This mix between GTA and a potential rival has been a long time coming. Seriously, how did this not happen sooner?

Watch_Dogs, after its announcement at E3 2012, garnered massive popularity, and was lauded by many as a "GTA Killer". The gameplay trailers released immediately after seemed to back up that claim, However as time passed, the trailers kept showing a progressively worse and worse image of the game.
Then, it was released in 2014, and gained the ire of players and reviewers almost instantly. The whole game felt half-finished. It only accomplished a fraction of the things it claimed in marketing material and was ridden with bugs. It did show the hints of potential, shadows of the game it was before the corporate shear cut it down into the cheapest game it could become.