Of course, it’s a better looking game. Provided you can handle its skewed morality, it’s the year’s most essential video game. GTAIV makes it look easy. Meanwhile, spoken responses and background conversations rarely get repetitive or annoying. We encourage you to read our updated PRIVACY POLICY and COOKIE POLICY. Finally, I’m a little disappointed that the game is still very selective about which objects you can interact with. You can still listen to music and chat from a variety of different radio stations, giving you everything from reggae to rock to Russian rap or cool jazz, and the soundtrack is full of iconic classics and more recent crackers. It would have been enough had Rockstar merely reflected the player’s growing confidence with Niko’s constant movement up through the Liberty City underworld, but on top of this the game manages to cram in the same themes that you’ll find in any great work of gangster fiction, whether it’s The Godfather, The Sopranos, Goodfellas, Takeshi Kitano’s Sonatine or John Woo’s A Better Tomorrow. I would however like to moan about a couple of things. Slightly, but I’m having so much fun that I can’t really be bothered to feel outraged. Ben Kuchera - May 2, 2008 3:50 am UTC Grand Theft Auto IV a big leap forward, and sets a new benchmark for open-world games. Our protagonist, Niko, could so easily have been a disaster: an unlovable, hard-faced Serbian with a dark history and a propensity for violence, he’s not anyone’s idea of a role model. Instead, he’s anything but. As the game bathes the streets in warm evening sun or your car makes its way through a swirling mist straight out of Taxi Driver, the effect is incredibly potent. Strong Sexual Content, Blood, Use of Drugs and Alcohol, Strong Language, Intense Violence, Partial Nudity. There’s still a certain cartoon quality to the characters and environments, but Rockstar has used the power of the 360 and PS3 to throw in a whole mass of new detail in everything from the cars to the architecture to the clothing, and bind it all together with some superb weather effects and a gorgeous natural lighting system. Rival crime caper games have fallen down because they just can’t seem to integrate the story missions, side-quests and freeform elements into one coherent whole. The basic structure is familiar: find your feet, take missions from various mobsters and dodgy dealers, take cars when you need to, work your way up through the criminal fraternity and lie, cheat, steal and kill your way to a better life. Is+it+suicide+if+you+take+someone+with+you? These are the moments where the onscreen action and some random tune on the soundtrack come together to create something cool and incongruous or just plain cool. The game content for GTA IV: Special Edition is identical to the standard edition offering. I won’t go on about the odd bit of slowdown, and I understand that there’s less pop-up and texture pop-in on the PS3 version (which I’ve been playing) than the 360 version (which I haven’t), albeit at the cost of a slight reduction in screen resolution and a five minute wait while the game installs. You can still pinch vehicles from a staggering range of sedans, sports cars, 4x4s, vans, trucks, motorcycles and ambulances, and each one still has a feel and a sense of weight and momentum all its own. GTA 4 PC Update Restores Cut Music But Renders The Game Unplayable For Some. The result of these additions – plus new ones like a post-mission auto-save – is a game that flows better and feels even more immersive than San Andreas or Vice City. They’re all just parts of your hero’s ongoing life story. Despite all the clones – the True Crimes, the Saint’s Rows, the Scarfaces and the Mercenaries – it’s a simple fact that nobody does this stuff better than Rockstar, and even Rockstar has never done this stuff so brilliantly before. Well, I have a few. However, it’s a more enjoyable and immersive game on other levels. It’s brilliant. For all the cheap gags, the vulgar language, the casual sexism and ironic humour, GTAIV is an adult work of entertainment that is worthy of respect. ”’Verdict”’. Liberty City is just packed with things to do, and at no point does any one of them seem like a side issue or a mini-game. A 10 doesn't mean a game is perfect -- it means a game is pushing boundaries, expanding a genre, and doing many things to a level so far above and beyond its competitors that they overshadows any flaws. A quick ‘replay mission’ option from the mobile phone helps, but you’ll still find yourself repeating some lengthy drives and sections of the game several times (though using taxis and public transport can cut this down). Most of all, it’s a game that never fails to make you laugh – even at things that you know you really shouldn’t laugh at. For more. Trusted Reviews may earn an affiliate commission when you purchase through links on our site. Luckily, thanks to the wonders of Internet publishing I can come back and update this review when I’ve done so. The world is yours as Rockstar conquers all again with the fourth chapter in its city-sprawling saga of street crime. Unlike other sites, we thoroughly test every product we review. Certainly, GTA IV has some issues, the most noticeable being the occasional flaw in the cover system, but there are many more pieces of GTA IV that are better than anything I've seen from a game in the past decade. Well, the truth is that I haven’t yet come to a final, final verdict. There is no one major weak aspect. GTAIV shows the pretenders how it should be done, with an incredibly rich world, strong characters, great technology and a truly compelling story. For now, my few niggles stop me giving GTAIV the full 10/10 perfect score, but that could easily be subject to change. While the mainstream media