Grand Theft Auto IV Review (PS3) By Sayed Islam Published: 05/05/08 PrintEmail
What is the American Dream? How do you define the American Dream? To quote Niko Bellic, “This is the American Dream.” By this, I mean Grand Theft Auto IV. Let me get straight to the point: GTA IV is amazing. Previous GTA titles have been ridiculed for their somewhat shallow and redundant premise. Fortunately, that is not the case in GTA IV. Not longer can anyone vilify this GTA game for a lack of originality. This is a vast improvement over previous GTA installments in the franchise. The storyline revolves around the aforementioned protagonist named Niko Bellic. He comes from Russian descent and travels to Liberty City. When he first arrives at Liberty City, he meets his cousin Roman. Roman convinces Niko that he is a fairly affluent man. In actuality, Roman is a struggling man who is in debt. He persuades Niko to come to Liberty City to assist in paying off his bills. The storyline is a perfect rags to riches narrative with plenty of twists and turns. It is a much more engrossing plot than any other GTA game, and the poignant moments are a welcome addition. Gamers will finally be able to delve deeper into the mind of the main character.
Where do I begin with the gameplay? It is virtually immaculate. Accepting missions is done via a cell phone. People will call Niko on his cell phone and provide information. The majority of the time you will get a phone call, and you will be told go somewhere to meet for a briefing. Other times, Niko is given missions straight from the cell phone. The other purpose of the cell phone is to further develop the strong story. Niko could get a message from an ally or his girlfriend. You have the option on whether or not you want to answer phone calls. With that being said, it can pay big dividends to answer phone calls. Establishing a rapport with your comrades can give Niko access to new weapons or a team to aide him on objectives. Although it is not mandatory to befriend others, it is in your best interest to do it. Sometimes, you might want to interact with pedestrians just to learn more about Liberty City. There is a detailed map and a GPS navigation system. Therefore, it is impossible to get lost. If Niko wants to browse the internet, then he can do that. He can check his e-mail or visit various websites. What is intriguing is that it is possible to find a girlfriend online. Ironically enough, finding a girlfriend in GTA IV is significantly easier that finding one on e-harmony. Plus, it is plausible to spend an entire day watching television.
What would a GTA game be without sex with prostitutes? The answer to that question is nothing. Luckily, it is still permissible to have sex with prostitutes. This is done in a similar manner as other GTA games. You pick up a hooker in your car, and you drive her to a secluded location. The difference in this game is the types of sexual acts that you can have. There is a grand total of three things that a prostitute can do in a car. Each sexual favor cost different prices. The prices are $ 20, $ 50, and $ 70. Heading to different places gives Niko multiple activities. The mini games entail throwing darts, going bowling, playing pool, getting lap dances from exotic dancers at a nightclub, and a plethora of other things. Getting intoxicated is another aspect to the gameplay. It becomes conspicuous that doing something as simplistic as walking can be an arduous task while drunk. The camera starts shaking from side to side, and Niko’s driving can be abysmal while being inebriated. For the most part, the objectives have a shoot first and ask questions later approach. That is not necessarily a drawback. The missions feel like a prototypical GTA game, but they are all epic. Gunfights have never been this immersive for a GTA title. One of the most noticeable gripes about GTA on the PlayStation 2 was that locking on an adversary was cumbersome. That has finally been mollified in GTA IV. Holding the right trigger button allows Niko to automatically lock on to a foe, and lightly tapping the right trigger button enables Niko to enter a more precise shooting mode. Yes, it is easier to execute shots to the head with this mode. But you are more vulnerable for an attack. Moving the right analog stick alters the direction of the crosshairs. Novices might want to attempt the automatic lock on feature before the precision firing mode, nonetheless the game can be completed by only using the auto targeting. The implementation of a cover scheme is intuitive. It works in a eerily similar fashion as Gears of War, in that you can plant your back against a solid obstacle and do several things. Once behind cover, Niko can blind fire or peek out of cover and shoot. GTA IV can be finished without utilizing the cover system, but it makes the firefights more entertaining. The artificial intelligence is varied. There are times when the enemies will use cover, and there are times when they will flee. Additionally, there are occurrences when the opponents will just stand out in the open and shoot at Niko. There is no one finite way to successfully accomplish a mission, so there is wiggle room to let your imagination run wild. The five star rating has been tweaked to accommodate a next generation ambiance. In other GTA games, it was easy to circumvent the authorities with a one star wanted level. GTA IV is no exception to that rule. The wanted level is real problematic when it increases to three stars. Extricating Niko from the cops might be the most gratifying part about the gameplay. The car chases are thrilling. There are more cops, and you are more likely to get captured if you are careless. A police chopper hovers above when things get out of control. Niko will have to switch vehicles and get out of the police’s field of vision. It is easier said than done. You can enter a paint shop (ala GTA III) to decrease the wanted level, but it seldom works because the cops are usually looking. The best course of action is to stay out of sight of the colorful circle on the radar. Weaponry is the standard GTA gear. Niko will have shotguns, grenades, assault rifles, sniper rifles, and many other weapons in his repertoire.
