Grand Theft Auto IV

[Icy]

Only 24 to 45 hours to finish?? and it gets a 10 for that?????????

[Eaglesfan27]

They aren't the only ones. The first few reviews on Gamerankings.com have all been perfect 10's, A's, etc.

[Eaglesfan27]

Originally Posted by Icy

Only 24 to 45 hours to finish?? and it gets a 10 for that?????????

Previous games in the series have had hundreds of hours of side quests such as finding objects, doing spectacular jumps, collecting different types of cars, etc. This version will have all of that, plus a variety of MP modes.

[Cringer]

Originally Posted by Eaglesfan27

Previous games in the series have had hundreds of hours of side quests such as finding objects, doing spectacular jumps, collecting different types of cars, etc. This version will have all of that, plus a variety of MP modes.

Agreed, the side stuff makes up a ton of the game. They said story line only, so that is hammering straight through and not messing around at all. I mess around a good amount, it's too much fun to do it. With new graphics, a bunch of buildings to go into, it may be worse for me in this version.

[ISiddiqui]

Yeah, does anyone actually do just the main storyline in GTA?

[Anthony]

what loser has the time to spend "only" 45 hours on a game? as evidenced by the "how many games have you beat/finished" thread, people just don't finish an awful lot of games. i know i don't. with the handful of A+++ games that come out every year, not to mention the regular "must-have" games, who really has the time to devote more than 24 hours to a storyline, let along 45+ hours to one game? you really got be a friggin good for nothing loser to want to spend that much time on one game. not to mention GTAIV has multiple MP modes that seem like they're gonna be more fun than playing single. i know i'm not bothering with single player mode if i can help it. MP mode should provide hundreds of hours of gameplay alone.

anyway, some people got too much time on their hands.

[Fidatelo]

I don't care for the story of GTA games at all, I just like to run around and do whatever I want. In fact, my biggest gripe is that I never get to see half of the cities because I can't be bothered to drudge through the story to unlock them.

[Radii]

Originally Posted by Hell Atlantic

what loser has the time to spend "only" 45 hours on a game?

...

i know i'm not bothering with single player mode if i can help it. MP mode should provide hundreds of hours of gameplay alone.

...

anyway, some people got too much time on their hands.

nice.

[MrBug708]

Gold

[Icy]

Originally Posted by Radii

nice.

Indeed, saying that playing for 45 hours a game is for losers but then claiming to play hundreds...

[stevew]

Originally Posted by Icy

Only 24 to 45 hours to finish?? and it gets a 10 for that?????????

That makes it a long game compared to some recent offerings that were 10 hours or less.

[Anthony]

point being - you're gonna complain there's only 45ish hours worth of gameplay when in MP there's an unlimited amount of gameplay, which is where most of the fun is sure to be anyway.

per a previous thread, most people don't finish games these days so what's the point of complaining if a game only has 45 hours of storyline? COD4 only has like 10 hours i think and i still haven't finished the solo campaign cuz i spend all of my time playing MP.

a 45 hour storyline is a long fucking time. that's about as long as watching the LOTR trilogy back to back 3 or 4 times, and how many times have any of you done that recently?

[kingnebwsu]

I just hit 8 days of game-time on COD 4 yesterday. I don't know if I'm proud/ashamed of that I'm hoping GTA will be a welcome distraction from that game. It's a different type of game, so I think I'll be able to add GTA to my current rotation of COD 4, Rock Band, and College Hoops 2k8.

Can't wait til the midnight release on Monday night

[Flasch186]

according to FM's timekeeper Ive played the game for:

56 days, 6 hours, and 33 minutes

[Bee]

Originally Posted by Flasch186

according to FM's timekeeper Ive played the game for:

56 days, 6 hours, and 33 minutes

Have you finished the storyline yet?

[Flasch186]

Well I moved from the SPL to coach NY in the MLS and absolutely hate it. The YI and SI, dev contracts are all a bit much for me and the idea of not having a shot at UEFA is just killing me so Im looking for an opportunity to cross the pond again.

[tucker rocky]

Originally Posted by tucker rocky

Ok, I've decided on the Xbox360 platform of GTA IV(already pre-ordered).
I'm going to up my price range and go with the
Xbox360 Elite(120gb hard drive) for $449+ change.