obsesses about the crime and the immorality in these games, they miss this stuff out almost entirely. We use industry standard tests in order to compare features properly. And when you’re lost and looking for something to do, it’s the mobile phone that will often have you scurrying on to take the story one stage further. The other major characters you meet are nearly always interesting and distinctive – from lecherous local heavies to paranoid gang bosses, dope-addled dealers and preening, self-promoting car collectors, they’re a fascinating bunch. Does this affect the final verdict? Review Price: £39.95; As with the GTAIII trilogy, Grand Theft Auto IV is … Now things are different, with a clear and effective auto-targeting system backed up by a manual fine-tuning option, a proper system for finding and firing from cover, and a full range of punches, blocks and kicks in close-up fighting. We’re talking family, loyalty, pride, honour, the cyclical nature of violence and what it takes to be a man in a messed-up world where you can’t even trust yourself. I think the key words here are density and detail. The world is yours as Rockstar conquers all again with the fourth chapter in its city-sprawling saga of street crime. Grand Theft Auto III was a revolutionary title, one that inspired a whole new generation of 3D action games. Get a girlfriend, play pool, go bowling, browse the Web, take in the sights, have a meal, see a show, get off your face on booze, change your threads, and much, much more. Each place has a tangible atmosphere, with none of the sterility that hampered True Crime or Saint’s Row. At the time of writing I still have to test the multiplayer – and I think that’s going to take a little getting used to – and I still have a way to go before I can say I’ve seen and done everything that I’d like to. We don't give 10s often -- just to games that merit the score. A "10" is not a score we give out very often. The dialogue is brilliantly written and delivered, and the visual design top-notch. If you buy something through this post, IGN may get a share of the sale. Available for the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3, Grand Theft Auto IV lets you play as Niko Bellic, a tough-looking character who arrives on U.S. shores from somewhere in Eastern Europe, expecting to live the good life with his American cousin, Roman, who lied to Niko about his posh lifestyle in the New World. In fact, the last time we gave a 10 to a console game was Soul Calibur in 1999. Learn More. Gaming & Culture — The streets hit back: a review of Grand Theft Auto IV Grand Theft Auto IV is finally here, riding a wave of hype and perfect review …. Nor should the importance of the extras be downplayed. Secondly, the context-sensitive controls can sometimes be a bit fiddly. Key Specifications. Right now, I can safely say that this is one of the greatest games to come along this generation, and that GTAIV is everything we hoped it would be, and more. Everything in GTA IV works in harmony. We’ll always tell you what we find. Strong Sexual Content, Blood, Use of Drugs and Alcohol, Strong Language, Intense Violence, Partial Nudity, Daily Deals: Preorder Cyberpunk 2077 for PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X, or PC and Save 17% Off, The Most Messed Up Moments in the Comic Book Version of ‘The Boys’, The Best Anime Fanfiction Where the Hero Is a Villain, Where to Find PS5 When (And If) It Comes Into Stock Today, PSA: Use a LAN Cable to Transfer PS4 Games to PS5, Xbox Series X 'Smoking' Videos Likely Faked With Vape, Xbox Series X & S Have 'Largest Launch in Xbox History', Every Single PS4 to PS5 Free Upgrade Confirmed So Far, Things Ghost of Tsushima Doesn't Tell You. Foolish, boastful and caught between hopeless optimism and crippling fear, he immediately anchors Niko into a growing network of business and personal relationships. Any negative comments? It all helps to make the game feel more alive. And what makes GTAIV so incredible is that my moments won’t be your moments and your moments won’t be the same as anybody else’s. We encourage you to read our updated PRIVACY POLICY and COOKIE POLICY. You+don't+need+a+posse+to+rule+the+streets.+Just+a+bat+and+balls+of+steel. What has made each GTA better than the last is the ludicrous amount of stuff that Rockstar piles on top. His cousin, Roman, is a fabulous foil. Grand Theft Auto IV Review Stuart Andrews | March 5, 2020 4:19 pm GMT. Even though we’re not as familiar with the archetypes as we might have been with the Scarface/Miami Vice/Carlito’s Way bunch from Vice City or the Westside gang bangers of San Andreas, Rockstar never fails to make its cast come alive. Grand Theft Auto IV: Special Edition Review, The Most Messed Up Moments in the Comic Book Version of ‘The Boys’, Daily Deals: Preorder Cyberpunk 2077 for PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X, or PC and Save 17% Off, The Best Anime Fanfiction Where the Hero Is a Villain, Where to Find PS5 When (And If) It Comes Into Stock Today, PSA: Use a LAN Cable to Transfer PS4 Games to PS5, Xbox Series X 'Smoking' Videos Likely Faked With Vape, Xbox Series X & S Have 'Largest Launch in Xbox History', Every Single PS4 to PS5 Free Upgrade Confirmed So Far, Things Ghost of Tsushima Doesn't Tell You, Metal lock box with GTA IV logo embossing, Michael Hunter - Soviet Connection (Theme from GTA IV), Mobb Deep featuring Havoc & Prodigy - Dirty New Yorker, Bob Marley & The Wailers and Damian Marley - Stand Up Jamrock. While the streets of Liberty City are rarely as packed as the streets of Jerusalem or Acre in Assassin’s Creed, Niko’s interaction with the population – powered by NaturalMotion’s Euphoria engine – are much more believable. Even in a game with this much freedom, story is important.