Grand Theft Auto IV

A Review by Cade Antilles

Okay, here it is, the inevitable review for one of the most anticipated video game titles of 2008. Except, this game is so voluminous and grandiose that one week of play time just isn’t enough time to encompass its magnificence. This game, of course, is Grand Theft Auto IV!

In this latest installment to one of the most popular and controversial game franchises, Rockstar Games returns to the game’s roots by going back to Liberty City and setting it in modern day. This time, instead of playing the silent, nameless anti-hero of GTAIII, you portray Serbian immigrant Niko Bellic (who bears a striking resemblance to Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad) who gets off the boat to find that his cousin has been lying to him about how amazing the United States is. Playing a named anti-hero isn’t new for the series, though, as players have already portrayed Italian gangster Tommy Vercetti (voiced by Ray Liotta) in GTA: Vice City, and as African-American gang member Carl Johnson in GTA: San Andreas.

First Impressions

While it looks almost exactly like GTA: San Andreas, at first, I came to notice the significant upgrades. Texture, colors and lighting are far greater, and environment is masterfully immersing. With the introduction of the Euphoria game engine, the physics of the game world are mind-blowing. Materials react as each should (water, wood, metal, paper, glass, etc.) and objects move as gravity and inertia should dictate. Character animations are smooth and far more intricate, and how they react when hit by vehicles is deliciously brutal. Every time I pick it up, the game creates new jaw-dropping moments.

The AI reacts intelligently now, as opposed to staring blankly down the barrel of your shotgun as you line up the perfect headshot. This includes people running from you, and cops chasing you, if you’re carrying your guns in public. They also do things that I’ve never seen in a game before. Once, I carjacked some guy and was about to pull away when this guy tried to get his car back. That’s not new, I know, but what happened next blew me away. Since, in the earlier games, you could thwart reverse car jackings by speeding away, that’s what I did, but this guy already had his hand on the door handle. Instead of just being knocked over, he held onto the door handle as I hurtled down the street, screaming and feet dragging. He wouldn’t let go, so I tried shaking him off, but no, he held tenaciously firm. So, Plan B, I swung into oncoming traffic and let them scrape him off my side with a sickening “kathrunk”. I could not stop laughing. Hmm . . . maybe this game does program us to be emotionless murder machines . . . oh well, at least I’m having fun doing it!

Downsides

It seems blasphemous to say this, but there are things I’m not happy with. It mostly has to do with things that were in previous GTAs, and are not found in this one. First on the list, the skill system from GTA: San Andreas is gone. Where, before, you improved your skills with vehicles and weapons by using them, there is no improvement. How you are with driving, piloting, and shooting remains the same throughout the game. Also, the immense character customization from GTA: SA, is a shadow of its former glory. Where you could once customize everything from hairstyle, tatoos, clothing, bling, and even body type, now it feels more like customization was an afterthought. All that can be changed, thus far as I can tell, is clothing. However, even these outfits aren’t anything special, nor can I turn Niko into a caricature like how I made Carl Johnson into Wesley Snipes and Mr. T. Also missing are the vehicle mod shops. I can’t get the custom paint jobs, grills, rims, hydraulics, and nitro upgrades found in GTA: SA. This lack of customization is a real downer for me. Almost enough to drop it a full letter grade.

Additionally, there are fewer guns. I’ll let you know if I find a flame thrower or a minigun, but as far as I can tell, they’re not in the game. Finally, I miss the celebrity voice actors. No Ray Liotta, James Woods, Burt Reynolds, Gary Busey, Jenna Jameson, or Samuel L. Jackson. I’ve looked through the credits, and I don’t recognize anyone. Oh well, guess they needed to keep the costs down somewhere.

Next time

I hope to have the Story completed by next Tuesday, so I’ll talk more about that then. I’m also going to talk about the Strategy Guide by Brady Games. Plus, I’ll have more stories of murder and mayhem.

Grade (so far): A-

This entry was posted on Tuesday, May 6th, 2008 at 11:17 pm and is filed under Cade_Antilles, Games. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.