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| From: Rockstar Games
List Price: $59.99
Buy Used: $19.99
You Save: $40.00 (67%)
New (77) Used (105) Collectible (1) from $19.99
Rating:  258 reviews
Sales Rank: 118
Platform: Xbox 360
Genre: Adventure Games
ESRB: Mature
Media: Video Game
Edition: Standard
Autographed: No
Memorabilia: No
Batteries Included: No
Age: 17 - 20 years
Operating System: Xbox 360
Shipping Weight (lbs): 2
Dimensions (in): 0.1 x 0.1 x 0
MPN: 39012
UPC: 710425390128
EAN: 0710425390128
ASIN: B000FRU1UM
Release Date: April 29, 2008
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
Shipping: Expedited shipping available
Condition: Complete with original disc(s), case, and manual. In stock and ships right now!
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| Customer Reviews:
Showing reviews 21-25 of 258
 HIGHLY OVER-RATED!!! May 1, 2008
EP (Boston, MA United States)
10 out of 32 found this review helpful
The terrible steering on the cars is back! Not to mention your character "runs" in snail mode. The fighting is the absolute worst, takes you about 2 minutes to knock your opponent out cold. This game is literally like playing unreleased missions of old Grand Theft Auto games. Instead of taking a step forward like they did with San Andreas, they took a step to the side and made another cliche Grand Theft Auto. Looks like the GTA series will finally meet its match when Saintsrow 2 comes out, not to mention the fact they stole the cellphone concept from Saintsrow.
 Guess I didn't drink the GTA Kool-Aid May 11, 2008
WorknMan (Austin, TX United States)
10 out of 18 found this review helpful
If you didn't like previous GTA games, this one is probably not going to do much to change your mind, so pay no attention to the hype. It's basically like the others.. unrealistic driving controls, sloppy combat controls, shoddy camera angles, cheesy dialog, lots of profanity, etc. Added to this game is a much improved cover system that still pales in comparison to Gears of War or Rainbow Six (or so I'm told.. I didn't make it that far), and a story that reaks of a second-class gangster flick.
Note that I played this game for about 4 hours, which was about all I could stand. People say that the game becomes fun eventually, but I play video games for entertainment and having to play one for 5+ hours in the hopes that I might enjoy myself eventually is just too much work for me. Then again, I'm a casual gamer and would rather play $10 XBLA titles than an 'epic' game like this. I only became interested in GTA4 when people started talking about it like it was the second coming. But honestly, there's nothing new to see here. That being said, if you loved the previous entries in the series and want more of the same, you'll probably love this game too. Just don't go in expecting anything revolutionary. It's amazing what passes for innovative these days.
 Great Game But Too Much Sex and Violence May 23, 2008
butterflywebgraphics.com (St. Joseph, MO United States)
10 out of 58 found this review helpful
Overall, this is a great game. It's the most interactive game I've ever played. And the city scenery is amazing. There's so much to do and see. And the car chases are thrilling and fun.
However, I'm giving it fewer than 5 stars because of the blatant sex throughout the game. Sex is everywhere in this game and the player is forced to participate in it from the dialogue between characters, to dating, to the prostitutes on the street. It's so unfortunate that a game of this quality is about sex. And I find this not only offensive, but a bad example to the young people (and old) who play this game. I suppose the people who programmed this never heard of a sexual addiction. Well this game reeks of it and makes it seem that it's okay to visit prostitutes, date multiple woman, visit dating sites, watch porn, and put sex as a top priority in life. That's a very sad and sorry message to lend to the public at a time when morals are already severely wanting.
Of course, the violence is also extreme and it's a bad influence too. It tells the young folks out there that they can do anything they want and there are no or few consequences.
I'm not done playing the game yet but was extremely upset about the scene where Niko takes out a crime leader and kills him merely because he's dating Niko's cousin. I wish they would have made Niko less of a sociopathic mafioso character and more of a misdirected good guy who is fighting crime rather than participating in it.
I wouldn't recommend this game for anyone under 18. My sons are all grown and they also play it,(and they also find the sex and violence offensive, thank God) but if they were younger, it would be off limits in this household.
