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Product Description
Platform: Xbox 360 | Edition: Standard
What does the American Dream mean today?For Niko Bellic, fresh off the boat from Europe, it is the hope he can escape his past. For his cousin, Roman, it is the vision that together they can find fortune in Liberty City, gateway to the land of opportunity. As they slip into debt and are dragged into a criminal underworld by a series of shysters, thieves and sociopaths, they discover that the reality is very different from the dream in a city that worships money and status, and is heaven for those who have them and a living nightmare for those who don’t.Beginning with the 1997 release of the original Grand Theft Auto, the GTA series has been one of the most prolific, controversial and down right entertaining franchises in video games history. This pedigree of success guarantees that the highly anticipated eleventh game in the series, Grand Theft Auto IV, will garner at least as much attention if not more.
The Plot
Grand Theft Auto IV is a brand new adventure in the GTA universe following the experiences of Nikolai "Niko" Bellic, a new immigrant from an undisclosed eastern European country whose troubled pa st and the persuasion of his cousin Roman have brought him to the fictional Liberty City. Unfortunately, Niko’s search for the American Dream and a much needed fresh start, hits an immediate snag when the rags to riches story Roman spun to pique Niko's interest is exposed as not only a complete fabrication, but a ploy to enlist Niko’s well-known skills as a tough guy against the ample list of enemies clamoring for Roman’s debt-ridden blood. Because Roman is the only person Niko knows in Liberty City he begrudgingly accepts his role as Roman’s protector despite the deception. But as time goes on Niko comes into his own, and his experience on the wrong side of the tracks proves more valuable than he could have ever imagined as he fights for survival and later supremacy on the crime ridden streets of Liberty City.Game Environments
Based on several of the boroughs of New York City and parts of New Jersey, Liberty City, familiar to players of previous games in the series, has been entirely redesigned for GTA IV. Players can expect visible detail down to the weeds growing in the cracks in the sidewalk, cars and buildings of visibly different ages and a much greater level if verticality in the buildings and bridges that they are able to explore as Niko moves through the city streets. In addition, pedestrians in GTA IV are much more realistic. No longer simply moving cardboard cutouts, these NPCs are intelligent, modern, human representations that laugh, cry, eat, drink, use cell phones and ATMs, and talking amongst themselves regardless of Niko’s interaction with them. Gameplay
Historically GTA games have focused heavily on mission-based play, requiring successful completion of fixed tasks in order for players to progress through the game, but this has changed to a great extent in GTA IV. Players will experience an entirely new and exciting emphasis centered on the blending of on-mission and off-mission play, resulting not only in an increased sense of realism, but more interesting and unrestricted gameplay. Features
Aside from the car jacking and a detailed city environment here are the new features for GTA IV:
Give Niko a rest and create your own multiplayer "hero." GTA has added multiplayer modes allowing you to take your creation out to play online in competitive, co-op, and free form modes. Competitive mode has you fighting against the cops, jacking cars, or racing to finish odd jobs. Co-op challenges you and your friends with various tasks including Hangman's NOOSE where you are responsible for escorting a wanted kingpin to a safe extraction point. Freeform lets you and 15 others lose on Liberty City. Use this mode to hit up the bar and play virtual darts versus each other or head out to the streets and set up your own drag races. If you can dream it, you can do it in Freeform mode. ZiT: We'll Spot The Song For You
When playing Grand Theft Auto IV, if you hear a song that you are interested in buying as an MP3, all you have to do is dial ZiT-555-0100 on your in-game mobile phone and a text message will be sent to you with the name of the artist and the title of the track. The next time you log in at the Rockstar Games Social Club, you will find 30-second previews of all the songs you have ZiT'ed while playing the game. You can add them to your basket there and click to purchase at Amazon MP3, or you can find them all at www.amazon.com/gtamusic.
