Grand Theft Auto IV is a 2008
action-adventure open world video game published by
Rockstar Games, and developed by games developer
Rockstar North in the United Kingdom. It has been released for the
PlayStation 3 and
Xbox 360 video game consoles, and for the
Windows operating system. The game involves a separate timeline and world than its predecessors, starting the fourth "era" in the
Grand Theft Auto series, and is set in fictional
Liberty City, based heavily on modern day
New York City.
[a] The game follows
Niko Bellic, a veteran of an unnamed war in
Eastern Europe, who comes to the United States in search of the
American Dream, but quickly becomes entangled in a world of gangs, crime, and corruption. Like other games in the series,
GTA IV is composed of elements from
driving games and
third-person shooters, and features "open-world" gameplay, in which players can interact with the game world at their leisure.
Grand Theft Auto IV also features several online
multiplayer modes.
Two
expansion packs have been developed for the game, originally released as
downloadable content for the Xbox 360 version throughout 2009. Both
The Lost and Damned and
The Ballad of Gay Tony feature new plots that are interconnected with the main
GTA IV storyline, and follow new protagonists. The two
episodes have been released together for all platforms as a stand-alone game called
Grand Theft Auto: Episodes from Liberty City. A
bundle that contained both the original
GTA IV game and the
Episodes was also released, titled
Grand Theft Auto IV: The Complete Edition. The 2009
handheld game Grand Theft Auto: Chinatown Wars revisited the Liberty City of
GTA IV.
As the first game of the critically acclaimed series to appear on
seventh generation consoles,
Grand Theft Auto IV
was widely anticipated. A major commercial and critical success, it
broke industry records with sales of around 3.6 million units on its
first day of release and grossing more than $500 million in revenue in
the first week, selling an estimated 6 million units worldwide.
[10] As of September 2011, the game had shipped over 22 million copies.
[11] Grand Theft Auto IV won numerous awards from both gaming and mainstream press, including several recognitions as
Game of the Year,
and is in the highest ranks on several professional game critic
review-aggregating websites. In late 2011, Rockstar Games announced that
Grand Theft Auto V was in full development.
[12] A trailer of
Grand Theft Auto V was later released.
Gameplay
Quite like its predecessors, the core gameplay of
GTA IV consists of giving the player a large,
open world
environment in which to move around freely. On foot, the player
character can walk, run, jump, climb over obstacles and swim, as well as
use weapons and perform basic hand-to-hand combat. Players can steal
and drive a variety of vehicles, including automobiles, boats,
helicopters, and motorcycles.
Grand Theft Auto IV takes advantage of Natural Motion's
Euphoria
engine, which combines artificial intelligence, bio-mechanics and
physics to make open, non-linear environment allows players to explore
and choose how they wish to play the game. Although storyline missions
are necessary to progress through the game and unlock certain content
and parts of the city, they are not required, as players can complete
them at their own leisure. When not attempting a storyline mission,
players can free-roam, giving them the ability to do activities. Side
missions such as locating and destroying criminals in the police car
database or participating in street races can keep the player occupied
for hours.
It is possible to have many active missions running at one time, as
some missions run over the course of several days and require the player
to wait for further instructions or events. The player can also attempt
a variety of optional side missions.
Grand Theft Auto IV also contains
morality
choices at many points throughout the game, which alter the storyline
appropriately depending on the player's choice. Which of the game's two
different endings occurs is determined by one of these choices.
Combat and police response
Combat in
Grand Theft Auto IV has been reworked to include a
cover system.
Gunfights in
GTA IV are conducted using a
third-person system.
[13] The game's cover system allows the player to deftly move between cover, to
fire blindly, aim freely, and target a specific enemy. Individual body parts can also be targeted.
[14]
Additionally, Niko can perform "cinematic executions" at certain points
in the story. Niko's health is shown by a green semicircle on the left
side of the mini-map, while a blue semicircle on the right represents
armour. When locked on a target, their health and (if applicable) armour
level appears in the target circle. There are more hand-to-hand combat
moves than in past games in the series, namely punching, kicking,
"alternative" punching, dodging and blocking, disarming an opponent, and
counter-attacking.
