GTA IV
polycounter lvl 19
From SA Goons:
It's been three years since an original GTA title has hit the consoles (unless you want to count the ports of Liberty City Stories and Vice City Stories.) Well all that's about to change with GTA IV. It's coming out on the PS3 and 360 at the same time some time in early 2008.
The story involves an "Eastern European immigrant going by the name of Niko Bellic, persuaded to travel to Liberty City by his cousin, Roman. Roman claims to all up in riches, living the nice life with 15 cars, 4 hot tubs and plenty of beautiful girls to go around. Turns out Roman isn't what he seems to be making himself out to be....Nothing he's said is true. Even though they don't always get along and are constantly bickering, Roman becomes an important guideline for you at the beginning. Being the only person in the entire city that you know, he becomes the main source for connections at the start."
Roman is in fact in a lot of trouble with a lot of people who are after him for unpaid money and various other forms of debt, and he needs Niko's help!
The story will be delivered in a variety of new ways, allowing, and i quote; 'The player to create their own destiny' this clearly means missions will have several possible outcomes, all of which ultimately effect the outcome of the game and the relationships between Niko and the supporting cast.
In regard to episodic content: "During Microsoft's E³ press conference in 2006, Peter Moore announced that Rockstar Games were working on two extra downloadable packs via Xbox Live exclusively for the Xbox 360. peter Moore's described these extra packs as 'epic episode packs' and wouldn't just be the extra feature such as a few cars or clothing items but hours of entire new gameplay. This had been confirmed by Rockstar, announcing two extra, exclusive episodes.
Earlier this week (beginning February 26th) Take 2 Interactive Software released a statement confirming that the Episodic Content for GTA4 will be released sometime in 2008. No exact date has been confirmed yet but being given a definite year is a start. Still no information on how much these downloads will cost, so stay tuned for the confirmed details."
Some other fun facts:
[ QUOTE ]
It has been confirmed that the Pay and Spray will be returning this time round but spraying the car will not get rid of your wanted level. Ammunation hasn't been confirmed to be in the game, also Niko has to call arms dealers on his mobile to deliver weapons to a certain location.
A new wanted level system will be included in the game. Now that you will gain a wanted level for every crime you commit in public, a circular search area will appear on your radar. If you're outside of this area, the cops wont be able to find you, like they always could in previous titles Every time you are spotted the circle will move to that location.
The internet is availible for Niko to use in the game also. Being the age of the computer, that we are in, it would seem foolish for Rockstar to completely ignore such a feature. Niko can use the internet to gain information about contacts or people he needs to kill. their location for example. This opens the gateway for many other interavtive things to do within Liberty.
the 'trip skip' taxis are back after a long absence since Vice City. if you fail a mission or can't be bothered with the long drives, just hop in a cab and you'll be there in no time!
Missions can span over several GTA days. For example, you may recieve a mission on a Tuesday and have to wait til Thursday to complete the task. This suggests you can do other missions in between.
The GamesTM exclusive preview reveals 2 of the missions that will appear in GTA IV. So look away now if you dont want any...
Mission 1: In the demo, Niko recieves a call concerning "shady lawyer" Goldberg, of Goldberg, Ligner & Shyster (GLS) Niko needs to get an interview with Goldberg, so he can 'dispose of him.' Niko uses the internet to his advantage.
Mission 2 -'Call and Collect': Next in the demo, Niko pays a visit to somebody called McReary, at Castle Gardens, a coast-side hangout overlooking the Statue of Hapiness. McReary has had a memory stick stolen from him which contains sensitive data, and he wants Niko to retrieve it for him.
When purchasing clothes, you have to choose the items from the shelf individually.
Little Jacob (a caribbean arms dealer) is a good friend of Niko's cousin. When you buy weapons from him (which are kept in his trunk) you can scroll through them like you did in Ammu-Nation in the previous GTA games
Determining which figures you need to kill requires perception - there are no arrowheads to direct you like in the previous games.
Once you gain a wanted-level, the map flashes with circles of blue and red, with each circle representing the line of sight of the police chase. The circles differ in size depending on your wanted-level.
The default camera view when driving rests around the left-hand side of the car above the road.
The combat rests somewhere between Resident Evil 4 and Gears of War in terms of style, allowing you to roll, find protection and blind-fire from behind cover
Shooting different parts of the body has different impacts (e.g shoot a security guard in the foot at the top of the stairs, and he'll come tumbling down.)
In GTA IV you have to develop relationships with other characters. Your relationship with Little Jacob, for example, is maintained through phone calls and loyalty. Developing good relationships with different characters can provide different rewards.
The weapons on offer by Little Jacob included a 9mm, a shotgun, an SMG, and a micro SMG also the rocket launcher makes a return (A distinct tube-shaped weapon strapped to the underside of Little Jacob's trunk hatch).