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Grand Theft Auto IV is a brand new adventure in the GTA universe following the experiences of Nikolai "Niko" Bellic, a new immigrant from an undisclosed eastern European country whose troubled pa st and the persuasion of his cousin Roman have brought him to the fictional Liberty City. Unfortunately, Niko’s search for the American Dream and a much needed fresh start, hits an immediate snag when the rags to riches story Roman spun to pique Niko's interest is exposed as not only a complete fabrication, but a ploy to enlist Niko’s well-known skills as a tough guy against the ample list of enemies clamoring for Roman’s debt-ridden blood. Because Roman is the only person Niko knows in Liberty City he begrudgingly accepts his role as Roman’s protector despite the deception. But as time goes on Niko comes into his own, and his experience on the wrong side of the tracks proves more valuable than he could have ever imagined as he fights for survival and later supremacy on the crime ridden streets of Liberty City.Game Environments
Based on several of the boroughs of New York City and parts of New Jersey, Liberty City, familiar to players of previous games in the series, has been entirely redesigned for GTA IV. Players can expect visible detail down to the weeds growing in the cracks in the sidewalk, cars and buildings of visibly different ages and a much greater level if verticality in the buildings and bridges that they are able to explore as Niko moves through the city streets. In addition, pedestrians in GTA IV are much more realistic. No longer simply moving cardboard cutouts, these NPCs are intelligent, modern, human representations that laugh, cry, eat, drink, use cell phones and ATMs, and talking amongst themselves regardless of Niko’s interaction with them. Gameplay
Historically GTA games have focused heavily on mission-based play, requiring successful completion of fixed tasks in order for players to progress through the game, but this has changed to a great extent in GTA IV. Players will experience an entirely new and exciting emphasis centered on the blending of on-mission and off-mission play, resulting not only in an increased sense of realism, but more interesting and unrestricted gameplay. Features
Aside from the car jacking and a detailed city environment here are the new features for GTA IV:
- Improved combat system - Now you can use cover and also a target lock system, which allows you to take out targets with greater ease and accuracy. Plus, you can engage in some hand-to-hand combat if you can't get your hands on a piece quick enough.
- Cell phone - Not just for basic phone calls anymore. Use your in-game cell phone to receive missions via SMS, snap photos, and ZiT (tag) songs that can be downloaded exclusively on Amazon.com/mp3.
- Free time - In between missions you can take advantage of "me" time. There are gentleman's clubs, comedy clubs, bowling alleys, and bars, which all house unique activities.
- Take a break from the storyline - A variety of side missions allow you to help run a car service, "borrow" cop cars, assassinate targets, help solve problems for those on the street, or take to the air with stunt jumps that are scattered all over the city.
- Control your own fate - Throughout the game choice moments will arrive causing you to make a decision that will affect relationships and money.
Give Niko a rest and create your own multiplayer "hero." GTA has added multiplayer modes allowing you to take your creation out to play online in competitive, co-op, and free form modes. Competitive mode has you fighting against the cops, jacking cars, or racing to finish odd jobs. Co-op challenges you and your friends with various tasks including Hangman's NOOSE where you are responsible for escorting a wanted kingpin to a safe extraction point. Freeform lets you and 15 others lose on Liberty City. Use this mode to hit up the bar and play virtual darts versus each other or head out to the streets and set up your own drag races. If you can dream it, you can do it in Freeform mode. ZiT: We'll Spot The Song For You
When playing Grand Theft Auto IV, if you hear a song that you are interested in buying as an MP3, all you have to do is dial ZiT-555-0100 on your in-game mobile phone and a text message will be sent to you with the name of the artist and the title of the track. The next time you log in at the Rockstar Games Social Club, you will find 30-second previews of all the songs you have ZiT'ed while playing the game. You can add them to your basket there and click to purchase at Amazon MP3, or you can find them all at www.amazon.com/gtamusic.
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Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
189 of 230 people found the following review helpful
Platform for Display:Xbox 360|Edition:Standard
Fun:
5.0 out of 5 stars
I adore the GTA series and have been looking forward to the release of GTA IV for a *long* time. The developers know that a very high bar would be set for this one, and you can see the time and effort they poured into every last detail from the very first moment of the opening credits. It is more like a movie than a game. This "immersive movie" quality stays with you through every moment of gameplay.
You walk down the street and the shadows dapple through the overhead bridge grid. Dusk begins to fall and the sky gets that orange golden glow, the shadows lessen.
Voices show the same attention to detail. You've got a variety of languages thrown in, plus accents galore. There's the Long Island drawl, the Rastafarian's lilt, and of course the hard edge of eastern Europe.
Your main character is Nico, fresh off the boat and coming in to Liberty City (i.e. New York City) to see his cousin Roman. They are eastern European and rather poor. This of course is going to change soon, as Nico moves his way up in the world.
