Grand Theft Auto has become a blockbuster franchise in the last twenty years since the original game was released. The series has gone through a lot of changes, but the core theme of allowing players to explore life in the criminal underworld has been retained--and so have a few series-long running gags. One developer recently spoke about the origin of one running gag: namely, the decision to add an armored vehicle to each Grand Theft Auto game.
According to an interview with GamerHub, Grand Theft Auto 2D artist and animator Stewart Waterson was the main reason Grand Theft Auto's first tank was added. Reportedly, he observed how much fun was being had once the game allowed players to commit grand theft auto and wondered how much more chaotic things would be with a tank. There was no reason to include a tank and the whole idea was silly, but he felt it would be a lot of fun to drive an almost-indestructible vehicle around and smash stuff with it.
Unfortunately, Waterson's bosses at what is now Rockstar North were against the idea, so he and his co-conspirator coder Ian Johnson decided to handle the task of their own. The series' first tank was modeled in pieces, with the tank base and treads textured with camouflage using Alias Wavefront on a Silicon Graphics machine and the turret being "like a player character sat on top of a car." The turret was able to move independently, which would allow the player to drive the tank, aim the turret, and fire.
Although there was a close call when project lead Keith Hamilton caught the pair still working after they should have gone home, Waterson and Johnson were able to sneakily add their makeshift tank to the game. Once the tank was implemented, however, the cat was out of the bag. It was immediately discovered by testers and the development team, many of whom had a blast driving the tank around and causing Grand Theft Auto's trademark chaos.
Reportedly, when Hamilton arrived at the office that day, he immediately turned to Waterson and Johnson and asked what they had done. They apologized and stated that they'd added tanks to the game. Since then, tanks have become a beloved part of Grand Theft Auto because they're just too much fun to play with for the developers to remove them from the franchise.
Source: GamerHub
