Why is IV less enjoyable than III Era

[Finn 7 five 11]

Okay first things first, i am not a SA Fanboy, i really do like all the GTA's but for some reason i do not enjoy IV as much, why?

 

I think one of the main things in the III Era was the atmosphereof the games it made them much more fun, and i always feel nostalgia to the III Era, even when i play them i always think "ah good times" but i don't get the same feeling for IV.

 

Rather than just Generalize Atmosphere as being one of the key points of making the game fun, lets try narrow it down.

 

The Radio - Whenever i play GTA III, VC or San Andreas, i like to listen to the radio, and it immerses me further in the game.

 

GTA III, the radio is full of catchy tunes, they are not necessarily the greatest songs but they make you wanna sing to the song, to drive around listening to the radio, they fit to the game really well.

Even though i don't usually like Opera they put some opera songs that really were catchy, and were likeable

Examples...those two are especially catchy whenever i think of them i want to play GTA III

 

 

Flashback FM, this takes you back, it reminds me a little of vice city, once again you hear any of the songs on this radio station you think of GTA III.

I could keep going but i don't want to make this too long.

there is the soundtrack for your own viewing.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Grand_Theft_Auto_III_soundtrack

 

 

Vice City, The 80's, all the music is from the 80's and it has that special vibe, driving around with all the lights of Vice, in a 80's car listening to 80's music, the songs are good songs, most of which were really popular in the time period, again they all fit really well with the game.

some of the songs that really stick in your head (i won't post links this time)

Billy jean -MJ

The Buggles - "Video Killed the Radio Star"

Hall & Oates - "Out of Touch"

Autograph - "Turn Up the Radio"

Track list here...

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Grand_Theft_A...City_soundtrack

 

 

San Andreas - The Hip Hop on the radio really does reflect the west coast theme, they once again are catchy songs (childrens story you end up learning every word), and they are good songs, that were very popular at the time, the country radio had a lot of good country songs that made you wanna jump up and click your heels (play it with the queen of hearts), or just sing along such all my ex's live in texas, or Conway Twitty & Loretta Lynn - "Louisiana Woman, Mississippi Man"

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Grand_Theft_A...reas_soundtrack

 

Point is all of the radio stations really contributed to the atmosphere, the songs were good, they got stuck in your head, and there was a song for most occasions, like in sa if you felt like cruising around in your pimped out car doing drive by you would put on the hip hop radio, and hopefully "it was a good day" or "187 on an undercover cop" would come on.

Your getting my point i hope.

 

Another thing that really contributed to the fun atmosphere was the pedestrians, you walk down the street and people are having conversations everywhere, they were usually funny to listen in on, if they weren't having many conversations like in GTA III where it didn't happen, they would say strange or funny things

"Yep i been drinkin again"

"give me a donut im hungry"

 

Pedestrian: I'm gonna get a gun.

Pedestrian: Guns don't kill people.

Pedestrian: People kill people.

Pedestrian: Guns help though.

 

From the radio - Caller: I say spanking kids is the only way to teach them right from wrong.

Lazlow: So you think that teaching kids from an early age that violence is the solution to problems will make them valuable members of our society.

Caller: Exactly!

 

From the police chopper - "Have you read the manual for this thing?"

 

Cab driver when you go to jack them - "Get in the back Ahhh!"

 

"SPANKED-UP Madman: I got a package for ya, special delivery! Hahaha"

 

Triad: I see pain in your future!

 

Just little quotes like this add up to make the whole experience a whole lot more fun.

 

 

 

The last thing i can think of is the color of the game, or the shading and such, in the III Era the cities were a little more welcoming, even gta III, the color really made the atmosphere as well, in III it was very grey, which gave the gritty look, in Vice City it was very colorful, and SA was like the ghetto.

IV tried to get the gritty look, but for me i just got the dark look, the gloomy look, it detracted from the atmosphere somehow.

 

Those are my thoughts i got a little lazy towards the end, but feel free to expand upon, improve upon or add any other reasons why atmosphere was so great in the III era, but was all but lost in this IV era.

