GTA 4 takes the franchise in a new interesting way.
Everytime a GTA game is released we see this mass hysteria that almost goes as far as looting in the streets because people are just that excited about the game.
And GTA 4 share the same name as its predeccesor's that however does not mean its the same.
GTA 4 is a more dark and a bit more disturbed and serius version of GTA, to put it like this
you wont be seeing any jetpacks in the game. This game is realistic, the city is realistic and everything
makes you become emerged in the game.
The main character in this game is Niko Belic, he is a east european illigal immigrant, he arrives by boat hoping for a better life with his cousin.
But of course things does not work out that way and Niko is sucked in to the Liberty City underworld and it gives you quite a glimpse of how horrible humanity can really be.
If you think alot about it GTA is actually a pretty deep game emotionally it deals with Niko Belic as a human, he has his problem his past haunts him, and you end up really feeling bad for this guy which is rare in a videogame.
However not only Niko puts a really strong act, every other character in the game is memorable and some are funny, some are weird and some just seem very real.
The gameplay initself at its core havent changed that much since san andreas, you still do missions for crimelords and such, the biggest difference being that the cell phone plays a much bigger role this time around. You call people and tell them the job is done instead of running all the way back which is refreshing.
But however the one bad thing about the missions is that some can feel a little repetetive, there are basically 3 core designs for a mission. which is Delivery, go to a place and kill everyone, drive after another guy or escape.
Some of these mission does have that feel that you have done them before but fortunately not often so thats great.
The biggest improvement gameplaywise though is the gunplay you can cover against anything by a press off a button, the cover system is indeed not perfect and you will find yourself covering behind the wrong thing, but that happens very rarely.
There are also quite alot of sidejobs which will keep you busy after completing the main story, the sidejobs include being a cop killing criminals, delivering packages for little jacob, killing flying rats, go on dates, get to know your friends better. However, compared to San Andreas this game does not have nearly as much to do after the final mission, GTA 4 has basically concentrated more on realism and immersion this time around. Which is fine its bascially just different priorities, but its not all bad because the perhaps biggest news in GTA is the...
...Multiplayer yes it is indeed true GTA has multiplayer, but it does not set the world on fire quite as you would think it would, first of the number one complaint I have is that the coop mission are to easy and way too few giving almost nothing but a tease, they are fun but its just to little. Deathmatch is deathmatch plain and simple however if the server has enabled on auto targeting the whole thing just seem to easy and is basically a game of who finds the other first. you also have free mode where in my opinion the whole GTA style comes forward, you basically just go with your friends and fool around, however playing with strangers this mode is pointless and it becomes a deathmatch basically. You also have streetracing which is fine, but GTA isnt the best car racer and there are better alternatives.
The sound of GTA is no longer Micheal Jackson on the radio and these huge stars one after another, Rockstar have now gone for more unknown bands some sound great others dont you will quickly find your favorite radio station and stick with it, there is basically something for everyone here. The voice acting is great, however gone is James Woods, Samuel Jackson and all those guys and in comes uknown voice actors which is fine because the fact that you hear celebrities talk you will think "oh thats Samuel L. Jackson talking how neat" instead of actually listening to what they say. And it doesnt matter anyways since the voice actors have done a stellar job, Nico, Roman, Brucie and Little Jacob all sound believeable and the voice actors make the characters come to life.
Now to the technical part this is where GTA really shines, it has extreme detail in the city and no loading which is awesome, the ragdoll physics are fun, and you will at some point of the game just throw yourself out of a moving car just to watch you roll down the road. The pedestrians are amazing there is almost never that you will meet two pedestrians that look alike there are that many models. The gunplay is satisfying the models react to where they get shot which is good, want to just unarm them? fine just shoot their arm. Want to keep them from running away? Pop a shot in the foot and he will fall over. The one complaint I do have about the tech is that the framerate will drop in a busy quarter of the city while driving fast with a car which is kind off annoying but not a big deal.
In conclusion GTA 4 is a amazing game no doubt about it, however some small things like slowdowns, and some radiostations you could do without, and the limited multiplayer which limits the replayability of the game drag the game down a bit not by much. And if you go in expecting San Andreas 2 only crazier you will be dissappointed, this is a more serious and realistic version of Rockstar's amazing world, and its a must buy no matter what console you own.