If Niko is injured, he can recover health by eating, drinking soda,
sleeping, using medical kits, using his mobile phone to call for
paramedics, using a "cheat", calling one of his girlfriends for medical
advice, etc. Body armour can absorb gunshots and explosive damage but is
gradually used up in the process.
[15]
If Niko's health level reaches zero, the action stops, and he
re-appears at the nearest hospital having lost some money (but retaining
his weapons).
The Wanted Level system has changed from previous
GTA games.
Although their star levels are retained (which increase with the number
or severity of criminal acts by the player, with corresponding increases
in law enforcement interference), the law enforcement agencies which
may pursue the player have changed, with the focus on making them more
realistic. In previous
GTA titles, as wanted level rose the
player was pursued by increasingly well-armed and violent agencies,
culminating with the Army at the highest wanted level. In
GTA IV, the police are assisted by NOOSE (National Office of Security Enforcement - a parody of
SWAT and
DHS[16]) officers at a three-star wanted level, who are joined by either NOOSE's Tactical Response Unit (a parody of the NYPD
ESU) or FIB (Federal Investigation Bureau - a parody of the
FBI) at even higher wanted levels. Like previous
GTA games, a police
helicopter pursues the player at a three-star wanted level, but this is replaced by a
helicopter gunship at the five-star level, though it utilises
sharp-shooters rather than its mounted
gatling guns.
When the police are in pursuit of Niko, a circular search area
appears on the map in which the police will be looking for him. The area
grows with increased wanted level, and re-centres itself on Niko's
location if he is spotted by the police. If the player escapes from the
search area without being seen by law enforcement units, and can stay
out of sight of police for a short time without committing any more
crimes, the search is soon aborted. Wanted levels can also be lost
either by driving into a "Pay 'N' Spray" (unless seen entering by
police), or entering a safehouse and going to sleep. The player has the
option of attempting to escape arrest before being
handcuffed,
at the cost of increasing the wanted level by one star. However, this
move is only possible with a one star wanted level, as the police will
focus more on killing the player at higher wanted levels, rather than
arresting him.
[14][17][18]
Vehicles
Common to the rest of the series, vehicles are the predominant means of travel in
GTA IV. Every vehicle in the game uses the in-game
minimap as a
GPS device.
"Way-points" can be placed on the map, plotting the shortest legal
route between Niko and the destination on the minimap. The player can
also hail a
taxi or cab,
which allows travel between destinations without having to drive. The
journey can also be skipped, so the player arrives at their destination
instantly. However if the player decides to skip the journey it will
cost them more money. During car chases, the player can focus the camera
on the target vehicle by holding the cinematic camera button, and also
free-aim and fire out of the vehicle using one-handed firearms. The
player may also drop
grenades or
Molotov cocktails.
[19] The player cannot pilot
fixed-wing aircraft, which was possible in previous games of the series, but can still pilot helicopters. The game also lacks
parachutes, though they were later reintroduced in
The Ballad of Gay Tony.
Communication
Whereas previous games in the series frequently used public telephones to relay missions to the player, in
GTA IV a "Whiz"-brand
mobile phone is used. It has several uses, including viewing
text messages
and appointments, arranging to meet friends for activities, and also
for choosing to retry failed missions. The player can also take photos
for certain missions, and call
911 to summon the emergency services.
[20]
The police will arrest felons, and paramedics are able to restore
Niko's health. The phone also allows access to the game's multiplayer
mode. The player can also call other characters to talk to them, or ask
for a service that they can provide, such as transportation or a
reduction in wanted level. Also,
cheat codes may be entered by dialling certain numbers on the mobile phone.
