Video Games : Grand Theft Auto IV Special Edition

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from: Rockstar Games

Amazon.com's Price: $89.99

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Amazon Maximum Age: 20 years
Amazon Minimum Age: 204 months
Binding: Video Game
Brand: Rockstar Games
EAN: 0710425392429
ESRB Age Rating: Mature
Label: Rockstar Games
Manufacturer: Rockstar Games
Model: 39242
Platform: Xbox 360
Publisher: Rockstar Games
Release Date: April 29, 2008
Sales Rank: 132
Studio: Rockstar Games

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

Average Rating: out of 5 stars

Rating:

- Come now people...let's drop some of the bias please.
OK.

Background: I am not a Grand Theft Auto fan. I'm not clouded by this game, nor does this game "own me". The only GTA games I ever beat were San Andreas (because it was just too well done) and Liberty City Stories on PSP (because it was the first PSP game to allow custom soundtracks which made the game all the more fun). I bought this game for one primary reason: I know it'll get banned, or severely edited, and I want to make sure I have an untouched version.

If you want the quick and dirty, skip to the very bottom.

I decided to actually give the game a fair chance to see what the hype was about, and from there, decide whether or not the game was worth every penny I spent.

I did buy the special edition from Amazon, pre-ordered the day before release date, got it today as I should have. I was very impressed with the packaging and the speed with which I got the game; I noted some others didn't have the same success, so I feel fortunate. Let's go down the list of special goodies, in order of worst to best (IMO).

SOUNDTRACK: OK, there's over 200 tracks in the game, yet we get a 16 track CD. Mind you, I wasn't expecting to get a full box set of songs, but why bother with a soundtrack at all if it's not going to be more than this?

ARTBOOK: Very nice, but I couldn't help but feel underwhelmed. I mean, I look at art books like those of Persona 3 and Growlanser and then I look at this and wonder if Rockstar understands how to truly wow its customers. It's not bad at all, just not as great as I would expect. I mean obviously a lot of art went into this game, so when I see just three wireframes of Liberty City I have to ask myself where the rest of the drawings are.

DUFFEL BAG: It's not what you think. It's actually quite small, and thin. Probably would suit storing stuff when you go to the gym or something. I wouldn't rely on it for much.

KEY CHAIN: It's a key chain, nothing special. Letter "R" and a small star. Good quality though, nice build, better than the one that came with Growlanser for sure, but not as nice looking.

LOCK BOX: Yes, someone with a bit of strength could pop this bad boy open with a butter knife, but so what? IT's a cool addition and a really nice concept. (FYI, that's why the box is so big, it barely fits in there)

LICENSE PLATE: Amazon says it's exclusive to them but is it really? Dunno. It's nice though - if California weren't so Draconian when it came to vehicles I would put it on my car.

Negatives are the lack of a "Making Of" disc: hopefully they'll put those clips up for FREE on Xbox Live - then this is a moot point, and, as usual for GTA games, a very lacking instruction booklet.

As for the game I'll just go through the various complaints people have and see if I agree or disagree. How's that?

POP-IN: Agree. It's not bad and it's not a deal breaker, IMO. In fact in the time I played the game I didn't notice it all that much. It's really when you're going faster than the loading engine can keep up with, which isn't often considering most of the cars are rather slow and the traffic is dense enough that you can't speed through like you could with the other GTAs.

JAGGIES: Agree. Again, not too bad and not a deal breaker.

BLURRY: Agree. It's not as bad as people are making it out to be though. Like in Lost Odyssey and Kameo where the entire background is blurred and it has a realistic feel to it, this is more subtle. It's not a filter, it's more like the textures start out degraded and then slowly improve as you approach various things in the distance. It's NOT that big of a deal, only videophiles would even notice, really.

FRAMERATE: Agree. Again, not that bad, and not nearly as much as Lost Odyssey. There is just some slight stuttering that occurs at times, it's noticeable but not a deal breaker.

MUSIC: Agree. The selection of songs was poor this time around. I pretty much keep going back to the jazz station because it's the only one I can really tolerate. If you're open to indie music you'll probably find some things you like here. Also there are some big name artists with little known songs (that aren't that great), i.e. Nas, so if you're open to new types of songs from established artists, you'll find some good stuff here.