My boyfriend's from New York City so we were amused at how they kept the landscapes identical but renamed Brooklyn to Broker, Manhattan to Algonquin and so on. There was one time we were walking down the streets and had lost track of where we were. "Looks like the Bronx" he commented off-handedly. We zoomed out. Sure enough!
I do have to say that the people on the streets of this game swear far more than the average people we pass in the real NYC though!
Which brings up an important point. GTA IV went straight for the "Mature" rating with this one. This is clearly meant for mature gamers ages 17 and over. There are strip clubs. There are violent battles. There is more swearing than pretty much any other game out there. Adults love this as they love the Sopranos and Scarface - but any parent getting this for a minor should know what they're getting into.
But that being said, as a game for adults, this is *awesome*. There are just so many little touches that shine. You can play bowling games with your date. You can make choices between alternate choices which affect how people feel about you. When you get near a railing, you can side jump over it, smoothly. You carry a cell phone and gather contacts for use. You can visit internet cafes. You have a variety of radio stations to listen to, plus TV stations to watch.
This is easily a game you can play for hundreds of hours - then go back and start over again and get another new experience by making different choices.
I can't get over how gorgeous the game is, and how smoothly it plays. You grab a knife from an enemy and use it to take him down. You drive along the Hudson and watch the lights of the carnival shine. You listen to your favorite songs on the radio while the neon lights of the city drift by. You really begin to relate to the characters, to understand their personalities, to connect with them. It makes the choices you make have meaning and emotion.
As much as I adore many other games - Halo, Mass Effect, etc. - I really think this is the first game that makes you feel that you are in a movie. The graphics draw you in. The voices are amazingly well done and varied. The plot draws you in, having you wonder who to trust, having you wonder what is going on with the characters.
Highly recommended. I'm doing a full walkthrough for the game so feel free to ask any questions you wish!
I want to add a note - some players are having trouble with understanding the dialogue. I watch a ton of international films so I didn't have any issues. However, if some of the language is too accented for you, there is a subtitles option. Just turn that on and you'll always know what they are saying.
You walk down the street and the shadows dapple through the overhead bridge grid. Dusk begins to fall and the sky gets that orange golden glow, the shadows lessen.
Voices show the same attention to detail. You've got a variety of languages thrown in, plus accents galore. There's the Long Island drawl, the Rastafarian's lilt, and of course the hard edge of eastern Europe.
Your main character is Nico, fresh off the boat and coming in to Liberty City (i.e. New York City) to see his cousin Roman. They are eastern European and rather poor. This of course is going to change soon, as Nico moves his way up in the world.
My boyfriend's from New York City so we were amused at how they kept the landscapes identical but renamed Brooklyn to Broker, Manhattan to Algonquin and so on. There was one time we were walking down the streets and had lost track of where we were. "Looks like the Bronx" he commented off-handedly. We zoomed out. Sure enough!
I do have to say that the people on the streets of this game swear far more than the average people we pass in the real NYC though!
Which brings up an important point. GTA IV went straight for the "Mature" rating with this one. This is clearly meant for mature gamers ages 17 and over. There are strip clubs. There are violent battles. There is more swearing than pretty much any other game out there. Adults love this as they love the Sopranos and Scarface - but any parent getting this for a minor should know what they're getting into.
But that being said, as a game for adults, this is *awesome*. There are just so many little touches that shine. You can play bowling games with your date. You can make choices between alternate choices which affect how people feel about you. When you get near a railing, you can side jump over it, smoothly. You carry a cell phone and gather contacts for use. You can visit internet cafes. You have a variety of radio stations to listen to, plus TV stations to watch.
This is easily a game you can play for hundreds of hours - then go back and start over again and get another new experience by making different choices.
I can't get over how gorgeous the game is, and how smoothly it plays. You grab a knife from an enemy and use it to take him down. You drive along the Hudson and watch the lights of the carnival shine. You listen to your favorite songs on the radio while the neon lights of the city drift by. You really begin to relate to the characters, to understand their personalities, to connect with them. It makes the choices you make have meaning and emotion.
As much as I adore many other games - Halo, Mass Effect, etc. - I really think this is the first game that makes you feel that you are in a movie. The graphics draw you in. The voices are amazingly well done and varied. The plot draws you in, having you wonder who to trust, having you wonder what is going on with the characters.
Highly recommended. I'm doing a full walkthrough for the game so feel free to ask any questions you wish!
