The online action game GTA 5 Online is especially known for its open world and player freedom. However, there is another side of GTA that many players do not come into contact with. In this interview, MeinMMO tells you more about role-playing in GTA.
GTA Online is a multiplayer game that has been running for many years and continues to be very popular. As part of “Find Your Next Game: Winter Edition,” MeinMMO presents you with a different side of GTA Online: role-playing (or RP for short).
In recent years, role-playing in GTA has experienced a boom, not least due to some big Twitch streamers who have dealt with it. But is there something like that among German GTA players? How can you get involved?
Community manager Irina Moritz from MeinMMO sat down with GTA player Lucas, who leads the community management on a German role-playing server, and peppered him with questions about his experience in GTA RP.
Here is what he had to tell us.
GTA as a first role-playing experience
MeinMMO: Please introduce yourself to our readers.
Lucas: My name is Lucas. I come from Brandenburg and am a community manager and faction manager on the 5M RP server Grand RP.
MeinMMO: Role-playing in GTA has exploded on Twitch in the past two years. Did that draw your attention? Or how did you get into role-playing in GTA?
Lucas: It was simply through friends who contacted me and asked if I wanted to come to the server. I had to download this and that for that.
Eventually, I just did it and even found connections relatively quickly. Recently, I looked for a new server because I wanted to play again. That’s how I came to my current server. I am now also pretty good friends with the team members.
MeinMMO: Had you done RP in other games before?
Lucas: No, GTA was the very first.
MeinMMO: What made you specifically want to try it in GTA for the first time?
Lucas: I first heard about it. I didn’t really notice it in other games where you can do it. And above all, GTA is basically the open-world game; you have nearly unlimited options in GTA. That’s the case in relatively few games.
I run the hospital and the emergency service on our server. That is exactly my area of expertise. I also know that from real life; I work in that field.
MeinMMO: What aspects do you like the most about RP in GTA?
Lucas: The freedom. You can choose from various scripts and vehicles. You can build it to your liking. I really like that in GTA; you are not restricted at all. If you want to change a car, you can change it yourself. That’s the main reason I am in GTA and want to stay here.
But if they cannot help him anymore, he will also be transported to the hospital. After a certain time, you can respawn again. Whether you want to keep your identity after respawn is up to the player. Usually, it is the case that the player simply appears again after some time.
Gaming fun and a cool community – what more could you want?
MeinMMO: Why do you think it is worth trying role-playing in GTA as a newcomer?
Lucas: I think it is especially for younger people, even if we still have many people over 30. They tell us they want to relax a bit after school or training and do what they feel like doing.
If I feel like playing a police officer, then I can do that. If I say I feel like being a firefighter, then I can be that.
That’s the incentive for most people, and also for me. It’s not just about playing on the server, but also about the whole community. That’s actually the case on every RP server.
You build your community; people get along with each other, and then they also play other games together. It doesn’t help if team members and players just quarrel. Then no one enjoys it, but it usually works really well.
MeinMMO: Can you give our readers 3 tips on how to best get into role-playing in GTA?
Lucas:
- Start slowly. Try not to immediately buy the most expensive car. It’s somewhat like real life. Try to get the job you want as quickly as possible and then work your way up there. Don’t focus too much on the money.
- It’s important to keep the fun in mind. RP situations can escalate quickly. Then it continues after the RP sometimes. However, the RP character is one person, and you are another person outside of RP. So don’t start fights in RP and take them out of RP. That’s very important; it’s the number one problem for most people.
- Find a partner with whom you can accomplish a lot. But make sure you also get along well with everyone else. Don’t say, “Okay, I’m only going to hang out with this one person and want to have as little to do with everyone else as possible.” RP situations arise when players meet. If you run past each other all day, you lose motivation. I can say that from my own experience.
GTA RP is not very well known. Many watch it with streamers but do not know how or where to even play. I would be very happy if a few find their way to us.
MeinMMO thanks Lucas for the interview.
Here is how you can get involved: If you are now interested and want to try role-playing in GTA, you can contact the Discord server of Grand RP. The people there will surely help you out.
What do you think of our conversation? Did the interview pique your interest in role-playing in GTA 5 Online? Or do you have questions about specific RP topics? Then feel free to post them in the comments below the article.
You can also participate in such an interview. Do you have a cool idea or have you experienced something special? Then write us an email or contact us via Discord. We love talking to our community!
Our “FYNG: Winter Edition” week continues. You can find the complete program here: MMOs and multiplayer games at Find Your Next Game: What to expect from the program
In RP, I really enjoy the role of the medic, and the contact with other people or factions is great. The people who also play on the server or the network are all really nice.
The first steps on a GTA-RP server
MeinMMO: Can you give me an overview of how a typical GTA-RP server works? Imagine I am someone who has never dealt with role-playing before. How would you explain it to me?
Lucas: There are various platforms through which you can join such a server. In our case, it’s 5M. You have to download and install it normally.
After you install it, you join the Discord server. We maintain a whitelist, meaning that we have a brief conversation with the new member. They will be asked their age; our minimum age is 16. Once you are on this whitelist, you can join the GTA server.
When you join the server, you actually have all options open. The player can, for example, go to the employment office and take a job there. There are jobs with the utilities or with the post office. These are basically “mini jobs” to earn some initial cash.
