GTA VI revives the debate on cheating with a video game character

The relationship between Jason and Lucia in Grand Theft Auto VI has revived an old debate. The question is whether a romance with a game character counts as cheating. About 6 percent of British adults think it does, the BBC writes.

The poll

Polling company YouGov put the question to more than 4,000 British adults in September, according to the BBC. About 6 percent would see it as cheating. Another 19 percent would not call it cheating, but would not be okay with it.

Women were considerably more likely than men to object, the BBC writes. According to IGN, 4 percent of the men and 7 percent of the women see it as cheating. Of the men, 13 percent would not be okay with it, against 24 percent of the women.

What the game lets players do

Jason and Lucia can go shopping, visit bars and restaurants and work out together, the BBC writes. Holding hands and answering each other’s texts quickly also builds their bond. Ignoring a message can hurt the relationship a little, Rob Nelson of Rockstar North said in the full interview with IGN.

The relationship is optional, according to IGN. Jason and Lucia want to give it a chance at the start of the game, but players have to pursue it. If they do not, the two still have each other’s backs when it matters most.

Playing the two together feels like looking after them as a unit, Nelson told IGN. The launch trailer shows three intimate scenes in the shower, IGN writes.

Reactions

The BBC put its headline as a question, and that led to a backlash from players, IGN writes. One user on X replied that video game characters are not real. Many reactions pointed to The Sims, where players have married and raised children for years.

The BBC spoke to Alli Franco, who posts anime and gaming content on TikTok for more than a million followers. Franco compares it to a crush on a TV star, but even further removed from cheating. In the end, nobody can cheat with lines of code, Franco told the BBC.

Games are getting better at mimicking social relationships, says Arienne Ferchaud of Florida State University to the BBC. Ferchaud studies how people form bonds with fictional characters.

Not new in games

Players could already marry villagers in Harvest Moon in 1996, the BBC points out. Final Fantasy VII, Baldur’s Gate II and The Sims also had romance. Those relationships followed a fixed script. GTA VI appears to offer something more dynamic, according to the BBC.

What is not known

How the relationship affects the story is not known. Nelson did not want to say more. Whether the poll of YouGov named GTA VI, the BBC and IGN do not say. Grand Theft Auto VI comes out on 19 November for PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X and S.