The game also features several different in-game databases that Niko
can make use of. An in-game version of the Internet can be used by
accessing the
Internet café
chain, "TW@", located throughout the city or by accessing a computer in
a safehouse. There are over 100 fictitious websites that can be
accessed within the game, and Niko can also send and receive email
(including junk mail) and set up prospective dates. Although the
Internet café was seen in
Grand Theft Auto III, internet browsing was not possible.
[21]
In a police vehicle, Niko can use an in-car computer to access Liberty
City's criminal database, discover information about various criminals
in Liberty City and even track them down for a reward.
[22]
The game also features in-game television programming, with several
viewable channels featuring programmes and advertisements. The
television shows cover a wide variety of genres, including a history
channel, reality shows, card games, and
cartoons.
Multiplayer
Grand Theft Auto IV includes online multiplayer, with 15 modes of play available.
[23] It supports up to 16 players (32 players in the PC version
[24]) and allows players to explore the entire city.
[25]
Hosts of the games can control many variables, such as police presence,
traffic, and weapons. The console editions of the game do not feature
any
split screen or
LAN multiplayer modes,
[26] but the PC version does have LAN support. All versions of the game include voice chat.
The online games are split into ranked and unranked matches. The
reward for the ranked gameplay is cash, which determines players' ranks.
[27]
Players use a customisable character in the majority of play modes, and
cash earned during play gradually makes more customisation options
available.
[citation needed]
Several different game modes are available. Team based gameplay modes include
[28] Team Deathmatch, where 2–8 teams compete to accumulate the most kills in a traditional
deathmatch;
Team Mafiya Work, in which 2–8 teams compete to complete contract work
for the "mafiya", such as escorting/killing targets or stealing cars;
Team Car Jack City where 2–8 teams compete to steal cars and earn money
for keeping them undamaged; Cops n' Crooks, featuring a team of cops who
must compete against a team of crooks (which features the "All for One"
variation – requiring the cops to kill the crooks' "Boss" before he is
escorted to the extraction point – and the "One for All" variation –
requiring the cops to kill all of the crooks before they reach the
extraction point); and Turf War, involving two teams who compete to take
control of designated areas of the map and control them for as long as
possible.
The game also includes a variety of racing and
cooperative modes, which include Race, in which players race through checkpoints in a traditional automobile race; a
GTA
race variation, where players race through checkpoints in an automobile
race, with the ability to combat their opponents; Hangman's N.O.O.S.E.,
a co-op mode that requires players to collect a person from the airport
and safely escort him to the extraction point before the cops kill him;
Deal Breaker, a co-op mission that requires players to assault a
construction site captured by enemies, then chase a group of enemies
before they escape; and Bomb da Base II, a co-op mission that requires
players to clear out a ship, then destroy it with explosives,
referencing the mission
Bomb Da Base from
Grand Theft Auto III
which featured a similar objective of destroying a ship with
explosives. The game also features a Free Mode, in which players have
the entire map open to explore, with no end goal or mission to complete.
Certain features from the single player mode are disabled in the
multiplayer modes, such as the bowling, darts, and pool mini-games. The
cheats, clubs and Internet café and some forms of transport (i.e. subway
trains and taxi ride) are also disabled.
Synopsis
Plot
Grand Theft Auto IV follows the story of
Niko Bellic,
a thirty-year-old veteran of an unnamed war in Eastern Europe, who is
haunted by the betrayal of his 15 man army unit. Ten years later, after a
smuggling run goes bad due to a betrayal from a partner, Niko leaves
Eastern Europe[29] to escape the anger of his employer,
Ray Bulgarin. Under persuasion from his cousin
Roman, Niko comes to Liberty City to pursue the
American Dream
as well as Florian Cravic, the man he believes to be the traitor. After
his arrival, however, Niko quickly learns that Roman's tales of riches
and luxury were lies concealing struggles with gambling debts and
loansharks.
Niko defends Roman from his loansharks several times, eventually killing
Vlad Glebov,
Roman's Russian loanshark, for having sex with Roman's girlfriend
Mallorie. Niko also begins dating a girl named Michelle and befriends
Jamaican drug and arms dealer
"Little" Jacob Hughes and steroid junkie
chop shop owner
Bruce "Brucie" Kibbutz.
