Grand Theft Auto IV -- It might feature crime and prostitutes.

boo

BIG SPOILER ALERT !

okay i'm on the final mission, and i chose the 'money' option. this fucking mission is doing my pissing head in, i cannot for the life of me reach Jacob in the chopper. The worst part is having to do all the easy shooting parts before it, which takes absolutely ages. I have attempted this mission well over 10 times now.

So FUCK this game!

(i punched the shit out of a donut i got so frustrated)

Ah well, my strop with this game has given me good excuse to be getting on with other projects (which were mysteriously neglected after the arrival of this game).

There's a serious lack of sub games in this one, and the main missions are so 'samey' just hide-and-shoot all the time. At 82% already you have to question how this one stands up to the brutal greatness of the past games, and how obtaining 100% made you feel far more superior. The rewards are crap in this one too.

(but then 'minds' could change if I ever complete this last task)

I couldn't believe not one inanimate object in my lounge last night could help answer my ever increasing vocal query of 'who in their right fucking mind could have got away with programming such an awful level'

"simmers"

okay. did it.

shut up ste

So, now that you've finished it, how do you feel about it in comparison to the San Andreas and Vice City (and even III) GTA's? I have yet to play it, and really can't bring myself to justify buying it for my flatmate's 360 (he's too cheap to buy it). But, whenever I think of buying it, I question whether I would actually enjoy it that much.
A big part of that is that I'm cynical, and can't believe it could possibly be justified in the scores of 100% reviews, and the other part is that as much as I really enjoyed the other games, they still got a bit 'samey' eventually. I'm not one for the 100% stuff anyway, more just a main story-arc kinda guy. Pissing about is always fun though, I guess. Just wondering how you think it compares to it's predecessors on grounds other than prettiness, as I know you love the GTA games.

This one is a bit more samey than SA/VC, a lot of the missions are either "go in the warehouse and shoot the 20 people that are all firing at you" or "chase the car, kill the car". But there is so much more fuel for pissing about and procrastinating between missions. Maybe too much, your social life can get a bit hectic when everyone's calling you to play pool and you just want to wander around freely or finish a mission. Personally, I prefer SA for the variety of the missions, I never thought I'd say this but I think I miss the flying missions.

I'm still loving it though.

I hit some chick in the back of the head with an empty coffee cup and the fuzz came down after me. Puh-leeze.

I've gotten so bored at times that I just go down to Coney Island, find the red propane tank, and blow myself up.

Oh buy it, it's great fun.

I'd say at a pinch San Andreas was a better game. It has more variety in missions, more to offer, more side missions and just generally trillions of shit going on. I think this owes a lot to it being the third release on the same system. GTA III and VC were almost identical 'original gta-3d' launch titles. The jump in technical achievement between VC and SA will hopefully be mirrored between IV and the next installment.

Now that I've finished the story, it's time to batter this one over the head until it bleeds. Just like I've done with the prev ones. A proper assessment, in that case, will be a long way off.

And yeah, I miss the flying missions too. I also miss checkpoint missions and hidden vehicle secrets.

Pleasant otm. This one is more grounded, and some respects it truly is a bad thing. Hospital bills are astronomical, police wanted levels over 3 stars are a bitch to shake, you can't just drive into a pay n spray if the cops see you go into it.

does anyone know what money is good for besides buying ammo and clothes and spending $5 on a hamburger? i really don't care about hospital bills cuz otherwise money is kinda useless and it keeps piling up!

Trying to avoid spoilers (I've only just unlocked Manhattan), but I've already been frustrated at the amount of "go in here, shoot all this dudes" missions. Though now that I'm understanding they're mostly just hide-shoot-hide take-yr-timeathons I'm cooler with them.

where's the rape button plz

You're thinking of Dr. Mario.

I'm pretty far along, I think. I recently made the )SPOILER ALERT) choice of Derrick over Francis, and am doing a lot of missions in Alderney. I think there are missions in this game that are just way more fun than comparable missions in the other games because of their depth and how visceral they are (the bank heist, rescuing roman, the bike chase through the subway... ), but the other games definitely were a little more fun overall in the 1p.

On the other hand, like so many games nowadays, it seems like the best part, the most infinitely rewarding part, is the multiplayer, which is too bad because I generally dislike multiplayer. These multiplayer options are among the best I've tried, but it's still not something I enjoy as much because I hate either (1) talking to racist suburban 15 year olds, and (2) if you don't use the headset, you'll wind up screwing everything up or not communicating well whenever teamwork is needed.

