The rich world of Liberty City and its inhabitants tell a dark, troubled and human story that is unforgettable.
Grand Theft Auto isn't usually known for its dark, themed stories. Its previous works have been satires of culture wrapped in homage, inventive wit and free-form sandbox fun.GTA4 takes the series into a more structured experience, and it takes it into the higher realm of art. No longer is it just satirising culture and being crazy, it's also giving you a real and mature story to work with wrapped in a compelling world, and it pulls it off, and this isn't hyperbole, better than any game before it.
Niko Bellic is a troubled man. He's no average Joe six-pack, blue collar slave. He's been through a very tough life back in his old country, some unnamed eastern European nation, and he's made his way to America's Liberty City to be with his dreaming cousin Roman, and take care of some business. Through some unfortunate circumstances Niko finds himself back in his old ways, but his reasons aren't just for money and glory, no. Niko Belic needs to find some answers, and he's willing to risk everything he's got to find them.
Although Niko Belic is a very likeable character he's troubled and difficult to relate with. There will be moments where you will start to question his choices, but it never pulls you away from his character. You will be in his shoes, and at other points an observer; you will root for him, you will be angry like him, you will learn about his past and what makes him who he is and you will care about him and the people that surround and give him meaning. This is used to further the story as the game will give you choices that affect his life in major ways. Over the course of the game, Niko Bellic became more real than any character I have ever seen in games and I cared very much about certain conclusions in the game, that lingered over me like real life. This is an example of how interactivity in video games can pull off story better than other mediums.
Complementing this is the world of Liberty City, its crime and corruption, its dreamers and its losers, its ingrained philosophy and its encapsulation of Capitalism and the natural selection that occurs at its many levels of society. This can be seen through driving through its streets, through being entangled with the individuals that populate it, from cheating wives to fast food joints through listening to its radio stations, through watching its TV channels, and though Niko's story.
Grand Theft Auto's execution is nearly flawless; Liberty City is simply compelling to be in, both due to the rich and thought out architectural design, and to the characters that populate it, be it its pedestrians on cell phones and rude taxi drivers or the story characters who give it its thematic depth. The story missions use the city to great effect, set pieces occur within the city, in indoor and outdoor locations that make it feel like you are in Liberty City. Every aspect of its technology is also to note astounding; it makes nearly all other games look inferior by comparison. It raises the bar not only for sand box game design, but for technology and artistry in all video games.
Gameplay wise, it's a third person cover shooter where you'll be killing and driving (and flying) around various locations doing missions. But to put it this way would be to do it a disservice. Like all great games, it overcomes its gameplay definition and becomes an experience. Because GTA4 is about Niko Belic's journey, you'll do some crazy amazing things, like be part of helicopter chases and take out mob king pins single handedly, but its all grounded in a very human character that will grow on you. When I first started playing, I went on the classic GTA style rampages, by the end of the game, I became so immersed in my role that it just felt wrong to be doing them. Grand Theft Auto is growing up.
Another aspect that brings alive the world of liberty City is the superb radio station soundtrack. Granted it isn't as loveable as San Andreas, its more in line with Vice City where its more ambient and soundtrack than sing alone and pull over just to listen music. But it fits great, and during some missions it will sometimes feel like it was deliberately timed. The talk back stations are also consistently funny, taking pot shots at political correctness, the political system, and satirising real world issues, people and institutions, and it all fits in with its general vibe. Despite being a very grounded and serious story with emotional punch; GTA4 doesn't lack humour. GTA's cast of character's are funny and also very real and it's a balancing act that Dan Houser pulls off with aplomb.
And its cast is the star of the Show. Niko Belic meets some very messed up individuals, and they are all interesting both on a personality basis, and as people who are more than they seem. They all have traits that tell us something about human nature, and they are moulded by the society around them; the world of liberty City and the American dream. By the end, their stories will stay with you like real people you encounter in real life, and that the game manages to do what movies do,(like how movies use techniques like lighting) utilising video game medium specific qualities like "radio stations", choices, a sand-box world that complements the story, to imprint a message tells us that GTA4 is an example of what games as a unique medium is capable of; saying something meaningful about the human condition and our society.
All in all, we can discuss at length of how GTA4's Liberty City pulls off satirizing American culture, tells a human story through its many features but then we might mislead you into thinking GTA4 isn't fun; because it is very fun for the reasons stated above. It's not as fun as San Andreas, but I for one don't mind. I cared about what happened in GTA4 more than any other GTA game, and I loved it more for it; GTA4 is simply an unforgettable game.