• 15May 08

  GTA IV: The Review

  Grand Theft Auto IV is Rockstar North's latest addition to the storied Grand theft Auto series and the most ambitious to date. The opening sequence introduces you to the main character in Nico Belic as he arrives to Liberty City on a freighter in search of a new life of luxury and glamor that his cousin Roman has dazzled him with in sensational letters and emails.
  
  The story unfolds in a the simulated New York City known as Liberty City (the site for three previous games in the Grand Theft Auto Universe), which spans four unique districts that are microcosms of their real life counterparts. Rockstar's attention to detail in the design of Liberty City easily takes hold of you as you explore the islands little by little as the story unfolds. The visuals in Grand Theft Auto have improved exponentially in the four years since the last game in the aeries San Andreas hit the shelves. The characters are greatly detailed and the addition of bloody clothing after meting the business end of flying bullets adds a real feel of losing health when shot. A major element to this new and improved Liberty City is the inhabitants that can all pass for everyday people because they have a very organic feel to them. If you try to slowly run them over, they're going to put their hands out in front of them to protect themselves and they're going to realistically react to a someone being killed unlike previous games where the NPCs would gather around a fresh corpse to catch a glimpse. You're also going to get subtle details like people's cell phones ringing and being answered, people reacting to you bumping into them and dropping what they're holding in reaction to your interactions with them. The NPCs seem almost real at times, one time in particular I was impressed on a trip to Happiness Island (Ellis Island in the real world) when a man took out a camera to snap a picture of the statue of Happiness (Statue of Liberty) . Small details like that really make the whole experience of being a Liberty City surreal.
  
  The Controls in Grand Theft Auto IV have been modified from previous offerings to offer more realistic driving and a better targeting system. The new driving controls make driving like a madman through the streets of Liberty city more difficult and adds great disparity between types of cars and trucks you drive. I found driving to be difficult at first, but after a couple of hours into my first play session I was able to master the driving and was was drifting around corners away from the police with ease.
  
  Speaking of the police, the wanted system has been changed for to accompany a seemingly more realistic fleeing system. Gone are the star icons that lower your wanted level and with that, a new radius system system has been implemented in which your goal is to escape the police line of sight; the more wanted stars you have, the bigger the radius the police have to spot you in. This new system seems to punish you if you try to flee on a straight path as police units will be dispatched to intercept you outside of their line of sight by predicting your path, and if the spot you, the police radius will reset to center on where you were last spotted. Making quick turns and using a less predictable path will provide better results for fleeing the police.
  
  Another new implementation is the use of a Cell phone that will act as a mission initiator and allow you to call your in-game friends, do bonus missions and acts as the launchpad for the Multiplayer game modes, which are new to the series. The phone can be great because it allows you to call for a cab when you don't feel like physically driving to your next location, you can call your lawyer girlfriend (who you can meet online) when you're in a spot of trouble to eliminate your wanted level and it genuinely adds to the story as characters will call you; likewise you will call people you're doing jobs for to inform them that your task has been completed. The phone also can be your biggest source aggravation. There are times when you're just about to start a mission you might get a call from a friend asking if you want to go out to drink or maybe hit up a strip club, or you may get an angry call from a girlfriend that you have neglected guilt tripping you into going out with them again. The phone is a cool concept, but it can act as a ball and chain because your relationships you establish affect the story and will provide you with benefits if they are well maintained.
  
  Of everything I mentioned, the most important, improved, compelling and interesting, the story being told stands out far above the rest. After a few missions Niko will begin to divulge information about his past and at that point I began to grow attached to him as a character and began to pay more attention to what I was doing as I played. When I first started jacking cars I would shoot people in cars in the face to steal their cars because it ensured no resistance. Later I began to believe that even though Niko kills for a living, he was better than killing random strangers for their cars. Sure, he would steal at the drop of a hat, but I began to feel bad for making him kill innocents for no reason. It's a strange effect that I haven't felt in past iterations of the series. The story is a standalone story as GTA typically goes, so there is no need to play any of the previous games before jumping into Liberty City.
  
  Grand Theft Atuo IV is a strong title that can be picked up and played for hours on end. I personally took about 42 hours of play to beat the main story and select side missions. The joy of playing the first current generation title of the GTA series will keep me coming back to Liberty city and I feel it's a must play for anyone who is interested in open-world games, fast-paced driving and shooting and anyone who has enjoyed a previous GTA title.

  • Posted May 15, 2008 3:25 pm PT
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• 14Apr 08

  Are Games Detracting Theater Goers?

  

  With the upcoming release of Grand Theft Auto IV for the PS3 and Xbox 360, it's all but guaranteed that millions of people will be staying home to get their fix of Liberty City come April 29th. The highly anticipated title will be the first Current Generation offering from the GTA series and has already reached over 3 million preorders in the US alone.
  
