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Grand Theft Auto IV | 
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| From: Rockstar Games
Category: Video Games
List Price: $59.99
Buy New: $29.99
You Save: $30.00 (50%)
New (69) Used (56) Collectible (1) from $29.99
Avg. Customer Rating:  221 reviews
Sales Rank: 31
Platform: Xbox 360
ESRB: Mature
Media: Video Game
Autographed: No
Memorabilia: No
Batteries Included: No
Age: 17 - 20 years
Operating System: Xbox 360
Shipping Weight (lbs): 2
Dimensions (in): 7.5 x 5.4 x 0.7
MPN: 39012
UPC: 710425390128
EAN: 0710425390128
ASIN: B000FRU1UM
Release Date: April 29, 2008
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
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| Features:
| • | Carry on the Grand Theft Auto tradition playing through the single player campaign as Niko Bellic | | • | Get cars and other modes of transportation anyway you can | | • | Interact with various colorful characters who give you various missions to engage in | | • | Engage in multiplayer challenges ranging from cover matches to shoot-outs | | • | Game Rated 'M' due to Intense Violence, Blood, Strong Language, Strong Sexual Content, Partial Nudity, Use of Drugs and Alcohol |
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| Customer Reviews: Read 216 more reviews...
 GTA IV exceeds expectations July 8, 2008
This game has a lot of content on it that will keep you busy for many many many hours. GTA IV is without a doubt the best in the series. There is so much detail in Liberty city, you will constantly be amazed at how lively and realistic Liberty City looks. Gameplay is great and the plot is very interesting, which will keep you addicted and coming back for more. I still have yet to beat the game and I had it for a month! Maybe I should play more single player and less multiplayer. Yup, this game has many multiplayer options on Xbox Live, from deathmatches to races or even just free roaming. If you are old enough and have an Xbox 360, then GTA IV is a must-have!
The Hype Train runs over humanity once again. July 6, 2008
Everyone knows what GTA is and what its supposed to be by now and whether they will buy it or attempt to condemn it to the gates of hell for all eternity, so I'm not going to try to convince anyone that GTA4 is trash or god's gift to man (and the religious references just keep on rolling. Sorry about that, religous nutjobs.)
It seems like everyone and their mother wants to put this game on a pedistal and say "look, society has finally created its own GOD!" So many perfect scores are being thrown to GTA 4, that Hello Kitty Roller Adventure is trying to get caught in the crossfire.
"So, Hunter, if every major game magazine is saying it's the most perfect game in the world, why should we think carefully before buying?"
Well, disembodied voice, two reasons.
One- Those magazines were pushing GTA 4's grrrrreat(!)ness since they had first heard about it, and were getting loads of advertising bucks from Rockstar and 2K for splattering GTA over their magazines. They weren't the most unbiased group of reviewers before they named GTA "Greatest Game In The Universe," and they certainly weren't unbiased during or after.
And Dos- I've finished GTA, and it's nowhere close to perfect. I was hooked on the storyline, Niko is actually a likeable character(which is a first for rockstar), the shooting is much better (though still very wonky), graphics are good looking, and the music is great, as usual.
But the problems are just as obvious. Everything gets old fast, and once you beat the storyline, there's not much left. After the final mission, you'll end up drifting around, going on stupid "make-me-happy" dates, realize how dull looking the city is, and end up starting killing sprees that end becoming formulaic and boring.
The reason is because there is just not enough to do. GTA's 3, Vice City, and San Andreas all had a bunch of fun little side quests and assorted gimmicks to keep people from getting stuck in the duldrums of driving around a drab cityscape. GTA 4 skimps out on a lot of that. Rockstar expects that people are going to instead play multiplayer, but with horrible servers, incredible lag, and some of the most annoying people to have ever been born playing online, I'm not sure how well that'll work out in the long run.
That said, you should still consider getting GTA 4. I did like it, it's just that I probably won't play it that much anymore, at least until the downloadable content shows up. I would suggest getting another game for after you finish, though.
Finally solved it last night... July 5, 2008
...so I feel I can properly evaluate the game in its entirety.
And it ain't no GTA 3, Vice City, or San Andreas, and thats a good thing.
Now, not to let it be said that I didnt love/hate all those games and spend far too much of my young adult life playing them, but my major gripe with the GTA series was one that carried over to ever game until IV: linear games trying to act non-linear.
