Favourite/Least favourite features in the series

[Algonquin Assassin]

Normally I would make this kind of thread a poll, but there's simply too many to list I'd probably forget something.

 

So yeah pretty straight forward. Just list your favourite/least features from anything from one GTA to all of them if you wish. A brief explanation would be appreciated too.

 

Favourite:

 

-The friends/girlfriends: GTA IV. No matter how many times I play GTA IV I still love hanging out with them. I don't think I've ever listened to every conversation though.

 

-Burglary missions: San Andreas. I've always liked these the most out of the side missions in San Andreas. A great way to earn some extra cash too and practice honing your stealth skills.

 

-Minigames (minus Yoga): Any GTA that has them. I just feel they add so much more depth to the game world especially the HD era. I still get enjoyment from playing a round of pool or bowling with Niko's favourite cousin.

 

-Assets: Vice City. It's the GTA game I enjoy the most in this regard. From buying residential property to businesses used as fronts.

 

-Snapmatic: GTA V. After the disappointment I had with the camera in GTA IV I love that this was rectified. I've taken countless photos of GTA V's scenery and overall it's a great feature for moments you want to capture.

 

Least favourite:

 

-The Jetpack: San Andreas. Slow, makes the player easier to get shot at and I've never felt any incentive to use it in gameplay outside of missions.

 

-The gym: San Andreas. I hate button mashing minigames with passion and even though I was going list it separately I'm not fond of the fighting styles either as CJ doesn't retain previous fighting styles he learned so what's the point?

 

-The flying rats: GTA IV. As far as collectables this is the worst in the series by far. Way too tedious and not a good enough reward for compensation.

 

-Occupational based side mission: Any GTA that has them. I'm talking about pizzaboy, paramedic missions etc. They are simply NOT fun to me and I think they're boring fillers that plagued the 3D particularly.

 

-Properties: GTA V. Never felt like I had any ownership of the properties. Takes forever to turn a profit and the "missions" attached to them are a joke compared to similar missions from the 3D era.

[~Tiger~]

Favourite:

 

Gambling in GTA SA, playing blackjack in Las Venturas was very cool and Carl's dippy comments were amusing.

 

Flying in GTAV. Pretty cool if you're an ace pilot like me

 

 

Least favourite:

 

The under-the-ocean world of GTAV. I can't help feeling that this was a development mistake, a huge drain on resources and a diversion that could have been cut and time spent better elsewhere.

[Femme Fatale]

Favorite:

-Friends and girlfriends.

-Gambling

 

Least Favorite:

-Jetpack

-Pidgeons

[gunziness]

Favourite:

- TLAD/TBoGT gang/drug wars: A total improvement over the ones in SA. Full action packed side missions that gave me some very, but very fun times. Its such a shame they werent carried over to V.

- GTA SA Races: pretty much the best races in the series. They are more diverse and with the most capable AI to date IMO.

 

- Minigames: They are actually fun and gives a lot of inmersion to the game. Pool, Bowling, Golf and hanging out with friends are my favourites.

- The collectables: I always found them fun to find, they gave me an excuse to explore the world and for some reason its something that to this day, I enjoy a lot. GTAIV flying rats, while the concept is ok, it was kinda annoying at times, maybe a silenced weapon would have make the task less painful to do.

- Not actually a 'feature' per se, but driving in GTAIV. I will never forget how fun and beatiful was driving a car in this game, it was actually fun. I hope they carry over the driving (or at least a balance between IV and V driving) in GTAVI.

Least favourite:

- Properties in GTAV: other than garages, they are actually useless, and even annoying with their sh*t tasks and side missions. If they were less repetitive and more meaningful it would have been great, such a wasted opportunity there.

- Missions Checkpoints: dont kill me for saying this, but I actually dont like the idea of starting a mission at the middle just for failing it. If I fail, I would (or should) start it over, thats how you really learn to play the game IMO, even if it becomes a chore I prefer it that way.

I cant count the amount of times I replayed missions in SA (flight school, the final mission, Stowaway, etc) from the begining (as there were no CPs, other than in the last mission, thing that I found out after I beat the mission months later).

Thats pretty much it I guess.