GTA IV will include a pool mini-game, and many other mini-games. "You'll play at least some of these while hanging out with NPCs like Little Jacob."
A thin green band around the minimap on your HUD indicates your health.
The HUD is described as "minimalist to its core." There is a mini-map, a "low-key" cash counter, and they say that the HUD in general looks more clean than in previous GTAs
You can auto-target as well as manual aim. Niko can take cover behind just about anything, and so can the cops.
There is a GPS system in the car, and the recommended route shows up in yellow on the radar at the bottom left of the screen.
Currently, the total number of wanted stars is 6 - the same as it was in previous Grand Theft Auto games.
The default camera angle is slightly over to the drivers' side. Different angles are available however. You can move the camera aswell, but if you're not touching it, it will remain at the more central position leaning towards the drivers' side.
In the September 2007 issue of Game Informer more details about cab journeys have been revealed. Quoted directly from the Game Informer article:
'....The second cab did pull over, however. Rather than jacking it like you would in the other GTA games, players now have the chance to hop into the back seat. From here, the game zooms into Niko's eyes with a first-person view showing the interior of the car, and a cabbie that is ready to get his marching orders. The player must first give the cabbie a location, which is handled on the d-pad. When the car starts moving, players have the option to hit the A button to skip the ride and be warped to the location, X to tell the cabbie to hurry it up(which is shown visually by the cabbie speeding up and punching the horn) and Y to exit the cab. The right analog stick is used for camera movement, for which there are dozens of views.'
From the Game Informer article:
'Niko ducking behind cover (which, depending on the material, could be destructible), and exchanging fire. When the odds leaned in the favor of the police, Niko switched to an Uzi to show off a new move: blind firing over objects.'
Presumably, you will lose accuracy in your shot, but at least you're still alive when caught in a tough spot.
On shooting, the magazine states that: "the cover system borrows elements of Gears of War, and Rainbow Six: Las Vegas." It also says that "the aiming is a Resident Evil 4, over the shoulder style."
[/ QUOTE ]
Some links of interest:
http://www.rockstargames.com/IV/trailer_splash.html
http://planetgrandtheftauto.gamespy.com/
http://www.gta4.net/news/index.php
We've always had some fun threads with the GTA games so lets not derail our occurrences and jump on the w00t-w00t bandwagon!
It's been three years since an original GTA title has hit the consoles (unless you want to count the ports of Liberty City Stories and Vice City Stories.) Well all that's about to change with GTA IV. It's coming out on the PS3 and 360 at the same time some time in early 2008.
The story involves an "Eastern European immigrant going by the name of Niko Bellic, persuaded to travel to Liberty City by his cousin, Roman. Roman claims to all up in riches, living the nice life with 15 cars, 4 hot tubs and plenty of beautiful girls to go around. Turns out Roman isn't what he seems to be making himself out to be....Nothing he's said is true. Even though they don't always get along and are constantly bickering, Roman becomes an important guideline for you at the beginning. Being the only person in the entire city that you know, he becomes the main source for connections at the start."
Roman is in fact in a lot of trouble with a lot of people who are after him for unpaid money and various other forms of debt, and he needs Niko's help!
The story will be delivered in a variety of new ways, allowing, and i quote; 'The player to create their own destiny' this clearly means missions will have several possible outcomes, all of which ultimately effect the outcome of the game and the relationships between Niko and the supporting cast.
In regard to episodic content: "During Microsoft's E³ press conference in 2006, Peter Moore announced that Rockstar Games were working on two extra downloadable packs via Xbox Live exclusively for the Xbox 360. peter Moore's described these extra packs as 'epic episode packs' and wouldn't just be the extra feature such as a few cars or clothing items but hours of entire new gameplay. This had been confirmed by Rockstar, announcing two extra, exclusive episodes.
Earlier this week (beginning February 26th) Take 2 Interactive Software released a statement confirming that the Episodic Content for GTA4 will be released sometime in 2008. No exact date has been confirmed yet but being given a definite year is a start. Still no information on how much these downloads will cost, so stay tuned for the confirmed details."
Some other fun facts:
[ QUOTE ]
It has been confirmed that the Pay and Spray will be returning this time round but spraying the car will not get rid of your wanted level. Ammunation hasn't been confirmed to be in the game, also Niko has to call arms dealers on his mobile to deliver weapons to a certain location.
A new wanted level system will be included in the game. Now that you will gain a wanted level for every crime you commit in public, a circular search area will appear on your radar. If you're outside of this area, the cops wont be able to find you, like they always could in previous titles Every time you are spotted the circle will move to that location.