Let me explain...free roam games like this should, in theory, give you the option of progressing on the path YOU choose, not bogged down by some random mission (races that are damn near impossible to beat, flying some remote control helicopter for some random task, etc) that you find yourself spending hours trying to solve. Those types of missions from the past games, while also seeming slightly ridiculous, cancelled out the fun I had with the rest of the game that seemed more or less rooted in reality.
Frankly, after playing Saints Row, I was expecting the GTA-type-game crown stolen and not returned by the SR developers. Saints Row was simply more fun, the missions seemed to make sense and have a clear payoff and impact on the game.
Saints Row also wasnt bogged down by game components that I thought were unnecessary, like having to eat and lift weights in San Andreas. I was expecting the same pointless missions, the same pointless activities in this installment of the GTA series.
But I was wrong. Rockstar chose to base this game a little more in the real world (as it goes) and focus quite a bit more on character development. Rockstar also seems to have included quite a bit more extra content, such as the internet, TV, games, etc that are probably more a result of more powerful consoles being available for their developers.
At the end of the day, these types of games are pure escapist fun. For probably the first couple hours of GTA IV, I was concerned maybe Rockstar had really slowed things down too much, but as the game went on (and the hours and hours piled up I'm sad to say), I found the trade off was a much more immersive world where you cared about things a little more than the past GTA editions.
When the game was over, I can honestly say I'll probably play it through again, if for no other reason than to focus on the parts of the story I didnt get to this time and to take the other paths and choices that the game offers you. If I went right, this time I'm going left.
And really, thats the goal of a game developer, right? To keep you coming back for more?
Great job to Rockstar, great game, and great choice of direction to take the series - you almost sank it, but I think there will now be even more GTA converts lining up to pre-order GTA V thanks to some smart decisions in development.
It's all been done before..... July 4, 2008
The Time has finally come. The day I get to hold Grand Theft Auto 4 in my hands. It is a day that I have waited for. I pre ordered last year and was told it was pushed back. I didn't care really. I have other games to play. But today, none of those games matter. For today I shall review "the" game.
Before you game
9 pictures, on the front of the game case. I don't know how to describe the feeling I get when I look at them. It's like buying a movie sequel that you know is going to be better than all of it's predecessors. Not only can you see the game of the game. But you can feel it. The Grand Theft Auto IV has it's outline standing out a little off the paper.
On the back you see "Welcome to Liberty City" and next to this you see a helicopter. Then under neith of these you see the text.
"What does the American dream mean today? For Niko Belic fresh off the boat from Europe, it is the hope he can escape his past. For his cousin, Roman, it is the vision that together they can find fortune in Liberty City, geteway to the land of opportunity. As they slip into debt and get dragged into a criminal underworld by a series of shysters, thieves and sociopaths, they discover that the reality is very dirrerent from the dream in a city that worships money and status, and is heaven for those who have them and a living nightmare for those who don't"
Again, when I read this I got the feeling that I was about to see a movie. A great movie that I had been waiting for, for such a long time. Then I realized. In this movie. I got to decide how the story goes. Ok so now I am more excited that I think I have been for a game in a LONG time. But before I tell you about the game, let me finish with what you see on the back. To the right of the text you see a man standing at night, holding a gun with his back to you. There is a car on either side of him, two facing him with the head lights on and what looks like a body on his left. Under the text there is a car chase. A blue car with lots of cop cars after it. To the right of this there is a man standing outside. You see a plane flying to his right and what looks like a big water tank. The man has sun glasses on and is holding a gun. You see players 1, 1MB to save game, HDTV 720P/1080I/1080P. In game Dolby Digital. Under neath these you see, online multiplayer 2-16, Co-op 2-4, Voice, leaderboards and content downloads. Then you see 2 Rockstar logos and under neath those you see Mature 17+. Blood, Intense Violence, Partial Nudity, Strong Language, Strong Sexual Content and use of drugs and alcohol. Before parents cry about this. It is rated M. People should pay attention to these things before buying their child a game.
