Customer Reviews

Grand Theft Auto 3 Official Strategy Guide (Bradygames Strategy Guides)

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2 star:		(3)
1 star:		(3)

 

 

This GTA3 Strategy Guide is pretty good and has some important and helpful information in it. However, it is obvious that the author played an early version of the game. There are several things in the game that were tweaked in the version that was released to the public. One example that comes to mind is discrepencies in the payoff for various jobs. On one mission I was expecting to get $2000 and I ended up getting $4000. Also, the guide does not include any of the cheat codes. Several strategies for the missions are definately not the best you can get. For example, on one mission you have to follow a guy to the harbor to see if he is ratting out the Mafia. The guide reccomends that you attempt to tail the guy, which is extremely difficult. I checked on an internet FAQ and found a much easier method in which you steal a taxi and actually pick the guy up yourself.

Basically the guide is helpful. It does, however, have flaws that can't be ignored.

Grand Theft Auto III is a breakout videogame for many reasons, not least of which is the huge variety of missions that you can play, often in whatever order you wish. This guide is perfect for that complexity.

The terrific maps of the Hidden Packages and PowerUps are worth the price of this book by themselves!

Quick tip for new players: Get all the Hidden Packages first thing as each new part of the city opens up. You'll enjoy important weapons right at your hideout from then on!

This book has it all- Character descriptions, and a full page on just about every mission including full maps, routes to take, and so much more. I had trouble finding it, but if you do, its definately worth it- some of the missions i couldnt beat without it!! GTA3 is the best PS2 game to come out this year, with a great strategy guide to help you out through the game.

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This is one of the worst Official strategy guides you could ever buy. Sure it covers all of the missions, but some of them are not covered any more fully than what you get from playing the game itself. It briefly covers SOME of the side jobs and non-mission tasks, but an Official guide should cover ALL of them! There is no detailed information on the Rampages and Unique Jumps, and the Hidden Packages are only covered with a map and short sentence. Some of the other reviewers here go into detail about the deficiencies of this book, so I really don't need to say much more. DON'T BE FOOLED BY THE GOOD REVIEWS THIS BOOK RECEIVED, BECAUSE IT DOESN'T DESERVE THEM.

I own this guide and the one released eight months later for the PC version. Although the PC guide is smaller (but much thicker) and in black & white (there are color maps in the back), it covers EVERYTHING (except cheat codes) about the game and with much more detail. Even if you own the Playstation 2 version of the game, you'd be better off buying the PC guide. The only difference gameplay wise are the controls mentioned in the book and a few little things like rewards for some of the vehicle missions.

To wrap this up, here is an excerpt from the author in the Acknowledgement's section of the PC guide: "Beyond the satisfaction of playing the game a few more times, I was even more delighted to add features to this guide that I didn't have time to include in the PS2 guide. And with Tim Cox's phenomenal assistance, as well as his passion for the game, time was no longer the enemy. We are proud to bring you the most comprehensive Grand Theft Auto III guide in existence." So, that explains why this guide (PS2) sucks. The author was rushed to complete the book, in time for the release of the game, no doubt. Right there in black & white the author of both guides tells you that the PC guide is the most comprehensive guide, and thus the best one. (I have no idea if the X-Box Double Pack guide is based on the PS2 or PC versions, so proceed with caution when getting that one.)

For those of us too in love with GTA3 to give it up but not quite able to get past a few missions, THIS is the book to buy.
No, it will not give you any secret codes or insights that you haven't already thought of. What it DOES do is save you hours of cussing and throwing the controller.
This book gives you mission ojectives in order and detail so that you don't miss any by mistake. Some of the info is just common sense, but after trying to sniper-shoot a dozen guys on a ship before realizing that I could climb the stairs to the building top, I tell ya, this book came to my rescue.
You won't need it for every mission, but i find it useful to keep nearby for when I just get STUCK!! You can cheat and use it BEFORE every mission, or just use it as an aid for when you get really stuck. This book can do all that. It's a nice, solid description of the game. Nothing more...nothing less.

Grand Theft Auto 3 is such a fun game, that even reading about it is fun. I bought this guide in hopes of getting through some of the more serious missions that happen towards the middle of the game. These are the ones where I got wasted on every single attempt. For that purpose, this guide was well worth getting.

The book is very easy to follow, and can be used in a glance when you are mid-mission. It gives the simple details, as well as strategies for completing the missions with as little expense to yourself as possible. It outlines all the missions, including the random ones that get offered throughout the game. It is very useful for someone who likes to discover every little detail in the game. It has full page maps which list all the hot spots, which really helped me when I needed to find Ammunation on Staunton Island. It also gives the locations of all the hidden packages, all the rampages, and all the hidden goodies.

There were a few annoyances with this guide in particular, though. For startes, the icons on the main maps are microscopic. Even for someone with 20/20 vision, making out where the important areas are is difficult. There is also the problem with incorrect information given in the guide. On the mission "A Drop in the Ocean", the book said that I had to pick up 8 packages, but in fact I only needed to get 6. So I spent 20 minutes circling in a boat looking for something that wasn't there.

With a game as big and complex as GTA3, you will probably want a strategy guide so that you can squeeze every last ounce of gamplay out of it. Sure, it's a spoiler, but who cares? A little nudge in the right direction never hurt.

Before I go into the review, what you have to understand about the game is that most of the missions have more than one solution (which is one of the best things about the game.) If you think that the guide will give you the only, or even the best, solutions for the missions, you will be disapponted. Besides, the fun part is to come up with your own unique solution, and to learn from your mistakes.

That being said, the book offers some great things. The maps were very helpful, especially for finding rampages, hidden packages, weapons, and other goodies. Also, in certain missions, where getting around quickly is a must, the strategies included maps of where to go and how to get there the most quickly.

I did notice a few bits of wrong information (such as, what time the BF Injection Buggy would be available,) but overall, it's a worthy purchase. Just don't buy it thinking it will solve all of your missions for you.

The maps and mission hints are great, but if you are counting on it for any of the extra's (unique stunts, hidden packages, rampages), look somewhere else. Several are depicted in the wrong locations on the maps, plus, the icons are so small it's difficult to tell which item is which. Plus, the numbers for the ambulance, vigilante, and fire missions are all wrong.

This guide is almost completely useless. I played through the game on my own and after beating it (took me a month and a half) I got the guide to see all the great things I may have missed. Well getting the guide only let me see all the great things the guide's writers missed. I hardly consider the vigilante and taxi missions secrets since your told about them in the game. This book tells you nothing good ol' trial and error won't teach you, and in fact a lot of their "strategies" weren't even that good. If you have absolutely no desire to use your head then get the guide but be sure to head to some faqs to find all the great secrets that are not mentioned in the guide. Oh yea, the one use is that it does tell the locations of all the hidden packages which is the only thing I use the guide for.

This did great on missions, but it didn't mention the cheat codes or anything like that. But hey, it saved my butt a few times