What is so good about GTA4?

[ALuckyChance]

The thing with GTA is that I don't ever pay attention to the story, even if it's gone into all this 'gritty realism' phase. There is still all the crazy GTA fun, it's just wrapped in a brown and grey package.

 

[MarsProbe]

Great, another "I don't like GTA 4, therefore it's a terrible game and everyone else is wrong" turning up almost two years too late for it's own good.

Put that thing away, nobody wants to see it anymore.

 

[Art3rius]

I just posted this in another thread..

"I have never found GTA boring. I guess it's the immersion. I just loved turning on the radio and driving around the city, cracking up at the sometimes funny dialogue. Maybe go bowling with Roman, or have a beer with Little Jacob. Get arrested for drunk driving on the way back home. Walk back home, listen to the citizens as they prattle on about their inane stories..".

And much more, of course. GTA4 is arguably number one on my favorite games list. Maybe trailing Mass Effect 2.

 

[Wolfboy0311]

Well I thought the rag doll physics were amazingly fun to paly around with, and the storyline felt solid enough to me that I could easily immerse myself in the game. I didn't like how many of the features that made San Andreas great were absent ( character customization, more weapons, and several cheats). This made going sandbox happy a little less fun. But this doesn't mean I couldn't enjoy the 'swingset' glitch.

 

[Jupsto]

Every time i ask some one this question i get the same response, "The story is really fun and good". I have played lets say the first 5 hours of the story and it defined repetitive and annoying. Follow the car for 20 minutes oh shoot you got 5 inches too close restart from the beginning, alright you got done with that now go into this random warehouse and kill everyone. YAY you win congrats! [b/]The story itself was nothing special in my eyes their was no time when i felt like i needed to keep playing.[/b] When i point this out to my friends they always say oh well good point i guess it wasnt that good when i think about it. Then they have nothing left because the online was sub par at best. But they always seem to say Free Roam and even thats repetitive you get to shoot civilians the cops chase you, you run away, repeat. So tell me is there something here that i am missing?

[Edit] I already said that the story was nothing special it wasnt interesting at all it was stupid and cliche do i have to bold it for you people? And to add i would have liked the game more if every single character had died they all were so annoying and the cousin would call me every 5 minutes to "hang out" im sorry you just told me to go on a mission why would i want to go bowling!

totally agree. I did enjoy vice city, but gta4 is just so dull and takes itself too seriously. the only fun part left of gta4 is the radio stations.

gta is a terribly dull game whats worse is the PC port is the most terribad thing ever. I will never buy a rockstar game for PC again after such a bad port.

I always have hated how high rated the game is.

 

[octafish]

GTA4 has Sorrow Tears and Blood by Fela Kuti on one of the radio stations. Best thing about the game right there. Just download it from a legitimate store and you won't have to play the game. (I bought the CD.)

 

[DustyDrB]

What's so good about Grand Theft Auto IV? Dwayne Forge.

 

[Jekken6]

I like it's interesting story, solid gameplay and detail.

What I hate is lack of variety in some areas, fiddly driving and blurry graphics (on consoles, anyway)

 

[MiracleOfSound]

[

It is, actually. Once again, our powers of having almost totally diametrically opposed viewpoints stay intact. It's odd, because I've never actually met anyone who played GTA games for the story, everyone I know would just do what I do, put some cheats on and go mental. Strange, I didn't actually even think there was an audience for the story or atmosphere.

Well, now I know. I'm trying to think of a way that Rockstar could reconcile both audiences. Difficult.

I played GTA partly for the story too, I loved San Andreas and it's wacky characters (Catalina I love you forever!). I cheated my way through the insane difficulty spikes just so I could see what happened in the end.

I think Rockstar can reconcile the two audiences by looking at thier most recent game. Give us more crazy humour, weapons, variety and random shit but make the gameplay more refined and the story have a little more heart to it.

John Marston was a much more likeable character than Niko Bellic (most of the time anyway, I wanted to punch him when he kept calling everyone 'freind')

 

[JourneyThroughHell]

You're complaining about the gameplay. Not the story.
The story is the cutscenes, the dialogue, the voice acting.

I had to stop at this comment. I have no ill feelings to anyone here but this comment took me by surprise. The game-play is a part of the story as well. If I'm playing a game, and I kill a boss, the boss's death is part of the story is it not? Same for a horror game having me explore spooky hallways. The character is continuing the story. Without the game sequences, then the story wouldn't make sense. Sure I was in control, and the game-play was front and center but the actions I took are still part of the story.

