The 10th Anniversary of Grand Theft Auto 4 (GTA 4) is coming soon on April 29, 2018! Read why I really enjoyed this game and would love to see a remastered edition!
GTA 4 helped define open world games in the last console generation. The highly successful GTA 5 built on what was created for GTA 4 back when it was first released in 2008. In that sense, GTA 4 was an iconic game for Rockstar Games and really showcased what they were capable of doing at the time. GTA 4 was one of the first games I purchased alongside my PS3 console hence it will always be a memorable experience for me. I wanted to make this post to give my opinion on why I thoroughly enjoyed this game and why it is good enough to deserve a remaster for the current generation.
(Note: GTA 4 is currently playable on Xbox One through backwards compatibility but this is the original version, not a proper remaster).
Recently, LA Noire got a remastered version with improved resolution and textures. I mentioned this in a post last year. This is something GTA 4 could really benefit from. Ideally, some of the improved gameplay features and mechanics from Grand Theft Auto 5 would be used in the remastered GTA 4 (such as a proper mission replay system and improved shooting mechanics).
Even if GTA 4 only receives a graphical upgrade (like LA Noire did); I strongly believe the game can still be enjoyed in 2018. It has a deep, character focused story and great gameplay. It also has a darker / more serious tone than GTA 5 which makes for a different kind of experience more in line with action-thriller styled movies.
Below I am going to explain why I really enjoyed playing GTA 4 when it was released. I will try to avoid any major story spoilers just in case:
STORY
The main GTA 4 game (the DLC packs introduced two new playable characters which will be explained later) follows Niko Bellic, an immigrant who comes to Liberty City, USA seeking a better life. His cousin Roman Bellic has already settled in Liberty City and claims to be living the ‘American dream’ with his ‘huge mansion’, beautiful women and more. However, Niko soon realises that Romans life is far from a dream. He arrives in Liberty City to join his cousin as well as find someone from his past. He finds Roman living in a small apartment located in the middle of a rough neighbourhood.
Niko, right from the start, felt like a character who had seen a lot of things in his life and had done a lot worse. He clearly had military experience and looked like he knew how to defend himself. Roman seemed to be the opposite; full of enthusiasm even though he was in some serious debt with loan sharks and was working with a whole variety of shady criminals.
Niko ends up working with / for these criminals to help pay Roman’s debts and to try to build a better life for himself. Throughout the story Niko meets and works with an entire range of different characters, each with their unique personalities. Examples include the Irish Mob, a Secret Agency and of course, the Italian Mafia. The story also takes some dark turns during the game. This is something I really enjoyed as it gave the game a real gritty style to it. Compared to previous GTA games, GTA 4 felt a lot more serious. However, there was still a lot of subtle humour to be found as well as multiple, hilarious references to modern culture at the time (2008).
This story felt original and fresh. It kept me interested throughout the game. I always felt the need to complete more missions to help progress the story as I wanted to see what would happen next with Niko and Roman. Some missions even crossed over with the DLC expansions. (For example, GTA 4 fans will remember how much trouble those diamonds caused for all the main characters!). There were multiple twists throughout the story which kept it from feeling predictable. Some missions gave players multiple options which could influence the end of the game.
Niko’s dark past is slowly explained throughout the game, which leads to some great character development and intense moments. Niko must find closure in Liberty City to help deal with his past and move on with his life. Whilst trying to find this closure, he discovers that Liberty City is nowhere near as perfect as he was led to believe in all the postcards Roman sent him.
Check out the original launch trailer for GTA 4 below (it did an excellent job at setting the mood for GTA 4 as well as showcasing the great leap in graphical fidelity from PS2 / Xbox era to PS3 / Xbox 360):
LIBERTY CITY
The setting of GTA 4 is Liberty City, USA. This is a fictional city set in the same gaming world as GTA 5. Liberty City, although much smaller than GTA 5’s Los Santos, has its own appeal. It is clearly inspired by New York City. This is evident through the narrow alleyways, smaller roads, toll booths, tall buildings, high levels of traffic as well as a lack of wide open spaces such as those found in GTA 5. The map was split into multiple islands, connected by bridges. One major island was influenced heavily by New Jersey as well. Each island felt different. For example, the wealthier neighbourhoods often had higher end vehicles, cleaner streets etc. The rougher neighbourhoods had higher levels of crime, which was seen by the random police encounters in these areas. Downtown Liberty City was packed full of office workers whereas Liberty City’s version of Central Park would have people enjoying yoga or other activities. This all combined to make the city feel alive; which by itself is a huge achievement in video games.
