Grand Theft Auto IV was created by Rockstar North and distributed by Take-Two Interactive. It was released on April 29th, 2008, to record-breaking sales numbers. GTAIV is available on the Playstation 3 and XBox 360, with exclusive downloadable episodes scheduled for release for the latter. Like all my reviews, this will focus on the XBox 360 version, though both are essentially identical.

Story: Niko Bellic has just arrived in Liberty City (New York City, in essence) at the behest of his cousin, Roman. Niko was told of wealth and easy living, but it turned out Roman may have stretched the truth — in fact, he’s up to his ears in debt and living in a ratty apartment. Since he can’t go home — an unnamed country in Eastern Europe — Niko must find a way to make a living in his new home. True to Grand Theft Auto standards, he quickly falls into the world of organized crime. As he fights to survive, Niko must deal with seedy Russian mobsters, corrupt cops, the Mafia, and worst of all — American pop culture.

The best thing about GTAIV’s story is its vastness. If you only play through the main storyline, you’ll be given a tale that’s worthy of any Martin Scorsese movie. Unlike past GTA games, though, Niko’s story is far more mature. Past games have been borderline corny when it comes to their characters’ motivations, but Niko is all business. He’s a veteran of the Bosnian War who did terrible things, and is struggling to cope with his past.

That’s not to say GTAIV is lacking in humor — in fact, it’s packed to the brim with the satirical wit and parody that made the series famous. The target this time is American media and pop culture, and the folks at Rockstar North (located in Edinburgh, Scotland) skewer it perfectly. They’re also wise not to carry this goofiness over to Niko (though he will often give his opinion on radio/television/internet programs and such). He’s not a farcical character like Tommy Vercetti from Vice City.

The only fault with Niko is that he’s often portrayed in contrasting viewpoints. Sometimes he will say he detests drugs and the effects they have on people, yet he shows no remorse or concern during missions where he is transporting large amounts of drugs. While he’s definitely a great character, he’s never really given a set morality. I can’t say if this was intentional or not, but for me, it’s a distraction.

For those that take the time to explore GTAIV’s in-game internet, television programming, and radio broadcasts, a much larger story is painted. Some of it has to do with Niko and his deeds, good or bad, while most tells the city of Liberty City itself. You can read blogs and news on the ‘net, listen to interviews on the radio, and watch several shows on television. Everything changes over time, and it’s just amazing at just how much work was put into making Liberty City seem real. Liberty City is truly the most alive city in gaming today, from its virtual citizens to is mass media.

Graphics: GTAIV isn’t the prettiest game, but the series has never relied on its looks. The worst of the game is the character models — they’re still somewhat blocky and unrealistic looking, and will often move in an unnatural way. However, the environment is gorgeous. Liberty City is a great recreation of New York, perhaps the best I’ve seen in gaming. Not only do the buildings look great, but there’s so much little detail that makes everything look authentic — just enough litter, graffiti, and cracked pavement to make it look real. The lighting is particularly well done, creating nice looking shadows.

Gameplay: Moving Niko around feels like moving a real person around — when you’re running and turn, you don’t automatically start moving in that direction; Niko must shift his weight and speed in order to accomplish this. It’s really a serious breakthrough to have a character pivot and shift their weight like this, as it’s a very natural feeling. Niko can also shoot much better than is GTA predacessors by using Gears of War-like over-the-shoulder firing and cover-taking mechanics. Holding the left trigger will auto-lock onto targets, while halfway pressing it will let you free-aim. It’ll take some time to get used to, and the auto-lock is often frustrating. But, it’s a definite step in the right direction. Niko can also engage in fistfights when he’s not in possession of a gun, but it’s much easier to pop caps than knock heads.

Driving and car control is… different. Previous GTA’s have taken serious liberties with driving a car, and GTAIV makes the experience more realistic. No more hanging corners at one-hundred miles per hour in this game — you will skid out and crash. So, long-time vets of the game will have to learn where the brake is. Driving will take some serious getting used to. The handbrake seems seriously busted though, as a split-second tap can send you spinning out of control. But, with all things, it can be managed once you’ve spent enough time with it.

Missions offer a nice variation of things to do, from massive firefights, to high-speed car chases (which can be a bit frustrating when you’re not totally comfortable with the brand new driving controls). Apart from the main missions, there are dozens of side-missions to take in.

The biggest addition to the game is your cell phone. Occasionally, characters will either call or text you with mission details. You can call up your friends to make plans as well, such as eating, drinking, or playing games. In fact, keeping up good relationships with your friends comes with benefits — you can get free taxi service, discounted guns, backup goons, and a few other helpful services. You can also call up the girls you’re dating and arrange dates — once the girls like you enough, you can “get lucky” with them. Your girlfriends also come with helpful benefits — you can call them up to remove wanted stars, get a health boost, or receive a discount on clothing purchases. Lastly, your phone offers you the chance to automatically restart a mission should you fail, eliminating a lot of time-consuming backtracking.

Sound: The cast of GTAIV is comprised of unknown actors, but they do a fine job with the script. Niko is particularly well-voiced, which is good considering he’s always with you. There are a few annoying characters, such as Brucie — though, he’s intentionally annoying.

GTAIV has nineteen radio stations — three talk, the rest music. The music stations are fairly eclectic, ranging from jazz to reggae to rock. Unlike previous games, all songs are separate sound files and are played in random order, instead of each station being one looping sound file.

Multiplayer: GTAIV features online multiplayer for the first time in the series, and for its freshman effort, it’s pretty good. There are fifteen different modes, ranging from the typical deathmatch games, different types of races, and co-op games. Team Deathmatch is particularly fun, as well as Cops ‘n’ Crooks (one team are police officers, the other are crooks with one mob leader. The cops have to kill the mob leader to win, while the crooks have to escort the leader to a safe destination to win).

Achievements: Most achievements are netted through story mode, and mostly by accomplishing certain taks rather than completing missions. The few multiplayer achievements aren’t too hard to reach, and look to be mostly time consuming. Overall, it’s a really nice mix and none are insanely difficult to get. For the full list, check it out at XBox360Achievements.org.

Intangibles: I really got the sense that GTA has “grown up” with this installment. It’s still as funny as previous game, but there’s no silliness to it. I think this is a big step in the right direction for Rockstar.

- As stated before, the 360 version will be receiving exclusive downloadable content later this year. While the only thing known for sure is that it will be game-expanding “episodes”, many have theorized that it will bring brand new cities, possibly Vice City or the San Andreas cities.

- I always find it amusing that you can careen through traffic, smashing up dozens of cars, and the cops don’t care. However, if you slightly bump a cop car, they’re on your ass like crazy.

- It’s been far too long since I’ve played a game that took longer than ten hours to beat. I’m currently at seventy hours and have yet to finish (but I’m close!).

The Bottom Line: If you’re a fan of the series, you more than likely have this game and know how good it is already. If not, now is a good place to start. Don’t let the vastness of this game fool you — the core gameplay is very simple to pick up, but is utilized in very clever ways to make every mission seem exciting. It’s not a perfect game, nor is it beautiful, but it draws you in with its setting and tons of things to do beyond completing story missions. Don’t be surprised if you end up playing hours after you tell yourself you’re going to stop. Considering that most games take roughly ten hours to complete these days, getting a game with this amount of content for only $60 seems like a bargain.

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