 

(wanna read some more quotes?)

III= http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0277723/quotes

VC=http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0314123/quotes

SA=http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0383385/quotes

Edited February 5, 2011 by finn4life

[Linki]

Oh boy here we go again.

 

Did you want GTA 4 to be exactly like the old ones with better graphics? GTA 4 innovated and was it's own game, accept it for what it is.

 

I didn't like SA gangster theme, but that doesn't make it worse than VC or 3.

[Kratos2000]

They all have their flaws.

III - Terrible animations & models

VC - Boring missions

SA - Boring missions & Gangster theme

IV - Slow gameplay.

 

It has nothing to do with Nostalgic games if you're not an 80 year old gambler.

Edited February 5, 2011 by Kratos2000

[Finn 7 five 11]

 

Okay first things first, i am not a SA Fanboy, i really do like all the GTA's but for some reason i do not enjoy IV as much, why?

 

YEs they all do have their flaws, but i still find IV not as much fun, and it has the most boring and easy missions of them all IMO.

You have a great point about slow gameplay, intensely slow gameplay.

Expand on it a little bit though, what aspects are slow, how could they be improved, i want a proper discussion.

 

I am not hating on IV, but i find it doesn't have the atmosphere, so if you are going to post, tell me how gta IV does have atmosphere, rather than abusing me.

Also i do not want the same games, i do however notice that there are things that can be taken from the past to improve upon in the future.

Edited February 5, 2011 by finn4life

[Linki]

Okay first things first, i am not a SA Fanboy, i really do like all the GTA's but for some reason i do not enjoy IV as much, why?

 

YEs they all do have their flaws, but i still find IV not as much fun, and it has the most boring and easy missions of them all IMO.

You have a great point about slow gameplay, intensely slow gameplay.

Expand on it a little bit though, what aspects are slow, how could they be improved, i want a proper discussion.

 

I am not hating on IV, but i find it doesn't have the atmosphere, so if you are going to post, tell me how gta IV does have atmosphere, rather than abusing me.

Also i do not want the same games, i do however notice that there are things that can be taken from the past to improve upon in the future.

You would've liked GTA 4's missions if you understood the story. I found GTA 4 to be the most fun too.

 

Atmosphere? Here's a fraction of it:

Hail a cab, ask the driver to go through the Broker bridge and just soak it in.

Drive through Algonquin on a sunny day while listening to Fusion (Holy Thursday=AWESOME).

Have car chase while & Down from Electro Choc plays.

Ride a Sanchez off skyscrapers while the sun sets.

Fly a helicopter through a storm.

The Journey in general.

Change the camera to close, hold R3/RS to look at Niko's face and walk along the sidewalk as you bump into people and watch Niko's and theirs reaction.

Get a Phantom and smash through traffic while One Vision on LRR plays.

Drive a taxi through Middle Park like Die Hard 3.

Smash your car until it catches on fire, drive it into jam-packed Star Junction and jump out (no wanted level, but heaps of carnage).

Stalk people and listen in on their conversations, there's so much dialogue it's ridiculous.

Throw a Molotov Cocktail on the windscreen and run over people while making them catch on fire.

 

lol.

[Finn 7 five 11]

 

You would've liked GTA 4's missions if you understood the story. I found GTA 4 to be the most fun too.

 

I liked the story but the missions were pie.

 

I am actually going to try those things mentioned and see how it goes.

I found one was just cruising around on a Sanchez doing random things, its a shame that the phsysics are so unforgiving though.

[VercettiCrimeFamily]

I think that IV is more of a graphics game if anything... GTA III was more enjoyable because you get to use Planes Trains Trucks (Attach Trailers) i mean to me theres a lot more to do in SA than IV...

 

Also sa mp rocks!

[Kwandilibro]

I don't know what you guys are talking about, but IV lacked atmosphere. I also don't want to provoke the old features argument, but did we really need people calling us 24/7 to go bowling or play darts?