Edited December 7, 2016 by gunziness

[Jimmy]

A few of my favorite things would be the Asset and their missions in Vice City, the gang wars, the gambling system, features to mod vehicles and the mini games. And dating in GTA IV was really cool. Finally, snapmatics were a blessing.

 

Least favorite stuff would be the addition on Yoga, Flying the Dodo, the poor flying physics in San Andreas, the need of gym and some occupational side missions.

 

While I'm referring to particular games, the concept and lack of improvement is depressing at times.

[Shadowfennekin]

Favorite:

Friends/Girlfriends

Activities, excluding golf.... isn't golf supposed to be relaxing? Well it sure ain't if it's all that is standing between you and your 100%! f*ck golf. And yoga I guess, f*ck yoga too.

Gang Attack/Drug Wars

Collectibles, the ones that reward you anyways.Space Docker was a good reward, everything else in HD era...... meh prize or nothing.

 

Mission checkpoints, remember how tedious redoing the last SA mission was cause Sweet died? Yeah, I do. I like that you can fail an 30+ minute mission and NOT have to start ENTIRELY OVER! I'd have loved checkpoints in Four Leaf Clover when I have a bad day and somebody dies in the subway..... yeah, have to drive them back there and do everything agai...... WTF how did Packie drop dead?! It really saves a lot of stress when you can simply hit retry from checkpoint. If it bothers people, just reload your game if you fail, most games have checkpoints or save points now it was time GTA jumped on.

 

Least Favorite:

Medals.............. whose bright idea was this? I mean really? Was this even necessary?

 

Arm Wrestling. No, go to hell. Not breaking a controller to win.

[GamesBoy316]

Some favorites:

 

-Hanging out with friends/girlfrineds is neat, especially hearing the various dialogue

-The gym may have button mashing, but to me it feels realistic having CJ work out instead of him just having the same body for the whole game

-I like the ability to save pictures in San Andreas and GTA V, and then later on, being able to look at them again

-Properties in San Andreas and Vice City. Feels nice to move around, buy places, and save at them

-The minigames are fun, most of them at least

-Being able to replay missions

 

Least favorite:

 

The medals at the end of missions. Kind of ruins the mood when you pass a mission, and you see that you didn't "complete" those objectives.

Edited December 7, 2016 by GamesBoy316

[Shy Star]

Here are some of my favorite features:

- The ability to customize and personalize vehicles (albeit only present in two GTA titles). In my opinion, driving the same stock car can get a bit boring, but personalization can make vehicles more fun. Heck, the LSC in GTA V can allow one to get much enjoyment by simply recreating replica vehicles, or their own dream car.

- Flying fixed-wing aircraft is something I always found to be fun in GTA titles, although the flying can get very unrealistic many a time.

- Races, specially in San Andreas is a feature I can heavily appreciate. The races in some cases can get a bit intense, but from what I notice, there is really no change in pace. The NPCs you race against can be a bit more challenging though.

 

Least Favorite Features:

- Paramedic Missions or any mission with an occupation: Similar of another forum member, I too find these missions to be tedious, and lacking in the 'fun' factor.

- With the exception of the GTA Online Flight School, most flight schools in the GTA Series have been viewed by me as boring, and in some cases, tedious. The mandatory flight school present in San Andreas can sometimes also ruin the pace of the game for me.

[Hunter]

Favourites:

 

The Hunter, for obvious reasons.

The 6th star - miss this quite badly actually. Maybe it's nostalgia, but I think the new games should have it.

The jetpack. Not popular among people who want GTA to be more serious, but it was great for exploring, and useful for collecting stuff.

The mugger (GTA Online). Good fun.

Vigilante missions (admittedly, probably nostalgia here).

 

Least favourites:

 

The homing launcher (GTA V/GTA Online). messed with an otherwise fairly balanced and fun class of vehicles (helicopters).

Shark cards (GTA Online).

The easy way out (GTA Online). It ruins PvP.

The marksman rifle (GTA V/Online) Gets spammed too much, typically by those who take the easy way out over and over.

Passive mode (GTA Online). I can see the need for it, and I use it myself when I need to go off, but it needs refining and tweaking.

Edited December 7, 2016 by Hunter

[JohnDonovan]

Favourite

 

The fixer side missions from IV & the vastly improved vigilante missions from IV.

 

Medals seem to be disliked, I don't see why, to be honest, it gave me an extra incentive to replay the missions.