The visuals are stunning. Clearly, Liberty City was inspired by a real life version of New York City. The tall sky scrapers, taxi cabs, and the inclement weather conditions oozes The Big Apple. Speaking of weather, the locals will act accordingly. For instance, raining will cause people to use umbrellas. Even the buildings have a distinct designation to them; however, there is a limitation to the number of buildings you can enter. The bulk of the buildings cannot be entered. Some locations vary from others. For example, wealthy areas will have more elegant civilians. Conversely, poor places will have people living in poverty. One thing that is subtle is that there will actually be car accidents that have nothing to do with you. This is something that just was not seen in previous GTA adaptations. It does not stop there. There can also be bumper to bumper traffic depending on the time of day. Liberty City feels like such a realistic city. The architecture, the graffiti, the police, the cars, and other elements all contribute to the brilliant atmosphere. The one minor blunder are the character models. It does not exactly scream next generation, but it is an insignificant problem. Frame rate is solid across the board, and the load times are scarce. Textures and environments are rich in detail. Animations are gorgeous, as you will view Niko lean forward when he slams the brakes in his car. Running people over will cause their bodies to fly all over the place.
The audio in RockStar games have always been exemplary, and that same rule applies in GTA IV. There is music that boasts a myriad of songs that can be heard in the car radio. Hip hop, rap, metal, rock, country, and pop are merely a few of the bevy of music genres hearable. You name it; GTA IV has it. The list of tracks is diverse. Moreover, players will hear advertisements over the radio. Likewise, there is gameplay music that complements the action on the screen nicely. The dialogue is absolutely excellent. It is whimsical and enjoyable in every way. This is enhanced by the excellent voice acting. The protagonist Niko sounds like Jean Reno from the film The Professional. Each character is one of a kind. You will not hear the same lines recycled. The dialogue is so incredibly written that you will care for these individuals.
I have not even begun to discuss the multiplayer. There are two multiplayer modes: cooperative play and non-cooperative play. The multiplayer supports up to sixteen players via PlayStation Network or Xbox Live. Every inch of Liberty City is available in the multiplayer. A few of the multiplayer modes include death match and team death match. The customization is endless. There is a mode called free mode, and you will create as much destruction as you possibly can in this mode. I have only started to scratch the surface. There are races and a mode similar to the multiplayer mode in Kane & Lynch: Dead Men. This mode entails one team being cops and the other team being criminals. The criminals are striving to capture an exact area on the map, and the police is making a conscious effort to prevent the criminals from doing that. Cooperative play supports up to four players, but there is no real incentive to play through this mode. All you do to try to bolster your rank, nevertheless it is nothing special. The lag time is minimal online, so it never disrupts the gameplay.
There is sex, drugs, violence, and profanity. What else do you need? Overall, Grand Theft Auto IV is without a doubt the best GTA game in the series. The only thing left to say is kudos to Rock Star for another job well done.
Console: PS3 Release Date: Apr 29, 2008 Publisher: Rockstar Games Developer: Rockstar North Genre: Thrid Person Shooter Number of Players: 1-2 Online Capable? Yes
Ratings
Overall: 10 The only thing left to say is kudos to Rock Star for another job well done.
Graphics: 9.9 Stunning environments, but the charters look somewhat odd.
Sound: 10 The audio in Rock Star games have always been exemplary, and that same rule applies in GTA IV.
Presentation: 10 The storyline is a perfect rags to riches narrative with plenty of twist and turns.
Gameplay: 10 There is sex, drugs, violence, and profanity. What else do you need?
Replay Value: 10 Words cannot express how pleasant the multiplayer is.
What is the American Dream? How do you define the American Dream? To quote Niko Bellic, “This is the American Dream.” By this, I mean Grand Theft Auto IV. Let me get straight to the point: GTA IV is amazing. Previous GTA titles have been ridiculed for their somewhat shallow and redundant premise. Fortunately, that is not the case in GTA IV. Not longer can anyone vilify this GTA game for a lack of originality. This is a vast improvement over previous GTA installments in the franchise. The storyline revolves around the aforementioned protagonist named Niko Bellic. He comes from Russian descent and travels to Liberty City. When he first arrives at Liberty City, he meets his cousin Roman. Roman convinces Niko that he is a fairly affluent man. In actuality, Roman is a struggling man who is in debt. He persuades Niko to come to Liberty City to assist in paying off his bills. The storyline is a perfect rags to riches narrative with plenty of twists and turns. It is a much more engrossing plot than any other GTA game, and the poignant moments are a welcome addition. Gamers will finally be able to delve deeper into the mind of the main character.
