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Grand Theft Auto IV [PC]

       9/10

Russian Mafia Mayhem

As another Grand Theft Auto title comes to the PC, after causing such a big buzz on the consoles, it does give a chance for PC gamers to embark on another epic Grand Theft Auto epic adventure, that is sure to deliver the same quality performance as always, and it just keeps getting better.

Story
You play Russian illegal immigrant ‘Niko Bellic’ and voiced with a very strong Russian accent he soon finds work, not only stealing cars and gunning down gangsters but spending a lot of time helping out your poor cousin ‘Roman’ who has built up a large foundation of gambling debts, and having plenty of military experience means Niko is never short of work, though in several occasions, you are offered a chance to do what you think is right, rather than being ordered by someone that’s above you in the street hierarchy of liberty city, whichever route you take slowly brings you one step closer to your ultimate goal.

A typical scene in the everyday life of Niko

Grand Theft Auto 4
Liberty City has changed a lot since the 2001 outing of GTA 3, as well as a visual update, the city has grown bigger and feels more alive, with plenty of things going on, indeed this is the city that never sleeps, and you’re never short of things to do. The story can be completed in around 30 hours, but with side quests, bonus missions, surfing the in-game internet, hooking up with women, multiplayer modes and the new addition to the PC version, the video editor, you can easily have hundreds of hours of fun.

Everything has been improved and crafted in such a superior way, which is going to be extremely inspirational for aspiring free roaming RPG games such as this, even the art of stealing a parked car isn’t easy anymore, no longer are you plagued by the thought of it being locked, but now you must hot wire it, which can be improved, any passengers within the car at the time will make amusing comments, and sometimes even get there arm stuck and be dragged along the road, though the tables can turn and this can easily become you.

Most vehicles are similar to those seen in previous GTA games, which are relatively easy to handle, and range from a variety of speeds, though unless you’re using an Xbox 360 controller or any other type of PC compatible joypad, it can become exceedingly difficult to drive using a keyboard and mouse, your best bet is to get hold of a joypad so you can customise your keys to fit you, and sit back in your chair and relax.

The hilarious in-game puns are there, with suitably amusing shop names, radio stations to laugh at, conversations in the street to giggle to and a hilarious in-game internet browser, though underneath this humorous exterior lays a very deep core of serious gaming that will leave you begging for more, as completing missions slowly progresses you to unlock new things, new areas, new vehicles, new missions, new friends and so forth.

The graphics are stunning, and the view is very expansive, with very intelligent, amusing and dramatic voice acting though this comes at a cost, it does mean a high standard PC is needed, and changing the settings doesn’t really help much unless you have a high powered PC and no joypad, GTA4 for PC isn’t the best option for you.

Liberty city has changed a lot since you were last there in GTA 3

Multiplayer
To get online requires you to run Windows Live and Rockstar Social Club in the background whilst you play, which can use up some precious memory usage, but in doing so you are rewarded with a bigger and better multiplayer experience than on the consoles, supporting 32 players rather than 16, meaning you and your friends can get together for a good old fashioned gang war round the streets of Liberty City, there are more than several modes to choose from, and each being customizable means there are limitless things to do online. There can be a frame rate issue though with the online play that doesn’t limit your gaming experience too much, though can be annoying to see your friend and his/her car jolt around while you try shoot them to gain some turf.

Rather than blow each other to bits, GTA4 supports a co-op mode where four of your friends can come together to complete objective based missions, though if working together isn’t your thing then there are plenty of modes that suit your need, that include: Deathmatch, Race, Cops and Crooks, Turf War and more.

The city looks stunning, and has been improved dramatically

It’s good to talk
The war and violence aside, this could easily be played as just a real life simulator, and you can easily get lost in a virtual world, and forget about your own, for example, your date can be influenced by: the car you drive, how you drive it, if you try and get lucky, if you wear the same thing twice in a row, and your personality throughout the date, and if that’s not enough pressure, you have to arrive dead on time too! Its not only your dates that are similar to life, but having befriended a lawyer will help you out if you get in trouble with the cops, and likewise with befriending a nurse can prove to be a lifesaver. You stay in touch with friends, enemies, dates and family via your cell phone, something so simple, yet been missing from most present era games, it will be simple for any real life cell phone user to be able to master the in-game one, but as well talking at your own leisure, people can also ring you for a brief chat, and your spouse ringing you to find you cheating on her with a prostitute or in the middle of a mafia war won’t go down well when you return to see her.

What’s new?
What’s new in the PC version is the ability to create a custom radio station, and a video editor, and a few new editions to the already expansive multiplayer mode, though this is not enough to make you want to replay the whole thing again if you’ve already completed it for one of the consoles, but one for the PC gamer who thought they’d miss out on the opportunity to play one of the biggest game this year.

The graphics are a little better, though some textures can appear blurry, as if they haven’t taken into account the PC’s resolution, but up close you can see far finer detail and accuracy than ever seen before. The frame rate also struggles to keep up when the screen gets hectic but doesn’t have a big effect on the gameplay.

The ability to create your own custom radio station means you can select your greatest hits and still have the funny advertising and hilarious comments in between tracks, which makes it feel like your local station, but just means you get to listen to whole lot more of Wham and Duran Duran.

For the creative genius’ there is an exclusive video editor mode, where you can make your own ‘machinima’ style movies that you can share with the world, editing the music, effects, camera filters and much more. All this can be accessed via the cell phone, so its bare essential you keep it with you at all times.

A typical job including a bazooka

The Good
-    Very fun 32 player multiplayer mode, with many different variations of multiplayer modes that are fully customizable
-    Excellent storyline, with many twists and turns
-    Hilarious comedic moments within the game
-     Brilliant visuals and character animations
-    Video Editor and Custom radio are a welcomed asset
-    The true to life simulation
-    The excellent crafting they’ve put in to make this game perfect to real life
-    Expansive map with over 50 hours of gameplay
-    Dialogue is dramatic and brings the whole experience into movie style quality

The Bad
-    High requirements needed to meet the demands of the game
-    Joypad of some kind is crucial for maximum enjoyment
-    Not really worth replaying the whole thing again if you’ve already lived through it once
-    Upgrading the computer to meet the requirements is fair more expensive than a console

The Ugly
-    Textures can sometimes appear blurry
-    Fps is reduced when things get hectic on screen
-    Multiplayer mode can bring with it some technical faults, though are minor

Niko, useful with guns

Summary
Should the new video editor and custom radio station be enough to want you to re-live this epic tale? Unless you’re an aspiring director with a part time dream of DJ’ing then the answer is no, but if you have missed out on the adventure the first time round, and you have a high standard computer, then I highly recommend playing through, what is easily, the best Grand Theft Auto yet.

Also available on Xbox 360 and PS3.