A great reboot of the series. And yes, it is also the best game in the series.
In the first GTA game, you had three stages, or cities. They where called Liberty City, Vice City and San Andreas. GTA2 was a bit of an outsider really, but it introduced the concept of gangs, and a bit more story. Well. Not much, but still.
Then you have GTA3, which happens in Liberty City. Guess where the next games happen. You are right! Vice City and San Andreas! Every game took all the great things from the last game, and added heaps. San Andreas has you playing in an entire state, complete with three major cities, mountains, deserts etc. You can customize your player, and you can do pretty much everything. Or so it seemed.
So now we have a game called GTA4. And it happens in Liberty City again. See a pattern? Now, I do not know if this is what they intend, but I believe the next game will not be GTA5, as Vice City was not GTA4. So this is not a continuing of the GTA3 line of games. This is a reboot of the series, thus making this into something like what GTA3 would have been if it was made now. Which means it is more like GTA3 with added stuff than GTA: San Andreas with added stuff.
So, in this game you play a foreigner for the first time. An illegal immigrant from Balkan named Niko Bellic. He is in Liberty City because of his cousin Roman, who says he has all the money in the world, mansions, women.. you name it. He is also there to find a man. One who did something to him which scarred him ten years ago.
And this is where one of the best games ever start off.
Now, let's first see how it compares to the last game very quick. A lot of those things you could do in San Andreas is now gone. You could argue and say that is a bad thing. But I must say, they couldn't have done a better decision. Gone are all the "fun" things you could do, which seemed rather... non-realistic. Paramedic missions, Firefighter missions etc is gone. Police missions have been changed to be more realistic. Tons of small things have been changed as well, and things are gone. The only flying vehicle now are helicopters, which makes sense as you are in one city. Who takes a plane from one end of the city to the other? No regular bikes anymore. Not many choices in clothes, but you can buy some new threads.
So this game has been aimed more at being realistic. You can see that in more or less every aspect of the game. Gone are the almost cartoony colors and graphics. The night is actually dark in this game. I cannot remember crashing as much at nighttime in any other GTA game. Cars look better, pedestrians look infinitely better and the city... wow. You can no longer enter a "convenience store" of weapons, but have to visit underground gun shops.
Graphically the game is stunning. Standing on a rooftop during a sunrise is a must. Weather-effects are great, the water is great and of course the buildings are all great. Though some of the textures used for windows and glass doors for shops are kinda poorly done, you really do not notice it that much.
Because of the graphics, or so I guess, you do get some annoying pop-up now and then. That is, hitting things which aren't there, but look! There that fence appeared! This doesn't happen often, and mostly when driving at ungodly speeds down a road.
The weapons are all great. But there aren't than many weapons in the game really. You have two variants of most weapons, but only in the normal categories. Pistol, SMG, Rifle, Shotgun and Sniper. You also have grenades and molotovs, and of course the RPG. In the hand to hand section you have a bat and a knife. Not nearly as many weapons as in San Andreas, but the only thing I really missed was the katana. Hand to hand unarmed combat has been improved though. With combos, blocks and counters.
So, what makes this game more realistic? The story for one. The fact that you have a cellphone, which you can use to call friends, enemies and even the cops. And of course, the wonderful Endorphin technology.
The story is truly great. What has been a hallmark GTA story has been an over the top, funny and surprising ride. This game has more of a dark story. Not going to spoil anything, but let's say it shows the life of crime a lot better than the previous games. And, I think, this is one of my favourite stories. I can say this without spoiling to much:
I usually hit bikers from behind when driving in-game. It is fun, but it also makes me feel a bit sad for them (yes, it actually does).
After I beat the story (one of the endings that is, as there are two different ones), I was driving down the road. I saw a biker, but I didn't hit him. Didn't want to. The ending made me feel... empty. That everything was just ruined.
Might not seem like a good thing, but the ending actually made me feel something. I am having a blast with the game still, of course, but that is how it was for me with the ending fresh in mind.
The cellphone feature is truly awesome. You have to try it to understand I think. But being able to call a buddy to go out for a drink is priceless. Which leads me on to the Endorphin tech.
For those who do not know it, that is a new technology giving characters more life. Instead of only having pre-made animations, they now act according to what happens around them. So when a car bumps into someone, they won't just fall over as before. Now they will fall on their ass, grab the hood of the car as they fall forward or even manage to keep their balance as they almost fall. People will grab ledges if they are pushed off cliffs! You seriously have to see this yourself. With this tech, going for a drink with one of your buddies turns into one of the coolest new features in the game. 'cause now you seriously are drunk. The screen blurs and moves around, and you have to keep the balance. The first time I was out drinking with Packie, we both went face first into a pile of garbage.
I am not going to say much about the multiplayer, as I have not played it that much. Mostly because of a glitch which makes it hard for me to log on. And that is the only big flaw I have found in this game.
But what I have played has been immense fun.
If you want a game where you use at least 30-40 hours beating the story, where you can roam around a gigantic city, wreaking havoc, where you can push people down stairs... you should get this game. I spend half an hour yesterday pushing people into the ocean. Over and over again. And I had a blast, seeing those people trip on the small ledge near the water, then falling backwards, frantically trying to hold on before falling in. Climbing up the ladder, then fall back down as I am standing at the top pushing them in. Seriously, this game rocks.
And having one of the best stories in video-gaming history just make this a must buy.
About the story being the best ever. I have seen people arguing that there is no story. If you removed everything but the beginning and the end, you wouldn't miss anything. I disagree. Niko does change, subtly. While some say almost every mission in the middle of the game is pointless, I totally disagree. I don't want to ruin the story, but if you have played it, and wonder what I mean, send me a note. I would happily explain.
I do not think I have missed something overly important, so I will stop here.
This is a great game. While it has a few flaws, they are minor. And yes, a lot of stuff from San Andreas is gone, but all the new features outweighs that. Besides, the next GTA game will most likely build on this one, like Vice City did to GTA3. And I must say, I cannot wait!