Liberty City even had its own version of Times Square, The Empire State Building and Statue of Liberty. These landmarks played a significant role in certain missions as well. Each famous landmark – in typical Rockstar Games fashion – had its own name. For example, Rockstars version of the Statue of Liberty was called ‘The Statue of Happiness.’
There were also a good number of interiors in GTA 4 too, such as nightclubs (such as those found in The Ballad of Gay Tony DLC) ,biker bars, fast food restaurants, strip clubs, bowling alleys and more. This is something I believe GTA 5 should have had more of. These locations may not be required for every mission, but make the city feel so much more detailed and alive. It really did feel like Niko was an observer in a living, breathing Liberty City.
CHARACTERS
Character development is something Rockstar Games really do an amazing job with. GTA 4 is no exception. Each character is well thought out and has their own backstory. This makes the player want to find out more about these larger than life characters, such as what their motivations are and why they behave in a certain way. I actually cared about what would happen to each of these main characters.
Even now, 10 years later, I still remember side characters like Roman, Brucie Kibbutz, Little Jacob, Playboy X, Manny Escuela, Packie McReary and many others. This is thanks to the fantastic voice acting and Rockstar Games’ writers. Some of the more villainous characters like Mikhail Faustin, Jimmy Pegorino, Dimitri and Billy Grey also stand out to me. There was a good range of characters whose unique personalities made each encounter feel fresh. Even if a mission was similar to another one, the fact that there would be unique dialogue with a certain character made the mission have a totally different feel to it as well as its own purpose.
GAMEPLAY AND GRAPHICS
Since this was Rockstar’s first GTA game on the PS3 and Xbox 360, they were using a new graphics and physics engine. This was Rockstar’s first GTA which brought proper third person cover based shooting mechanics and aiming as well as next generation physics. Compared to GTA on PS2, GTA 4’s controls, graphics and physics engine felt like a huge leap forward. Niko was able to take cover, blind fire etc. This provided a totally different experience compared to older PS2 GTA Games.
The physics engine was very robust and provided a lot of entertainment. For example, vehicle damage was amazing in GTA 4. Although the vehicle handling had mixed reactions at the time, I personally enjoyed driving around the city. After getting used to the controls and handling, vehicles were very enjoyable to use. The controls for motorcycles weren’t perfect but this was heavily improved upon in the Lost and Damned DLC expansion (which focused on bikers).
GTA games are a great snapshot in time. For example, when GTA 4 was released in 2008, the smartphone was nowhere near as advanced or as common as it is today. This is reflected in the game where phones are used for basic purposes (compared to GTA 5 smartphones which are used to access everything). GTA 4 even makes heavy use of the internet cafe! The player must physically visit these in the game to access the internet through a computer. This is something we take for granted in modern life and games like GTA 5 where the player simply pulls up their smartphone and selects the internet browser app! Intricate details like this really make Rockstar’s open world games stand out.
I remember being amazed at how great the graphics looked when I first saw the GTA 4 announcement trailer. The city looked amazing compared to previous GTA games and even compared to some other PS3 games at the time. Check out the screenshots below showing GTA San Andreas and GTA 4:
GTA 4 graphics were a huge shift away from previous GTA games. The character models, vehicles, weapons all felt a lot more realistic. The newer hardware (consoles and PC) at the time was able to handle so much more detail in games.
MISSIONS
GTA 4 missions had some amazing moments which fitted in well with the overall tone Rockstar Games were aiming for. Missions helped develop characters through simple things like conversations while you drive to an objective. There were also some fantastic cut scenes before and after missions which progressed the story.
Some very memorable missions included an amazing Bank heist mission (Three Leaf Clover!), kidnappings, applying and going to a job interview, online dating, chasing stalkers in the park, biker wars and more. All missions were fun in their own way, but my favourite was the Bank Heist. This mission felt intense when I first played it. It was longer than some of the other missions and the dialogue between the characters was brilliant. I even remember having a separate save file before this mission which I would re-load after completing the main game, in order to replay it!