After Vlad's murder, Niko and Roman are kidnapped by members of the Liberty City
Bratva, on order of
Mikhail Faustin and his associate,
Dimitri Rascalov.
However Faustin is not angry with Niko for killing Vlad, and instead
hires him. Niko quickly learns that Faustin is a psychopath when Faustin
orders him to kill the son of Kenny Petrović, the most powerful man in
the Liberty City Bratva. Dimitri tries to negotiate an agreement, but
Petrović demands revenge and Dimitri is forced to have Niko assassinate
Faustin. However, when Niko meets with Dimitri to collect on the
assassination, Dimitri betrays Niko to his angry former employer Ray
Bulgarin. Niko manages to fight his way through the ambush but Dimitri
and Bulgarin escape.
Immediately afterwards Niko and Roman are forced to escape to Bohan
when their apartment and taxi company are destroyed in arson attacks by
Dimitri's men. To make ends meet Niko takes jobs for former gangbanger
Manny Escuela, prominent drug dealer
Elizabeta Torres, Irish mobster
Packie McReary, and Algonquin drug dealer
Playboy X. Niko also becomes an errand boy for both Mafia Capo
Ray Boccino and crooked Deputy Police Commissioner
Francis McReary.
However, things go poorly in Bohan: one of the drug deals that Niko is working for Elizabeta turns out to be a
sting and another is busted. Niko's girlfriend Michelle then reveals that she works for a government agency and
entraps Niko into working for Michelle's agency, known only by its cover:
United Liberty Paper.
Niko kills several known or suspected terrorists for the agency in
exchange for the promise of assistance in finding the man who betrayed
Niko's unit. The Liberty City Police Department begin to close in on
Elizabeta, who kills Manny Escuela when he attempts a
citizens arrest. Soon afterwards Elizabeta is arrested.
Niko assists Ray Boccino in a conflict diamond deal with Jewish Mafia
Capo and diamond dealer Isaac Roth, which goes badly and leads to the
diamonds being stolen by
Luis Lopez and the money being stolen by
Johnny Klebitz. In retaliation Boccino sends Niko to kill Roth and Johnny's friend Jim Fitzgerald.
In exchange for Niko's help, Boccino locates Florian Cravic, the man
that Niko has been searching for. But when Niko confronts Cravic he
discovers that Florian has changed his name to Bernie Crane and become
an effeminate homosexual. Niko immediately determines that Bernie is not
the person responsible for his unit's betrayal, leaving him one
remaining suspect:
Darko Brevic.
Niko also works for both Playboy X and Playboy's mentor
Dwayne Forge.
After Niko kills Playboy's business partners as a favour for Forge, the
relationship between Playboy and Forge becomes so poisonous that each
asks Niko to kill the other, leaving Niko a choice between the two.
While in Algonquin Niko develops a strong connection with the McReary family, including Packie's older brothers
Gerald and
Derrick, and their sister
Kate,
with whom he begins a non-sexual relationship. Together Niko, Packie,
and Derrick, along with "Saint" Michael Keane, heist the Bank of Liberty
in Algonquin. However, the robbery does not go smoothly; Michael is
killed and the others are forced to shoot their way out past the police
to escape. After the robbery Niko works with Gerry McReary to destroy
the relationship between the Ancelotti Crime Family and their Albanian
muscle-men.
Meanwhile Derrick spends most of his share on drugs and alcohol, and
sends Niko to eliminate former partners he believes are informing on
him. Soon Francis McReary becomes concerned that Derrick's drug
behaviour could ruin his plans to become police commissioner, and tells
Niko to kill Derrick. Soon after Derrick asks Niko to kill Francis first
giving Niko a choice between the two. In either case Niko is invited to
the McReary funeral and informed that Gerry has been arrested.