GRAPHICS: You know, I don't know why these got a 10. Not to beat a dead horse, but I can think of at least 4 other games with better graphics just off the top of my head: Bioshock, Lost Odyssey, Gears (different art direction, I know), and Fight Night Round 3. It's not the city, the city is fine...it's everything that's animated about the city: cars, Niko, characters, bikes, etc. Even trees don't look that great. And it's often hard to make out certain objects like when there's a fence or something. Additionally, the text on the cell phone is a dark font which is hard to read against the navy green background when you're more than 5 feet away from the screen (which you should be to keep from getting nauseous while playing).

OK ReV, so what's the good news?

The good news might be your bad news. To me, I like a game that sticks to a formula. Some hate that - some love games to always change. GTAIV sticks to the tried and true formula of the past PS2 games, with one small twist: Now you've got choices. You can make decisions on whether you're going to help or harm someone, save or desert someone, etc. So in a way it's taking the concept of Fable and slapping the GTA world around it, if you can envision that. Don't know if I care for the choice part yet, but it does keep things lively.

Everything else you love about GTA is here to the n'th degree. I'm sure you heard about the fact that you can now do more...uh...'more' with the hookers, plus the various engines for gunplay and weapons have been improved. Sadly, it's a LOT more difficult to control both Niko and the various vehicles. With Niko, he now walks by default, and you have to hold A to get him to jog (what was the default in the previous games) and tap A repeatedly to get him to run (what was hold A in the previous games). With the vehicles the buttons seem to have been switched around or made less effective. I had a very difficult time just steering in the city, and I still haven't been able to power slide around corners. It told me about handbrake controls, but I could swear I could do it with just the regular brake provided I was at the right speed, before. I actually failed a mission because of that.

So, in summary:

- There are things you will need to get accustomed to. Some things are different, some things are the same. Some things were improved, some were a blatant step back. It's anyone's ball game whether you'll truly enjoy the game for yourself or not. One thing's for sure...no matter what reviews come out, no matter what reviews get posted here, and no matter what a stripper tells you, THIS IS NOT A PERFECT GAME. It's a good game with its flaws, just like any other. If you can accept that, you'll want to buy this game.

Rating:

- Masterpiece of the Video Game medium
Never before in a Game have you really felt like the character was really alive, at least, not like this. Immediately as the credits roll, you are Niko Bellic, a rough around the edges man with a past he's trying to escape for a new life in Liberty City. There's something to him, the sound of his voice, his body language, that even while you aren't playing, or even as you are, there's another layer there, something that seems-believe-it-or-not, very very human, as if you were watching and controlling a real tiny person trapped within your television set.
I find myself drawn to thinking about him and the other characters while I'm not even playing the game, while I'm at work, or on the John. The game is THAT captivating. It has a wonderful style and flair and the story is Oscar-worthy easily, if not some of the best dialogue I've heard spoken. It's both funny and serious, a dramatic satire of America, laced with the same poison that runs through our own culture.
The Graphics and Game play are amazing, and like some people have said, the only drawback is a little problem with the cover system, but it's easy to forget when you are so captivated by the sights and sounds of Liberty City.
This is the game to define the series, a fully meta-human experience, deeper Game play than I've ever seen or thought possible in a piece of interactive art. This game is pure magic, crafted by the some of the most talented artists.
Take the rough ride through GTA IV. Young or Old, it's for the mature mind looking for that next great story, the next level of Art & Entertainment in our times. It makes other games obsolete. Buy Grand Theft Auto IV, you won't be disappointed.

Rating:

- Review on the goodies that you get with the game...
My review isn't about the game, but about what you get with the special edition:

Duffel Bag: Medium-Sized, black bag with a white Rockstar logo outside and a yellow-pattern lining on the inside...surprisingly very eye-catching design. This will make a great gym bag.

License Plate: Not as hard as the real license plate, but still sturdy enough to put on your wall or hit somebody with it.

