It’s weird, even for GTA Online.

May 2, 2020 7:12 AM

GTA Online Players Are Picking Sides In A Giant Alien War And There Are Memes [Vice] “Here's a very 2020 sentence: a gang war between purple and green aliens is taking over GTA5 Online, and the memes about it are the hottest thing on TikTok. GTA Online's extraterrestrial gang war has been entirely player directed. In late April, players started dressing up as green aliens, and then surprising other players with beatdowns. Now it appears that a rival gang, dressed as purple aliens, are going after the green aliens, causing an alien gang rivalry. The annals of this gang war are being documented on TikTok, usually accompanied by the music of snitch and dummy who picked a fight with Chief Keef, Tekashi 6ix9ine.”
posted by Fizz (29 comments total)

Drazi War is definitely getting out of hand this year.
posted by cobrabay at 7:31 AM on May 2, 2020 [29 favorites]

Lately I've been taking back anything in used to say about sci fi dystopias being unrealistic. We truly live in a bizarre Stephenson novel
posted by dis_integration at 7:32 AM on May 2, 2020 [15 favorites]

I'm surprised this type of thing doesn't happen more often in online games. I'm not at all into GTA Online. I'm always worried about immediately dying because I don't have a crew or enough money to buy the types of protection you need to survive in that game. I also just dislike talking to other humans in games, it annoys me.

But I LOVE that this is a thing and that people just have fun with this kind of nonsense. The best of emergent gameplay.
posted by Fizz at 7:38 AM on May 2, 2020 [19 favorites]

"usually accompanied by the music of snitch and dummy who picked a fight with Chief Keef, Tekashi 6ix9ine"

Is "snitch and dummy" a musical act? I *think* 6ix9ine is one? I can barely comprehend this sentence. I am in awe.
posted by egypturnash at 8:36 AM on May 2, 2020 [15 favorites]

It's like trying to play agar.io in 2020 in free for all mode. feeding duos everywhere.
posted by anthill at 8:39 AM on May 2, 2020

I can't make the joke I was going to so now I'm just going to say Zooty! Zoot zoot!
posted by GCU Sweet and Full of Grace at 8:41 AM on May 2, 2020 [12 favorites]

Who is the Margaret Mead spending time in that world and others like it who will return and explain those cultures to people like me on these timid shores?
posted by PhineasGage at 8:41 AM on May 2, 2020 [7 favorites]

"usually accompanied by the music of snitch and dummy who picked a fight with Chief Keef, Tekashi 6ix9ine"

Is "snitch and dummy" a musical act? I think 6ix9ine is one? I can barely comprehend this sentence. I am in awe.

It is a spectacular sentence. Tekashi 6ix9ine is a musician. But without either knowing that "snitch and dummy" is a musical act or who Chief Keef is, you can't tell if Tekashi 6ix9ine is Chief Keef or a snitch and dummy.
posted by hoyland at 8:44 AM on May 2, 2020 [5 favorites]

The only thing about this entire post that would make it even more difficult to parse is if it had something to do with Fortnite. That being said, I am totally ok with this not being something that is for me. It's for the youth.
posted by Fizz at 8:49 AM on May 2, 2020 [5 favorites]

Tekashi 6ix9ine is the stage name of pedophile and multiple felon Daniel Hernandez.
posted by glonous keming at 8:49 AM on May 2, 2020 [2 favorites]

Tekashi 6ix9ine is the stage name of pedophile and multiple felon Daniel Hernandez.

