Genre: First-Person Action Adventure Number of Players: 1-16 Online
Meet Nico Bellic, the star of GTA IV and your new persona in the world of GTA IV. The first thing you’ll notice about Nico is the level of detail in the character model compared to previous GTA stars. Rockstar spent quite a bit of time polishing the appearance of this character to convey his life’s journey to this point. That is to say you can almost tell his life’s story just by looking at him. And that story is of an Eastern European exile that has seen darker things than most people can imagine. But this game isn’t about Nico’s past. It’s about his future… here in Liberty City. And that future starts now with Nico’s “on-the-brink” cousin Roman.
But you don’t want me to tell you the story. That’s a big part of the game and something you should experience, not read about. And experience it you will with a well written script worthy of being lumped in with the likes of Casino, Goodfellas, or even the Departed. Liberty City provides the perfect backdrop for the story as well. The busy city really feels like it is alive around you. Gone are the NPCs who move around like mentally-handicapped robots. In their place are citizens who go about their lives in a realistic manner as if they really have places to go, things to do, and people to see. Once you walk through Liberty City and see joggers pass by in the park, ambulances arrive to care for victims, and people generally being people, you’ll almost wonder if someone is controlling these NPCs. It should also be noted that bodies respond a little more realistically as well, once dead, thanks to the new ragdoll physics engine. No doubt the extremely strange will spend hours making bodies flop around for fun thanks to this. But it’s not just the people, but the overall visual feel of the city that makes it all seem so realistic.
The gameplay in GTA IV has gotten a complete overhaul. This is evidenced best in the pedestrian game. Running around on foot no longer feels like an afterthought addition to the game. The camera still suffers from the same issues of poor maneuvering in small spaces, but still provides a better third person perspective than in previous GTA titles. Although you can tell that Rockstar still feels that driving should be the main mode of transportation.
Gunplay is also improved with a much better auto-targeting system that feels smoother and actually makes shootouts fun. The much-hyped cover system is just that; hyped. While it works and allows for shootouts to be lengthened a bit with some cover strategy, don’t expect anything along the lines of Gears of War. It’s definitely a nice start though and I look forward to seeing the cover-system improved over the next ten games between now and GTA V if Rockstar’s past is any indication of milking this franchise.
GTA IV also has plenty of little modern conveniences tossed into it to make the game feel like a real world. These aren’t just goofy little things like the laptop in Madden’s Superstar mode. These devices – ranging from GPS to online dating services – actually play a part in the gameplay. One of the handiest devices is your cellie, which allows you to restart missions via text message. This will save you a lot of time. Trust me.
Visually GTA IV looks pretty good. But I honestly have to say I was disappointed once I popped it in. After months of capturing, editing, and posting these fantastic screenshots, I just didn’t feel like it was all that great looking. Does it look impressive compared to previous GTA games? Oh hell yes! But so do many XBLA games now-a-days. Gone are the odd color palettes and blocky models; replaced with shiny new graphics which do a great job, but just don’t look great. GTA has never been a franchise to make you say “wow” based on graphics, and that still seems to be the case. The city however almost reaches the “wow” point based on all the little details throughout it. But the vehicles and characters (besides Nico) just bring the graphics score down since Rockstar didn’t pay as much attention to them. Maybe they tried and were limited. Maybe they figured gamers had grown accustomed to GTA’s “style” of graphics. Either way, the graphics just don’t live up to the rest of the game, or the graphics Rockstar showed peple in screenshots for that matter.
GTA’s sound makes up for some of the short-comings you’ll find in the graphics. The game’s voice actors provide a pretty high level dialog for a videogame, but there’s still a gap between the acting in GTA IV and a “skin-a-max” flick. This really isn’t even the game’s fault because the writers are forced to over explain emotions and situations in conversations since the characters’ faces can’t really convey the emotion necessary to drive the story. But for the most part, the dialog does a fine job of supporting the game and keeping things moving along. Despite the minor drawback of the dialog, the game still has the overall feel of a movie in many respects. Even the soundtrack (constantly evolving) seems to be almost of movie quality. The music may be a high point for many gamers in fact.
Ok, so this game has some big additions to it, but none are bigger than the new multiplayer experience. With multiple variations of deathmatch, racing, and co-op missions, you’re getting a lot of online content added to a pretty good game. Don’t walk into the multiplayer thinking it will be as in-depth or compelling as Call of Duty 4 and you’ll enjoy it. While it may seem a little shallow, the beauty of multiplayer is the seamless way you get into it. You access online matches right from the game via your handy-dandy phone. You’re not limited to some small map either. The world is your multiplayer oyster.
Overall GTA IV is a great game. Is it perfect? Far from it. But what you do get for your sixty bucks is a game that will occupy plenty of your time. Single-player is still the heart and soul of GTA, but the new multiplayer is definitely fun and will have it’s fair share of people living online for a while. There is no doubt that GTA IV is enjoyable. And even with improvements in almost every area, it stills kinda feels like the same thing. You will have missions. You will be forced to car-jack people. You will get annoyed by the camera. But the game is, without a doubt, the best GTA to date. But if you didn’t enjoy any of the previous games in the franchise, don’t expect this game to change your mind. However, the franchise has a huge following, and this game is for them. They will love it.
+ Easily the most fun and easy to play GTA game yet.
+ The dialog is some of the best ever heard in a videogame.
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