 

 

 

[TommyMufc-Champs]

Rockstar focused on Realism In IV. And why so many complaints about IV? I think It's the best GTA.

[Mokrie Dela]

Rockstar focused on Realism In IV. And why so many complaints about IV? I think It's the best GTA.

It's all opinion. One person's perfect game is another's worst.

 

IMO IV was the best. Period.

 

But i liked III when it was out

 

i LOVED VC with a passion.

 

SA was aweseom

 

LCS was ok, VCS good.

 

It's not about features, it's not about atmosphere. Neither of these things, on their own, make a game.

 

It's a unison. Like a piece of fine music. Listen to the violins or drums on their own, they sound bland. Hear the entire ensemble in the concert hall and it's art.

 

Sure things could be added or taken away (the latter shouldnt happen imo, add things to IV, not take them away. IF you dont like"friends" in the game, don't answer their calls.)

 

As for IV lacking speed etc, perhaps but i dont see how that was a bad thing. It was much more immersive then any other GTA and improved on so much. I personally don't see how anyone can prefer III/VC/SA's car handling to IVs, or the gun play or the lack of cover system blah blah blah.

 

But does any of it actually matter? It's a game, different to another. Stop comparing them and enjoy them for what they are!

 

 

[Raptomex]

I love all the GTA games but they do have their flaws. IV's missions were pretty much run and gun or chase this. They're fun for what they were. The missions from the other games, especially San Andreas, were a little more diverse. I do agree that the III era was more atmospheric.

[na89340qv0n34b09q340]

If i'm going to reply to such a thread, than i'm going to do it thoroughly...

 

 

I think one of the main things in the III Era was the atmosphereof the games it made them much more fun, and i always feel nostalgia to the III Era, even when i play them i always think "ah good times" but i don't get the same feeling for IV.

The atmosphere (if you're talking about the feeling of the area you're in) is also evident in IV, but mainly atmosphere is made up of your impression of the area, this means YOU personally like the III era better, which means i can't answer this.

 

Of course you're not going to get any GTA IV nostalgia, it's only been out for about three years.

 

 

 

The Radio - Whenever i play GTA III, VC or San Andreas, i like to listen to the radio, and it immerses me further in the game.

Once again, the music is of your personal liking, i enjoy massive B a lot, but hated GTA SA's Reggae station. Mostly you just feel nostalgia again.

 

 

 

Another thing that really contributed to the fun atmosphere was the pedestrians, you walk down the street and people are having conversations everywhere, they were usually funny to listen in on, if they weren't having many conversations like in GTA III where it didn't happen, they would say strange or funny things

You forget to put a period, but anyway GTA IV also contains much funny dialogue, just applied to R*'s new sense of humor, which may or may not be to your liking. Also try calling a taxi a few times while drunk, i can almost guarantee you'll laugh your @$$ off.

 

 

 

The last thing i can think of is the color of the game, or the shading and such, in the III Era the cities were a little more welcoming, even gta III, the color really made the atmosphere as well, in III it was very grey, which gave the gritty look, in Vice City it was very colorful, and SA was like the ghetto.

IV tried to get the gritty look, but for me i just got the dark look, the gloomy look, it detracted from the atmosphere somehow.

Is not IV's liberty city also gray? Northwood is a great ghetto, and has a more Ghettoy-y vibe than Los Santos IMO. Oh and if you want color meet my friend Star Junction, I'm surprised you haven't met before, he's advertised all over the radio, and SMACK DAB in the middle of Algonquin.

 

TL;DR Most of the arguments written were of opinions, of something not completely arguable.

 

No abuse meant, i hope you feel different about the IV era now.

 

I do love III the most, location-wise, i like SA's soundtrack, and VC had pretty cool features.

 

Edited February 6, 2011 by zoo3891

[Linki]

Above post is truth.

[Girish]

They all have their flaws.

III - Terrible animations & models

VC - Boring missions

SA - Boring missions & Gangster theme

IV - Slow gameplay.

 

It has nothing to do with Nostalgic games if you're not an 80 year old gambler.

