Comments on: GTA IV Trailer: Was It Really Worth It?

By: jakob187

jakob187 — Mon, 02 Apr 2007 23:45:47 +0000

True Crime sucked…but regardless, I didn’t necessarily agree with them trying to recreate a real city in that either. At the same time, weren’t you a cop in those games? Crooked, nonetheless, but still a cop. I think it’s just that people like me and so many others are getting sick of Rockstar rewarding people for killing innocents. Then again, that’s every other game on the planet as well. I don’t know. It’s like, I know GTA has done so much in terms of pushing what gameplay can be and what can be done with a game. At the same time, I just wish they did it in a better way. They can make excellent games like Bully and Table Tennis, that aren’t necessarily something to keep away from kids (I think Bully is a perfectly acceptable game for someone in their young teens…damn near essential, maybe), but GTA is, and when they are selling it to kids so much…I mean, I’ve defended GTA many times, and it’s not that I hate the gameplay…I just hate the concept.

I think the reason that people in NYC are pissed isn’t because of the gameplay, so much as it is about the fact that Liberty City is now emulated so much like NYC. I mean, the Statue of Liberty? The Empire State Building? Did you see the roller coaster? The MetLife building?! SERIOUSLY?! I think they have every reason to be upset about it as well. There is no call for Rockstar going to these kinds of lengths just to get a damn reaction. Haven’t they had enough already? I think what’ll piss me off more is that, since they have a foreigner as the lead character apparently, if they have him bomb some building…I mean, honestly…in a fictional city, fine, but in something that is resembling NYC WAY too much…Bloomberg is right to speak out against the game.

By: Greg

Greg — Sun, 01 Apr 2007 02:43:09 +0000

hmmm… i guess, i’ll counter-point here just for the sake of balance. anyone see the halo 3 trailer way back when? that wasn’t exactly thrilling, yet volumes have been written about it. i saw it, yawned and went back to sleep, personally. gameplay interests me more than game trailers, so i take them all with a big grain of salt. in case of halo 3, the single player aspect had better be as finely tuned as the multiplyer game, is all i’ll say. as for IV, well… i think the boys at rockstar will have a few surprises in store for the more skeptical folks.

trailers are just that – trailers. not every one follows (or should follow) the same format, but the consensus here seems to be that no one likes the series much anyway, theefore, you’re going to be underwhelmed no matter what was shown. i didn’t think the gta IV trailer was that bad at all. a bit too cryptic, yes, but october is dog years away in game terms and as for gameplay… remember, that’s what E3 is for, guys.

the FUNNY thing is here in nyc, people are already complaining furiously about the game! the police commisioner is freaking out about the “cop killing and selling child pornography” in other GTA games (um, what child porn? huh?), but guess what? a retired cop worked on true crime: new york city and there wasn’t much if any furor abnout that game. that and no one bitched or moaned about the warriors when it came out… no matter how the game turns out, here in the big city, knee jerky is the food of choice, it seems…

By: Matt

Matt — Sat, 31 Mar 2007 04:23:45 +0000

See, I respect GTA III for the original sandbox innovation it brought, but as far as a game goes I never liked it and still don’t like it. As has followed suit with the rest of the GTAs (and Rockstar’s other third-person games like Bully, Manhunt, etc.), the game has crummy controls and a buggy feel to it. San Andreas has been the only one that I liked, as by the third attempt Rockstar cleaned up most of the bugs and control issues that frustrated me with the others, but even then I beat it and never looked at it again. I don’t know what it is, but the whole sandbox style of play has just never satisfied me all that much. I appreciate the concept, but for one reason or another I get bored roaming around these huge environments completing pointless missions.

By: jakob187

jakob187 — Sat, 31 Mar 2007 02:39:05 +0000

I will say this: GTA III had tons of gameplay, and I still pick it up because it was just that much fun for me. I was (insert name here) in Liberty City, and I STILL know that city like the back of my hand. It’s always nice to drive in familiar neighborhoods without ever worrying about being lost.

Meanwhile, Vice City was basically GTA III with pastels and a bigger, more confusing city to navigate. San Andreas was damn good because it featured more character depth as far as customization and the whole fitness thing, but that wasn’t really that big of a deal compared to the open world, and even then…I don’t know…it was just TOO big for me. I liked GTA III’s concentration on a city, so if GTA IV offers that again, I’ll be happy.

By the way, from what I’ve been hearing rumblings of from some old sources I’ve kept in contact with…Grand Theft Auto IV is staying as that title, as it is the OFFICIAL follow-up to GTA III…and that Vice City, Liberty City Stories, San Andreas, and Vice City Stories were simply spin-offs on the GTA brand. Whatever that means…

Regardless, I was left very unimpressed, and Matt brings up a SOLID point. What will be new with GTA IV that hasn’t been done already? The Godfather already did the whole respect/fear system that Fear and Respect was supposed to do (I’ll bet Snoop was glad to get out of trying to make a sandbox game, given the saturation of the market). Saint’s Row offered far more customization, although at the cost of tons of bugs and glitches. Crackdown offered up super-human powers and fighting on the good side for once. The Incredible Hulk: Ultimate Destruction offered up short play instances rather than long term play time. Frankly, there isn’t anything left except for graphics and trying to make a grandiose story.

By: Matt

Matt — Sat, 31 Mar 2007 01:19:34 +0000

I concur as well, though that’s more because I’ve never really cared about any of the GTA games to begin with and the whole sandbox genre is getting so played out at this point. I mean seriously, what new can GTA IV do (other than technical upgrades) that hasn’t been done in the previous games and the many clones that have come out since? Games like Crackdown and Saints Row have better gameplay than any of the GTAs, yet they still aren’t that special.

By: Zach

Zach — Fri, 30 Mar 2007 23:54:10 +0000

I felt the same way Josh. Why was this trailer hyped up so much? It didn’t have any gameplay footage and honestly, I could care less what town it takes place in or who I play as with any other GTA game you’ll interact with probably three or four different gangs while playing.