Culture and Control

I’ve only played the Grand Theft Auto games on PC via mouse and keyboard so I lack the frame of reference for how improved the controls are for GTAIV. I’m not a fan of the inability to fully customize the button layout, but in time I did become accustomed to them – even the centered behind-the-back camera. I disabled auto-lock on immediately because I wanted to choose my shots without worry of how I much I pressed the L2 trigger. Shooting was satisfying in GTAIV. Being able to take out a guy’s knees and send him over the railing induced smiles. Shooting from cover is a little quirky at first, but with some practice, I got a hold of it. Additionally, Niko can also climb on or over just about anything in the world. Too bad I wasn’t given much opportunity to use it for vertical scaling.

Another area which I had a lot of control over was with the game’s cultural content. From cellphone themes, ringtones to Niko’s clothes: it was all customizable. Could have they provided more customizable options? Sure, but Rockstar provided a sufficient amount.

The soundtrack of GTAIV doesn’t have many standout pieces like GTA: Vice City, but it was well rounded and smart; I can tune into just about any station and find something to suit my mood. In fact, during the earlier moments of the game, I’d just cruise or ride in a taxi for minutes on end enjoying Billy Stratus or laughing at the absurdness of Integrity 2.0’s Lazlow.

Out of the handful of activities available for Niko and his friends to partake in, I spent most of my time at the comedy club. I didn’t care for the rudimentary pool or dart games. The drinking was amusing for about two or three times, but it was Ricky Gervais and Katt William’s antics which kept me going with the relationship building. I even enjoyed the TV programming available. I just wished it was a valid activity to please Niko’s friends with. Watching Niko watch TV with his friends…

Icing on the Cake?

The online connectivity with the Rockstar Social Clubis a nice gesture. I like being able to sample the songs I’ve sent from the in-game cellphone, but that’s all I care for so far. The most important feature, stat comparison, isn’t available. It could show up some day along with the multiplayer stat tracking, but as of launch it is nothing more than a nice gesture.

I don’t hate the multiplayer, but I wouldn’t be upset if it wasn’t included. You’d think a 16 players with countless weapons strewn across the entirety of Liberty City would be an invitation for awesome, but it just doesn’t tickle my fancy. There are interesting modes such as ‘Cops n’ Crooks’ where a team of cops must chase down and eliminate the crooks before they reach their getaway vehicle, but as a whole the online component seems to be lacking a strong sense of direction. I must admit that I haven’t spent many hours with it, and there’s always a chance that it could turn out to be worthwhile component. But then again, first impressions are everything these days and GTAIV’s multiplayer didn’t make the greatest impression.

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Tags: grand theft auto, rockstar
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This entry was posted on Wednesday, May 21st, 2008 at 11:00 am and is filed under PS3 Reviews, Reviews. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can skip to the end and leave a response. Pinging is currently not allowed.