"Read This Review!!"

*Note*-I took some of this information including concept, graphics, sound, playability, entertainment, and replay value from Game Informer magazine.

This game is absoluter perfection. I went through and played it again after I beat this before I wrote this review. It's just amazing, there's no other way to describe it.

If you have read any other reviews stating that previous Grand Theft Auto titles had more sense of freedom, you have been horribly mislead. You control the entire game and how everything plays out at the end. If you want to work for two people at the same time, or just do missions for one guy at a time it is your choice to do as you please. Relationships are also a big part of the game, as you can unlock every character's special ability which can range from guns at a discount price, to calling up and friend and get him to send some homies your way to help you in a tough spot. The choices you make result in different mission endings and what kind of friends you make. They do not have a strong influence until near the end of the game. Sure, you will hear different dialogue and your friends might have a different reaction to you, but it does not determine which missions come along next.

The targeting system has greatly improved over other Grand Theft Auto installments in the series. It is now a free-aim, lock-on combination using the same button for both. It might sound a little complicated as does the rest of the controls in this game, but they're nothing to fret over, they just need to get used to. To deploy the free-aim, hold down the trigger button halfway, and watch the circle come up. The lock-on is easier to do, just hold the button down all the way and it will lock on to the nearest target to you, whether it be an innocent pedestrian or a cop trying to bust you with his pistol. Either way, this combination can be used to make deadly assaults on the enemy. For example you can shoot the gas tank on a car in free-aim, killing the people around it, then quickly switch to lock-on by holding the button down all the way and eliminate the remaining foes.

New vehicles are always a welcome in any Grand Theft Auto game. There are over 40 different models of cars and a variety of colors meaning that seeing a super fast green Banshee (like a Dodge Viper) on the highway once in that area, does not mean you are going to see it again next time you come back there. Saying that, you need to steal it if you have the chance. Hijacking is not the boring "Open every door and it works" scheme. The new physics engine makes jacking a car more realistic, and opening the doors is not the swinging routine like in San Andreas. Doors stay shut now so you can get going faster without worrying about the door the whole time you're on the road. If you are without a car and you need one fast, time it right because the cops will come after you if they see you've committed a crime.

That brings me to my next point. Cop chases are more dramatic now than in any other game I've played. Depending on the crime you commit, you will get a star rating if the cops see you. A flashing blue and red circle will appear on your radar and that's the are the police are looking for you in. If you stay out of the circle long enough, your wanted level goes down to zero. The cop chases get especially fun right around three stars, where it is still fun to try to outrun them, but gets more difficult at the same time. SUV trucks and choppers start following you, so you better have your driving skills mastered.

When you aren't out being a crook or saving the day, there are plenty of things to keep you entertained without having to shoot and kill somebody. You can sit in your room watching television shows, which are actually pretty funny. Comedy shows are always a treat, especially if they contain the hilarious Katt Williams, and even go play games with some of your friends to build relationships with them, like bowling and darts. The best one of all though, in my opinion is the Internet Cafe, where you can spend hours of your life looking at all of these fictional websites that advertise the most ridiculous stuff you have ever seen. If you search long enough, you might find some of the games hidden websites that will reveal the locations of hidden objectives. Checking email, setting up a date with strangers, (male or female) and even downloading new wallpaper and ring tones for your phone are other major attractions of the web.

Even if you are the most irritable person on Earth, and hate everything I have mentioned so far, not even you can deny the fun and laughter that you will get from people-watching. I know, it sounds stupid and there are literally a hundred other things you can be doing, but taking a break from all those activities and let the controller rest and just admire the people for what they are doing. If it starts raining, they will pull out an umbrella or use their newspaper to cover themselves as they head for the nearest awning to keep themselves dry. Crooks will walk up to elderly ladies and try and steal their purse, right before getting busted by the cops. "A living, breathing city" has been used to describe a lot of games that had an open world environment. Compared to Grand Theft Auto IV, none of them deserve that certificate as much as this game does.

Now if I could stay up for another 24 hours describing the multiplayer to you, I most certainly would. Sadly enough, I cannot do that so I will try to summarize that immerse experience to you in this next paragraph. Take the weapons, the RPGs, the cops, the explosions, the car crashes, and the gunfire, and multiply that by sixteen. Yea, it's crazy. If the single-player alone was enough for a game to deserve a ten, then an astonishing multiplayer mode would definitely be a bonus. There are several game modes like GTA Race and Cop's n Crooks, all of which involve you shooting other people from across the globe all trying to get to the number one on the charts. The ranking system is not as bad as you would expect either. If you have the game Kane and Lynch: Dead Men, then you know what the ranking system is like. You start at 0 and can go up to 10. When you finally reach that next number by killing enemies and completing missions, you will have a different outfit. I know it doesn't sound like much, but when people look at you and see what kind of clothes they have on, they either know they're in for some fun or they better be prepared because all Hell is about to break loose.

Once you play this game, you will realize that the bar for free-roaming video games has not been raised, it has been demolished and buried and blown up three more times. You won't look at games the same way again, and you won't have to either because this will satisfy your burning desire for a great next-gen game.

>Concept
This smartly penned crime story puts player freedom on a pedestal, and backs it with outstanding gunplay and the next big multiplayer experience.

>Graphics
You'll lose yourself in your surroundings-the striking environment details, variety of people on the streets, the physics-based showering of bodies after a car explodes. On top of this, the framerate never skips a beat.

>Sound
The soundtrack is fantastic, but the true master stroke here is the voice work.

>Playability
Simply put, it plays the way you always wanted Grand Theft Auto to play.

> Entertainment
In terms of content, this may even be a better deal than The Orange Box. It just gives and gives and gives.

>Replay Value
High

I added those little sections to give opinions from people who actually review games for a living just to give a clearer edge on what the game was like.

Reviewer's Score: 10/10, Originally Posted: 07/03/08

Game Release: Grand Theft Auto IV (US, 04/29/08)