14 out of 14 people found this review helpful.
Grand Theft Auto IV - Try this at home, not in the streets
Date of Review: May 14, 2008
The Bottom Line: It's a great games that has some flaws. Not deserving of the scores it got, but it is a fun game to play.
It's here, it's finally here! Gamers across the globe have been waiting for this day! The release of Rockstar's Grand Theft Auto IV! Was it worth the wait? I really never played any of the other 3D versions of GTA so I don't have a huge understanding on the series as a whole. The only good experience I have had with GTA was the original GTA for my PC. There didn't seem to be as much hype for GTA IV compared to Halo 3 or Call of Duty 4, which may have helped it a little. There is a lot to talk about!
Grand Theft Auto IV received 10's from all the big label gaming sites and magazines. It is the first game to reach that score since Zelda: Ocarina of Time. What a great compliment and achievement! However, is Grand Theft Auto IV really worth the scores is has publicly received? I can sum that up in one word with two letters, no.
**Warning – The following paragraph may contain minor plot details**
You play as Niko Belic. Niko's exact country is never mentioned, the best thing you can come up with is he is Eastern European. He comes to Liberty City (roughly based on New York City) after reading Roman's, his cousin, emails about the fame, fortune and women with big titties. Once Niko arrives, he now notices that his cousin was full of ****. Roman is living in a slum with no money due to online gambling and debts to other locals. Throughout the game Niko meets several people that will pay good money for wrong deeds. Through the story, you find the real reason Niko has come to Liberty City.
Liberty City is made up of 4 major islands, all connected by bridges. When you first start the game you only have one island accessible. As you continue to play the story you will unlock new shops on the island, and then even unlock another island. You then unlock the third and fourth island throughout the story. The map itself is big. There are still parts of the city I have not traveled on, even after logging over 30 hours into the game. The best way to view the city is by flying over with a helicopter. You can see from one end to the other, which is good but it takes away from the graphical interface. The graphics for GTA IV really do not hold a candle the graphics of Call of Duty 4. Once again, if you want a large playing area accessible at once, you have to slack on graphics, I understand. But for a game that registered 10's, I am expecting the best. There will be times when I leave my safehouse too quickly, there will be nothing in front of me, but then all of a sudden I am running up steps. Where did these come from? Trees, pay phones, fire hydrants, and so on will just appear out of thin air in front of you if you are traveling at higher speeds.
The types of missions you are asked to do will vary, but you will feel a little repetitive throughout the game. Don't get me wrong, this is no Open Season, but sometimes it seems like you are doing the same thing with a different background. The types of missions include; take out someone, follow someone, steal something. However, I really didn't feel bored with the missions, like I did with Open Season. I was entertained because the story brought you into the mission. You understand why you are completing the task you have been asked. It all comes part of the big picture, that get's wrapped up in a little bow at the end. There are side missions with other characters you meet during your progress. These missions include delivering drugs, stealing cars, assassinating people, capturing criminals, etc. These side missions add extra fun to the game. There are four side games you can play as well. These include bowling, billiards, darts and Qub3d. Honestly, Qub3d was really the only enjoyable side game. Billiards physics are horrendous, darts is too easy, and the bowling pin physics are just as bad as the pool balls. You don't have to play the mini-games, which is OK in my book.
The game itself is not difficult to complete. I really wish Rockstar could incorporate some kind of difficulty settings. I went through the game without many problems. I only had to redo a few missions and those were easy to complete once I figured out how to do it. It took me roughly 27 hours to complete the story, but I messed around a lot and completed most side missions. There is an achievement for beating the story in under 30 hours, which is easily enough to achieve. I would guess if you did nothing but story missions, GTA IV is about 15-20 hours long (includes watching all cutscenes). Even one of the hardest missions (Three Leaf Clover) seemed easy. It didn't compare to trying the Mile High Achievement from Call of Duty 4.
The weapon selection is pretty small, but you have everything you would need. The game includes a few assault rifles, small machine guns, handguns, shotguns, sniper rifles, grenades, a RPG, knife and a baseball bat. Once you get an assault rifle, you have the only weapon you will need to finish the game. Sniper rifles are very easy to use, with no sway, even for extremely far shots. Shotguns are great for close quarters, with one shot killing one or maybe more thugs. You shouldn't have to buy ammo for any weapon, because each mission will have people shooting at you with the same weapons, which you can pick up the ammo. Headshots with any weapon will kill someone with one shot.
GTA IV has an easy to use cover system. When around any structure, press the right bumper to take cover. While in cover you can peak around to view those trying to kill you. You can then press the right trigger to blind fire, or hone in on an enemy by pressing left trigger, then right trigger to fire. When you use the latter method, you are able to be shot so make sure you go in and out quickly to minimize the damage. It is kind of similar to GRAW2, but you don't enter cover automatically like GRAW2.
You are contacted by everyone through your cell phone. To access your cell, just press up on the D-pad. Once accesses, you can call any of your contacts in your phonebook. Some you can hang-out with. You can play darts, pool, bowl, drink, eat, go to strip club, or a cabaret show. Some contacts have unique items you can only do with them. Also, some of your contact will supply you with special abilities, if they like you enough. These include, free taxi pick-up, cheaper weapons, call in bomb, call in back-up, or remove your wanted level. The cell phone is also where you can access the multiplayer menu. This phone is customizable with ring tones and backgrounds which can be purchased on the in-game internet.
What would Grand Theft Auto be without the cars? GTA IV has a ton of different vehicles in the game. Though the names of the cars are fictional, they resemble real makes and models out today. You will find everything from 100k sports cars to $200 junkers. The varieties of the cars are vast. You would have to look hard to find two identical cars at the same time during your play. However, whatever type of car you are in, expect to see a lot of the same make. If you are in a sports car, it seems like nothing but sports cars around. It's the same with all of the vehicles! It seems really off. I once came out of my safe house, and saw 6 Banshee's (rare, fast sports car) driving down the street in a line. There is also the issue of instant traffic. You look one way and see absolutely no cars, look the other way to find nothing. Once you look back the other way, you have 10 cars piled up behind you waiting to get out of the way. This makes it hard to steal cars. You will look for cops, not see a one, but as soon as you bust the window you hear sirens 2 feet away.
I have also heard a lot of gripe about the driving. Personally I don't see anything wrong with the driving. Once you get the hang of it, it's quite easy to quickly get were you need to go. You can't expect to make a right angle turn at 80mph in a minivan. The only thing I don't like is the ease a car can flip from hitting a curb.
The multiplayer is a new addition to the GTA series. Here you can play ranked/player matches or free roams around the city. You have the option to play the entire map of Liberty City or just a small portion. That's a nice feature, because if you know the city through playing the single player, you know the city when playing the multiplayer. They are exactly the same, less vendors and enterable stores. There are several game types you can choose to play online. You have your standard deathmatches, but you also have type like car jack city and mayfia work. For mayfia work, you will get a phone call and you and your team has to complete the task given. These range from escort people, taking out gangs, stealing cars, etc. Car jack city is exactly how it sounds, steal cars and drop them off at the waypoints. You could also choose to free roam, which is just roaming around the city, without a purpose, causing as much or as little havoc you want. Though the multiplayer isn't perfect, it is fun and entertaining.
Final thoughts…
I just don't understand how Grand Theft Auto IV received the scores it did. Don't get me wrong, it is a fun game but it has several flaws. The story and dialogue is great, but the game is lacking in other areas. I don't know though, even with the flaws I have pointed out, I still find myself addicted to the game. It's recommended by me.
Oh, and parents. Please don't let your children play this game. It contains very strong language and adult themes.