Alright, now let us see what is inside the case. When you open it up, if you look to the left you will see 3 things. First you get a 1 month XBOX 360 Live Gold Trial. Then you get a map. Well two maps really. There are two sides to this map. On one side you get "Liberty City Area Street Map." Under the map you get "Liberty City Sights," to the right of this "Beyond Liberty City" and finally to the right of this you get "Liberty City Neighborhoods." On the other side of the map you get. Liberty City Subway Map. With a key to the subway. Under the subway map and to the left you see "Getting Around Facts" and to the right of this you see "Quick Reference." This is telling you the controls of the game. The map is probably 2 ft by 2 ft. So you do not have to worry about straining your eyes to read the stuff you need. The instruction manual is great. It is full of color. And It really feels like you're looking at a tour guide for a place your visiting. Inside the instructions you can see, Game Controls , Welcome, Places, Entertainment, Restaurants, Bars and Credits. The disc has a man pulling a glove on his right hand and says grand theft auto IV.
I know I know. You thinking "GET TO THE GAME." Not to worry. Now is when I tell you about the game. At least about as much of the game as I myself have played.
The game
First let me tell you some cool things in the game.
When you are given a mission, a yellow marker will show up on your map. There will also be a yellow line, going from you to the mission point. Let it be said that you do not have to flower the way of the marker. But if you chose to, it makes getting to your next goal fast and easy.
As your driving, at times 2 characters will talk. You can see them moving to the talking. This is just a little thing I noticed that made me feel that the designers didn't scimp out on anything.
There is steam coming out the the vents on the street. Again another little detail that makes you really want to thank the guys who made this game.
In one of the first missions you have to pick up two ladies. The voice acting is really bad for these girls. Well, I don't know if it is bad voice acting, or the way the girls are supposed to act. If it is not supposed to sound like that, then the voice acting for them is bad.
When you are driving around the city, you get a feeling of aww. It is so amazing to look at everything around you. Every little detail seems to have been taken care of. It is amazing
The controls... all I can say is WOW! At first I was driving a car and the controls were really good. Then I jumped out and stole an s.u.v. This was nothing at first. But after driving for a minute or so I realized just how awesome the car mechanics were. You could see the car bouncing up and down from the shocks. I just watched the car move along for a few seconds in awww. This will add an entire new part to the game. Getting different cars and seeing how they react to your driving. They drive as if you were playing a very well controlled racing game. I give the control a 5 out of 5.
You can skip through most of the cut scenes. The ones you can not, shouldn't bother you. It's really cool watching the story play out. A lot of the stuff is pretty funny if you really think about what they are saying.
The music seems pretty cool. This is one of the only things I thought they missed. It would have been great if you could add custom soundtracks. How cool would it be to fly down the highway while listening to a Willie Nelson tune?
The Game
This game gets old fast. I mean the city is HUGE. However, its not like you can go in all the buildings. Also, you can stand there and see the same cars pass over and over. Kind of like Truman on the Truman show. I mean this is just a game. I and we have seen it before. I would almost have given this a 3 out of 5 but it does have a lot of fun things and the graphics in the game are pretty good. So if you think you may want this game I say go rent it. Then if you like it buy it used and new off amazon. You can get it for a better price there.
Here is something to think about. This is also the reason I gave this game a 4 out of 5. If the graphics and controls in this game were not as good as they are, would this game be more than just average. I know that those two things add a lot to the game, but what I'm saying is, this is just like the other GTA games. Yes you can play online now, but the online part has it's flaws. This is a great game don't get me wrong. But when the time comes for the next GTA to come out, what will the team do to make it stand out from this on.
 Ok...I need to state something...(3 1/2 stars) July 3, 2008
This game is really fun. I think it's a great game to the series, but at the same time I do not think it's the best one overall. There are a lot of shortcomings that make me get very bored of this game that could have easily been prevented. First of all, I want to say that San Andreas was a better game. Go ahead, lash out I don't care. The things you can do in this game is more limited than the previous title. You can't fly planes, you can only fly helicopters (whoopity doo..) you can't jump out and parachute down, which to me was a lot of fun, and there are a lot of aspects like VERY limited choices of clothing, etc.. that could have been put in that would have made this game much better. You can't even own your own property, as in buying it like in previous titles! You just go through the story and end up at only like three different locations that you can save from. I also enjoyed the RPG-like way of how your character in San Andreas could be built up, in exercising and eating. Granted, the graphics are amazing, but there are flaws in the overall gameplay that have made this game collect dust on my shelf for a while now.
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