The most anticipated game of the season is on store shelves (theoretically), and perhaps for the rest of the year bar a select hopefuls (namely Metal Gear Solid 4), Grand Theft Auto 4 is sold out almost everywhere.

I always become instictively suspicous about games that have a large amount of hype surrounding them, as more often than not it proves to be without substance. Add to that the recent mumourings about GTA4 issues with 60GB Playstation 3s and certain models of Xbox 360, which would apparently freeze the game after the intro; I didnt feel the urgent need everyone else must be feeling about grabbing a copy of the game….saying that however, I did manage to grab myself a copy at a ridiculously reduced price considering demand right now.

Tip: Tescos are selling them for €39.99 if you can get your hands on it; I got mine by ringing up late at night, just as they got new stock in. Dont expect that to last.

Onto the game itself: the first thing people will invariably ask, and notice of course is ‘how does it look’, to which i must say the game is absolutely gorgeous. I would never have said previous GTA games ever pushed the bar as far as graphics were conscerned - upto part [just], but not much more; GTA4 is so much more, its an absolute beauty, very much next-gen graphics with realistic water, deep shadows and a draw distance that goes on forever but best of all is the lighting effects, its stunning. The intro graphics alone are a pleasure to watch! how often do you get to say that about a game?!

Niko Bellic is a Serbian immigrant who is thirty years of age and a veteran of the Bosnian War. He has come to Liberty City to pursue the “American Dream”.

source: wikipedia

The prologue cutscene is a work of art, the music and cinematics work perfectly together as you watch Niko, the main character, on a cargo ship on making its way into Liberty City, where he arrives and meets up with his cousin, Roman. After the intro cutscene is finished, you’re left to fend for yourself in Niko’s cousins apartment, what you do from there is really pretty much upto you. I’d recommend watching the TV, its hilarious - if you liked the radio stations from previous GTA games, which you no doubt did, you’ll love the TV, its exactly the same. insane.

The first thing I noticed about the actual gameplay was how much more realistic the physics were. Niko walked and ran much more like a real person than any of his predecessors. Perhaps more importantly, the same is true of the driving experience. Its claimed that there would be no loading times for GTA IV - which is partly true I guess, there are no loading times when running or driving around, or walking in and out of a location such as Romans apartment or a Café, but there is the occasional one between missions, nothing much really.

We will be covering more of Rockstar’s Grand Theft Auto in the coming days, in the meantime why not leave a comment!