I want to add a note - some players are having trouble with understanding the dialogue. I watch a ton of international films so I didn't have any issues. However, if some of the language is too accented for you, there is a subtitles option. Just turn that on and you'll always know what they are saying.
41 of 49 people found the following review helpful
By Raul Duke
Platform for Display:Xbox 360|Edition:Standard
Fun:
5.0 out of 5 stars
9.25/10
When Grand Theft Auto III came out(the reason i got a PS2 way back in 2001), i knew something great was in the mix. it was a sign of change in the gaming industry. it showed us there could be more to games than levels, more than high scores, and more than even a good story. it showed us a virtual world you could become totally engulfed in(outside of RPG's). a world where you could go anywhere and do anything(although that was just mostly stealing cars and shooting pedestrians in those days). over the years they've made some serious improvements, from the bikes and helicopters of vice city, to the jets and ability to duck and roll/ manually aim in san andreas(finally!) and now their first venture onto this generation has finally arrived, and its a great day in the gaming world
the series continues to awe with this installment, even in this day and age in video games. Graphically speaking, it is simply beautiful. its amazing how much attention went into every aspect of this world. theres cracks and pot holes ranging in depth in the road, and varying curb heights. vehicle damage is very impressive, from dents and scratches to a hole for each bullet that hits. the lighting system is amazing, with day/night cycles and a rotating sun throughout the day. naturally the game doesnt have the detail of say Call of Duty 4, but you could fit like 50 Call of Duty 4 maps in this city! its that huge. you have to take the size of a game into consideration when rating the graphics, thats been a given for how long now?? just to clear things up for the clowns complaining the graphics.
when you walk out the door theres so much to be done you might want to keep a checklist for the days. although what you actually choose to do is up to you. causing chaos is always an option. you can go bowling, play pool, play darts, get drunk, go to a srip club, get some food, check out the in game internet, and tons more. you could always just surf the channels on your TV.
your cell phone is a pivotal part of the game. you can call friends and girlfriends for various activities(some are listed above), and if you neglect them for long enough, they'll call you. you can also call potential employers for jobs.
theres the standard "go kill this guy" and "go get this" but they have been very entertaining anyway so far. theres much more depth to many missions, including stealth. one example is having to steal a cop car, then proceed to pull over different shipping trucks until you find the one full of TV's.
gameplay is vastly improved. the cover system is great, allowing you to quickly roll and protect yourself behind random cars, trash cans, and basically anything else thats big enough.
the game has a much more realistic feel than previous entries. you'll find yourself making sure theres no cops around before committing crimes. the star system is still here, but this time your wanted level is radius based, and if you can get far enough away from all cops, or at leased out of sight, your wanted level will go down. its honestly genius. i narrowly escaped one by jumping the guard rail and running down a steep hill, only to see another driving my way in the distance. quickly ducking into the alley behind a dumpster, i watched him roll by and waited for my stars to begin to fade. some cars are locked and you'll need to break a window to get in and proceed to hotwire it.
-for all you parents out there, the content is more mature than previous entries. you get a pretty good look at the in-car action with the street workers.. hehe.. and "coarse" language is used every couple minutes(at leased). the violence and blood looks more realistic now too. thats usually not what you guys worry about so much though.
my only real complaints are the hand to hand combat(its the most solid of the series but San Andreas seemed to have more move depth), and the fact that you cant go into more buildings. dont get me wrong, theres TONS of places to go and things to do, but i was hoping for even more. there have been waaay too many things that made San Andreas great and were simply missing here. no car customization, less clothes, less weapons, no property to buy, and more.. in some ways its one step forward and two steps back.
i wont elaborate on the story much, as its already been done heavily. basically your an illegal immigrant from eastern europe. your cousin convinced you to come to America with his stories of mansions and sports cars. when you arrive things arent quite as described. you start in the darkest, grittiest part of Liberty City. a pocket full of change and a head full or dreams. what happens next is in your hands..