PS3 and its features+ reviews, didn't impress me.
Blu-Ray is nice, but not a feature I really need.

I now have my Xbox360 Elite, now just waiting on release of GTA IV.

I picked up an inexpensive copy of Saints Row to tie me over 'til then.

[Mizzou B-ball fan]

Lots of comparison talk between the 360/PS3 version. Generally, the PS3 version is getting the nod with less pop-in, less framerate issues, and shorter load times. It appears that the differences, although noticable, are relatively minor and that both versions are very good.

One concern that has been noted in several reviews is that any 360 console without a HDD will see more problems in the graphics department. There's no way to cache data in advance as you proceed through the town, so the system has to load the data directly from the disc, which results in screen tearing, frame-rate issues, and noticable pop-in.

Below is a thread from Neogaf. Initial poster does a pretty good job of posting the relevant quotes from the various reviews. Also noted in the thread is a link to where the rumor that the 'DLC for the 360 will be as big as San Andreas' came from. Evidently, that's not the case, which shouldn't be surprising as most people noted earlier in this thread.

http://www.neogaf.com/forum/showthread.php?t=286527

[wade moore]

So I wasn't really paying much attention to this game. I played GTA I like crazy back in the day and then put some time into GTA II, but not a whole lot. Never even played GTA III.

Then a buddy of mine sent me a long video review for GTA IV and explained the MP features.

WHY DIDN'T I PRE-ORDER THIS GAME?!

[ISiddiqui]

You never played GTA III?!! You need to get on that!

[Oilers9911]

Originally Posted by Mizzou B-ball fan

Lots of comparison talk between the 360/PS3 version. Generally, the PS3 version is getting the nod with less pop-in, less framerate issues, and shorter load times. It appears that the differences, although noticable, are relatively minor and that both versions are very good.

One concern that has been noted in several reviews is that any 360 console without a HDD will see more problems in the graphics department. There's no way to cache data in advance as you proceed through the town, so the system has to load the data directly from the disc, which results in screen tearing, frame-rate issues, and noticable pop-in.

Below is a thread from Neogaf. Initial poster does a pretty good job of posting the relevant quotes from the various reviews. Also noted in the thread is a link to where the rumor that the 'DLC for the 360 will be as big as San Andreas' came from. Evidently, that's not the case, which shouldn't be surprising as most people noted earlier in this thread.

http://www.neogaf.com/forum/showthread.php?t=286527

Blah blah blah blah blah.

[Mizzou B-ball fan]

Originally Posted by ISiddiqui

You never played GTA III?!! You need to get on that!

Agreed. San Andreas is still a lot of fun. I put it in the other day and played it. I also have the 'Hot Coffee' version of the game (voyeurs be jealous).

[TroyF]

Originally Posted by Icy

Only 24 to 45 hours to finish?? and it gets a 10 for that?????????

Bioshock was less and was clearly a 10. COD4 got knocked down to a 9 by most because of the shortness of the game, but it's one of the few games that get dropped for that.

24 to 45 hours for a graphical game is a long, long game. That doesn't count the side quests or the just running around the city blowing crap up. Nor does it include multiplayer. Especially when we are looking at how sensational this game is graphicaly.

I think Bioshock took me about 15 to finish the first time. GTA will be at least 2x that for single player. I think a 10 is reasonable if the game is as good as they say it is.

[Mizzou B-ball fan]

Originally Posted by TroyF

Bioshock was less and was clearly a 10. COD4 got knocked down to a 9 by most because of the shortness of the game, but it's one of the few games that get dropped for that.

24 to 45 hours for a graphical game is a long, long game. That doesn't count the side quests or the just running around the city blowing crap up. Nor does it include multiplayer. Especially when we are looking at how sensational this game is graphicaly.

I think Bioshock took me about 15 to finish the first time. GTA will be at least 2x that for single player. I think a 10 is reasonable if the game is as good as they say it is.

Agreed. If GTA's main story line is 25-45 hours, you can bet that most people will take 50-60 hours to go through it, with completion of all of the side quests moving even higher that that. I'll honestly be lucky to finish this game. It's going to take a lot of gameplay sessions to get it done.

[Fidatelo]

Any storyline longer than 10 hours is likely not getting finished by me.

