How Rockstar Table Tennis set the stage for GTA 6

Twenty years ago Rockstar looked like a different company. Best known for Grand Theft Auto, it also released Midnight Club, a Warriors tie-in, Max Payne and Manhunt — so its next-generation debut, Rockstar Games Presents Table Tennis, surprised a lot of people.

There was none of Rockstar’s usual violence or cinematic ambition; instead the game presented a tightly focused, painstakingly realistic simulation of table tennis. Table Tennis proved deep, technical, fast-paced and intensely competitive. With a deceptively simple roster and presentation, a detailed tutorial and a robust online mode, it hooked players and remains playable on Xbox via backward compatibility and in the store.

At the London launch party, a hard-fought tournament left the room buzzing and left journalists asking why Rockstar had made a ping-pong game. The answer was practical: Rockstar needed to get to grips with the new generation of consoles.

United Kingdom, London

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