Grand Theft Social Network?

gta-social-club.jpgHere’s a small sign of larger changes in the game industry: I got word today from Rockstar Games that April’s Grand Theft Auto 4, the latest installment in their huge (if controversial) thugs-in-the-sandbox franchise, will launch with a “Social Club” (open April 15), a site where gamers can track their game scores and achievements against other players.

Anyone with an Xbox Gamertag or PlayStation Network ID can sign up, which means the site will incorporate data from both Xbox 360 and Sony PS3 players; most interestingly, it’ll come with an “LCPD Police Blotter,” which will dynamically display “aggregated data of millions of connected players — showing the most dangerous areas of town, most commonly used weapons and more.”

The announcement and branding hints at more functionality down the road — perhaps a full-fledged social network, or even early preparation for a GTA-based MMO, a spinoff that’s long been rumored but never confirmed. In any case, it leverages the web and aggregated player data in a way we don’t often see with hardcore games, especially cross-platform console titles. And since GTA is the big daddy of console franchises, expect others to follow.

Image credit: www.rockstargames.com/socialclub

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