And yeah, this game is definitely not a 10. It's fun, but highly flawed. Also, many of the cut scenes are embarrassingly bad in their rendering.

In all honesty, I don't need a lot of convincing. It's more the fact that I'll have to buy it for a console that isn't even mine. Ah well, provided it's as fun as the previous ones, I guess it's worth £40. Plus, I just got stuck on hard on Guitar Hero, so I need a proper game to stop me pissing away the hours on a nothing game...

sweet, (minor spoiler, maybe not)

only found out tonight you can ride the huge Tug ship. it's great for ramming every fucker else with.

i so want one of those black Fed cars, looks like a beast.

CraigG: Rental? It took me a good 40ish hours to get through all of the story (although I really took my time and did side missions and sat in the cxar listening to talk shows and stuff). Beating the story can definitely be done confortably under 30h-- rent it two or three times and book a few days off!

it took me 100+ hours lol. although i have done 88%

Went to the strip club, was preceded on my way out by one of the ladieeez who apparently felt like a stroll in the sunshine, all scantily clad like. She was probably drunk 'cause she kept on getting run over.

locking to cover in this game can be kind of sticky and annoying.

Yeah but... it's better than nothing.

Apparently someone declared WORLD ASSHOLE DAY on multiplayer today.

lol Dwayne

*ring ring*
"Hello?"
"Hey, its Dwayne. Did you just call me"?
"No..."
"Oh ok. It's just... I was in the shower, and the phone rang. I thought it might have been you. My bad."
*click*

Heh, I got that. I've now taken to ringing him and standing him up on purpose as much as possible.

Isn't that (the Dwayne phone exchange) from The Cable Guy? :)

Yeah, rental might be an option, but I'll probably just wait til my flatmate cracks and buys it himself, or I'll borrow it from one of my friends once they're bored.

gta moment #1233454

driving along very carefully trying to avoid colliding with cop car/pedestrians to avoid wanted star, only to hit lamp post/tree which sends you deflecting right into path of said cops/peds.

more moments..

accidentally walking into someone at the top of some stairs, and seeing them tumble all the way to the bottom

shooting the gas canister on the back of the forklift truck (hint: it doesn't explode like you think)

Casually flying your helicopter through the flames on those refinery chimneys, just to see 'what will happen'.

Just watching the shadow of your helicopter flying through the skyscrapers

The all time favourite, launching a rocket at an oncoming speeding car sending it soaring through the air in a ball of flames.

This has sat unopened in my living room for a week now. It is far too daunting. It's like getting into the Fall or Guided By Voices but probably even more of a time-suck and thus even more intimidating.

I don't know, I've been giving it an hour or two per play and it's been enjoyable enough.

I thought I was hallucinating for a while but no it's definitely true - you know the GPS lady who tells you which way to go? And when you get to where you have to turn the GPS goes bing-bong? Sometimes the lady actually says "bing bong".

there's some amazing grafitti around in this game, just on the east side underneath the main underpass there's a huge row of homeless areas with tons of artwork on the walls.

spent a good half hour last night just laying waste to my apartment, pretty satisfying. and i broke the telly.

and destroy - fucking side missions that actually cost *me* money!

where have all the chuffing good cars got to? I've still not come across a comet, infernus, or super GT other than in missions.

They could have done so much more with the phone, hopefully they will with the next game. For instance there's a website for AutoErotica cars, which includes phone numbers on the site. But ringing these numbers produces NOTHING.

Instead they've incorporated a 'ring a spawn' but this is classed as cheating. WTF ?! Why didn't they just have this as part of the game?

They've got so much right with this game, but seems like they've got so soooo much wrong at the same time.

I think everything that is right and wrong with this game comes down to the realism. It seems they've tried to make this the most realistic gta yet, which can be seen in the graphics (e.g. streetlights reflecting off the rain-wet streets); the physics model; the characters (Nico is the most sympathetic protagonist yet because he is the most real, he's not a cliche like Tommy Vercetti or a cipher like CJ); the missions (no ridiculous jet-pack nonsense). And for the graphics, the atmosphere, the story, it all works. The trouble is that the gameplay suffers. No absurdist missions means an excess of the formulaic shooting or chasing missions. No silly sideshows like demolition derby or dirtbike trials means, sadly, no fun.

otm ledge, and is evident in the fact that you cannot enter the airport site without getting a four star wanted level. Oh come on, get it right in the next game for gods sake.

oh how i loved those dirt bike trials, Vice City had the best one - proper Kickstart style.

ooh now i really want to replay San Andreas.

oh and for the record, I *do* really like this game lolol. I guess I'm just arguing with myself on this thread mostly, in comparison a great gta concept, it's missing a lot - but as a game in it's own right I love it.

yeah agreed. any r* developers reading thread, we <3 you really!