[wade moore]

Originally Posted by Mizzou B-ball fan

Agreed. San Andreas is still a lot of fun. I put it in the other day and played it. I also have the 'Hot Coffee' version of the game (voyeurs be jealous).

Yeah.. GTA II felt a lot like GTA I from a different angle from me so I grew kind of bored with it.

Then I just wasn't in a big video-gaming phase when GTA III was popular, etc, etc - anyway..

[Anthony]

Originally Posted by Fidatelo

Any storyline longer than 10 hours is likely not getting finished by me.

EXACTLY. i can barely finish a 10 hour storyline. anything longer than 24 hours is a waste of my time. that is, unless, its a game with a huge world and if i just wanna have a game to pop into and walk around and see/do random stuff. but my attention span/interest level in completing an epic storyline is not what it used to be. i don't have as much free time to devote to video gaming as i used.

[wade moore]

Originally Posted by Hell Atlantic

EXACTLY. i can barely finish a 10 hour storyline. anything longer than 24 hours is a waste of my time. that is, unless, its a game with a huge world and if i just wanna have a game to pop into and walk around and see/do random stuff. but my attention span/interest level in completing an epic storyline is not what it used to be. i don't have as much free time to devote to video gaming as i used.

Agreed. I don't know the last time I "beat" a game. But that's ok with me - especially with a game like GTA that has an open world and what seems like it's going to be very fun MP play.

[ISiddiqui]

Originally Posted by Mizzou B-ball fan

Agreed. San Andreas is still a lot of fun. I put it in the other day and played it. I also have the 'Hot Coffee' version of the game (voyeurs be jealous).

I actually think I enjoy the setting of GTA III more. Dunno why, but Liberty City is just fun... I think that's why the setting of GTA IV is Liberty City too... though I am interested to see the other cities that get added on in the GTA IV series (they've done Miami and SoCal... maybe revisit London? Chicago? Boston? Atlanta?)

[TroyF]

Originally Posted by Hell Atlantic

EXACTLY. i can barely finish a 10 hour storyline. anything longer than 24 hours is a waste of my time. that is, unless, its a game with a huge world and if i just wanna have a game to pop into and walk around and see/do random stuff. but my attention span/interest level in completing an epic storyline is not what it used to be. i don't have as much free time to devote to video gaming as i used.

I know you've said multiple times that you don't care about the storyline, that you just want to sandbox it, etc. . . I just have to warn you a little. With the GTA series, the bridges usually block parts of the town until you hit a certain spot in the story. You also can't get the 6 stars and have the SWAT team and FBI come after you until you've gotten through a portion of the story. This isn't an especially long time with past GTA games (Maybe 3 hours of gameplay or so, sometimes a bit more), but it is there. To get the full sandbox mode enjoyment, it's usually adviseable to get through about 1/4 to 1/2 of the story, which is going to put you between 6 to 13 hours by the looks of it.

I'm sure the MP overrides a lot of this, but it's still something you should be aware of if you want to just have fun in single player mode. (Typically I play the game until everything is unlocked and then alternate between missions, side missions and blowing up the town)

[wade moore]

I just realized, I'm mistaken.

I played GTA III - I just didn't play San Andreas.

[Anthony]

Originally Posted by TroyF

I know you've said multiple times that you don't care about the storyline, that you just want to sandbox it, etc. . . I just have to warn you a little. With the GTA series, the bridges usually block parts of the town until you hit a certain spot in the story. You also can't get the 6 stars and have the SWAT team and FBI come after you until you've gotten through a portion of the story. This isn't an especially long time with past GTA games (Maybe 3 hours of gameplay or so, sometimes a bit more), but it is there. To get the full sandbox mode enjoyment, it's usually adviseable to get through about 1/4 to 1/2 of the story, which is going to put you between 6 to 13 hours by the looks of it.

I'm sure the MP overrides a lot of this, but it's still something you should be aware of if you want to just have fun in single player mode. (Typically I play the game until everything is unlocked and then alternate between missions, side missions and blowing up the town)

thanks for the info. i've never played a GTA game long enough to unlock bridges to other areas (that i know of). i start getting caught up in random/free mode too easily.

i can't remember - can you crash into people with your car or run them over?

