GTA IV Multiplayer > V Online

[Jimbatron]

I'll try to make a case with one example: here's and endgame for Cops 'n Crooks All for One. Whilst I like V online, I've never seen it produce stuff like this. Keep in mind this is the last minute of a 20 minute chase, with a winner takes all finale - rpg's check, helicopters, check, explosions check.

 

 

 

For anyone who has not played Cops 'n Crooks CnC, the match is won by whether the Boss can escape in a unique getaway vehicle, or the Cops can kill him first. Everyone else respawns when killed, but the Boss only has one life. This means the team that can work best together, either to protect the Boss and help him escape, or to kill him (if you are a cop), is most likely to win.

 

We generally try to get one of the crooks to steal the getaway and move it to a safe location (as often it will be guarded by the cops), and then move it to a safe location where the Boss can get in without fear of being killed by a sniper rifle. In this case we know there are several cop helicopters behind us, so we loaded up players in the getaway with RPGs and landed on a high roof in Algonquin to make the switch. We knew the cops would try to crash into the Boss, and we'd have to shoot them down first. Carnage ensued.

[mr quick]

As a whole, I think there's much more replay value in GTAO.

[mde2]

I never really played in any actual game modes with the exception of deathmatch, however I do have fond memories of dicking around in Liberty City with my friends, good times

 

GTA Online just feels disconnected to me, everybody is out for themselves instead of coming together.

[B Dawg]

As a whole, I think there's much more replay value in GTAO.

Yeah, through stupid grinding that is.

 

I never really played in any actual game modes with the exception of deathmatch

You w0t? GTA IV (and TLAD) have some amazing game modes. You definitely need to give them a go.

[Algonquin Assassin]

It's been a few years since I last played GTA IV multiplayer, but I had a blast because it just felt more free from the get go and "sandbox" like.

 

I won't lie and say that GTAO wasn't fun to some extent, but the more simple approach to GTA IV's multiplayer was far more appealing to me.

 

Oh and the fact it didn't detract from GTA IV's single player like GTAO does with GTA V. What you saw is what you got. No constant updates adding exclusive features and whatnot.

 

I miss the good old days of GTA IV multiplayer. GTAO doesn't have the same soul.

[mr quick]

 

As a whole, I think there's much more replay value in GTAO.

Yeah, through stupid grinding that is.

 

I never really played in any actual game modes with the exception of deathmatch

You w0t? GTA IV (and TLAD) have some amazing game modes. You definitely need to give them a go.

 

 

I enjoy the thorough character customization, the ability to own properties and customizable vehicles, and the fact that there are missions to play. That say, I'd also have liked a seperate mode where one wouldn't have to worry about losing money and things.

[Jimbatron]

I miss the good old days of GTA IV multiplayer. GTAO doesn't have the same soul.

 

This sums it up for me. This isn't a bash GTO thread btw (or not what I intend) - my view is one is good, but the other is excellent.

 

Modes like CnC you could utilise the full map, and really build in team strategy which gave them depth. Adversary and capture modes are quite short. For example, Extraction and Entourage are basically shorter stripped down versions of CnC. Fun for a short while, but not as involved. Extraction, if you get the VIP in an Insurgent you've basically won. In CnC maverick helicopters gave great tactical maneuverability but no weapons, equally though were usable since without a homing launcher it takes real skill to shoot a half decent pilot down with a manually aimed rpg. Even if CnC is not your bag, TMW good use of a Maverick in Algonquin can win you the game ferrying team members to targets quicker.

 

I enjoyed GTAO, for instance, we invested a fair bit of time to complete the Elite and Criminal Mastermind challenges. However, all the modes seem a bit limited, once you've played them a bit, they lose their appeal. New content is the only thing that keeps it fresh, but now there is so much different stuff it divides the player base. GTA IV MP had fewer modes, but in my view they were bigger and better.

Edited October 25, 2016 by Jimbatron

[Legomanarthur]

It's been a few years since I last played GTA IV multiplayer, but I had a blast because it just felt more free from the get go and "sandbox" like.

 

I won't lie and say that GTAO wasn't fun to some extent, but the more simple approach to GTA IV's multiplayer was far more appealing to me.

