The hotly anticipated Grand Theft Auto V hit shelves on Tuesday, giving gamers of all ages spasmodic fits of joy. Many of those gamers logged on to Twitter, where they saw the promoted trend #GATV.
Makes sense, right? Not quite. A quick skim of the hashtag on GTA V's launch day could easily cause readers to confuse it for #GTAV, with one's mind unconsciously swapping the middle two characters, and assuming a GTA connection. But in an expert display of trolling prowess, the trend actually came from rival Saints Row gaming franchise, which used it to promote a new set of features for one its main characters, Johnny Gat, while drawing some laughs from gamers in the process.
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Gaming site Neoseeker lauded the move, saying it "may be the best marketing troll ever," and many on Twitter were equally amused:
I must say again, Deep Silver promoting #GATV wins the internet today. Magnificent trolling. A+, 11/10, would trollolol again.— El Oshcuro (@DaveOshry) September 17, 2013
Hilarious: @SaintsRow successfully trolls Grand Theft Auto V with the promoted hashtag #GATV. pic.twitter.com/PKHbOPHTuO— Kris Sanchez (@KrisSanchez) September 17, 2013
#GATV Well played, Saints Row.... Well played... Marketing masterminds.— Alex Wilson (@Xavier_Wilson_) September 18, 2013
Yes, that Saints Row promoted trend is the greatest marketing troll of all time. #GATV— Marlo (@gnarloh) September 18, 2013
Lmfao the fact that saints row promoted #GATV today is awesome!— Andrew Gibson (@AndrewGibster) September 18, 2013
Others, however, did not get the joke, which was almost just as funny:
I love how the promoted hashtag is #GATV. I guess the game's called Grand Auto Theft now.— Sara Elizabeth (@sara_sable) September 18, 2013
Does it bother anyone else that the Grand Theft Auto V promoted hashtag is spelled wrong? #GATV vs. #GTAV— Lou Carvalho (@VagabondTweets) September 18, 2013
But Saints Row's troll move, while successful, didn't come cheap. Promoted trends on Twitter were reported earlier this year to go for a $200,000 a pop.
Was it worth the money? Give us your take in the comments.