  With this kind of selling power, gamers will no doubt be devoting a considerable amount of time in front of their televisions making good use of their new purchase. With an estimated 100+ hours of gameplay from the single player missions and the bonus of a slew of multiplayer options, a first for the series, people may choose to spend the week at home rather than going out.
  
  This is a cause for concern in the film industry, where the new Iron Man flick will hit theaters just three days after the release of GTA IV.
  
  The target demographic for both the film and the game are virtually the same for both titles, so the potential audience can for Iron Man's opening weekend could be sapped by GTA's release. Will gamers take a break from their misadventures in Liberty City to watch Tony Stark become Iron Man? Can a film release really be affected by the release of a videogame?
  
  Hollywood is worried that this can absolutely happen.
  
  In October 2007, Halo 3 was blamed for the poor box office showing of the Ben Stiller film "The Heartbreak Kid," which was released in the wake of Halo 3's September 25th release date. The rest of the film industry also suffered supposedly under the weight of Master Chief's gun as it was reported that total industry sales were down 27% compared to 2006 figures.
  
  Personally, I think that Hollywood might have reason to fear big games releases in the future as the game industry continues to increase its mainstream appeal. I know that given the choice between buying a quality $60 game and playing all weekend and paying $10.50 for a night at the movie theater, I'll tend to take the game unless there are other incentives to get me out of the house. I generally only will go out to see a film in a group or on a date, otherwise I'll wait until I can watch it at my leisure in my own home.
  
  The initial investment does cost more for a game, but with a game I'm going to be getting more time spent per dollar than I would for the 90-120 minutes I'll be spending in the theater. Games can also be played through multiple times and I have the option to sell them after I've finished them.
  
  The appeal of a new blockbuster game has more weight than the appeal of a new movie title. The problem is that many movies that are coming out these days are just rehashed old films, unwanted sequels, revived old television shows or just plain bad. there are plenty of good movies that reach the silver screen, but many of the best are often lost in the shuffle.
  
  The film industry still has a saving grace: I'm not going to buy buy Lost Odyssey for a girl to watch me play on a Friday night. As the trend in gaming tends to lean toward being more social, this could change. My friends come over some weekends just to play Rock Band and Wii Sports instead of spending money on a movie, but there are times when it's nice to get out into the world, socialize and interact with other people. As long as going to the theater remains a social event and people are willing to pay to see the new terrible Superhero Movie or Meet the Spartans the industry wont have to worry too much, but it will have to get used to the new kid on the block in the form of videogames taking away some revenues.
  

  • Posted Apr 14, 2008 8:04 pm PT
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• 14Apr 08

  Everything Old is New Again!

  

  Today, when I got home from a long day of **** I was greeted by the smiling face of an Amazon.com box on my doorstep holding my brand new baby: a DUALSHOCK 3 controller. I then happily tore into the box to unearth my new controller. I (after taking this picture, of course) immediately opened the plastic fortress that protected this beauty from my greasy, dirty hands and, instead of popping in a compatible PS3 game, I got down to the nitty gritty and put in Tales of the Abyss for the PS2. I was worried that my shiny new controller wouldn't work with my old PS2 games, so my first task was to see if my concerns were unfounded.

  Thankfully, any doubts that I had faded away once I initiated a battle and felt a familiar tingle in my hands. At first I almost didn't notice it. I still have rumble in my Xbox 360 controllers, but it's been over a year since I felt the gentle buzz of a PlayStation controller in my hands. The sensation of rumble just felt right and subtlety adds to the gameplay experience. The DUALSHOCK 3 also feels as if it can deliver more subtle rumbles to give a more authentic feel to your on screen experience. While playing MLB 08: The Show (PS3), I noticed that I immediately felt more connected to what was going on in front of me and was able to move carefully guiding my pitches into the strike zone, which coincidentally improved my game dramatically, though there's no way I can directly link my favorable game results to the controller any more than I can claim that Lady Luck is on my side.

  The controller itself feels just right in your hands with the added weight the rumble offers. The controller feels more solid and less likely to snap after a frustrating game moment coupled with a controller squeeze. Other than the "DUALSHOCK 3" written above "SIXAXIS" on the front of the controller there have been no aesthetic changes made to body or design. The face buttons and analog sticks both feel the same as the SIXAXIS and respond just as well. The battery life for the DUALSHOCK 3 has been impressive and can be relied to survive any Final Fantasy throwback sessions on your PS3.

  My only complaint is that my new controller didn't come with a USB cable because Sony is assuming that I am happy using my own that came with my PS3. Good ol' Sony cutting corners where they can.

  I'm glad to see that Sony listened to consumers and brought this "last generation" technology into the now with the DUALSHOCK 3 controller, and with it, completed my PS2 gameplay experience by giving me what has been missing since I made the jump from last gen platforms to current generation. I might even play through some of my PS3 games again to experience the rumble for the first time and to see if they can replicate the immersion I felt during my play through the MLB 08: The Show.

  • Posted Apr 14, 2008 8:01 pm PT
  • Category: Technology
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