5 Things You Never Know You Could Do In GTA 5

TAKE SELFIES DURING CUTSCENES

One of the more consistently hilarious features in GTA 5 is the Snapmatic phone app that allows players to document anything they find in GTA's wilderness, be it a funny sign, a beautiful vista, Trevor wearing a dress or a snapshot of the absolute carnage they've just wreaked on the unsuspecting NPCs. However, what people may not know is that it's possible to use the camera during the cinematic cutscenes.

If the player opens up Snapmatic just as a cutscene starts, your character can start taking screenshots and selfies of the unfolding action. Best of all, the scene will show Michael/Franklin/Trevor wielding their phone and intently looking at the screen, presumably only half-listening to the dialogue with all the enthusiasm of a disinterested teenager at a family gathering.

FIND A FROZEN ALIEN

GTA has had a strange preoccupation with all things extraterrestrial since the days of San Andreas. In the 2004 classic, if CJ visits Area 69, he'll hear chatter about some aliens that have landed on Earth. Nine years later, it seems like they've made themselves right at home, though they may have taken a few missteps along the way.

In GTA 5's Prologue mission in North Yankton, it's possible to veer off the snowy road and drive right onto a frozen lake. If you find the right spot, you can see the body of an alien creature trapped under the ice. This is super-easy to miss, but players who have already done the opening heist can revisit the area in the mission "Bury the Hatchet" later on in the game.

GO GHOST HUNTING

With all the startlingly regular deaths that happen in Grand Theft Auto, it makes sense that more than a few ghosts would be floating around the world. There have been myths about spectres showing up in the games since the early days, but GTA 5 took things several steps further.

Some players have reported seeing mysterious plumes of black smoke, dubbed “phantoms” in certain areas, but the most interesting (and tangible) example is the Ghost of Mount Gordo. If the player hikes up Mount Gordo between 23:00 and midnight in-game, they'll see the apparition of a woman. The spirit can't be interacted with in any way, other than her disappearing when you get too close, but thanks to the scrawled “JOCK” on the rock below, internet sleuths have found out the woman's identity – one Jolene Cranley-Evans, former wife to politician Jock Cranley. An article about her death can be found in the Senora Beach newspaper, which points the finger at the husband murdering his wife by pushing her over the edge of the cliff and getting away with it scot-free. Pleasant.

DRESS UP AS OTHER ROCKSTAR GAMES CHARACTERS

There are thousands of unique looks possible when it comes to customizing the three main characters. However, there are some particularly cheeky Easter eggs and references hidden in some of the outfits you can equip. Weirdly, Michael seems to get most of them.

As Michael, you can dress up in a suit very similar to Tommy Vercetti's '80s-tastic suit from GTA: Vice City. You can also find a garish Hawaiian shirt that looks exactly like the one Max Payne rocks in Max Payne 3. If you are planning to cosplay as everyone's favorite bullet-time burnout, make sure to shave your head and have a beard for added authenticity. If you go into Vespucci Movie Masks at the beach, you can also find a mask that closely resembles the disguise worn by the terrifying and deranged psychopath Piggsy in Manhunt. Chainsaw (unfortunately) not included.

FIND TONS OF REFERENCES TO OTHER VIDEO GAMES

For eagle-eyed fans, there are plenty of nods and references to not only Rockstar's own back catalog, but other games in general. The CNT Network airs a reality show named “Rehab Island” with a logo that is a clear shout-out to the Dead Island series logo, only with the palm tree's fronds replaced by a marijuana leaf.

If you make your way to a junkyard in Paleto Bay, you can find a generator that has a very similar paintjob to Borderlands' hyperactive mascot robot Claptrap. As both games are owned by the same publisher, it seems likely that it's a direct reference to the gun-stuffed anarchic shooter. There's a great Dark Souls nod in the form of a mission objective called “Praise the Sun”, and fans of Sonic the Hedgehog should check out the “Supersonic” business in Downtown Los Santos. Their motto? “The Ultra Fast Ring Delivery Service”. If that isn't an homage to Sega's blue blur, we don't know what is.