There were a ton of side activities to enjoy as well. Players could visit comedy clubs and watch live comedy shows (these made use of real comedians!). Other activities included Bowling, mini golf, pool / snooker, drinking and more. These details made the world feel alive and helped set the bar for what an open world game could be capable off on the PS3 / Xbox 360 generation. Activities could be carried out with Niko’s friends and family. The DLC added newer side activities too, to fit with the theme they were going for.
DOWNLOADABLE CONTENT (DLC) / EXPANSION PACKS
GTA 4 had two major DLC expansions called ‘The Lost and the Damned’ and ‘The Ballad of Gay Tony.’
Here is the official synopsis for The Lost and Damned:
Johnny is a veteran member of The Lost, a notorious biker gang. Johnny has been creating business opportunities for The Lost in Liberty City, but his first loyalty must be to the patch he wears on his back and to Billy Grey, the club’s President. However, when Billy returns from rehab hell-bent on bloodshed and debauchery, Johnny finds himself in the middle of a vicious turf war with rival gangs for control of a city torn apart by violence and corruption. Can the brotherhood survive?
Synopsis for The Ballad of Gay Tony:
The Ballad Of Gay Tony injects Liberty City with an overdose of guns, glitz, and grime. As Luis Lopez, part-time hoodlum and full-time assistant to legendary nightclub impresario Tony Prince (aka “Gay Tony”), players will struggle with the competing loyalties of family and friends, and with the uncertainty about who is real and who is fake in a world in which everyone has a price.
As you can see, each expansion pack brought a new main character. Personally, these two expansion packs are some of the best pieces of DLC I have ever purchased. They both provided me with many hours of gameplay. Each provided a completely different feel to the base GTA 4 game.
The Lost and Damned was a gritty, biker focused story with a range of new bikes and characters. The main playable character was Johnny Klebitz, Vice President of ‘The Lost’ biker gang:
The Lost and Damned introduced a whole new range of bikes to enjoy and Rockstar greatly improved bike handling for this DLC. This made it A LOT more enjoyable to ride bikes (compared to the bike handling in the base GTA 4 game). It also introduced new biker mechanics such as the ability to travel in a biker gang formation alongside your gang members. Missions involved taking on other gangs in Liberty City, racing bikes and more. They also included some new weapons in the game as well as an awesome biker clubhouse for The Lost biker gang to hang out in.
The second DLC expansion, Ballad of Gay Tony, had a more fun feel to it. This was more in line with how GTA 5’s story is (over the top and big set piece moments). It was a super fun DLC to play. It also introduced some new side activities such as managing Tony’s nightclubs, gunrunning missions with Luis’ best friends, a fight club where Luis could earn some extra cash and it brought back the ability to parachute (something which wasn’t possible in the base GTA 4 game). This DLC also added some unique weapons and cars, to represent the high-end industry Luis worked in. It also featured a slight graphical upgrade compared to the main GTA 4 game. The graphics looked a lot cleaner and crisp.
Players took control of Luis Lopez, enforcer for nightclub owner Tony Prince:
Check out both trailers below for these DLC packs:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Mio0WmVMz18
The DLC packs were released separately from the main game too, as a package known as GTA Episodes from Liberty City. If GTA 4 has a remastered edition made, I really do hope these DLC packs are included in it. They were worth experiencing for GTA fans (especially those who haven’t played GTA 4). Each DLC provided many hours of content and were well worth it. Check out this unique trailer designed to look like a news report for GTA Episodes from Liberty City:
Overall, GTA 4 was a fantastic game when it released. I enjoyed multiple playthroughs of it and if it was to be remastered for modern consoles and PC, I would buy it again without hesitation. I would love to revisit Liberty City (ideally with 4K support for those who own a PS4 Pro or Xbox One X).
Compared to the newer GTA 5, GTA 4 had its own feel to it which makes it worth playing. I believe GTA 4 is a good enough game to warrant a remaster, considering a lot of other PS3 / Xbox 360 games have already received remasters. GTA 4 provided the foundation upon which GTA 5 is built. It is a game which I will always remember.
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Source: Rockstar Games