When Grand Theft Auto III came out(the reason i got a PS2 way back in 2001), i knew something great was in the mix. it was a sign of change in the gaming industry. it showed us there could be more to games than levels, more than high scores, and more than even a good story. it showed us a virtual world you could become totally engulfed in(outside of RPG's). a world where you could go anywhere and do anything(although that was just mostly stealing cars and shooting pedestrians in those days). over the years they've made some serious improvements, from the bikes and helicopters of vice city, to the jets and ability to duck and roll/ manually aim in san andreas(finally!) and now their first venture onto this generation has finally arrived, and its a great day in the gaming world
the series continues to awe with this installment, even in this day and age in video games. Graphically speaking, it is simply beautiful. its amazing how much attention went into every aspect of this world. theres cracks and pot holes ranging in depth in the road, and varying curb heights. vehicle damage is very impressive, from dents and scratches to a hole for each bullet that hits. the lighting system is amazing, with day/night cycles and a rotating sun throughout the day. naturally the game doesnt have the detail of say Call of Duty 4, but you could fit like 50 Call of Duty 4 maps in this city! its that huge. you have to take the size of a game into consideration when rating the graphics, thats been a given for how long now?? just to clear things up for the clowns complaining the graphics.
when you walk out the door theres so much to be done you might want to keep a checklist for the days. although what you actually choose to do is up to you. causing chaos is always an option. you can go bowling, play pool, play darts, get drunk, go to a srip club, get some food, check out the in game internet, and tons more. you could always just surf the channels on your TV.
your cell phone is a pivotal part of the game. you can call friends and girlfriends for various activities(some are listed above), and if you neglect them for long enough, they'll call you. you can also call potential employers for jobs.
theres the standard "go kill this guy" and "go get this" but they have been very entertaining anyway so far. theres much more depth to many missions, including stealth. one example is having to steal a cop car, then proceed to pull over different shipping trucks until you find the one full of TV's.
gameplay is vastly improved. the cover system is great, allowing you to quickly roll and protect yourself behind random cars, trash cans, and basically anything else thats big enough.
the game has a much more realistic feel than previous entries. you'll find yourself making sure theres no cops around before committing crimes. the star system is still here, but this time your wanted level is radius based, and if you can get far enough away from all cops, or at leased out of sight, your wanted level will go down. its honestly genius. i narrowly escaped one by jumping the guard rail and running down a steep hill, only to see another driving my way in the distance. quickly ducking into the alley behind a dumpster, i watched him roll by and waited for my stars to begin to fade. some cars are locked and you'll need to break a window to get in and proceed to hotwire it.
-for all you parents out there, the content is more mature than previous entries. you get a pretty good look at the in-car action with the street workers.. hehe.. and "coarse" language is used every couple minutes(at leased). the violence and blood looks more realistic now too. thats usually not what you guys worry about so much though.
my only real complaints are the hand to hand combat(its the most solid of the series but San Andreas seemed to have more move depth), and the fact that you cant go into more buildings. dont get me wrong, theres TONS of places to go and things to do, but i was hoping for even more. there have been waaay too many things that made San Andreas great and were simply missing here. no car customization, less clothes, less weapons, no property to buy, and more.. in some ways its one step forward and two steps back.
i wont elaborate on the story much, as its already been done heavily. basically your an illegal immigrant from eastern europe. your cousin convinced you to come to America with his stories of mansions and sports cars. when you arrive things arent quite as described. you start in the darkest, grittiest part of Liberty City. a pocket full of change and a head full or dreams. what happens next is in your hands..
50 of 65 people found the following review helpful
Platform for Display:Xbox 360|Edition:Standard
Fun:
3.0 out of 5 stars
Before I start ranting, I just want to say that GTA4, as a game of its own, is actually quite good, but as a GTA game, it has shortcomings. So Let's kick this review off right.
Graphics: GTA4 has rather well defined graphics. It is definitely much better from it's predecessors. Among many of the improvements graphically; people in the car actually move as they speak, blood stains actually appear on your car if you hit people, hitting newspaper stands actually cause newspapers to go flying everywhere, and some of the text on those flying newspapers is actually legible. So, suffice it to say, GTA is graphically a good game. Is it as good as all the other games out there, not really, but it is an open ended gameplay where you can go anywhere, and as far as that goes, it is pretty great.
Glitches: The game has quite a few glitches, as most of them do, which cause random events from a car to start flying in circles to your legs falling through the floor. It is expected in most games of this style I suppose, but is worth mentioning that these are no fewer than any previous GTA Game.
Setting: Taking place in a new liberty city similar to New York, the game offers little in the ways of variety. You go from tight closed off streets with big buildings to tight closed off streets with really big buildings. It is a bit claustrophobic, giving you very little room to just drive and speed up to top speed. San Andreas was expansive, giving you three cities completely different in appearance, numerous small towns, mountains, forests, and deserts. 4 gives you one city, nothing else.
