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[Grand Theft Scratchy]

I was a huge fan of the GTA series growing up and I remember when GTA IV was announced, how excited I was to explore a new rendition of Liberty City as Niko Bellic. Furthermore, that they included Eastern European and Russian characters that were central to the story (Niko, Roman, Dimitri, Mikhail etc) made it unique and interesting. People say the game wasn't fun and to a certain extent I agree, but even the features people didn't like had their benefits, like being able to use car bombs from Patrick and Dwayne's backup once your friendship was maxed out by doing fun activities like bowling and pool. Also, they introduced a cover system which I enjoyed a lot. Being able to stick to walls and behind cars made for cooler shootouts so it was a welcome addition. And the Euphoria physics engine made for some funny moments being able to push pedestrians down stairs, shooting them in the knees, running into them with a car, or throwing a coffee cup that they dropped to the ground back at their heads. Seeing the different ways they would react to being impacted was a real next-gen moment for me. It's really unfortunate they scaled it down in GTA V. Even the way each vehicle handled differently and how they lunge forward a bit after braking or shift to one side when turning was cool attention to detail. Maybe it takes some getting used to but I never felt the driving was bad or impossible and I'm someone who really likes the 3D era GTA games on PS2 and PC where the driving was easier.

When I think about GTA V, I don't really miss a lot from that game except for being able to play golf, finding the underwater UFO, and the few missions set in North Yankton. I'm hoping GTA VI is closer to the older GTA games in that the story focuses on one or two protagonists. Hell, they could also remaster GTA IV for current-gen platforms and bring back all of the cut content like the silenced pistol, revolver, flamethrower and minigun. I was watching this video a couple months ago and it goes into great detail about all of the differences between the beta and final release of GTA IV.




Anyway, I would love to know if anyone else enjoyed GTA IV? Do you think Rockstar should remaster it for current-gen platforms?

 

[Deleted member 17706]

I got it at launch on 360 and thought it was incredible.

 

[kretos]

Great game and better story than GTAV

 

[Elpidio Valdés]

GTA IV story is still my favorite of the series and Niko is an incredible, multi faceted character that is heads and shoulders above Michael, Franklin and Trevor in complexity.

I honestly loved everything about the game and never understood when people said it was boring to play. I would buy a remaster day 1.

 

[kyussman]

I did yea,loved Niko....hell,I loved Roman too,lol....and Brucie.
I remember more about my GTA IV playthrough than my GTA V one...apart from the set piece heists and Trevors general lunacy I barely remember anything from GTA V.

 

[Kuranghi]

Yeah, me and a few others guys got GTA IV for 360 and a big bag of... fun stuffs. One of the only things I remember is that someone had a panic attack in the nightclub shootout level because we were shouting at him too much, poor guy. We played for 12+ hours and ordered many takeaways. We spent a good amount of time just messing with the new driving and body physics.

Not quite as much fun as GTA V but that was partly fueled by me getting it early (My uncle worked at the factory and the factory boss said he could take a copy home early because he said I was a good boy).

 

[bitbydeath]

No. Didn’t like the graphics and the cars handled like shopping carts. At the time a lot of people had the same reaction as RDR2 when it scored 10’s across the board.

People seem a lot more nostalgic for it today though.

 

[hououinkyouma00]

I got it at launch on 360 and thought it was incredible.

This. I’ve loved it since release.

 

[Arkam]

Loved/hated it. Loved the graphics, environment and stories.... but god damn were the physics and controls fucked at launch.

I remember it getting better, but also remember hating any mission that involved chases or races.

 

[Grand Theft Scratchy]

I did yea,loved Niko....hell,I loved Roman too,lol....and Brucie.
I remember more about my GTA IV playthrough than my GTA V one...apart from the set piece heists and Trevors general lunacy I barely remember anything from GTA V.

