My Independent! Review of GTA V

[1pswich]

Felt a bit compelled to express my feelings after playing through GTA V so thought I would write a completely un-biased review.

 

GTA V - A Bright New Future

 

For me I have always loved Grand Theft Auto games, my first game being Vice City, and then going back in the series to GTA 3, and then of course San Andreas and GTA 4. I have always gone back to Vice City when wanting to play a bit of casual GTA. For me Vice City was a hassle free fun open world game at the time something really quite special, from the music to the cars to the compelling story line it has always been a deep rooted personal best when it comes to gaming. Most recently in the series GTA 4 was impressive the new world was a tall new world and was exciting to explore, but it always felt 'dark' to me, there's no other way to explain it, just 'dark'.

 

So when I saw the gameplay and trailers of the latest development of Grand Theft Auto from Rockstar I was excited, it seemed they were really taking a massive leap forward in the open world game. And when I received my game today my expectations were met. The game is bright and open, the map is dense yet personal, getting to know the areas around Michael's and Franklin's house's has been a joy. The city feels alive, the free ways feel real, and the desserts are superb to explore.

 

The brightness has well and truly been turned up, but it's not just the stunning graphics and huge new world we have to enjoy. We now have three characters, to begin with it felt complex and slightly annoying having to switch characters in high octane situations, but bit by bit, mission by mission it's starting to feel a little more fluid, I'm not there yet and it still feels slightly confusing, but I am sure as the missions get more complex the enjoyment from switching perspectives will increase. The three characters are so different and interesting in their different ways. I must admit I wasn't massively looking forward to playing with Trevor but his 'different' personality has become something you just want to explore more and more. Michael continues to be my favoured character. I really enjoyed the growing dynamic of Franklin and Michael, and seeing it develop into the first heist was great.

 

I have enjoyed the driving and find the mechanics enjoyable and realistic, I can see why some do not like these, but I just think it's a case of getting used to it. There are so many different cars and other road traffic to see and drive. I thought the amount of different looking buses was amazing, as small a detail as it may be it just felt nothing had been ignored. The roads are highly detailed in the city, and feel real to real life cities roads the road markings for example have been developed further. In addition the road driving AI are much more realistic and add to the experience.

 

The missions are different and interesting, however can sometimes be slightly tedious and mundane but still excite in many areas. And it's all worth it for the heists, were I thought they freedom given to players is a class act from Rockstar. I was also very impressed with how choosing different crew members not only had a real difference on the outcome but also a difference on the dialogue between characters, very interesting indeed!

 

The small mini games are fun and put GTA into a league of it's own. I loved the triathlon game and am looking forward to developing my skills further. Tennis and Yoga also exsist. With access to stock markets and transport and real estate markets adding an extra dimension to an already jam-packed game. With GTA you really do get a full game, there is no skimping from Rockstar, no corner cutting, and it is fully worth their long waits between games, when you get such a polished and finished game.

 

For me Grand Theft Auto is the pinnacle of gaming, it is a game that has thought of just about everything, Rockstar haven't rushed a game out to try and make money with minimal improvements (Saints Row 4 springs to mind here) They have spent a great deal of time and money and resources to making a stunning looking, and compelling to play gameplay. For me GTA is the best all round game I have ever played, it perhaps doesn't come close to other games in certain areas, for example dialogues and emotion goes to The Last of Us. But Rockstar have delivered on what were monumental expectations, for me GTA V will always go down as a game changer. It's very fitting that perhaps the best game ever of this current generation will be this generations swan song. It's been a long ride Playstation 3 and Xbox 360 but we meet the end of the road with this amazing ending. Rockstar have excelled as per usual.

[Realistic Steak Cult]

Clearly bribed by Rockstar.

[najstronics]

Ok