Car Gameplay: The cars in this game seem much more difficult to control, was this done for realism sake, I am not sure. However, sometimes, some cars have incredibly poor traction and put you into terrible accidents when you think you have plenty of time to stop. It is hard to tell which cars are better, as appearance doesn't always suggest driving style. A couple of added things kind of make the gameplay funner. Most park cars are locked now, so you actually break the window, unlock the car, then actually hotwire it, You can speed up hotwiring, but it usually doesn't take more than a couple seconds anyway. Also, you can receive damage, fly out the window shield, die in fatal accidents, drive drunk (which always gets a cop on your tail) and even have a car die and won't start up again. However, many of these events seem random, and you can ram a building at 50 miles an hour and recieve no damage, or hit a fence and 25 miles an hour, fly our your window shield, and have you car land on you. So that kind of sucks.
Person Gameplay: On a surplus, you can now use cover and hide behind stuff, also peaking out from behind cover to shoot an opponent. You also have a new melee system, which includes kick, punch, and block combos. It isn't much better than the original system, but it does give you a bit more control over what you are doing to your opponent. However, once you get a couple guns, this becomes almost irrelevant anyway. Everything else is just about the same from previous games.
Story: The story is OK. I can't say I feel too passionate about the protagonist, who just doesn't appeal to me as much as the GTA3 + characters, who were frequently hilarious and likable. Niko revenge story does not seem as passionate as GTA3, and that guy was a mute. He lacks the ambition of VC character, and SA did a better job of displaying that protagonists goals and ideals(protecting his home and family). Besides that, it seems less humorous and more serious of a story. It still has all the jokes from the previous GTAs, I can't really put my finger on it, but everything in this one just seems more serious. One reviewer believes that this is GTA with a conscious, which I kind of agree with, maybe groups put pressure on Rockstar to make them show the consequences of your actions, since it seems like you're constantly being reminded that killing, drunk driving, and prostitution are bad.
The Extras: This is where I feel the game fell. Had this game been the direct sequel from GTA III, I probably would have been a lot easier on it, but VC and SA existed, and this game almost seems to have forgotten that fact. This game almost seems like a stripped version of it's predecessors. No gang wars, no gambling, no owning businesses, no car collections. Flying has almost been cut out of this game, although I can't imagine why, it was such a successful feature. Fighting on a flying plane, then para shooting out was the coolest thing ever, not to mention stealing a harrier jet from a battleship. The girlfriend thing from SA was added to, making normal friends too. This is worse, as you now have to maintain relationships with not only your gfs, but any friend you make as well. I also believe the "sex scenes" you get at the end of the date are toned down a bit. I dislike where Rockstar is going with this game, it almost as if they want to take the open part out of open game. They keep you caught up with their characters with frequent cellphone calls, rather than letting you initiate your own sidequests by setting in the right vehicle or shiny circle.
Sum it Up: So in general, this game is a worthy sequel to GTA III... as long as you pretend SA and VC did not exist. It cuts out way too much content added in the last two (what do you call them, expansion packs?). Why they felt the need to cut so much? Or did they feel they had to to make room for more graphics? If so, I would pick side missions and content over graphics any day.
One more beef that bugged me endlessly, they cut out hidden packages and replaced it with flying rats that you can shoot. That was a good idea, but the thing is, you don't get anything unless you shoot all 200, which gets you an achievement (big whoop) and a pop up for just about the only flying thing in the game (helicopter). I always depended on those items that pop up have 10, 30, 50 packages. Just knowing that if I got arrested or used up my ammo, that I always had a store at my place was great. This just bites, what horrible thing happened to Rockstar, whom created a nearly perfect game with San Andreas, feel they needed to take a chainsaw to the game and cut out all of its charm. Oh well, I hope that answers your questions and helps your decision in getting GTA 4.
Graphics: GTA4 has rather well defined graphics. It is definitely much better from it's predecessors. Among many of the improvements graphically; people in the car actually move as they speak, blood stains actually appear on your car if you hit people, hitting newspaper stands actually cause newspapers to go flying everywhere, and some of the text on those flying newspapers is actually legible. So, suffice it to say, GTA is graphically a good game. Is it as good as all the other games out there, not really, but it is an open ended gameplay where you can go anywhere, and as far as that goes, it is pretty great.
