Radio Stations in GTA III: Difference between revisions
→Commercials
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The myriad commercials that appear throughout the game deserve a special mention. They are all written by [[Dan Houser]] and [[Lazlow]] (the latter of whom also produced them). They are fairly convincing as real adverts as they adhere to many typical marketing clichés and tricks. Several adverts mention telephone numbers and official websites. Rockstar actually created these websites, and though many links just eventually lead back to the Rockstar site, some are really quite detailed. The [http://www.petsovernight.com Petsovernight.com] website displays pictures of animals and promises "If it's got a central nervous system, we've got it ready to go in a box to your house", tying in with the humour in the commercials. | The myriad commercials that appear throughout the game deserve a special mention. They are all written by [[Dan Houser]] and [[Lazlow]] (the latter of whom also produced them). They are fairly convincing as real adverts as they adhere to many typical marketing clichés and tricks. Several adverts mention telephone numbers and official websites. Rockstar actually created these websites, and though many links just eventually lead back to the Rockstar site, some are really quite detailed. The [http://www.petsovernight.com Petsovernight.com] website displays pictures of animals and promises "If it's got a central nervous system, we've got it ready to go in a box to your house", tying in with the humour in the commercials. | ||
Some examples of commercials within the game are: the Maibatsu [[ | Some examples of commercials within the game are: | ||
*'''Dormatron''' - An invention that burns calories while sleeping — by moving the limbs strapped to the device while the owner sleeps. Exactly how the subject is strapped in is never explained but is implied as a form of [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/BDSM bondage] in ''Liberty City Stories.'' Parodies 'miracle' weight-loss products that are either ineffective or repackaged versions of proven methods. | |||
*'''Equanox''' - (not to be confused with 'Equinox') Alertness pills from Zaibatsu Pharmaceuticals, with a long and concerning list of side-effects. Parodying [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/No-Doz No-Doz], as well as dangerous pharmaceuticals. The name appears to be a portmanteau of Equus (Horse) and Nox (Sleep), which suggests that the drug is a horse tranquilizer. [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zaibatsu Zaibatsu], meaning "conglomerate", is a commonly used word in the GTA series as well as a faction on [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Grand_Theft_Auto_2 Grand Theft Auto 2], Zaibatsu is advertised as a pharmaceutical company, not to be mistaken with Maibatsu, a fictional car manufacturer parodying Japanese manufacturers in reality. | |||
*'''Eris Running Shoes''' - Parodies the controversy over [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nike,_Inc. Nike]'s controversial outsourcing and labor practices ([http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eris_%28mythology%29 Eris], like [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nike_%28mythology%29 Nike], is a Greek goddess). This sneaker company employs children ("It's fun! We get to play with knives!", "Yesterday, I made a dollar!" "My friend Joey sewed his hands together!"). Eris appears in ''Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas'' as one of the clothing brands, and are promoting their "Rampage" line. | |||
*'''Fernando's New Beginnings''' - "A revolutionary new way to save your marriage," explained further during Fernando's stint on Chatterbox FM. | |||
*'''Liberty City Survivor''' - A [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_Royale Battle Royale] esque reality show with "20 recently paroled guys...equipped with grenade launchers and flamethrowers". They have to hunt each other down until only one man is left standing. Parodying reality television, especially the very early 2000s trend towards more degrading formulas such as [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fear_Factor Fear Factor]. Liberty City Survivor is also a reference to a promised-but-cancelled multiplayer mode in ''GTAIII.'' However, "Liberty City Survivor" would come to frutition as the multiplayer mode in ''Liberty City Stories.'' The voiceover is from Jeff Berlin. | |||
*'''Maibatsu Monstrosity''' - A [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sports_utility_vehicle sports utility vehicle] by a Japanese brand (possibly a parody of the [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Toyota_Land_Cruiser Toyota Land Cruiser] or [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mitsubishi_Montero Mitsubishi Montero]) notable for its size (''"It's so big; we lost little Joey in the back and couldn't find him for an hour"'') and low gas mileage (''"So what if it only does three miles to the gallon, I'm a mom, not a conservationist"''). The Liberty Tree says in its newspaper that there were problems with the prototype in the 90s with a few injured persons. Parodies the elephantine sports utility vehicles that were commonplace on American roads in the 2000s, there is also an advertisement in the GTA 3 handbook for the Maibatsu Monstrosity showing a larger Landstalker. | |||
*'''Petsovernight.com''' - A [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dot-com_company dot-com company] that ships its customers live animals (including exotics), anywhere in the country. A parody of some of the decidedly ridiculous dot-com enterprises at the time of the game's release. "Delivering little bundles of love.. in a box.. directly to your door." | |||
*'''Pogo the Monkey''' - A platform action game where players play as a monkey with a banana cannon who attacks scientists and steals gems. Pogo's final mission is to take over the [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/White_House White House] and become president of the United States. The radio adverts make particular parody of the merchandising blitz surrounding popular platforming games that featured anthropomorphic protagonists such as [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Crash_Bandicoot Crash Bandicoot] and [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sonic_the_Hedgehog Sonic the Hedgehog]. A fake arcade version of Pogo the Monkey can be found in several places in [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Grand_Theft_Auto:_Vice_City Vice City]. | |||
*'''Rakin & Ponzer''' - Mocking [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Compensation_culture compensation culture], this [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Law_firm law firm] commercial urges listeners to [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lawsuit sue] anyone for anything. The first of a recurring ad theme encouraging [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/False_insurance_claims insurance fraud]. | |||
*'''The House of Tomorrow''' - A specialist electronics retailer promoting high-tech items such as 3D virtual reality helmets of questionable usefulness as vital in the digital era, a parody of such real life retailers as [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Sharper_Image The Sharper Image]. | |||
*'''The Medieval Millennium Fair''' - A [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Renaissance_fair Renaissance fair] that takes place every weekend at Liberty City Park, and sells spells, potions and other medieval artifacts. | |||
The ads are voiced by: Stephanie Roy, [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gerry_Cosgrove Gerry Cosgrove], Sean Lynch, [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lazlow Lazlow], Alex Anthony, Jonathan Hanst, Chris Silvestro, Jeff Berlin, Shelley Miller, Ron Reeve, Maria Chambers, Alana Silvestro, Alice Saltzman, [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dan_Houser Dan Houser], [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Frank_Chavez Frank Chavez], Craig Olivo and Laura Bykowski. | |||
==Non Selectable Radio Stations== | ==Non Selectable Radio Stations== | ||