He was also famously a states witness, ergo snitch
posted by dis_integration at 8:58 AM on May 2, 2020 [4 favorites]

The whole rhythm section
posted by thelonius at 9:01 AM on May 2, 2020 [4 favorites]

Ah. So it could have been more clearly written as: "usually accompanied by the music of Tekashi 6ix9ine, a snitch and dummy who picked a fight with Chief Keef."
posted by ardgedee at 9:18 AM on May 2, 2020 [14 favorites]

I love these Eve Online threads.
posted by srboisvert at 9:29 AM on May 2, 2020 [38 favorites]

GTB5
posted by Hairy Lobster at 10:08 AM on May 2, 2020

I guess I'm just surprised that anyone is still playing GTA:O.
posted by aramaic at 10:35 AM on May 2, 2020 [2 favorites]

The sociocultural tech tree for this future is ferocious, I love it.
posted by mhoye at 10:56 AM on May 2, 2020

It's a shame all this cultural gold will never be able to be studied by far future anthropologists scraping the dust off dead servers in the nuke blasted wastelands of Seattle.
posted by PenDevil at 11:05 AM on May 2, 2020 [1 favorite]

I've logged a lot of GTA Online time lately, probably as a quarantine coping mechanism. Near as I can figure, this boils down to either (A) kids looking for something to do in a game that's trivially easy to cheat at, (B) kids exploring ingroup/outgroup identity, or likely both.
posted by CheesesOfBrazil at 11:07 AM on May 2, 2020 [1 favorite]

For those curious about the weird (and unpleasant) story of Mr. 6ix9ine, this recent FPP has a thorough and entertaining video rundown. Back to GTA.
posted by GenjiandProust at 11:57 AM on May 2, 2020 [1 favorite]

Call me when there's an Octarine gang.
posted by symbioid at 12:24 PM on May 2, 2020 [2 favorites]

Also - this may be the first time video game violence actually made me anxious/ill. Due to the social thing. Maybe the animations.

When you're shooting someone from afar, even sniping, and usually it's just you n your gun, even in a co-op squad gang, it's ranged. Or if it is melee, it's usually ... cartoony? Of course this is cartoony with the spandex/alien suits... but...

The animations are realistic, and ... it feels like I'm watching an actual beat down? And knowing this shit happens in real life (i mean so do mass shootings and wars, but...). The social aspect of people doing this, IDK.

Maybe it's my honky ass being racist? It just... feels like. I mean yeah, it's gangs and it's a game. But ... God help me I'm not turning into Jack Thompson am I?

OK - kids go have fun alien beatdowns, just. like... don't take this shit too seriously yo!
posted by symbioid at 12:27 PM on May 2, 2020 [1 favorite]

The LONG version on Tekashi 6ix9ine, as explained by THE MOST well-informed Hip-Hop fan in all of Bognor Regis. Probably the whole UK.
posted by Pirate-Bartender-Zombie-Monkey at 12:54 PM on May 2, 2020 [1 favorite]

Is Bognor Regis the home world of the green or the purple aliens?
posted by Don.Kinsayder at 1:43 PM on May 2, 2020 [4 favorites]

Unfortunate that my experience with GTA:O is that it's full of foul mouthed children trolling and griefers making it impossible to do anything fun without constant interruption.
posted by wierdo at 3:16 PM on May 2, 2020 [1 favorite]

I love looking at a jargon heavy discussion of a culture that I'm just not a part of and seeing if I can figure out what in the world they are talking about. I'm reasonably connected to internet savvy Kids These Days, so I have a reasonable chance. But it's fun.
posted by Jacen at 7:55 PM on May 2, 2020 [1 favorite]

When life imitates Neal Stephenson...

(In the MMORPG described in the book, a war starts between players distinguished by wearing light or dark clothes.)
posted by MrGuilt at 8:10 PM on May 2, 2020 [2 favorites]

It's for the youth

If by youth you means lots of middle aged, middle class people of all ages, then sure. Its incredibly popular compared to other obline games with the 25-35 and 55+ demographic and with married parents.
posted by fshgrl at 11:43 PM on May 2, 2020 [3 favorites]

Is Bognor Regis the home world of the green or the purple aliens?

Bugger Bognor
posted by rhamphorhynchus at 2:52 AM on May 3, 2020