 An incredibly stunning achievement April 30, 2008
N. Durham (Philadelphia, PA)
9 out of 20 found this review helpful
It's here, it's here, it's finally here. Grand Theft Auto IV has finally arrived after what seems like eons of anticipation, and Rockstar's flagship franchise doesn't disappoint to say it lightly. Putting you in the shoes of European illegal immigrant Niko Bellic, you are back in Liberty City, although this is a much different Liberty City than the one you remember. This Liberty City is so incredibly detailed and constructed that you will often find yourself in complete awe. Not since GTA III has an open world environment been so innovative in its scope, and never before has there ever been this kind of interaction. At its core, the tried and true GTA gameplay remains, but there is so much more to do: ranging from dating (yes, dating!), surfing the in-game internet, seeing a comedy show, watching TV, and listening to the radio among other things. Besides all that, there is a story here, and it is indeed one of the most engrossing and compelling stories you will ever find in a video game. Niko is no ordinary crook like we've seen before, and ends up being one of the most fully realized video game protagonists in quite some time. The rest of the residents of Liberty City are wonderfully designed as well, all helping Liberty City feel like a living, breathing place. Gunplay elements have been much improved upon as well, as have the driving mechanics and overall controls. Combined with a 16 player multiplayer mode, Grand Theft Auto IV is a glorious, instant classic that more than deserves your attention. If there are any downsides to GTA IV, and this is just me being nitpicky for the sake of being nitpicky, is that there are a few graphical hiccups to be found now and then, but definitely nothing major or all that noticable. Other than that, GTA IV is nearly perfect in every regard. All in all, Grand Theft Auto IV is an incredibly stunning achievement of modern gaming that must be played to be believed. Ranking as possibly one of the finest and most immersive video games to ever see the light of day, Grand Theft Auto IV is a masterpiece that should be checked out in the very least, even if you aren't a fan of the series. Yes, it is that good, now go play it.
Please, don't believe the hype! May 10, 2008
Marvin Powell
9 out of 11 found this review helpful
Now, everyone will have you believing that Grand Theft Auto IV is the single greatest game ever made, or that it's hands down Gane of the Year, or that Rockstar has reinvented the wheel with GTA 4, here. Well, as a HUGE San Andreas fan and an owner of most Rockstar games out there (except for Manhunt), I'm here to tell you that Grand Theft Auto IV is about 90% overrated hype and about 10% gameplay. No, GTAIV isn't outright bad or anything. It's just not what it used to be. Mostly, I mean, fun. At face value, this is Grand Theft Auto on the new gen systems. But besides that, it's a more-realistic, but less fun GTA.
I guess, that's the biggest problem with GTA IV. Set in an alternate universe New York City, Rockstar strives to make GTA about as real as an experience as it can be, but in reality, it's not. Really, what it is, is a better looking version of GTA with a bunch of new "more realistic" features. I'll start with the positives, first. GTA looks very, very good. Not even close to Photo-realistic, but good. The graphics and lighting and weather effects are good enough to warrant being on the 360 or PS3. Now, while I was expecting "Gran Turismo" style realism here, that's not what I got, but still, the game looks nice. But now, for everything else.
There are many "improvements" to the game that supposedly enhances the experience, but they really only suck the fun out of the game as I mentioned earlier. Just about everything is "enhanced" to have the realism effect, but it only makes the game frustrating. Breaking into cars is a pain and now takes almost as much time as it would in real-life. You have to break open the window, unlock the door, climb inside, and hotwire the car from the inside to get it going. While I was surprised to find this task quicker than I expected, it still hurts you in desperate situations when you need a car right away, which are in many missions. I hated the "system" so much, I never bothered to steal a parked car more than once in this game. The system is actually more of a theft deterent than anything!
Next, we come to the driving. Good God, the driving is probably the most *frustrating* thing EVER! Acceleration is simple enough, especially on the 360 controller. But just about everything else is horrible! Driving in this game, I can say honestly, is MUCH harder than actually driving in real life. The brakes are crazy and I don't know just how long it takes the average player to get used to driving, but I'm still struggling not to crash into people and walls and stuff! I have to drive like an old lady just to avoid bumping into the police cars which are quite literally on every other block in the game.