Safe Deposit Box(with 2 keys): I'm very impressed with this item! I expected some cheap, easy-to-break deposit box, but it is very sturdy and hard to get into. I wouldn't trust my valuables with it, but its a nice box to use in your room to keep sensitive items away from other eyes. Somebody with a screwdriver and some time on their hands would be able to pry it open eventually, but still very stylish and modest safe deposit box.

RockStar keychain: 3-D letter "R" logo of Rockstar, which measues about one square inch.

"The Art of GTA" handbook: a very nice cloth hardcover booklet that shows how the game was made. Very interesting material inside.

"The Music of GTA4" CD: 16-tracks on this CD that comes with a carboard sleeve.

1 Free Month of XBOX Live! This wasn't listed as part of the offer, so I was surprised to see this. It is NOT A TRIAL and you can go to your Live account and simply add a month of XBOX Live Gold to your paid time.

Bottom Line: If you are a fan of GTA and have some money to spend, this is definetely worth an extra $30, especially with an extra month of XBOX Live included.

Rating:

- The Game of our time
Each generation has its own videos, music, art, books and whatnot, to define it.

With modern society, games have started to become more of a culture and attraction than anything in the past. Anymore, a good game can easily compete, if not outsell, novels and cinematic bigscreen movies.

They are no longer animated-pixel "toys" to the modern world, and can tell a tale and show a world just as vast and creative as those in a movie or book.

And for a game like Grand Theft Auto 4, it not only disproves games are just for nerdy gamers, but its not much of a game at all, as it is a work of art. Quite simply, its the most stunning rendition of reality and the modern world in the face of crimes, gangs, and dilluted dreams of the "land of the free". As soon as you start the game, you will notice the character, Nikko, is alive, and the world around you breathes and moves like a typical stroll down a major city or coastline.

I could go on and on into detail, missions, control, story, but whats the point? It's so perfected, that nothing needs to be said other than "How did they do it?". It's literally breathtaking and awe-inspiring.

I've played 5 hours of it since yesterday, but I can can stand here and produly proclaim that this game is going to be the game that defines this era.

I used to beleive it was the original 1993 id software release DOOM that defined everything for the gaming community, and open up gateways for infinite possibilities for generations to come, but where as it changed the way we perceived and would play games, and what could be permitted in them, Grand Theft Auto 4 redefines by adding life to a game, the ability to step into your character and everything becomes suddenly aware as if you were there yourself.

Do yourself a favor, buy this game. And if you dont have a console to play it on, buy one, and experience it for yourself.

Rating:

- Game of the Year? Can I get a hell yes?
Packaging first:

You get the game itself, a small duffel bag, a small but informative hardcover art book, a cd with music selections from the game and my favorite item, a safety deposit box complete with a pair of keys and a cool Rockstar Games logo keychain. This in itself makes the special edition of GTA IV worth purchasing over the standard edition.

As for the game?

Consider me blown away. As if the movie quality story of the single player mode isn't enough, now you can experience the thrills and spills of Liberty City with 15, count 'em, 15 other people (a first for GTA games on consoles) and it's unlike any other multi-player experience I've ever had. From the moment I went online with this title, I was instantly won over by the sheer insanity on display before me. If you are familiar with the GTA series at all, then you already know how dynamic and unpredictable events can be. Now imagine what a room full of 16 people adds to that formula of uncertainty and you have in your hands a game that will give you hundreds of hours of gameplay in your future. The graphics and sound are a new benchmark for the series and the amount of detail in your surroundings is enough to make you want to stop and smell the roses. The soundtrack especially, is pure genius. If there's one nitpick to be made, it may be that the controls aren't pitch perfect (especially the cover system, which almost works in your enemies favor when you wind up taking cover on the wrong side of the wall you're against). Still, the controls are still pretty great in their own right, tiny quirks aside. You'll still be able to do just about everything you want to in the game.

Seriously, if this is the future of multiplayer and videogames in general, I'm almost afraid to see what Rockstar will serve us next. This game is a five star title all the way. The best part is that it lives up to all the hype that has preceded it and is without a doubt, money well spent.


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