Glitches: The game has quite a few glitches, as most of them do, which cause random events from a car to start flying in circles to your legs falling through the floor. It is expected in most games of this style I suppose, but is worth mentioning that these are no fewer than any previous GTA Game.
Setting: Taking place in a new liberty city similar to New York, the game offers little in the ways of variety. You go from tight closed off streets with big buildings to tight closed off streets with really big buildings. It is a bit claustrophobic, giving you very little room to just drive and speed up to top speed. San Andreas was expansive, giving you three cities completely different in appearance, numerous small towns, mountains, forests, and deserts. 4 gives you one city, nothing else.
Car Gameplay: The cars in this game seem much more difficult to control, was this done for realism sake, I am not sure. However, sometimes, some cars have incredibly poor traction and put you into terrible accidents when you think you have plenty of time to stop. It is hard to tell which cars are better, as appearance doesn't always suggest driving style. A couple of added things kind of make the gameplay funner. Most park cars are locked now, so you actually break the window, unlock the car, then actually hotwire it, You can speed up hotwiring, but it usually doesn't take more than a couple seconds anyway. Also, you can receive damage, fly out the window shield, die in fatal accidents, drive drunk (which always gets a cop on your tail) and even have a car die and won't start up again. However, many of these events seem random, and you can ram a building at 50 miles an hour and recieve no damage, or hit a fence and 25 miles an hour, fly our your window shield, and have you car land on you. So that kind of sucks.
Person Gameplay: On a surplus, you can now use cover and hide behind stuff, also peaking out from behind cover to shoot an opponent. You also have a new melee system, which includes kick, punch, and block combos. It isn't much better than the original system, but it does give you a bit more control over what you are doing to your opponent. However, once you get a couple guns, this becomes almost irrelevant anyway. Everything else is just about the same from previous games.
Story: The story is OK. I can't say I feel too passionate about the protagonist, who just doesn't appeal to me as much as the GTA3 + characters, who were frequently hilarious and likable. Niko revenge story does not seem as passionate as GTA3, and that guy was a mute. He lacks the ambition of VC character, and SA did a better job of displaying that protagonists goals and ideals(protecting his home and family). Besides that, it seems less humorous and more serious of a story. It still has all the jokes from the previous GTAs, I can't really put my finger on it, but everything in this one just seems more serious. One reviewer believes that this is GTA with a conscious, which I kind of agree with, maybe groups put pressure on Rockstar to make them show the consequences of your actions, since it seems like you're constantly being reminded that killing, drunk driving, and prostitution are bad.
The Extras: This is where I feel the game fell. Had this game been the direct sequel from GTA III, I probably would have been a lot easier on it, but VC and SA existed, and this game almost seems to have forgotten that fact. This game almost seems like a stripped version of it's predecessors. No gang wars, no gambling, no owning businesses, no car collections. Flying has almost been cut out of this game, although I can't imagine why, it was such a successful feature. Fighting on a flying plane, then para shooting out was the coolest thing ever, not to mention stealing a harrier jet from a battleship. The girlfriend thing from SA was added to, making normal friends too. This is worse, as you now have to maintain relationships with not only your gfs, but any friend you make as well. I also believe the "sex scenes" you get at the end of the date are toned down a bit. I dislike where Rockstar is going with this game, it almost as if they want to take the open part out of open game. They keep you caught up with their characters with frequent cellphone calls, rather than letting you initiate your own sidequests by setting in the right vehicle or shiny circle.
Sum it Up: So in general, this game is a worthy sequel to GTA III... as long as you pretend SA and VC did not exist. It cuts out way too much content added in the last two (what do you call them, expansion packs?). Why they felt the need to cut so much? Or did they feel they had to to make room for more graphics? If so, I would pick side missions and content over graphics any day.
One more beef that bugged me endlessly, they cut out hidden packages and replaced it with flying rats that you can shoot. That was a good idea, but the thing is, you don't get anything unless you shoot all 200, which gets you an achievement (big whoop) and a pop up for just about the only flying thing in the game (helicopter). I always depended on those items that pop up have 10, 30, 50 packages. Just knowing that if I got arrested or used up my ammo, that I always had a store at my place was great. This just bites, what horrible thing happened to Rockstar, whom created a nearly perfect game with San Andreas, feel they needed to take a chainsaw to the game and cut out all of its charm. Oh well, I hope that answers your questions and helps your decision in getting GTA 4.
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