This game needs to be sleeping with the fishes.
Let's start with the game mechanics. The shooting is weak, the sneaking is worse and the melee makes me miss fighting in GTAIV. Yes it's that frustrating. I actually HATED when then game forced me into fights. But blazing your guns is even less satisfying. Enemies (at least on hard) have ESP and can "sense" when your cross-hair is near. Watch them when you play. If someone is running and you get a good bead on them they will suddenly stop to throw off your aim. If they are behind cover they will remain so until you move the cross-hairs elsewhere. This may seem like they are just smart, but since enemies on the other side of a fight, who could in no way ever see what you are aiming at react this way you can tell it's an AI cheat. So mostly you sit around shooting at someones cover.
That's more fun than the driving all over the city for each mission you have to do. Some missions honestly have you drive to one end of the map and then make you turn around an drive all the way across town. This might be ok if the driving wasn't boring and there was anything to do in this town. You can rob some stores and steal some cars but both of those things get boring real fast and your money and clothes don't matter since they will routinely be taken away from you to start a new mission.
As for the story, I'm not sure what is great about watching your character make the dumbest choices possible in almost every situation. Most cut scenes made me angry that I had to control such an unintelligent main character. Especially toward the end you wish you could switch to another character - maybe some anonymous guy on the docks - you know - someone who might actually see the clearly disastrous results of their choices.
Everyone has pointed out how great the city is, and in a way they are right. There is a lot of detail in Empire Bay - but it's hollow because you have no reason to explore it (unless your really want to collect like 100 wanted posters - lame).
All in all a frustrating exercise in futility. I wish I could go back in time and not have ever played it. To steal a phrase from Ebert "2K Games has stolen several hours of my life and I want them back."
Everyone at 2K Czech should be fitted for concrete shoes after giving us this fiasco after such a long wait.