 

Oh and the fact it didn't detract from GTA IV's single player like GTAO does with GTA V. What you saw is what you got. No constant updates adding exclusive features and whatnot.

 

I miss the good old days of GTA IV multiplayer. GTAO doesn't have the same soul.

This, even though I play a lot of Online, I mostly play it when my friends are connected, otherwise I just don't have fun, or I get bored pretty quickly, playing heists with randoms is very frustrating most of the time and I don't need that.

 

It's been a few years for me too since I last played IV/TBoGT's multiplayer, but I only keep good memories of it, just walking around Liberty City or fighting at the airport or the police station with the NOOSE tank, when a modder wasn't there to ruin our game, it was all great fun for the most part. Now IV has less shared activities than Online but it didn't require anyone to join our session to do this or that, and as it's been said above, people are mostly playing for themselves in Online instead of coming together, depends on the player of course but I noticed that as well, quite a few players don't talk, they join you, do their job and leave.

[Raj The Rager]

No, GTA IV's mutiplayer feature gets boring too quickly. There's not much to do and there's never anything new to do or to get into. And you can't do nothing with the money you earn all. All it does is unlock outfits.

Edited October 26, 2016 by Raj Brunner

[Jimbatron]

No, GTA IV's mutiplayer feature gets boring too quickly. There's not much to do and there's never anything new to do or to get into. And you can't do nothing with the money you earn all. All it does is unlock outfits.

 

I'm going to stick my neck out here and suggest you have never played cops and crooks with a team who know what they are doing.

 

What value does stuff you can buy with the money actually add in GTA Online? OK, I've bought apartments, cars, Pegasus vehicles, but it doesn't alter the game play in competitive modes. OK they never added new stuff to IV, but the modes were big enough and involved enough you developed your own strategies - and in CnC, that fundamentally changed the way people played the game. No one drives direct to the getaway as Boss since the first year - you know you'll be sniped by a hidden cop.

 

But I'm afraid this is probably a reflection of the way things are going. Give people a new novelty update every month, that won't have much long term value, but keep changing stuff. I feels like its geared to the masses with limited attention spans to me. Rather than building something that is truly great and has replay value without being changed.

Edited October 27, 2016 by Jimbatron

[Raj The Rager]

 

No, GTA IV's mutiplayer feature gets boring too quickly. There's not much to do and there's never anything new to do or to get into. And you can't do nothing with the money you earn all. All it does is unlock outfits.

 

I'm going to stick my neck out here and suggest you have never played cops and crooks with a team who know what they are doing.

 

Not true at all. Besides, I never said I hated cops and crooks. It was my top 3 favorite game mods in GTA IV multiplayer.

 

What value does stuff you can buy with the money actually add in GTA Online? OK, I've bought apartments, cars, Pegasus vehicles, but it doesn't alter the game play in competitive modes. OK they never added new stuff to IV, but the modes were big enough and involved enough you developed your own strategies - and in CnC, that fundamentally changed the way people played the game. No one drives direct to the getaway as Boss since the first year - you know you'll be sniped by a hidden cop.

 

Buying a few things actually does. Buying different types of weapons and modding for death meatches or missions, buying different type of cars and modding them to win races not to mention you the things you could do with your phone to help you out in deathmatches. You could use different stratagies in most GTAO mission and deathmatches.

 

But I'm afraid this is probably a reflection of the way things are going. Give people a new novelty update every month, that won't have much long term value, but keep changing stuff. I feels like its geared to the masses with limited attention spans to me. Rather than building something that is truly great and has replay value without being changed.

 

[Gnocchi Flip Flops]

I must admit, I feel the urge to play GTA Online every weekend and it really is something else... but I've had more fun with IV's MP. Something about it just made it so damn fun back in 2012 and 2013 when I played it a lot. It was still heavily populated and everybody just did dumb sh*t. It was fun. Maybe it was the simplicity of it all. You could find nice cars and acquire a lot of guns still. It just wasn't serious. Nobody cared if you griefed, they'd get you right back and vice versa. No penalties. Just pure fun. Even when modders started taking over it was very fun. Wasn't until 2014-2015 that it got to toxic to be enjoyable.