I'm sorry, but I do not agree with you. If anything, it was GTA IV's missions that were boring and repetitive. But you can't really blame R* for that. They decided to take the realism route, so things were bound to get repetitive pretty soon due to limited scope. Now, the III era games, on the other hand, had fun-filled and varied missions. But that can be attributed to the fact that these games were very arcade-ish in nature and that gave R* a lot of space to experiment.

[Vercetti27]

If theres one thing GTA IV lacked it was atmosphere

[TommyMufc-Champs]

They all have their flaws.

III - Terrible animations & models

VC - Boring missions

SA - Boring missions & Gangster theme

IV - Slow gameplay.

 

It has nothing to do with Nostalgic games if you're not an 80 year old gambler.

I'm sorry, but I do not agree with you. If anything, it was GTA IV's missions that were boring and repetitive. But you can't really blame R* for that. They decided to take the realism route, so things were bound to get repetitive pretty soon due to limited scope. Now, the III era games, on the other hand, had fun-filled and varied missions. But that can be attributed to the fact that these games were very arcade-ish in nature and that gave R* a lot of space to experiment.

This Is what I've being trying to say for ages.

[na89340qv0n34b09q340]

 

III - Terrible animations & models

VC - Boring missions

SA - Boring missions & Gangster theme

IV - Slow gameplay.

 

 

III- The animation was just as bad as VC, VCS, LCS, and arguably III

VC- It was set in VICE CITY in THE 80'S, be grateful.

SA- We chased planes, had a shoot-out with SWAT, robbed a top-secret base, chased a train with a jet-pack, went to Liberty City, drove through a riot, had a fat man eat our food, interrogated a man tied to our hood, saved a damsel in distress, shot down quite a few helicopters, swam through a reef, stole a lyrics book, stopped someone from being a lemming, bounced our cars, took back the hood, stole a helicopter, guided a blind man, stole two gasoline trucks, and destroyed a crack-palace. Please specify the part where it got boring.

IV - Sure, but that's just because it wanted to play out more like a movie than a game, you can have one or the other.

Edited February 6, 2011 by zoo3891

[Narcis_speed6]

III - Terrible animations & models

You seem to forget the year gta III was made.

[Juicefani11]

I really like III Era more than IV. I do understand the story of GTA IV, and i like it, but III Era is something, that nothing can't beat. GTA IV's graphics are good, but that's it. The story is good too, but the gameplay is horrible. And the cars look like same, and you get money too easily. I think IV is the worst, and, surprise, GTA III is the best. It's because the people who give you missions look like real persons, and i love the cars, map (with the exception on Cedar Grove, which gives me creeps), and everything else. GTA III is my personal utopia. I don't want to argue about that, because you all get your own opinions...

[TommyMufc-Champs]

It's a shame people don't realise when GTA III was made.

[kailomonkey]

I've not played IV, but I was expecting it to have flaws when it was released and have read a lot of people's problems with it. The way it plays out from the beginning (from what I've seen in videos) is amazingly cinemtic though, nothing like we've seen in the older games.

 

All the side-missions and variety that has been taken away though, I can imagine finding that sad myself, as they are one of my favourite things to have survived through the whole III era.

 

I also love the radio stations too, mainly in SA, but I can see how a GTA set in modern times wouldn't have music that really iconises the era... Not until the current musical era is over can anyone really capture it with style. And that's not down to nostalgia, I did live through the 90s and enjoyed the music, but much of the 90s music in SA that I enjoyed I had never really heard before.

[dog_day_sunrise]

III and IV are chalk and cheese.

 

The earlier GTA games were brasher, dayglo and more ostentatious. Fun, in their own little way, but mindless and shiny. In my oppinion, IV is very intelligent, incredibly topical and much more realistic. There's less to do than, for instance, San Andreas, but it's also less downright stupid and about three times as funny. In terms of being an involving and relatively accurate portrayal of modern society, I'd say it's pretty damn good- and to me, that makes it much more involving and interesting than earlier games. It's like a good book- you actually start to develop affections or irrational hatred for characters as if you knew them- all the earlier games ever left me with was a mild sense of ambivilence.

