of the first game, told The New York Times.