I loved the jetpack mission!

yeah it was fun! but not fitting in a po-faced game about an immigrant psycho-killer with a heart of gold.

The post that made me buy GTA:SA

for some reason your link will not jump me to the actual message 570, which is lame... can you copypastas part or all of the message so i can look for it?

I thought I was hallucinating for a while but no it's definitely true - you know the GPS lady who tells you which way to go? And when you get to where you have to turn the GPS goes bing-bong? Sometimes the lady actually says "bing bong".

-- ledge, Thursday, May 22, 2008 8:40 AM (Yesterday) Bookmark Link

FUCKING YES, this may be my favourite part of the game. Bar none. It took about four times before I got it. It only seems to happen to me when I'm driving super-fast (and therefore really concentrating on not crashing)-- it may jsut be compeltlyy random however.

Sure, Will.

OK, I keep spoiling things, but I can't help sharing the enthusiastic dorkness: the secret means of transportation found in Area 69 IS A FUCKING JETPACK, PEOPLE.

SPACE GANGSTA, AWAAAAAAAAAAY

-- MC Transmaniacon (natepatrin), Friday, November 5, 2004 11:42 PM (Friday, November 5, 2004 11:42 PM) Bookmark Link
The Loc-eteer

-- MC Transmaniacon (natepatrin), Friday, November 5, 2004 11:42 PM (Friday, November 5, 2004 11:42 PM) Bookmark Link
SPACE GANGSTA, AWAAAAAAAAAAY

It was worth the spoiler just to read that.

-- Pleasant Plains (Pleasant Plains), Friday, November 5, 2004 11:49 PM (Friday, November 5, 2004 11:49 PM) Bookmark Link
oh fuck now i need a screengrab of that

-- Sir Kingfish Beavis D'Azzmonch (Kingfish), Saturday, November 6, 2004 12:33 AM (Saturday, November 6, 2004 12:33 AM) Bookmark Link
It's great, you can fly it and shoot people at the same time. It looks kinda like the one James Bond had in Thunderball.

-- MC Transmaniacon (natepatrin), Saturday, November 6, 2004 1:03 AM (Saturday, November 6, 2004 1:03 AM) Bookmark Link
Nate Patrin, you suck. I haven't been not reading FAQs for the last three days just to see in in print.

-- Andrew Farrell (afarrell), Sunday, November 7, 2004 2:58 PM (Sunday, November 7, 2004 2:58 PM) Bookmark Link

I've been reading/listening to a lot of people saying that San Andreas is by far the worst game because they hate rap music and gangsta culture glorification which is like the biggest missing of the ponit ever. Sorry IV, but I still think SA is the best of the series.

What about the multiplayer, though? I mean, who played GTA III and didn't think "what if I could play against someone else, and with the whole city as my playground?" And now you can play against 15 people in an even bigger landscape, in some very fun scenarios, with pedestrians and traffic. That's no small feat, regardless of how you feel about the single player.

One thing I loved about SA was the countryside, and that gave the game a scope that GTA IV can't match. But I think the GTA IV map is easily the best. I love how multileveled it is. You can drop from the top of a building to the freeway to an overpass to an underpass to a subway. It's just much more three-dimensional than any of the other maps, AND it has a ton of character. I wish there were more indoor spaces, but there are still plenty of them compared to SA.

I miss all the vehicles ... especially bicycles ... and I wish the motorcycles controlled better. I miss the harrier jet and the jetpack and planes and all that stuff, but the vehicles that are there have a weight to them that adds another wrinkle to the experience.

I agree that the missions aren't as varied, but I think the missions themselves are much more nuanced and visceral. The car chase missions are well-scripted, but not being able to kill someone until some artificial event (bad guys flip over, cops start chasing speedboat, etc.) pisses me off.

I do think there's just a general fatigue that arises from the fact that the single-player really hasn't added very many new wrinkles apart from the cover system, and the cover system is maybe a C+ at best compared to something like Gears of War (or some game I haven't tried). But the rag doll physics alone makes this game a real gem. Shooting guys out of helicopters and watching them fall on cars and buildings is amazing.

Mixed emotions, etc. etc.