After his incarceration, Gerry contacts Niko and asks him to help in
the kidnapping of Gracie, the daughter of the Don of the Ancelloti
Family, in exchange for a ransom of the conflict diamonds stolen by
Luis Lopez.
However after exchanging Grace to Gay Tony for the diamonds, Niko and
Packie are surprised by Ray Bulgarin, who claims the diamonds are his.
In the ensuing gunfight the diamonds are thrown into a passing dumptruck
and lost.
Niko also does work for the Pegorinno family in Alderney, mainly with Associate
Phil Bell, stealing "cursed" heroin, and later for Don
Jimmy Pegorino.
This leads to a war between the Pegorinos, Pavanos, and Ancellottis.
Eventually, after working for Pegorino several times, Niko is sent to
kill Ray Boccino because Pegorino is convinced Boccino is an informant.
Toward the end of the story, United Liberty Paper locates Darko
Brevic and brings him to Liberty City as a final reward. Niko confronts
Darko, who is now a drug-addicted wreck, and learns that Darko betrayed
the group for $1,000. The player is then left with the option of either
executing or sparing Darko. Having dealt with his past Niko is summoned
by Pegorino, who demands one final favour: to help with an extremely
lucrative deal on the "cursed" heroin in collusion with Dimitri
Rascalov.
[28]
Finale
The story features two possible endings depending on the choice made by the player at this point in the game: to strike a
Deal with Dimitri or exact
Revenge
on him. In both endings Niko sees Pegorino as an enemy for allying so
closely with Dimitri, and both antagonists are killed. The major
difference in each ending is that either Roman Bellic in Deal or Kate
McReary in Revenge dies.
If the player chooses to go through with the
Deal, Niko meets
Phil Bell to retrieve the money once Dimitri delivers the heroin to
another location. However Dimitri takes the heroin for himself instead.
Niko and Phil are forced to fight to escape, but retrieve the drug money
regardless. Kate McReary, who was against making the deal, is
disappointed with Niko and refuses to attend Roman and Mallorie's
wedding. At the wedding an assassin sent by Dimitri kills Roman with a
stray bullet as Niko disarms and kills him. A devastated and vengeful
Niko follows some henchmen to where Dimitri and Pegorino are hiding.
There he witnesses Dimitri betray and kill Pegorino out of greed before
escaping in a chopper. Niko chases Dimitri to Happiness Island, where
Niko kills Dimitri in the shadow of the Statue of Happiness. The story
ends with Niko concerned for the well-being of his soul. After the end
credits, Mallorie reveals to Niko in a phone call that she is pregnant
with Roman's child.
If the player chooses to exact
Revenge, Niko ambushes Dimitri
on the cargo ship Platypus and executes him. In the aftermath, Roman and
Mallorie's wedding takes place and Jimmy Pegorino, furious after Niko's
betrayal, commits a
drive-by shooting
outside the church killing Kate McReary. However, now that Pegorino has
lost his ally Dimitri and angered both Niko (and thereby his many
friends) and the five mafia families, the entire underworld of Liberty
City wants him dead and he goes into hiding. Niko follows some henchmen
to Pegorino's location where Niko attempts to kill him, but Pegorino
escapes. Niko chases and executes Pegorino in the shadow of the Statue
of Happiness. After the end credits, Roman reveals to Niko in a phone
call that he and Mallorie are expecting a child and if it is a girl,
they will name her Kate.
Setting
GTA IV's rendition of Liberty City closely resembles modern New York City
[30]
Grand Theft Auto IV takes place in a redesigned version of
Liberty City consisting of four boroughs, based on four of the boroughs
of New York City.
Broker is the equivalent of
Brooklyn;
Queens is
Dukes;
Bronx is
Bohan and
Manhattan is
Algonquin. Adjacent to the city is the independent state of
Alderney, based on Northern
New Jersey and named after a
Channel Island. The developers omitted a
Staten Island-esque area, believing that gameplay based in such an area would not be fun.