 

Sure GTA Online has a lot to offer. I like that I can customize my character and acquire properties across the map while building a vast bespoke car collection and having organized meets/cruises with friends. But something is missing. No matter how much I have, money or stuff, it feels limited. Sometimes I just want to drop everything and go wild I mean that's what I play games for sometimes, this isn't real life, it's a game, I shouldn't feel limited. GTA IV MP never had the problem despite how feature-limited it was ironically.

 

Oh and I was just talking about freemode. Modes like deathmatch and racing were by far better in IV's MP.

Edited October 28, 2016 by Scaglietti

[PhillBellic]

From what I've watched from those "BUSTED" Videos, IV's Multiplayer was more fun and engaging.

[B Dawg]

From what I've watched from those "BUSTED" Videos, IV's Multiplayer was more fun and engaging.

A few years back on console, we had a friendly modder assist us in making a BUSTED event, spawning vehicles for us. It was pretty fun

[ClaudeSpeed1911]

IV MP was just made for fun and chilling with friends. I miss the times when me and my friends used to go around in freeroam camping in the hospital and shooting cops. All the other modes were fun and unique even the dlc ones brought much fun to the game, the only problem was that there were few people who played some of the other modes. Playing the mission with the russian boss felt much more satisfying than any heist or mission in GTA5, the fact that the game didn't need 15 minutes of waitng for someone to join to play.

 

RDR MP was also great, it was an expanded IV MP and did it perfectl, it only needed a few more modes from GTA4 and it would have been even better, I wish GTA5 had a mix of IV and RDR.

[ROCKSTAR MANIC]

I really loved doing Team Mayfia work, then that Noose mission where you have to escort the mafia boss out. Or when you had to take the helicopter to the huge Freight boat. Amazing yet very simple times. OR the roleplaying, Me and three other friends used to go as motorcycle hitman with the helmets, Camos, boots, and a Jacket and go around make hits on other players, but the fun part was when the other players would agree to be important business men with their own escort. So we had chinatown shootouts, hell even the gang Npc's would join.

[Niobium]

IV's airport is better than V's airport for obvious reasons

[Jimbatron]

Buying a few things actually does. Buying different types of weapons and modding for death meatches or missions, buying different type of cars and modding them to win races not to mention you the things you could do with your phone to help you out in deathmatches. You could use different stratagies in most GTAO mission and deathmatches.

I'd agree this when the game first launched and everyone was starting from scratch. It was great fun in the first weeks. I remember first unlocking the SMG and proudly strolling out of ammunition with it, only to find some poor fool try to drive-by me with a pistol.... Nowadays however, the vast majority of people pretty much have enough money to buy what they want as soon as it comes out, and in the competitive modes, a lot of what you can buy can't be used (e.g. Pegasus vehicles) with good reason. Some DMs and races in GTO I also think are very good. However, the maps in DM, Capture and Adversary modes are generally smaller than IV's competitive modes, and the games definitely have the feel that they've all be optimised for a 5 minute blast. It was always the epic matches that went on for half an hour or more in IV the felt the best, and we don't seem to get those in GTO.

 

I must admit, I feel the urge to play GTA Online every weekend and it really is something else... but I've had more fun with IV's MP. Something about it just made it so damn fun back in 2012 and 2013 when I played it a lot. It was still heavily populated and everybody just did dumb sh*t. It was fun. Maybe it was the simplicity of it all. You could find nice cars and acquire a lot of guns still. It just wasn't serious. Nobody cared if you griefed, they'd get you right back and vice versa. No penalties. Just pure fun. Even when modders started taking over it was very fun. Wasn't until 2014-2015 that it got to toxic to be enjoyable.

 

Sure GTA Online has a lot to offer. I like that I can customize my character and acquire properties across the map while building a vast bespoke car collection and having organized meets/cruises with friends. But something is missing. No matter how much I have, money or stuff, it feels limited. Sometimes I just want to drop everything and go wild I mean that's what I play games for sometimes, this isn't real life, it's a game, I shouldn't feel limited. GTA IV MP never had the problem despite how feature-limited it was ironically.

 

Oh and I was just talking about freemode. Modes like deathmatch and racing were by far better in IV's MP.

Really liked this post, it's very similar to how I feel. I also like the character customisation and options - why not have it? However, for me it isn't a substitute for raw game play. GTO has more quantity for sure - and that's not a bad thing - but in my view GTA IV MP had better quality. I say "had" where I ought to say "has", we still play it! Sadly the numbers were curtailed badly at the start of this year by social club login problems, however most of the old die hard players have been able to get back in.