The internet is availible for Niko to use in the game also. Being the age of the computer, that we are in, it would seem foolish for Rockstar to completely ignore such a feature. Niko can use the internet to gain information about contacts or people he needs to kill. their location for example. This opens the gateway for many other interavtive things to do within Liberty.
the 'trip skip' taxis are back after a long absence since Vice City. if you fail a mission or can't be bothered with the long drives, just hop in a cab and you'll be there in no time!
Missions can span over several GTA days. For example, you may recieve a mission on a Tuesday and have to wait til Thursday to complete the task. This suggests you can do other missions in between.
The GamesTM exclusive preview reveals 2 of the missions that will appear in GTA IV. So look away now if you dont want any...
Mission 1: In the demo, Niko recieves a call concerning "shady lawyer" Goldberg, of Goldberg, Ligner & Shyster (GLS) Niko needs to get an interview with Goldberg, so he can 'dispose of him.' Niko uses the internet to his advantage.
Mission 2 -'Call and Collect': Next in the demo, Niko pays a visit to somebody called McReary, at Castle Gardens, a coast-side hangout overlooking the Statue of Hapiness. McReary has had a memory stick stolen from him which contains sensitive data, and he wants Niko to retrieve it for him.
When purchasing clothes, you have to choose the items from the shelf individually.
Little Jacob (a caribbean arms dealer) is a good friend of Niko's cousin. When you buy weapons from him (which are kept in his trunk) you can scroll through them like you did in Ammu-Nation in the previous GTA games
Determining which figures you need to kill requires perception - there are no arrowheads to direct you like in the previous games.
Once you gain a wanted-level, the map flashes with circles of blue and red, with each circle representing the line of sight of the police chase. The circles differ in size depending on your wanted-level.
The default camera view when driving rests around the left-hand side of the car above the road.
The combat rests somewhere between Resident Evil 4 and Gears of War in terms of style, allowing you to roll, find protection and blind-fire from behind cover
Shooting different parts of the body has different impacts (e.g shoot a security guard in the foot at the top of the stairs, and he'll come tumbling down.)
In GTA IV you have to develop relationships with other characters. Your relationship with Little Jacob, for example, is maintained through phone calls and loyalty. Developing good relationships with different characters can provide different rewards.
The weapons on offer by Little Jacob included a 9mm, a shotgun, an SMG, and a micro SMG also the rocket launcher makes a return (A distinct tube-shaped weapon strapped to the underside of Little Jacob's trunk hatch).
GTA IV will include a pool mini-game, and many other mini-games. "You'll play at least some of these while hanging out with NPCs like Little Jacob."
A thin green band around the minimap on your HUD indicates your health.
The HUD is described as "minimalist to its core." There is a mini-map, a "low-key" cash counter, and they say that the HUD in general looks more clean than in previous GTAs
You can auto-target as well as manual aim. Niko can take cover behind just about anything, and so can the cops.
There is a GPS system in the car, and the recommended route shows up in yellow on the radar at the bottom left of the screen.
Currently, the total number of wanted stars is 6 - the same as it was in previous Grand Theft Auto games.
The default camera angle is slightly over to the drivers' side. Different angles are available however. You can move the camera aswell, but if you're not touching it, it will remain at the more central position leaning towards the drivers' side.
In the September 2007 issue of Game Informer more details about cab journeys have been revealed. Quoted directly from the Game Informer article:
'....The second cab did pull over, however. Rather than jacking it like you would in the other GTA games, players now have the chance to hop into the back seat. From here, the game zooms into Niko's eyes with a first-person view showing the interior of the car, and a cabbie that is ready to get his marching orders. The player must first give the cabbie a location, which is handled on the d-pad. When the car starts moving, players have the option to hit the A button to skip the ride and be warped to the location, X to tell the cabbie to hurry it up(which is shown visually by the cabbie speeding up and punching the horn) and Y to exit the cab. The right analog stick is used for camera movement, for which there are dozens of views.'
From the Game Informer article:
'Niko ducking behind cover (which, depending on the material, could be destructible), and exchanging fire. When the odds leaned in the favor of the police, Niko switched to an Uzi to show off a new move: blind firing over objects.'
Presumably, you will lose accuracy in your shot, but at least you're still alive when caught in a tough spot.
On shooting, the magazine states that: "the cover system borrows elements of Gears of War, and Rainbow Six: Las Vegas." It also says that "the aiming is a Resident Evil 4, over the shoulder style."
[/ QUOTE ]
Some links of interest:
http://www.rockstargames.com/IV/trailer_splash.html
http://planetgrandtheftauto.gamespy.com/
http://www.gta4.net/news/index.php
We've always had some fun threads with the GTA games so lets not derail our occurrences and jump on the w00t-w00t bandwagon!
