Grand Theft Auto IV Review
- Posted May 7th, 2008 at 16:19 EDT by Eric Blattberg
- 71 Comments
Review Score
- PSU Review Score
- 9.5
- Avg. user review score:
- 8.8
Summary
One of the greatest video game stories ever told. It may have its flaws, but it is the most ambitious game made to date and, without a doubt, the best game so far this generation.
We like
- The movie-caliber storyline
- The stylistically unprecedented recreation of New York City
- The vast online experience
We dislike
- The slight framerate dips and pop-in
- The lack of a checkpoint system
See PSU's review on Metacritic & GameRankings
(continued from previous page) ...The world doesn’t have a set of pre-determined objects that Niko can hide behind; literally everything within the world can be used as cover. This can cause minor issues as the game occasionally misinterprets where you intend to take cover, but for the most part, the versatile system in which you can blindfire, target and free aim adds immeasurable depth to firefights. One personal tip that you may not discover whilst playing through the game – cars are brilliant cover, as they’re transportable. If you’re in any large, open area where you could benefit from a cover point, just snag a car (preferably a large one like an SUV or a Patriot).
This brings us to yet another area where GTA IV dominates its predecessors – driving. Initially, the handling of vehicles in general felt loose and atrocious, but after playing the game for a few hours, I came to accept that it just wasn’t possible to whip an SUV around a corner at 150 miles an hour. It’s simple physics after all. A measurement of current velocity and acceleration concludes that it’s not possible to turn a specific car at such an angle and speed, thus the car crashes into a wall and Niko gets flung through the windshield and painfully tumbles across the cement until he comes to an eventual stop.
It’s moments like these that really reflect the glories of NaturalMotion’s ‘euphoria’ engine. Dubbed “euphoria: unique game moments,” this Dynamic Motion Synthesis system runs parallel to the game's animation engine and is called by the game's AI whenever synthesized motion is required instead of canned animation. In addition to handling the highly-complex physics throughout the world, it really comes through on delivering inimitable moments. Every time Niko bails out of a moving car or crashes into a pedestrian, you’re seeing a different outcome based on both the physics of the situation and the natural survival instinct within every human being.
One thing still remains the same when you hit a pedestrian – the cops still don’t take to kindly to it. The six star wanted system of Grand Theft Autos of yore is still in full effect, though it touts one very noticeable tweak. After committing a crime and obtaining a star, a small circle -- viewable on the mini-map -- is created in your general vicinity. To lose your wanted rating, you must escape the confines of the circular area without being spotted by the cops. If you are spotted, the circle will re-center around the location where you were seen. With each additional star comes a larger circle radius. So, for example, while a one or two star rating is fairly simple to expunge, a three or four star wanted level is far harder to drop. I commend anyone who can acquire a six star rating, let alone survive it for any period of time.
The LCPD isn’t the only opposing organization you’ll face in Liberty City. Missions will have you confronting against all sorts of groups from gangsters to “union workers” (a cover-up for the mafia). At its core, Grand Theft Auto IV hasn’t strayed from the basic formula that gamers know and love. Different people offer you assignments, which you can accept at your own pace. You then complete the missions and the plot progresses. As diverse as the missions are, I expected that with over 90 primary story episodes, they might become a bit of a slog at some point in time. I was wrong. The missions, despite lacking checkpoints, never become repetitive. Part of the draw is the deep narrative and the ability to affect it (you’re faced with moral dilemmas -- to kill to not to kill -- at several junctions throughout the game). Also, you’ll want to hear every bit of tremendous dialogue the game offers. Still though, GTA IV simply has the fun factor locked down. Particular missions never feel like an afterthought, they’re always wholly enticing, ranging from excellent to epic.
Part of the engrossing nature of the various missions lies in the game’s astounding audiovisual presentation. Open world games usually make some sacrifices visually to achieve an acceptable quality throughout the rest of the game. GTA IV sacrifices next to nothing. The game looks stunning for its genre. The sweeping ... (continued on next page)
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Comments
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Babiloo
- 3:38pm EDT - May 7th, 2008
- 23
not perfect but still great, and why does it matter if its 10/10? its just a number and their opinion, chill out guys there are downsides to the game althoguh checkpoints are not one, thats why theres autosaves :P. there are minor framerate problems to be sure and the shooting could use some work. also seeing as GTA:SA was released in 2004, dont you think they could have drastically improved the graphics over 4 years? anyways nuff said.
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Psypathic
- 3:57pm EDT - May 7th, 2008
- 24
Emm am I the only person who thinks this game is a step backwards not forwards for GTA.They took what made GTA a GTA game and removed it.Yes it looks pretty and the story is ok if not pointless overall after you finish it.But the GTA feel is lost the little touches that made GTA fun.No property to buy.Lack of clothing shop sand different styles.Aiming is Terrible.Auto aim online(WTF).Framerate dips.If this game had a different name and not that of GTA it would of gotten a 8.5 maximum.Say it like it is, this is less of a game since GTA:VC back in 2002.Funny thing is this feels more like a GTA clone than an Actual GTA game.Most online modes is an after thought at best.Co-op missions take 5-10 minutes to finish tops.Even on hard they are easy.Dont get me wrong its a fairly decent game but a GTA it is not.