Edited October 31, 2016 by Jimbatron

[Lester-The-Molester]

I have nothing but fond memories of IV's MP (that and losing connection to one or more players). In its simplicity it managed to be very fun. You didn't have any worries, no money, the city was your playground. What ruins GTAO for me is everything being so grindy, the abundance of explosives, combat rolling, those damn trolling vehicles like jets and armoured cars, the health and aim of AI and the fact that you can't disable friendly fire. It just makes everything feel monotonous and annoying.

[hoxi]

Too bad you can't play GTA IV MP on PC anymore because of the combination of broken SC and GFWL. Sure, GFWL can be somehow made usable, but SC? You gotta pray to the lords that you will login.

[Eugene H. Krabs]

Man I loved how simple but fun IV's multiplayer was. You had the liberty to do anything in, well, Liberty City. Too bad that you need money for everything in GTA Online. I really don't want to play a life simulator that is designed after the life of a criminal.

[Jimbatron]

Too bad you can't play GTA IV MP on PC anymore because of the combination of broken SC and GFWL. Sure, GFWL can be somehow made usable, but SC? You gotta pray to the lords that you will login.

It all felt a bit fishy to me, and it certainly murdered the number of players online. No shark cards in IV though so where is their incentive to fix it...

[018361]

I remember having a good time playing GTA IV multiplayer with my pals. Unfortunately now I can't get GTA IV to log in to social club even if my life depended on it. It's always "Login Failed".

[TommySpaghetti]

I enjoy GTA Online but it still hasn't gave me those "wow" moments and memories like IV Multiplayer did. There was just something special about IV Multiplayer. The game modes (Cops 'n Crooks especially) Everytime you played it was different and it never got repetitive. Races were more fun and challenging with the handling of vehicles. (*cough* NO catchup or slipstream *cough*). Loved Free Mode customization by changing the weapons, weather, wanted levels on or off to your liking... And more.

 

I always feel that GTA Online is a "chore".

[Jimbatron]

I enjoy GTA Online but it still hasn't gave me those "wow" moments and memories like IV Multiplayer did. There was just something special about IV Multiplayer. The game modes (Cops 'n Crooks especially) Everytime you played it was different and it never got repetitive. Races were more fun and challenging with the handling of vehicles. (*cough* NO catchup or slipstream *cough*). Loved Free Mode customization by changing the weapons, weather, wanted levels on or off to your liking... And more.

 

I always feel that GTA Online is a "chore".

 

Sometimes I wonder if in IV you could just enjoy each game for its own merits - and therefore you'd pick what you regarded as fun. In GTAO sometimes it feels like some stuff might be fun, but it's just not profitable - so a lot of the player base ignores it.

 

One thing I did like about the new races though - the non-contact option. In GTA IV races, although I preferred the handling, too often some noob smashed into me an ruined my race on the first corner. It wouldn't be so bad if I thought they were deliberately trying to take me out - I always got the impression it was rubbish driving, pure and simple. Still AWP felt like a proper achievement after hours of dodging that crap - and definitely required more than any of the ones in V.

[ThiagoBass]

No, man. Heists can destroy every coop mission on GTA IV online...

[CometGT]

Something that is simple yet effective multiplayer without the need of much competitiveness when in a game, likes of a TDM etc. Plus having tons of fun when playing Cops 'n' Crooks with varied players. Oh and just jumping into a game and annoying everyone with checking and unchecking the tick box in the lobby before the game starts. Plus the 30 seconds timer track in the background each game you played, something again I find simple, yet unforgettable in a multiplayer game.

Edited November 1, 2016 by SentinelXSVCS22

[Jimbatron]

No, man. Heists can destroy every coop mission on GTA IV online...

 

I did like the Heists - although I found the requirement to have exactly four players restrictive.

 

However in terms of competitive player versus player modes I put IV ahead. Yeah the kind of role play element of building a GTAO character is fun for a bit, but after you've unlocked everything, its a bit "OK, what now?"

[HaythamKenway]

I didn't play Online much, so I don't have a thoroughly informed opinion on it, to tell the truth. So take all I say here with a grain of salt.

