GTA creators: Media outrage was planned all along

The creators of Grand Theft Auto have explained how the fallout from the game's release was planned all along.

The first Grant Theft Auto game was launched in 1997 with newspapers and politicians condemning the title for its violent play.

Dave Jones and Mike Dailly revealed that Grand Theft Auto's publisher, BMG Interactive, hired PR specialist Max Clifford to keep the game in the spotlight.

"He told us who would play it, who he would target, what those targeted people would say," Jones told The Sunday Times. "Every word he said came true."

"Max Clifford made it all happen," added Dailly. "He designed all the outcry, which pretty much guaranteed MPs would get involved. He'd do anything to keep the profile high.

"We tended to think of politicians as idiots. Complaining about a game that 99% of them wouldn't have seen. Calling it a murder simulator just showed how ignorant they were, and we knew it."

The series has since gone on to become one of the most successful of all time, selling millions of copies worldwide.

Grand Theft Auto 5 is expected to launch sometime next year. Check out the trailer here.