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NoMercy666
- 4:35pm EDT - May 7th, 2008
- 28
I agree with 9.5, rating shouldn't be how much better it is than other games. This game doesn't deserve a ten, it has CONS. It would only deserve a ten if it was PERFECT, which it isn't.
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evilmonkey501
- 4:58pm EDT - May 7th, 2008
- 29
They left out a few simple things that would really have polished it off....car mods..property buying...garages....(i dislike my curb parking...)....for some reason, I was expecting more little stuff...but, this game is great otherwise.
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chomperbull
- 6:35pm EDT - May 7th, 2008
- 31
i didn't like the game i felt the graphics were cheezy or blurry. the plot was the same as the old games. had this been a ps exclusive im sure the 50gig disc would have given the game better graphics and more depth into a characters actions. overall this game was missing alot of things that couldn't get compressed into an 8gig disc. in my opinion this game deserves an 8 since it had nothng innovative
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ps3ruler24
- 6:39pm EDT - May 7th, 2008
- 32
was the game really that hard for you that you couldnt just restart the mission? having a checkpoint system is completely idiotic.
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AclayPS3
- 6:57pm EDT - May 7th, 2008
- 33
I agree with the Review Score. I don't care what anybody says, GTA4 DOES NOT deserve a 10/10. The typical things that are in GTA games like Pop-in, and Framerate drop are in GTA4. And I was somewhat disappointed with the graphics. I know that graphics aren't everything in a game, but whenever I compare the graphics of Uncharted to GTA4, it's like night and day and whenever you get used to seeing a certain level of graphical detail, it's just hard to adjust to something that's not as good looking.
But, the gameplay in GTA4 is very fun. The story in GTA4 is "alright" but basically you just end up doing other peoples dirty work and they pay you... and that's really a lot of what the story consists of.
If I was to rate GTA4 on a scale from 1-10, I would give it a 9.0/10. Anybody that gives GTA4 a 10/10 isn't looking at the facts and getting too caught up in the hype to realize the truth because how in the heck does GTA4 deserve a 10/10 with slight framerate issues and some Pop-in? If a PS3 exclusive like Resistance 2 had framerate issues and Pop-in, the review score would probably be instanty bumped down by 0.5 or 1 point because we all know how critical the gaming industry (Gamespot, Gametrailers) is when it comes to PS3 exclusives.. I know that my opinion may not be the most popular, but I speak my mind.
I'm glad that PSU.com didn't give GTA4 a 10/10 just because almost every other reviewer did.
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Sorgan
- 8:25pm EDT - May 7th, 2008
- 34
I honestly think the 9.5 is quite generous. For a game to get that high of a rating, it would have to be one of the best games I've ever played and also would have great re-playability.
I haven't even finished yet and I'm finding myself getting quite bored with it. If GTA 4 had of been PS3 exclusive with the extras that they cut out from SA then it would definitely be a better game in my opinion.
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Smegwitch
- 11:22pm EDT - May 7th, 2008
- 37
I'm really enjoying GTA 4. Taking my time and soaking up all the hard work Rockstar put into the game. It hink alot of these comments are misplaced in terms of stepping backwards from GTA San An. if you think about it all the changes make sense tot he story being told. If you wanted more guns etc go and play Saints Row. With the level of thought and execution in a world created on so many levels i think the game is worth the score given.
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D3v1lwqer23
- 11:59pm EDT - May 7th, 2008
- 38
Ok to argue their cons. 1. Framerate...its a giant freakin world with no loading screen...what did you expect exactly? 2. The shooting system has been rebuilt, and took little to no learning curve. 3. What other GTA had a checkpoint system? The challenge is to start over if you are "knocked out", thats part of the game, man you guys are more nitpicky than IGN.
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chelseapaul
- 12:29am EDT - May 8th, 2008
- 39
good review, its deffinatley not a 10, i bet metal gear will be better but on sites like IGN it will not get a 10 because of minor problems, so why should GTA be any diffirent!!!
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Neameto
- 12:50am EDT - May 8th, 2008
- 40
Nice review PSU. Thanks for reviewing the game a rate it according to your standards and not following the ´´perfect score`` other sites did. I dont thinks this game deserves a 9.5 though. I think its way too high considering the gameplay mechanics and the step back from features introduced in San Andreas.
This games is like Dragon Ball Z!!! With ever new console release they makes 3 games for it. One ends in the Cell saga, the 2nd ends with the Buu saga and the 3rd ends with all the characters from the original story plus the extra chars form the movies. They did this with the PS2 and they are going to do it in the PS3.
This will permanently ban this user and delete all associated comments. This action is irreversible, are you SURE you want to do this?!
