The Strange Tale Of “NotGTAV”

Steam’s latest hit isn’t GTA V, although it was at one point. Last week it was NotGTAV, a game that delivers what it promises. It’s not GTA V; in fact, it doesn’t even come close. It’s actually a Snake game with extremely crude hand-drawn graphics that look like they were scanned off a napkin.

Before you start facepalming at the state of humanity, realize this: all proceeds generated by the sale of NotGTAV go to charity. The game isn’t serious, but it has a serious cause. The likelihood of a Steam shopper being fooled by this game is minimal and most purchasers were in on the joke.

Then just as NotGTAV was starting to go seriously viral, it disappeared. Steam was forced to take the game off their marketplace after being contacted by someone claiming to represent Rockstar Games. This was odd because the game makers claimed they had checked with Rockstar prior to releasing the game, and they gave it their blessing. Did they change their minds?

After a little investigation, Steam found out whoever the guy was who sent the cease-and-desist had no affiliation with Rockstar whatsoever. Rockstar themselves had never ordered the game shut down, and so it went back up. In the meantime, the game creators had been hurriedly preparing a more copyright-friendly substitute called NotDMCV, which they were relieved to abandon.

To this day no one knows who sent the phony letter. NotGTA is back on Steam and still going strong, though its days near the top can’t last once the joke stops being funny.