If game-play is repetitive then the story is repetitive. "What is my characters motivations for doing the SAME thing over and over?" one might ask. Anything you do in-game is part of the world and the story you're telling. Game mechanics are a part of that. If the game mechanics are all about finding ways to kill your enemies in new gruesome ways, then it tells a very gruesome story. If its doing the same things over and over, that's a very boring story to experience, in some people's eyes.

I know NOTHING about GTA games and the series, but I do know we shouldn't be so quick to limit the story to ' the cut-scenes, the dialogue, the voice acting.' because even when those haven't take over, the story progresses.

(didn't we just have the first 'extra credits' talk about this?)

I see where you're coming from and I have seen that first Extra Credits video, and it was pretty good.
But, hear me out.

The guy's friends said that "the story was good". Then he says he didn't find it good and complains about repetitive missions. Yet I'm pretty sure his friends meant that they liked the cutscenes and the characters.

Also, "What are my characters motivations for doing the SAME thing over and over?", you ask. Well, that's basically answered in the game.

Oh, and the repetitiveness card I have to object, too. Sure, GTA IV might be light on mission types, but so are most sandbox games. And GTA IV wasn't really that samey, althoygh it was too long, maybe.

I guess what you guys call "story", I call "atmosphere".

Well, now I know. I'm trying to think of a way that Rockstar could reconcile both audiences. Difficult.

Well, they do. On a yearly basis.
When they're not releasing GTAs (which I don't really appreciate mayhem in) and Manhunts, the guys make other titles. The two that come to mind are Bully and RDR. In both of those games, mayhem and variety in weapons really made sense in conjuction with the atsmophere, the plot, the setting.
In fact, RDR kind of failed that one, too (I can't see John Marston murdering random people, neither can I see Niko Bellic, but I can see Jimmy Hopkins kicking the shit out of everyone in the school[footnote]Seriously, Furburt, that's a bit off-topic, but, if you haven't played Bully - fix that.[/footnote]).

John Marston was a much more likeable character than Niko Bellic (most of the time anyway, I wanted to punch him when he kept calling everyone 'freind')

Oh, how I disagree.
But that's for another topic another day.

 

[SlyderEST]

Every time i ask some one this question i get the same response, "The story is really fun and good". I have played lets say the first 5 hours of the story and it defined repetitive and annoying. Follow the car for 20 minutes oh shoot you got 5 inches too close restart from the beginning, alright you got done with that now go into this random warehouse and kill everyone. YAY you win congrats! [b/]The story itself was nothing special in my eyes their was no time when i felt like i needed to keep playing.[/b] When i point this out to my friends they always say oh well good point i guess it wasnt that good when i think about it. Then they have nothing left because the online was sub par at best. But they always seem to say Free Roam and even thats repetitive you get to shoot civilians the cops chase you, you run away, repeat. So tell me is there something here that i am missing?

I'm not quite interested in the story, and I really don't know what I was waiting for in GTAIV. I guess new technology advancements from GTA:SA (the way you drive over people or if you shoot at people). But Multiplayer was fun. I just loved cruising with my friend (in a helicopter, of course), killing everyone in sight (other players), and whenever they get a chopter, we kill them, too. Those were good times. And maybe it's just me (I did the same with SC2), but I didn't even start the last mission once i saw how it ended (while my bro was playing).

 

[JourneyThroughHell]

I think the best so far was probably Vice City. It managed to have a good, unoriginal maybe, but fun story, lots of imaginative missions, a great atmosphere, and loads of fun places to shoot people. Plus, you could be chased by the entire army while flying around the city in a tank.

Hurr, so do I, actually.
Mainly because it was really atmospheric and had some of the best cutscenes I can remember in GTA-like games (outside of Saints Row 2, of course).
Maybe I just like the 80s (Vice City) more than the 90s (SA). Don't we all?

 

[sketchesformysweet]

I see a lot of people talking about the story, but to be honest I personally paid no attention to the story at all. I think that personally I enjoy the freedom that comes with a sandbox game, the element of exploration, the fact that I'm open to do as I wish. And although I did find some missions a little repetitive, overall I really enjoyed the shoot-outs, and the races, and theres so many mini-games and side-missions to take on that it can keep you occupied for ages. And while the game is not perfect there is this slight sense of realism to it which you don't get with many games, this feeling of a living and breathing city.

 

[Reg5879]

My biggest gripe with GTA IV is the fact there is not much to buy with your money, I wanted to buy some businesses like in Vice City...oh well.

 

[CmdrGoob]

GTA4 is often dull, often frustrating and the story and writing just aren't that good either.

Pretty mediocre game if you ask me, and its good review scores are an excellent example of how reviewers base reviews on hype not substance.

 

[Liberaliter]

There's nothing wrong with it, people just love to hate popular games (Such as Halo 3 or Call of Duty).