Massively disappointing...

User Rating: 5.5 | Grand Theft Auto IV PS3
By Delston | Review Date:
I found the game to be not as groundbreaking as everyone screamed about. I must admit, when I saw the all elusive "10" rating on it I was mesmerized. I purchased the game on my way home from work only to find that two weeks later (at the time of the writing of this review) I was totally and utterly bored of the content the same way I had been with GTA III and GTA: Vice City. A "10" should captivate, inspire the player to play and replay again and again, not caring whether the content is new or old. Admittedly, there are only a few games that I would personally give a "10" simply because there are so many games available I don't feel there is time to replay some of those 7's or 8's.

GTA IV was the same as the its siblings. Once the newness of it being better graphics, and a few new physical features and some more in-depth scenery, I found myself asking what's the drive to continue to commute around this city essentially running errands that don't make much difference? The features I noticed that were immediately different were things like your car lifting up when the water from the fire hydrant you just plowed over hits from underneath, or Niko reacting physically correct when a stopping car nudges him. I enjoyed the new aiming system. But things like the phone got downright annoying. However, above all, my biggest gripe about the game is the fact that I couldn't walk without the camera auto-adjusting my view back to a "following" view. This sounds silly, but when I wanted to walk to the right but see another direction, it becomes incredibly difficult with the auto-view.

Graphics are neat, I will be the first to admit that graphics help attract me to a game. Storyline keeps me interested and moreover wanting to play again and again, trying to relive moments, and re-feel the way I felt the first time I played it. GTA IV does nothing of this. The graphics are simply better than GTA III, but nothing even close to ground breaking. The case claims it displays in 1080p, but there just simply is no way it is 1080p.

I found the game fun for the first week, my favorite thing to do quickly became grabbing a nearby vehicle and mowing down passersby on the sidewalks…then I found myself asking "how many people can one man run down before the game has lost its appeal?" Boredom of the game's repetition set in and needless to say I've already sold my copy.

Final Thoughts and ratings:

Rent it, you most likely will see all the hype within the amount of time before you have to return it. This game would not be worthy of holding onto in my opinion.

Graphics: 6  I expect more for a 4th gen game on a next gen system. And 1080p? please…
Gameplay: 5  since when did a high-end sports car handle the same as a garbage truck?
Replayability: 6  some fun things to do again, but in all, the story is forgettable
Value:4 more of the same, 10$ more…

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