[31] There are two minor islands present: Charge Island (based loosely on
Randall's Island), and Colony Island (based on
Roosevelt Island).
Initially, the city's bridges are locked down due to a terrorist
threat, and the player is constantly pursued by police if they are
crossed, but eventually the blockades are lifted and the player is able
to cross the
Broker,
Algonquin and
Northwood Heights
bridges and explore the rest of the city. The "Francis International
Airport" is based on several New York City-area airports, most notably
LaGuardia and
JFK.
Main Characters
The characters that appear in
Grand Theft Auto IV are diverse
and relative to the respective boroughs of Liberty City they are based
in; belonging to various gangs and ethnic groups. The player controls
Niko Bellic, a veteran of the
Yugoslav Wars.
[29] According to Dan Houser, virtually none of the
characters from the previous games would return, as "most of the characters we liked were dead,"
[31] further evidenced by in-game graffiti bidding farewell to these characters.
[28]
Unlike previous games in the series, the voice actors of
Grand Theft Auto IV
do not include notable and high-profile celebrities, instead opting for
lesser known actors such as Michael Hollick, Jason Zumwalt,
Timothy Adams and
Coolie Ranx.
Katt Williams and
Ricky Gervais have their likenesses and comedy depicted in an in-game comedy club.
[28]
Soundtrack
Like previous games in the
Grand Theft Auto series,
Grand Theft Auto IV
features a soundtrack that can be heard through radio stations while
the player is in a vehicle. Liberty City is serviced by 18 radio
stations, three of which are
talk radio
stations. The other stations feature music from a large range of
genres. There are notable inclusions to the game's soundtrack, such as
tracks from
Jean Michel Jarre,
Genesis,
David Bowie,
Smashing Pumpkins,
The Sisters of Mercy,
Seryoga,
Bob Marley,
Don Omar,
The Who,
Electric Light Orchestra,
Queen,
Black Sabbath,
Philip Glass,
Simian Mobile Disco,
Bathory,
Nas,
Ne-Yo,
Kanye West,
R. Kelly,
Lloyd,
Miles Davis,
Loose Ends,
Elton John,
ZZ Top,
R.E.M.,
MC Lyte and
Barry White.
The theme song of
Grand Theft Auto IV is "Soviet Connection" composed by
Michael Hunter, who also composed the theme for
Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas.
[32] People who provide voices for the radio DJs include fashion designer
Karl Lagerfeld, musicians
Iggy Pop,
[33] Femi Kuti,
[34] Jimmy Gestapo[35] and
Ruslana,
[36] and real-life radio talk show host
Lazlow Jones.
[37] Saturday Night Live actors
Bill Hader and
Jason Sudeikis appear on the liberal and conservative radio talk shows respectively, with
Fred Armisen playing several guests on Lazlow's "Integrity 2.0". Numerous other comedians, including
Jim Norton,
Patrice Oneal,
Rick Shapiro, and
Robert Kelly, as well as radio hosts
Opie & Anthony appeared on the radio and/or as characters in-game.
The game uses a similar music system to that of
Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas.
In other games in the series, each radio station was essentially a
single looped sound file, playing the same songs, announcements and
advertisements in the same order each time. With the radio stations in
Grand Theft Auto IV,
each sound file is held separately, and sequenced randomly, allowing
songs to be played in different orders, announcements to songs to be
different each time, and plot events to be mentioned on the stations.
[citation needed] Certain songs are also edited to incorporate references to the fictional Liberty City.
[32]
Following a partnership between Rockstar Games and
Amazon.com, players are able to purchase real world
MP3s through
GTA IV's in-game mobile phone.
[38]
Players are able to mark radio songs that they like by dialling
ZIT-555-0100 on Niko's phone. They will then receive a text message
providing the name of the song and the artist. If a player is registered
on Rockstar's 'Social Club' website he or she will also receive a real
world e-mail with a link to an Amazon.com playlist where all of the
player's marked songs will be listed and available to purchase.
[39]
