The Grand Theft Auto 4 Review

GrandTheftAuto4 Homepage
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Gameplay

The game starts off with a video of you coming to america, and meeting your cousin who you will get to know really well during your stay in liberty city. The story is quite involved keeping you in the center of all the action. It feels like the first GTA that you sort of start to care about the main character. The new driving system they have introduced into this game definitely takes some getting used to as most games have been really arcade like allowing you to drift around corners with ease. You will find that you are pushing the brake button way more often than you are pushing the handbrake button. It does not take long to get used to this style because there is an enormous amount of driving missions (be it main or side missions) that help you adjust quickly.
The missions seem to stay fresh throughout the game, but eventually do wear on you. The length of some of them can frustrate you if you slip up and have to repeat the mission from the start again. You are given choices throughout the game that affect how the story plays out. This adds more replay value to the game, however, since the game is quite long (30 hours with no side missions) most people won't end up restarting the game just to make a few different decisions. You now have access to a large assortment of different things to do throughout the city when you plan a date or just want to kick back with a friend. Things such as pool, bowling, darts and even a comedy club are available when you are planning things to do with friends or just want to go and fool around on your own. Some very unique ideas from rock star that are backed by some actually kind of funny comedy acts from comedians such as Ricky Gervais.

Now, the new physics system they have brought in

This video sums up the awesomeness of this newly integrated euphoria engine.

Multiplayer

There is a wide selection of different modes for multiplayer that are pretty worthwhile. My current favorite is the Race option. I'm happy with how most of the modes turned out, since it really is their first crack at full on GTA multiplayer. So many options it's actually hard to really say which ones are worth checking out since it's all personal preference.

Sound

I must say I am very impressed with the amount of top quality music the radio stations provide. Basically all bases are covered by the radio stations from Smooth jazz on JNR, to Punk rock on LCHC. The voice acting is quite good helping push the story along and, for the most part, keeping your attention.


Overall

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I give this game a 9 / 10
Gameplay 9.0
Graphics 9.0
Audio 9.0