And when you DO get in trouble... oh man! GTA IV has a slight improvement on the old system in which you can now evade the police by simply outrunning them, even if you are beyond one star. In the old games, you could outrun the police with one star, but not with anything higher. In GTA IV, you have a circumference area that the cops chase you in. Drive out of their circumference, and you escape them. But it sounds simpler than it is. The more wanted levels you get, the larger the area the cops chase you in. And with simply two stars, the "area of pursuit" becomes hard to get out of. By a full-on six, the circumference is literally the size of an entire Liberty City borough! I found this out when I tried to sneak into Algonquin (Manhattan). They have Pay N' Sprays still, but they're virtually useless now. The time you'll need them most, you won't be able to use them cause if the cops see you enter one, it's effect becomes null and void. And over two stars will have police swarming on you. And make no mistake, Liberty City's finest are three times as vicious as those San Andreas donut-munchers. The police are vicious on you, and their A.I. is quite enhanced and far more intelligent than before. Heck, a cop will shoot you even if you're unarmed and only have one star! To make matters worse, your car no longer provides you with adequate protection. Cops and other enemies can shoot you THROUGH your windshield! Before, your car just got damaged some. Now, you can quite easily die even in your car, and there's no real way to duck for cover inside, either. This is what I mean when I say the fun is sucked out of the game in favor for "realism."
The controls of the game are often needlessly complicated, even with all things not involving cars. Doing a simple thing like running while trying to keep the camera fixed on you involve all your available fingers. The shooting is supposedly "improved" but it's not. I actually never found issue with GTA: San Andreas' shooting and targeting system, but many people did. Either way, the auto-targeting in GTA IV is flawed, at best, and as you'd expect, the targeting itself has no idea who you actually want to target. It's more like you targeting whoever *IT* makes you target! Yeah, it's a problem. What's worse is how much stronger the enemies are now. It takes a minimum of six shots with a pistol to take down ONE guy! And it's not like you get a lot of ammo with that pistol! You can't afford to waste a single bullet. What's worse is, limb-specific damage seems to be gone, entirely. Whether you aim center mass, or go for the head execution style, it'll still take the same number of bullets to take down a guy. Well, doesn't that just suck?
Now, some more things about the game. The story, itself, is pretty subjective. You'll either get into it, or like me, become quickly bored with it. It's like the same old GTA-style story missions, only it's more "Been there, done that", which is disapointing considering the use of the foreigner Niko Bellic opened up a lot of storyline possibilites. But about your first hour into the game, you'll already be playing guard dog to a bunch of people you just met. Your cousin, Roman, is a pain in the butt, but everyone else is even worse. Why do I have to take orders from all these people I barely know? I expected more out of GTA IV, but this is the same old crap, man. What's worse is, the main story seriously ruins all of the "free roaming" fun you used to have in GTA! Because of your new, stupid cell phone (with the questionable gray background and black text color scheme which makes it hard enough just to read messages) you'll constantly be getting calls from people and will have to drop everything to help out in vital missions that are important to the story. You'd think a guy with no real job would have more free time. The only real side quest you'll get to have in the beginning is dating the cute and lonely Michelle. If only nice-looking women were this desperate and easy to please in real life. The dates have been upgraded a little bit, giving you the control in what to do, which includes fine dining, playing games like bowling and pool, the arts & theater, going drinking, and other activities. Sadly, the dates are pretty boring and have a "what's the point?" feel to them. As much as I like Michelle, even "Warm Coffee" isn't worth driving all around Broker all day long boring myself to death.
The size of Liberty City is about maybe half or one-third the size of San Andreas. But considering Liberty is all city, it's pretty impressive. Like I said, you'll often be so busy helping random people, you won't have to much time to explore around (without purposely avoiding missions because you know you aren't going to save anything.) You start off in crappy Broker (Brooklyn) and will have to earn your way to Algonquin and the rest of Liberty City, just like before. That sucks though, because I expected this time to be different, and I wanted to explore everything right away. Rockstar before had said they were taking out all bikes and air vehicles from the game, but I guess, have changed their mind since then. There are a few number of bikes, one speedboat, and the rare, single helicopter in GTA IV. There are also lots of cars in the new Liberty City as well, but quite honestly, most the vehicles have very little relevance in this game and they take a backside to the story. The feeling you had in San Andreas of "Ooh! I like that car! Lemme go steal that and add it to my collection!" is gone entirely from this game. Anything you drive is about as equally important/unimportant. Maybe it's because you don't have any garages to put them in? Or any money to afford really modding them, if that's even possible in this game? Or maybe it's because trying to get them is such a pain, even if you manage to avoid the police catching you? At least, they have talking GPS in them, but (and I can't believe I'm defending THIS game, but) I personally like the GPS system in Saint's Row better.
