Somehow dimly aware that Grand Theft auto IV is critically-acclaimed, the Observer decided to spend a page commenting on whether or not it was art. It invited three non-gamer critics to do the job. Here's an excerpt from what Bidisha, "author and critic", thought:
Why would anyone working on GTA IV even remotely consider pitching a TV show?! They're working on GTA IV! There are millions of people who would love to have that job! Why would anyone give it up to make a show for HBO?
Maybe it's some kind of coded reference that I've missed. Perhaps HBO shows are famed among critics for their poor dialogue, and the implication is that GTA IV's scripts are so bad they're only fit for HBO — I don't know. Given the perplexing reference to playing her "Dungeons & Dragons board game" on her own, it's hard to figure out what's irony and what's ignorance. However, the fact that she didn't italicise Dungeons & Dragons doesn't bode well...