Shall we say a cultural difference? You're either into this or you're not.
It certainly seems like most of the people doing these reviews whether it be for this site, another or one of the gaming mags, are the same types that rejoice over games like Nintendogs, Hot Shots, and probabaly Mario Karts. Just as the bulk of the film critics who prefer movies such as "On Golden Pond" have no business reviewing a movie like Friday, here we also see people ill-equiped for something they can't relate to. Probably the bulk of them will say, "I don't like rap, I don't like 50 Cent, I'm not into the whole gangsta/thug thingie, and so I'm not going to like this game." So much for expanding horizons.
If you either live in the inner city or have spent significant time there, you'll probably see this as I do. I found it exhilarating. Even more so that San Andreas in which there are simply too many cops to make it truly fun. This game has very nice graphics, some intense urban combat (especially when you get up into the projects), a good selection of weapons, a great soundtrack, extra multimedia for fun and a good story. Oh yeah, and 5 different difficulty levels.
Bottom line here, if you're the middle class, Super Smash Bros. type, fuhgetaboutit...Stick to what you know.