Liberty City now has a huge amount of radio stations (like, 18, I think), but none of the music is on par with the older GTA's. I guess that's because GTA IV takes place in 2008, and it's hard to know what current songs are guaranteed hits in the present. Or maybe it's because music is such crap, nowadays? So, you have a wide variety of music, but no history of what's "good" or not helping you out, here. To sum it up, the music just isn't that good, but at least, it's very, very diverse. There's everything ranging from the familiar Hip Hop and Rock stations, to Latino Music and International Funk. And yes, the parody Talk Radio stations are back to, but to be honest, there aren't NEARLY as funny as they were on the West Coast in San Andreas. There's also custom TV and Internet sites in the game, as well, but to be honest, I never quite got around to checking them out. I mean, all that extra crap is great, but it's really just a distraction and it's utterly pointless to have in the game. It's not like it helps you DO anything. And just to bring it up, there's almost NOTHING in all of new Liberty City to remind you that this is a Grand Theft Auto game. All of the GTA staples and landmarks are gone. Well, at least they kept Cluckin' Bell around, but other than that, there's no familiar names or chains or shops from the GTA universe. It's like they all started going bankrupt in the 16 years since San Andreas, and went completely out of business in the seven years since GTA III. It makes the new Liberty City that much more unfamiliar, but then again, I guess some people would call that "enhancing the experience" for Niko Bellic, new to Liberty City.
So to recap, GTA IV is a new, more real experience in the GTA world, but that sucks any and all fun and excitement out of the game. No, Rockstar did not reinvent the wheel here, and this is, without a doubt NOT "Game of the Decade" or the "Game of Our Generation." The little 13-year old boys posting reviews on here need to stop saying that! It's not true! Let's just all call this what it is: GTA on the new consoles. It's no greater or better than simply that. Everything they tried to "enhance" for a realer experience just makes the game tedious and tiresome, including your stupid behind cell phone, which I hate! I wish I could just chuck it somewhere! The controls are complicated and confusing, especially for driving. The graphics and interactivity in Liberty City are nice, but not exactly "on the next level" of anything. Free roaming is just about dead due to the story constantly keeping you busy, and the missions are old and familiar, but not in a good way. The weapons system is bad with it's targeting, and even fist fighting is a real pain. Fighting was simple and effective in San Andreas. Here, you're looking at three minute fights just to take down one fat slob. I mean, three minutes??? See, that's TOO realistic! The music is so-so at best, and just about everything in the game feels more like a chore than fun. I think because in older GTA's, the storyline wasn't as relevant, leaving you space to do whatever you felt like inbetween, sort of like the weekend from the work week. But now, it's like, everyday is a work day, and I think it's because Rockstar tries to push the story as being SO important and such a driving force in GTA IV. Yeah, I can tell that it was carefully crafted and polished, but it does NOT rank on the level of The Godfather or Scarface. So, no. This isn't an "interactive movie," as some overzealous fans of the game posting reviews will have you believe. The story's okay for a video game, but it's a video game story. It's not exactly good enough to stand on it's own. I really dislike it.
I SO wanted to believe the hype, but I also knew that not having a GTA game in four years would leave a lot of people expecting and wanting more (and believing they got it with this). All GTA IV is, is Grand Theft Auto: Part Four. It's not the Second Coming of video games, or anything rabid fanboys and fangirls will have you believe. Personally, it's not really worth the four year wait or anything, but it's not like it's a horrible game. It's just not that fun, anymore, and the ones who'll play it days on end, will buy it, no matter what anyone tells them. But if you're on the fence, like I was, I would have no problem at all telling you to wait a few months till it drops down in price. It's not THAT spectactular.
Don't believe the hype and don't drink the GTA Kool Aid. If this game REALLY did have a budget of $100 million, than I'm betting $75 million of that went to advertising, feeding the hype machine, and paying off notable gaming sites for unjust Perfect 10 scores. This ISN'T a Perfect Ten game, and I'd give it a 7 or 8 out of 10, if Amazon had that kind of scale. This is easily the most realistic out of the GTA series, but FAR from the most entertaining, no matter how many fake TV shows and websites arre in the game. The main content is what matters most, and GTA IV fails on all accounts when it comes to this.
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