May 12, 2008
As I delve deeper into the world of GTA IV, I find myself encountering a feeling of familiarity, even a sense of déjà vu, as I go about my business. There is a lot that is thematically in common with previous GTA games. On the other hand, the quality of the experience is so much greater, and many of the common themes have been expanded upon to the extent that, regardless of the familiarity, everything still has a patina of being different and fresh. This is really saying something, as I have become very jaded about my video gaming as of late.
The main character, Nico Bellic (NB for short), is remarkably compelling. The cut scenes and interactions with his friends and business associates make him a very likable character. So much so, in fact, that it is easy to forget that he has gunned down and/or maimed maybe 100 people so far, including the obligatory “beat up the prostitute and take back the cash” trick which is the cause of so much stir amongst the Jack-Thompsonites.
The way personal relationships are handled in-game is really extraordinary, and the fact that these NPC’s will contact you and express varying emotions depending on how much they like (or dislike) you, what you’ve done for them in the past, and whether you have bothered to contact them recently really adds to the depth of the in-game world. So far I have only dated Michelle, but I swear that I feel a real twinge of guilt when she calls to let me know that I’ve been ignoring her for awhile. Then she laid on the “Let’s make sure no one gets hurt.” line when inviting me up for some “hot coffee” action, which reminded me of a whole slew of failed relationships from my past. Doh!
But this is just more testimony to the greatness of the GTA IV experience. The action is good, but the immersion is excellent. I have spent a great deal of time doing almost nothing in-game, and loving every minute of it.
Okay, on to some game-play stuff!
The quickest way I have found so far to acquire some cash is to do the “procedural” missions, primarily the drug deliveries for Jacob, and the 10 Most Wanted from the police vehicles. Don’t bother with the taxi missions – the money is generally not good for the time it takes. Beating up people in dark allies is also not a good money maker… yet. I haven’t discovered yet if there is the equivalent of the corner drug dealer from San Andreas. That would probably make this game too easy though.
There are also armored vans that drive around town. You know, like the kinds that pick up cash from banks. I haven’t heisted one yet, but I’m betting that they have a good amount of cash in them. I’ll look into it and confirm ASAP.
Regardless, this doesn’t seem like the kind of game where you are destined to become a multi-millionaire like you could in the last two games. There is enough cash to be made to keep yourself well armed and well dressed, but that’s about it. Even in that sense you can burn through what you can make pretty quickly if you’re not careful.
Anyway, I doubled my money doing the Most Wanted missions. The only trick to these is to get a cop car, and that is hardly a trick at all. The guides talk about hitting up a police station parking lot or calling 911 to get one, but neither of those is really necessary. There is one a block away from your starting hideout. It’s always there (although it may not be from the beginning of the game, it certainly appears early on). During the day there will be a couple of cops nearby standing on the sidewalk and talking, and if you jack the car then you will get a wanted level. If you do it at night, however, they are not there and you can take it with impunity as long as there are no patrols nearby. It’s an easy jack regardless though, as all you have to do to dump your wanted level is typically go to the end of the street, turn the corner and within a few seconds you’re clear. These lone cop cars are scattered around town. No need to put yourself into harm’s way by stealing one from a police station!
Here’s something I discovered that sucks: Some of the missions are not repeatable if failed. So far, all the procedural missions have been “re-doable”, but I failed one story mission and it didn’t let me try again. It was the one where you have to chase the bike ganger who is dating the Russian mob boss’ daughter. I got a little squirrely on the bike (Hint: Focus on steering, not on shooting!) and lost the guy when I missed a turn. I failed the mission and when I called Faustin he told me what a nugget I am (he actually used language of a more colorful nature…). I was a pretty sure this was bad, so I rebooted my game, which cost me a few procedural missions which I had to play through again. So there you go.
Another warning: It is easy to feel pretty invincible in the early game. None of the fights are too tough – you can pretty much bully your way through with little/no skill. That changes some while you are still on the first island, and you end up really having to rely on the cover mechanic while on foot, and on being a darn good shooter while in a vehicle (no easy task while driving). As with all the previous GTA games, you will find yourself occasionally having to repeat missions, sometimes multiple times before being able to complete them.
Here’s something good to know about gun combat: When you score a hit with a firearm, the target reacts to it. This generally keeps him from firing back for a bit, often several seconds depending on how hard you hit him. Knowing this, you can cycle between targets to dramatically reduce the number of shots you are taking from the bad(der) guys. So far, it appears the most dramatic effect is gotten by the shotguns. Not only will they cause guys to flinch and duck for cover, they will often knock them off their feet for a quick, easy and free-from-reprisal follow-up shot. Good times!
As with all the GTA series, you are continually spoiled for choice of vehicle. I often find myself abandoning my current ride to jack a new vehicle I hadn’t seen spawn before. Last night I found the dump truck, and took it for a joy ride. As with previous iterations of the series, it’s pretty much good for plowing through any vehicle/bystander in your way.
The real trick in GTA is finding the best vehicles to get around with. Sure, the dump truck is fine, but it is super-slow, and it doesn’t corner well. Some of the faster, muscle-style cars have tons of acceleration, but require a real delicate touch when it comes to steering. The sports cars like the Infernus are a lot of fun, but are also very fragile. The bikes are handy for getting through traffic and into tight spots, but they can be hard to control and any collision typically results in you flying off the handlebars and flying through the air to take some damage. Word to the wise: If you get a flat on your bike, abandon that sucker right away. A bike without two inflated tires is begging for a trip to the hospital.
Regardless, there is something for everyone, vehicle-wise. Heck, even the Vespa-clone was fun to tool around on… only in GTA!
Posted in Gaming, Grand Theft Auto IV 
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The beta version of Visual Studio 2008 and the .NET 3.5 framework was 
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