[Logan]

I hope I don't have to run all over the city tomorrow to find an unreserved copy.

[Anthony]

there's a Gamestop closeby to me who are doing one of those midnite things for people who preordered. i wonder if i were to stop by tonite without a preorder if they'd sell it to me.

[Mizzou B-ball fan]

I'm going to try to hit the Circuit City near my house. Would be nice to get the game with a $10 gift card.

[Mizzou B-ball fan]

Here's some geek links. First, the Best Buy locations that will host midnight launches.........

http://www.bestbuy.com/site//olspage...&type=category

Next, an 'unboxing' video of the Special Edition version of the game.......

http://www.gametrailers.com/player/u...es/208163.html

[Anthony]

word to mother! best buy near me is doing a midnite launch too. only thing that sucks is they don't take trade-ins, which i need to do in order to bring the price down.

by the time i actually get it, if i were to get it, i wouldn't be able to play it much. i just wanna make sure i have it. odds are extremely high that there'll be more than enough copies available that a preorder wouldn't be necessary.

[Icy]

Most of shops in Spain are starting to sell it today. It all started when some small shops sold it, so everybody started to blame the big game shops chains even showing scanned tickets. The rumor is spreading so fast and more and more shops are starting to sell it early as their customers where cancelling the preorders to buy it in nearby small shops.

I'm thinking on calling the shop where i had it preordered to push them to sell it to me now too but... beign 32 years old i would feel ashamed of pushing a games shop employee younger than be to sell me a console game in advance like if it was something urgent.

[Kodos]

My Amazon copy mailed today, but I didn't choose one of the fast shipping options. I can wait.

[TroyF]

Originally Posted by Hell Atlantic

thanks for the info. i've never played a GTA game long enough to unlock bridges to other areas (that i know of). i start getting caught up in random/free mode too easily.

i can't remember - can you crash into people with your car or run them over?

I strongly advise getting to the point where all of the bridges are unlocked, the extra driving space is useful when you are trying to shed FBI agents.

Yes, you can run over people with your car, knock other cars off the road and my personal favorite, slam into motorcycles and send the driver flying.

[DanGarion]

Originally Posted by Mizzou B-ball fan

Elite is definitely the best option if you're going to get a 360. Just be sure to save the receipts and purchase the 3 year extended warranty as EF27 mentioned.

Doesn't it already come with a 3 year? Like the 2 they added to the original 360?

[Eaglesfan27]

Originally Posted by dangarion

Doesn't it already come with a 3 year? Like the 2 they added to the original 360?

That only covers the RROD issue. An extended warranty will cover any issue and will also get you a replacement unit immediately from the store (depending upon which store you buy it from) as opposed to waiting weeks/months for Microsoft to send you a new unit.

[DanGarion]

Originally Posted by Fidatelo

I don't care for the story of GTA games at all, I just like to run around and do whatever I want. In fact, my biggest gripe is that I never get to see half of the cities because I can't be bothered to drudge through the story to unlock them.

That's pretty much my story with most games. I hate that fact that you have to work to get see all the game. I wish they would stop that type of crap...

[ISiddiqui]

Well then actually do some of the story .

It's their way of getting you to do what they spent a ton of time coming up with, ya jerk!

[Icy]

Here are the supposed problems with the 360 version and lack of HD catching that makes objects to appear all the sudden in the screen (comes from a sony fans website so... also the guy driving has really bad reflexes):

[Kodos]

"This tree just came out of nowhere and hit me!"

[Mizzou B-ball fan]

Originally Posted by Icy

Here are the supposed problems with the 360 version and lack of HD catching that makes objects to appear all the sudden in the screen (comes from a sony fans website so... also the guy driving has really bad reflexes)

To be fair, those videos weren't created by that site. They just picked up on it and reposted them. Pretty sure that the original source was either the GTA Forums or Neogaf.

[MikeVic]

Bad reflexes, but I agree that's not great.

[Mizzou B-ball fan]

Icy, I'm assuming you don't have the game yet? I'm interested in your online experience since the PS3 version has region-free online play. Wanted to see if there was any major lag when playing on the North American servers.

[rkmsuf]

Teleporting trees.


LOOOOOVVVVVVEEEEEEEEE IT!!!!!!!!!!!!