 

IV doesn't tie in to the whole "flashing lights, dayglo colours and 30-second-attention-span" of your average teenage gamer, which is, in my oppinion, why so many people seem to accuse it of being boring or slow- it actually makes an effort to develop realism and portray characters in a human light rather. It's not dull or slow, you're just impatient.

[d0mm2k8]

I think that IV is more of a graphics game if anything...

GTA IV had bad graphics, even for it's time.

 

All the GTAs have had bad graphics compared to others and IV was no exception just because it had better graphics than the previous GTAs.

[dog_day_sunrise]

I think that IV is more of a graphics game if anything...

GTA IV had bad graphics, even for it's time.

 

All the GTAs have had bad graphics compared to others and IV was no exception just because it had better graphics than the previous GTAs.

Show me a proper open-world, large scale, complex and heavily physics based game of the era with better graphics.

Compared to something like Saints Row 2, it looks stunning,

[RB 98]

The 3 era is just so exiting and so many good characters Salvatore Leone,Tommy Vercetti and CJ.

[Linki]

III and IV are chalk and cheese.

 

The earlier GTA games were brasher, dayglo and more ostentatious. Fun, in their own little way, but mindless and shiny. In my oppinion, IV is very intelligent, incredibly topical and much more realistic. There's less to do than, for instance, San Andreas, but it's also less downright stupid and about three times as funny. In terms of being an involving and relatively accurate portrayal of modern society, I'd say it's pretty damn good- and to me, that makes it much more involving and interesting than earlier games. It's like a good book- you actually start to develop affections or irrational hatred for characters as if you knew them- all the earlier games ever left me with was a mild sense of ambivilence.

 

IV doesn't tie in to the whole "flashing lights, dayglo colours and 30-second-attention-span" of your average teenage gamer, which is, in my oppinion, why so many people seem to accuse it of being boring or slow- it actually makes an effort to develop realism and portray characters in a human light rather. It's not dull or slow, you're just impatient.

Dude, great post. I hope people read it and listen.

[Long Haired Freaky Guy]

Rockstar focused on Realism In IV. And why so many complaints about IV? I think It's the best GTA.

This is what made it less enjoyable as a GTA game for me aswell. GTA to me has always been about the fun we can have in an open city world. SA was an example of this, with us being able to drive a tractor/dump truck down through 'Hollywood'/Vinewood. Rockstar knew they had limited graphic capability with the PS2, so they decided to concentrate on the fun element of the game more, rather then realism. With these next-gen consoles, the graphics were stepped up, and R* knew they had to do the same with GTA, and along came IV, with added realis and less fun in the game.

 

Yes, the story was good, but that was when we weren't getting a phone call every 5 minutes asking us to go drinking/bowling, and if we said No, the friend lost respect for us. It was a terrible idea, and one that I won't miss in the next GTA. Having friends to take out is fun, but they shouldn't fall out with us over not going out with them.

 

Yes, the graphics were awesome, but the game itself felt empty to me.

 

Is it not possible to have fun in a realistic game these days?

[Girish]

I think that IV is more of a graphics game if anything...

GTA IV had bad graphics, even for it's time.

 

All the GTAs have had bad graphics compared to others and IV was no exception just because it had better graphics than the previous GTAs.

Show me a proper open-world, large scale, complex and heavily physics based game of the era with better graphics.

Compared to something like Saints Row 2, it looks stunning,

Saints Row 2, at best, can be compared to San Andreas. Because that's how it felt when I played it. There are games with better graphics than GTA IV, but most of them aren't as huge as GTA IV with a non-linear gameplay. So, comparing IV with them would be unfair.

[Juicefani11]

It's a shame people don't realise when GTA III was made.

If i remember correctly it was made in 2001... I think people know that. =)

[kailomonkey]

It's a shame people don't realise when GTA III was made.

If i remember correctly it was made in 2001... I think people know that. =)

But does everyone know what the games industry was like then it wasn't all that far away from the age of platformers...