Yeah, I feel the same. Not that GTA V didn't have its moments, but when I compare GTA IV to GTA III, for example, there were a lot of improvements, while GTA V felt like less of a game compared to San Andreas.

 

[Roufianos]

Fucking shit. I was the only one in my class who even completed it.

 

[Deleted member 17706]

Loved/hated it. Loved the graphics, environment and stories.... but god damn were the physics and controls fucked at launch.

I remember it getting better, but also remember hating any mission that involved chases or races.

I hated the driving at first, but it really grew on me after a while. Same situation in Red Dead 2. You need to play at the game's pace, and that can be really frustrating.

 

[nordique]

I liked it
I remember thinking how much better the shooting was
I just remember disliking the driving

 

[BennyBlanco]

Game was amazing. The writing is better than GTAV by a country mile.

 

[lem0n]

Was a pretty mind blowing experience, coming from hours and hours of III, VC and SA. I really liked it but thought it was too serious, at the time. Looking back now, I really liked that it got more gritty. The series can do serious and dark really well if they choose to.

 

[Warablo]

Think most people liked it when it released. Going back it seems like a lot of useless teadium.

 

[amigastar]

I remember seeing the trailers for GTA IV. Was blown away. I loved the game.

 

[Codes 208]

It was fun playing around the map with friends (even though without missions and a very minimalistic progression system, I would say RDR1 and gta5 were vastly superior in terms of longevity for our play sessions)

I can’t speak for the story though, I never play gta games for the campaign.

 

[Magnific0giganticus]

Nope, abandoned it after 12+ hours, a year later gave a try and pretty much forced myself to the end. Insufferable archaic controls and gameplay. Many years later, played RDR2 and the experience was pretty much the same. Rockstar don't know shit about gameplay design. Totally overrated. Games have all the pieces to be great games, but they fail in execution, as if they were still wrapped inside a PlayStation 2 shell.

 

[PREC0GNITIVE]

I think it is one of the most realised cities in any game. There are so many little details in GTA IV that elevated it above everything else including its sequel. So yeah GTA IV holds a place in my heart.

 

[Cutty Flam]

It was alright. Kind of gloomy but overall I liked the game

Nothing yet compares to the greatness of VC&SA but GTA IV and GTA V had their moments

 

[Droxcy]

I don't know how many hours I spent playing the game, I really enjoyed the grittiness of the story and the map overall was great then MP was tons of time wasted at the airport with your buddies and at the swing set glitch good times.

 

[Gamerguy84]

No not at all. I bought it because it got all perfect scores everywhere. It's when I realized not every highly rated game is for me and started basing purchases on other criteria.

 

[DunDunDunpachi]

Yeah I played the online to death. The single player was a fun playground, but I gave up on the story about 20 hours in and didn't return to complete it until several years later.

 

[TheContact]

Yea I loved it. The city felt really alive and I was already hyped for a high def GTA. I still have a lot of memories going to the comedy clubs, and the story I thought was really good.

 

[Phunkydiabetic]

Masterpiece of a game, at launch and still today. Loved the tonal shift from San Andreas, the grittyness fit Niko's story well.

 

[DaleinCalgary]

Is this the one that made me go bowling all the time?

 

[Synless]

When I first played it thought it took too many steps back when comparing it to GTA:SA. I enjoyed it though.

 

[Filldo]

I loved GTA IV, but what I thought was truly amazing was the DLCs which had you playing missions from different points of view and then getting to experience Liberty city from different walks of life.

Nico spends his time in much different areas than Johnny and Gay Tony so you really get an appreciation for how big the world actually was...

GTA online kinda does that with Los Santos and gives you more appreciation for how well the world is crafted and how many stories are playing out. Definitely looking forward to GTA VI!

 

[waquzy]

Of course, it's one of the greatest games ever produced, check my avatar! Sentinel muthafucka!!!!!

 

[Allforce]

The craziest shit about the build up and release of IV was that there was zero media leaks at all. No gameplay footage, a couple cinematic trailers and photos were all we got. News sites got hands-on time and could report on it but literally nobody outside that world knew how it would look or play until the day it released.

