Miami-Dade vs Vice City: the controversy about the promotion of the new GTA
Rockstar Games is about to launch Grand Theft Auto VI on November 19, and attention is already focused on Miami, which will serve as inspiration for the setting. The clamor around the game is difficult to underestimate: after two delays and eight years from the last great title of Rockstar, Red Dead Redemption 2, the wait is very high, with the expected launch on PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X|S. Take-Two Interactive, Rockstar's parent company, has never revealed the development costs of the game, but an estimate of Zero1 Gaming places the combined budget at about 2 billion dollars, making GTA VI the most expensive video game ever made. Newzoo projections indicate a potential turnover of between $3.25 and $5.2 billion in the first week, based on initial preorders. Also some employers are already planning around the launch: US Army units offer even days of vacation to play. The controversy was born when the Miami-Dade County administration presented Rockstar with a proposal for promotional activations on public property, as illustrated in a presentation documented by The Miamian through a request for public acts. The proposals included a "Vice City Airport" arrival experience at the Miami International Airport, Metromover trains with the Vice City brand, murales at PortMiami, custom water handles in the city centre of Miami and Brickell, and a festival of automotive culture at Tropical Park. The mayor saw in this initiative an opportunity to generate revenue. "Nothing was formally agreed or approved, and any idea should have been submitted to the appropriate review and approval process," said Carlos Suarez, spokesman for Mayor Daniella Levine Cava, in The Miamian. “Considered the influence of the Miami-Dade on the game, we believe that there might be a unique opportunity to generate revenue for the Condado and promote the Condado in front of a huge audience. ” However, other county leaders expressed strong opposition. On 3 September, Sheriff Rosie Cordero-Stutz and Commissioner Juan Carlos Bermudez issued a joint statement urging the county to refuse the use of public resources to promote the game. “We should promote Miami-Dade that we have worked so hard to build, not a fictitious version of our community defined by crime and violence,” Bermudez said. Cordero-Stutz called Grand Theft Auto "a series of video games built around criminal activity". The statement ended with a lapidary statement: “Miami-Dade County is not Vice City”. The opposition emerged on 6 October at the meeting of the County Council, where several councillors, led by René Garcia, challenged the mayor's staff negotiations for paid promotions in municipal facilities. In the face of strong opposition, Commissioner Oliver Gilbert used a procedural manoeuvre to push the vote to the meeting on 20 October. VERDETTO: CRITICO La proposta di attivazioni promozionali del Miami-Dade County per GTA VI, e la reazione successiva della contea, costituiscono un campanello d’allarme. Non si tratta semplicemente di un'opportunità commerciale – come ammette il sindaco – ma di un potenziale spreco di risorse pubbliche su una piattaforma fin dall’inizio controversa. L'idea di “Vice City Airport” e dei treni Metromover, per quanto inizialmente accattivante per il marketing, si scontra con la realtà del Miami-Dade County, un’area che ha subito recentemente disastri naturali e necessita di investimenti reali nel suo futuro. La preoccupazione espressa dai rappresentanti della contea – che vedono il gioco come una “versione fittizia” della comunità – coglie nel segno: utilizzare risorse limitate per promuovere una narrazione distorta, anche se intrattenente, è una scelta discutibile. L'uso di queste risorse solleva interrogativi sulla priorità del governo locale e sull'impatto potenziale di un gioco così ambizioso sullo sviluppo sostenibile della città.
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