If you want to keep playing on the server, you usually think: “What do I want to do now?” There are standard factions:
- The Mechanics
- The Los Santos Medical Center
- The Los Santos Police Department
These are the state factions. But there are also mobs or gangs like the Cosa Nostra or the Vagos. And these factions are all run by players, as I lead the Los Santos Medical Center, for example.
You can choose a faction, then you write an application via Google Docs or have a personal conversation with the faction leader. If everything fits, you can join the faction.
But if you say you want to do something on your own, that’s also fine. You can then send a concept to the faction manager or leader. The team looks at it, discusses it, and if it fits and is technically feasible, everything will be implemented on the server. A job will be written in the database so that you can create your own faction.
This is basically how GTA-RP starts.
MeinMMO: I have heard from community stories that on some GTA role-playing servers, you often have to submit applications or come up with a character concept with a backstory beforehand. How does it work with you?
Lucas: Yes, it is the same with us. We are a beginner-friendly server; we reach out to newcomers and try to motivate them. Accordingly, we do not make it too complicated.
You do not necessarily need to have a big backstory, but as soon as you come to the server, you can create a character and fill out your ID with
- Name
- Date of Birth
- Height
- Weight, and so forth
If you want, you can come up with a backstory; that’s of course the ideal case. But many beginners don’t immediately have an idea, and that’s not a big deal with us. It develops over time.
Crime is part of GTA, even in role-play
MeinMMO: In GTA, much revolves around crime. How is that handled among players? If I say, for example: OK, I am actually employed by the post office. But I decided to start stealing cars and selling them somewhere.
Lucas: That’s completely possible too. The only thing that is not allowed is for police officers and EMTs to become criminals themselves. As long as they work in the state faction, they are untouchable, and corruption is not allowed at least on our server.
Otherwise, it’s absolutely possible through mini jobs. You can get a weapon, that goes through a psychological assessment. I have a psychologist in the Medical Center who takes care of that. If you pass the psychological assessment, you can go to the police and get a weapon permit through another aptitude test. After that, you can buy a handgun at the gun shop.
- You can steal cars
- Rob stores
- Rob other players
- Kidnap other players
- Take hostages
Basically, everything is possible.
MeinMMO: Can you describe a typical role-playing situation in GTA? Is there something particularly cool that stands out in your memory?
Lucas: Yes, over time there are always more criminal factions like mobs or gangs. There are often small wars between them. It may well happen that a shootout breaks out right in the city because green and blue cars want to fight.
Of course, that’s quite a scene. Then the whole police and medics are there. The entire action that was previously scattered across the whole game world is then concentrated in one spot.
MeinMMO: Sounds exciting, but how are character deaths handled? In such a shootout, you can quickly bite the dust.
Lucas: Character deaths are usually in the hands of the medics. There are different types: regular paramedics, doctors, and so on. They then decide relatively spontaneously based on the visible injury patterns and what they have learned in their training whether they can still help the player or not.
If they can still help him, he will be given first aid and then taken to the hospital. There, he is also treated with truly functioning medical devices and later discharged. There is also a health insurance for that, etc.
But if they cannot help him anymore, he will also be transported to the hospital. After a certain time, you can respawn again. Whether you want to keep your identity after respawn is up to the player. Usually, it is the case that the player simply appears again after some time.
Gaming fun and a cool community – what more could you want?
MeinMMO: Why do you think it is worth trying role-playing in GTA as a newcomer?
Lucas: I think it is especially for younger people, even if we still have many people over 30. They tell us they want to relax a bit after school or training and do what they feel like doing.
If I feel like playing a police officer, then I can do that. If I say I feel like being a firefighter, then I can be that.
That’s the incentive for most people, and also for me. It’s not just about playing on the server, but also about the whole community. That’s actually the case on every RP server.
You build your community; people get along with each other, and then they also play other games together. It doesn’t help if team members and players just quarrel. Then no one enjoys it, but it usually works really well.
MeinMMO: Can you give our readers 3 tips on how to best get into role-playing in GTA?
Lucas:
- Start slowly. Try not to immediately buy the most expensive car. It’s somewhat like real life. Try to get the job you want as quickly as possible and then work your way up there. Don’t focus too much on the money.
- It’s important to keep the fun in mind. RP situations can escalate quickly. Then it continues after the RP sometimes. However, the RP character is one person, and you are another person outside of RP. So don’t start fights in RP and take them out of RP. That’s very important; it’s the number one problem for most people.
- Find a partner with whom you can accomplish a lot. But make sure you also get along well with everyone else. Don’t say, “Okay, I’m only going to hang out with this one person and want to have as little to do with everyone else as possible.” RP situations arise when players meet. If you run past each other all day, you lose motivation. I can say that from my own experience.
GTA RP is not very well known. Many watch it with streamers but do not know how or where to even play. I would be very happy if a few find their way to us.
MeinMMO thanks Lucas for the interview.
Here is how you can get involved: If you are now interested and want to try role-playing in GTA, you can contact the Discord server of Grand RP. The people there will surely help you out.
What do you think of our conversation? Did the interview pique your interest in role-playing in GTA 5 Online? Or do you have questions about specific RP topics? Then feel free to post them in the comments below the article.
You can also participate in such an interview. Do you have a cool idea or have you experienced something special? Then write us an email or contact us via Discord. We love talking to our community!
Our “FYNG: Winter Edition” week continues. You can find the complete program here: MMOs and multiplayer games at Find Your Next Game: What to expect from the program