Replies
Oh..
EDITED FOR ADDED WOOOOT
I'm blaming Rick for any/all pr0n found in GTA IV
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shit thats alot of responsibility
w00t++
Sounds like fun, hopefully we won't hear any BS about secret porn sims this time around, unless its Hack Thompson being sodomized by a broken beer bottle... sideways.
[/ QUOTE ]
yeah, i hope the porn sims aren't secret too
Well it d0es s0und inTeresting but i'm not sure if i'm looking forWard t0 this game as much as the 0Thers.
[/ QUOTE ]
I C WUT U DID THAIR
I dread to think what sales demands are gonna be like, good work all polycounters involved :]
Sounds like fun, hopefully we won't hear any BS about secret porn sims this time around, unless its Hack Thompson being sodomized by a broken beer bottle... sideways.
[/ QUOTE ]
Oh dear lord that has me laughing my ass off. Can we maybe include a certain presidential candidate into that scene in some lewd and inappropriate way?
Though there is that thing they did with letting you call in to a certain number to leave your views on the current political situations, so I'm sure there's some humor in that.
[/ QUOTE ]
I remember that, was that for GTA IV?
it looks pretty well done!
I've been hanging for this game since I first heard about it. GTA fanboy since the first one. Used to play multiplayer matches during lunch times back at highschool.
Saints Row did a great job with filling the void after SA and the character customization was awesome (managed to get a char to look 90% like me), though its a shame we won't be seeing that with GTAIV.
BRING ITTTT!!!! WOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOT!
-caseyjones
What's the fuzzy crap all over Nikko's face? It's all over the car as well, and I see it in ever single picture that's released. Is that some sort of FS shader? IMO, it doesn't look good. I would have rather seen higher res textures in the game. That building paint there in particular, looks bad
http://media.gtanet.com/images/3936_gta4_screenshot.jpg
not knowing the details, but texture sizes in a giant world in which you can seamlessly move is an issue... it's natural that you have to make certain compromises. I think the overall visuals have improved alot over the previous games, nevertheless it never was a big issue in the old GTAs imo, as the game and the freedom made it up...
The majority of the time, you're driving in a car, or flying a plane, or too distracted by punching hookers.
...or too distracted by punching hookers.
[/ QUOTE ]
Guuuh I just want this game NOW!
even if the gameplay looks (once again) awesome,
won't makes me buy a ps3/xbox360..
I would buy this one for computer tho..
Multiplayer online? would be great..
Just wondering about something here. Maybe Rick can explain something.
What's the fuzzy crap all over Nikko's face? It's all over the car as well, and I see it in ever single picture that's released. Is that some sort of FS shader? IMO, it doesn't look good. I would have rather seen higher res textures in the game. That building paint there in particular, looks bad
[/ QUOTE ]
You picky bitch, its GTA IV! kill!
(actually most ps3 games have this digital dandruff)
I prefer The MAFIA even if the racing was not perfect, 'cause there was a story and cool maps.
So personally if the day out of GTA IV and MAFIA 2 is the same - I will prefer to buy MAFIA 2.
Go and see the trailer of MAFIA 2 :
http://www.2kgames.com/mafia2/home.html
I'll pick up gta 4. I've enjoyed the games and there's something satisfying about getting a hooker, recovering health then running the hooker over to get your money back.
http://www.gamespot.com/video/933037/6185876/grand-theft-auto-iv-official-movie-1
http://www.gamespot.com/video/933037/6185878/grand-theft-auto-iv-official-movie-2
http://www.gamespot.com/video/933037/6185879/grand-theft-auto-iv-official-movie-3
http://www.gamespot.com/video/933036/6185877/grand-theft-auto-iv-official-movie-4
Rick - any insider tip as to which console version runs at a higher framerate? ^_^ Need to know which one to buy.
Im pretty excited about this one, I've never really gotten heavily into any in the series but i do like deep games and
I dont see another Oblivion on the horizon!
k.
I have both, darnit! I made the mistake of buying Assassin's Creed on 360, and it ended up running better on PS3. Doh!
Kevin - yeah those shorts are great. I love the Roman Bellic scene where he's stumbling over drunk. hehehe
http://www.shacknews.com/onearticle.x/51446
http://www.gtaforums.com/index.php?showtopic=317327
my most anticipated game of 08. I can't wait. Praying for some sort of co-op.
[/ QUOTE ]
Motion seconded. Even though the co-op in san andreas was really basic, it was still really fun playing with a friend.
Im pretty excited about this one, I've never really gotten heavily into any in the series but i do like deep games and I dont see another Oblivion on the horizon!
[/ QUOTE ]
Fallout 3?
Another month to go!
-caseyjones