 

The thing with MP games nowadays is that they all have these deep and long progression systems, loads of challenges and content to wade through that they turn into a tumultuous full time job. You have to make this much money to unlock these game modes. Gain this much XP to unlock these abilities. Complete these checklists to make these features available. Games like Titanfall and Battlefront get criticised for keeping things simple and people don't really care about how fun and replayable an MP game is at its core. It all about how much stuff there is to work towards.

 

You are locked in this never ending loop, always pushing for something, instead of just letting go and enjoying the game as it is. And I understand the appeal - that's what I found missing from the singleplayer V after all, cohesion, substantial side content and always having some goal to strive for - but in the MP, for the most part, I have always prefered simplicity, pick-up-and-play games that relied on raw gameplay and well-designed, endlessly entertaining game modes. It's a weird irony. I'll exaggerate a little bit, but I'd play a game like Online if it was singleplayer and a game like V if it was multiplayer.

 

Last year I gave Online a try and played for a few days and had decent amount of fun. But there came a time when I was stuck in a lobby, the game stuck on a loading screen for god knows how long and I reflected what I was really doing in the game. I wasn't speeding across the city, causing havoc, randomly meeting other players and impromptu banding up and doing things together. I was just grinding. The spontaneous, fairly unpredictable sandbox of IV has been replaced with a perfect clockwork. And so I quit. I didn't want to get locked in that velvet prison. Maybe the game is different once you reach the endgame, but I don't have the time to dedicate myself to a game like that these days anyway. Games like Online are time sinks built to get you hooked and never let go.

 

I'm seconding all the posters here who talked about how liberating IV's MP was. That was what made it so much appealing to me. I didn't have to care about making money or playing these missions to get something. The game just let me loose in the city and told me to make my own fun. And so I did. It was so carefree. People didn't care about completing stuff, showing off their wealth. Everyone was just messing around, playing with the toys the designers scattered across the playground. And if I wanted, racing, the co-op missions, deathmatches, CnC, it was all there at my fingertips, with everyone starting off equal and the game providing all I needed. You could play for an hour or five and feel like the time spent was worth it and got exactly what you wanted out of the game. It was just about having a good time. IV's MP wasn't built and didn't want to be a half-assed MMO. And that was enough for me.

[combustion]

I've played a far bit of GTA Online, and spent countless time playing IV multiplayer, and I think IV's multiplayer is better by far.

 

For me, V;'s multiplayer is like a chore. Launch - 10 minutes loading screen - Get in a car - Start a heist or a set-up - Play a Adversary Mode - Buy ammo - Bank cash - Get a car or some new clothes - Exit. It's totally predictable, and after a couple of days, it gets boring. I started GTA Online this summer, and I have no interest in playing it again.

 

IV's multiplayer is different... entirely. You get a different experience everytime you play, and mostly, none of the things are predictable. You can have fun in GTA Online (that too, only in certain cases), but you can create your own fun in GTA IV. People didn't waste their time relaxing in a virtual Jacuzzi in a virtual yacht, people were out on the streets having all sorts of fun possible. Racing is a million times better in IV. No ridiculous slipstream or catchup, and the vehicle handling made it challenging, unlike V, where most of the races take place in the sky. It was just like loading up an old Call of Duty game, you get in, and start having fun, whereas in V, the RPG crap gets thrown to your face, forcing you to be at least rank 100 to have any sort of fun. Any level below that, you'll be dominated in free-roam and the first to die in heists/missions.

 

Doing impromptu crime with a stranger is always better than doing a scripted heist with a stranger.

 

You can meet random people and have sandbox style fun by going on killing sprees or a point-to-point races, but in GTA Online, it's guarentted that your car will be bombed and you will be shot down by someone with a rank 200 above you. Some in GTA Online just isolate themselves to avoid getting griefed.

 

Probably the only thing Online has over IVMP is better graphics, better looking characters and clothing options (which IMO are unnecessary anyway).

 

Honestly, without monthly updates adding new clothing or stuff like VIP, CEO, Freemode Events or Bikers, GTA Online would have been dead in a couple of months after launch. While GTA IV's true sandbox multiplayer mode, which was all about having fun, has lasted longer without any sort of updates.