I can remember them shutting down streams on JustinTV or whatever it was called the morning it came out.

Tight ship back then and the game delivered if you ask me. Played all of the GTA games multiple times and IV was a generational leap forward.

 

[IntentionalPun]

People loved it; I was one of the odd few that hated it.

 

[Werewolf Jones]

Beat it twice but I don't hold it in high regard at all. I hate the drawn back realism aspect to it, also Liberty City is a dead ass boring setting, the colour palette matched that of most PS3/360 games of that era different shades of grey or brown.

 

[Dorohedoro]

It blew my mind in '08. And even though it looks (talking unmodded here) and feels kind of rough to play nowadays it's still superior to a lot of modern games when it comes to sheer detail.

 

[Kokoloko85]

I got it launch night for PS3 despite not being the biggest GTA fan. (Shoot mechanics really annoyed me, loved the world and atmosphere of the originals)
Loved GTA4. Was special.

Not a big fan of V

 

[PhillyPhreak11]

Absolutely loved GTA IV. I found the story better than GTA V, which I also enjoyed. I also really like Liberty City.

 

[ComputerBlue]

Day 1 buy for me, loved it then, still love it today. I would love for a release on PS5.

 

[isoRhythm]

I'm actually playing it for the first time now. It's actually ahead in so many ways compared to most games today (physics, AI, driving), but also behind in many ways (the shooting and cover system is atrocious). I think the problem people have with the story is that it's way too serious for a GTA, whereas GTA 5 is way too silly.

I got the dualsense adaptive triggers working in the game. Put a small amount of pressure before it "clicks" and you'll go the same speed as everyone else, push it down further with more force to go faster. This makes it way easier to control your vehicle.

 

[Orthodox Gaming Dad]

It was and still is my favourite GTA. Would love a remaster in current Rage engine.

 

[TLZ]

Yes I did enjoy it a lot. Borrowed my friend's PS3 and game to play it on my CRT using composite cables even. Go figure.

 

[K' Dash]

I played I twice and I rarely replay games, thought it was amazing.

 

[howitis3]

never liked it. i played saints row instead

 

[Bulletbrain]

Liked it enough to finish the story but didn't even think about 100 percenting it, like I did for the GTA 3 trilogy. It just felt less fun, more serious, more restrictive. Lack of gameplay and location variety was really jarring after San Andreas.

 

[R6Rider]

Overall I enjoyed it least of all the 3D GTA's. The Ballad of Gay Tony was fantastic though. I found the city drab, the graphics boring, and lacking a lot of activities. I do remember having fun online and the physics were better than in V.

 

[eyesabitdull]

Ahhh, thanks to this thread I'm itching to replay the game again!

Anyone have any experience with the steam version? Is it worth purchase?

I've only ever played the 360 version and beat the game the year it launched, so I've no clue about the PC version.

Any pointers or short reviews anyone can provide given their experience?

 

[AGRacing]

I think I was 1/4 of the way in when the graphics couldn't make up for the tedious chores.

 

[Shakka43]

Got it at launch(PS3) and loved it and still play it from time to time on PC, it is an amazing game.

 

[BusierDonkey]

This and racing games were my go-to after work for a while. Great game.

 

[Grand Theft Scratchy]

I don't know how many hours I spent playing the game, I really enjoyed the grittiness of the story and the map overall was great then MP was tons of time wasted at the airport with your buddies and at the swing set glitch good times.

Yeah, the airport was one of the areas that I visited the most, along with Middle Park, Happiness Island and Alderney City. The map layout was really good and you could enter more interiors like hospitals and Burger Shot ("Here's the nasty garbage you ordered!").

 

[PooBone]

I got it at launch and hated it
So much focus on story and character and trying to make Niko a sympathetic character, then having him beat the shit out of women?

Fuck that game.