GTA4 Vs The World

By sweep January 18, 2009 26 Comments

Sometimes I find myself just being a cynical fuckhead for no reason.

Like, in BSHAF I completely tore apart Prince Of Persia without even mentioning a single aspect of the game that I admire - of which there are a great many. In retrospect I feel like a bit of a dick, but that was my choice. We can choose to focus on what disappoints, or we can choose to focus on what we enjoy. Some reviews may just have been written on a bad day. Some games get reviewed on a good day (Kane And Lynch?). The aspects that we like are subjective.  A game has to be entertaining, sure - but there are many mediums for entertainment within computer games. Just because you didn't like any of the characters or set pieces in GTA4 doesn't mean you aren't allowed to enjoy hopping into a free-play match on XBL whilst intoxicated and mercilessly ramming your Infurnus into a Swing-set.

Doing crazy stuff in games is more Saints Row territory. That game transcends any notion of narrative composure in favour of being a goofy excuse to shoot people. In the context of sandbox games and more importantly the gang warfare on which the whole experience is based - I find that a little insulting. Its almost ignoring the horrific reality of the games very foundations. If you are just going to make a complete moral-vacuum why not make a game where you travel to Ethiopia and beat up starving children? The principle is the same. Sometimes just being entertaining isn't really enough. It seems like a childish regression after all the progress made by GTA4. It makes me angry that GTA4 recieved the majority of negative media attention when it offered so much more ethical weight to every decision.

Its unfair to stack every game up against GTA4 because a lot of games simply aren't interested in that narrative scope, but with Saints Row the comparison is justified. For example its unfair to compare Banjo to Grand Theft Auto despite the fact they both have open world elements. But that is not to say Banjo is without its narrative charms, they are just a lot more subtle, which is arguably when games perform at their best. Valve seems to have a mastery of sub-consciously feeding the players a story without forcing them to sit through cut-scenes. The characters in Left 4 Dead feel so much more real to me than most of the characters in Grand Theft Auto.

I'm not sure which I prefer

  A game that is experimental and progressive or a game that is comfortable being a goofy arcade romp.
The decision for Saints Row to fall into the latter category only makes sense as a way of distinguishing itself as a seperate entity to GTA4. In the context of the game itself it seems stupid. Surely there were better alternatives?

I would like games to be more experimental. There are many different ways for them to do so, but I often find the real creativity is hampered. Bob may have been completely crazy by locking himself in his own room for a month and then faking his on death, but I think what most people forget is - He was just a dude trying to make a game for other people to play and enjoy. There really isn't much help from game companies to push new creative titles from amateur designers. Surely the best move for the industry in general would be to encompass as many new ideas as possible and reflect upon the most successful.

I tried playing some of the NXE community games and I got really frustrated with Microsoft. The point of community games should be as a form of experimentation, a place where aspiring designers can make a name for themselves, not a money making exercise. Nobody is going to pay for these games when you can get awesome free Flash games on the internet. I have better games on my iPod for fucks sake. Microsoft should be maximising the amount of people playing this stuff. Charging a stupid 200 points is helping nobody. Its too low to make any real money, but too high for most people to be interested in paying it. So its a waste of fucking time. Pay the designer for the game and make it free. Until it becomes more accessible for fresh new designers to get people playing their games true innovation will remain limited.


I had an awesome night last night (sorry I missed the bombing run!!) but now I'm really hungover. I have been meaning to write this blog for while. I knew what I wanted to say - but writing all down has been really fucking hard. I cant focus, everything I think about goes all scrambled. I'm going to go back to bed.

Thanks For Reading
Love Sweep

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