Civil servants in the UK got paid to play Grand Theft Auto Online with strangers over the internet. Although getting paid to play games is a dream for many people, the choice to let the workers play GTA Online now experiencing criticism from other members of the British government.
Despite its age, Rockstar's game is still incredibly popular Grand Theft Auto Online making about a million dollars a day. This popularity may be one of the reasons it was chosen for this project, but due to the violence and taboo themes in the game, this move is likely to experience more controversy than if another game had been chosen.
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British government workers played GTA online and got paid
According to a report in The Telegraph, he used an “experimental policy-making team” within the UK Department for Education called the Policy Lab. Grand Theft Auto Online as part of a research project. Employees played the game normally, interacting with strangers online while participating in typical missions such as robbing a jewelry store and carrying out assassinations. The goal of the researchers was to spend time with people who regularly play GTA Onlineto observe their play interactions and see if games could be used to create “emotionally safe spaces”. Accordingly, government workers would talk to people they encountered in the game and try to learn more about the “lived experience” of people in general, with the potential that the findings could be used to inform government policy.
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The experiment reportedly took place during December 2024 and appears to have since ended. Their findings reportedly included that it was easy for people from faraway places to meet online in games like GTA Onlineand gave players opportunities to do things they wouldn't be able to do in real life. Some of the players we spoke to said that driving in the game while talking was “really easy,” perhaps indicating that it's easier for people to open up during gaming activities. There are about 30 people in the team in total, although it is not known if all of them participated in the activity.
As might be expected, this news caused some backlash within the UK government. Speaking to The Telegraph, one government source said it was “nonsense” and that ministers did not want taxpayers' money “wasted on video games”. Mike Wood, the current shadow cabinet minister, called it an “absurd waste of resources” and that civil servants should have certain skills but GTA Online is not among them. Playing GTA Online it wasn't the only thing the Education Policy Lab group did, but the team seems to be in hot water with some officials in general.
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Although learning that government workers are getting paid to play any game would likely frustrate some both in government and the public. GTA Online maybe it was a bad choice. No official explanation has been shared as to why this particular title was chosen, there are also many other free-to-play games available, including some that are significantly less violent. Given this review, it is likely that such a thing will not happen again in the UK.
- Released
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October 1, 2013
- ESRB
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M for Mature: Blood and gore, intense violence, mature humor, nudity, strong language, strong sexual content, drug and alcohol use
- Developers
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Rockstar North
- Engine
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Rockstar's advanced game engine