 

Least favourite

 

Valet missions - I don't need to explain OK you can have one word TEDIOUS!

 

I always found the ambulance firefighter & even vigilante missions from the 3D era to be a grind.

[DimitriFaustin]

Favourite features

- The Respect-o-meter from GTA 2 - having to work really hard to be able to complete the game is truly satisfying. One thing I really miss about video games from the 80s, 90s and early 2000s was that beating those games really instilled a feeling of accomplishment. Which is also why I think that:

- The medal system in TBoGT and V is a great idea. I hold the opinion that it helps develop more experience and builds up skill that can't be acquired simply by just doing simple tasks.

- The one-stop shops for vehicle resprays, vehicle bombs and weaponry in 2.

- The six-star wanted level system. 'Nuff said.

- The diverse characters in both IV and V. You truly feel like you're visiting New York or Los Angeles, respectively.

- The style of humour in the 2D games that's more like what would be found in MAD Magazine, not the over-sexualized humour in the 3D and HD GTAs.

- The range of vehicles in all GTAs.

- The activities and side missions in all applicable GTAs.

- Stevie's garage in IV.

Least favourite features (not much, by the way)

- The five-star wanted level system in V. What a pawn to the current 'instant gratification' generation of most gamers that is.

- Didn't care for the weapon sounds/weapon fire graphics in San Andreas at all.

- Invincibility in V lasting for only five minutes. Couldn't they just have made it to where the character could be invincible for as long as the player wanted?

[Niko'sCousin11]

Favourite: Friends/Girlfriends

Clubs

Gambling

 

Least Favourite: Yoga, MOTHERf*ckING YOGA, f*ck YOU FABIEN FOR f*ckING AMANDA AND SCREWING THINGS UP WITH HER AND MICHAEL AND f*ck YOU ROCKSTAR FOR THE WORST 5 MINUTES ON A GAME FUUUUUUUUUUUUCCCCCCKKKK!

......... Ok I feel better now.

[PhillBellic]

Favourite:

 

GTA IV's Vigilante.

 

Least:

 

Fu*king Yoga!

The Jetpaclk!

[Niko'sCousin11]

Favourite:

 

GTA IV's Vigilante.

 

Least:

 

Fu*king Yoga!

The Jetpaclk!

f*ck YES PHIL!!! f*ck YOGA!!!

[Niko'sCousin11]

Invincibility in V lasting for only five minutes. Couldn't they just have made it to where the character could be invincible for as long as the player wanted?

 

No because that would be too much effort for Dan Houser.

Edited December 7, 2016 by Niko'sCousin11

[Algonquin Assassin]

Just to bring this up again I forgot to mention in my OP GTA V's "stealth" feature is terrible.

 

I can't believe this sh*t even replaced the crouching from GTA IV. One thing is it makes the protagonists looks like hunchbacks and it looks unnatural.

 

The missions in GTA V are so scripted and linear it's not like the game presents that many opportunities to use it effectively.

 

I guess if you like stalking hipsters it's ok, but as a core gameplay mechanic it's useless IMO. For GTA VI this is one area I hope R* take note of Mafia III. That's how stealth should be done.

[--Vega--]

Favorites:

 

Gambling in SA

All the Character Customization in SA (Haircuts, Clothes, etc)

Hidden Packages in 3D-era (Especially Tags from SA and the HPs in Vice City)

Taxi, Paramedic, Firefighter, Vigilante from 3D-era

Home Robberies in SA

Vehicle Customization in SA and V

Buying Properties/Safehouses

Ability to take over turf in SA (Turf Wars)

Holding up Stores in VC and to a lesser extent, V

Import/Export Lists in 3D-era

 

 

 

 

Worst:

 

Friends/Girlfriends system in IV ONLY (This feature would've been perfect in SA.. taking Sweet, Ryder, Smoke, The Truth, Woozie, etc out)

Yoga

Pigeons in IV (one of the most annoying/tedious things in the whole series if not the most)

That QU3B3D game in IV

Shooting Range in SA on a PS2

The way characters move in IV and the car handling (makes the game near unplayable for me, I just can't stand it)

Medals for Mission Completion (takes away from immersion for me personally)

Rampages in III

Unique Jumps required for 100% (I know some people like them, I personally cannot stand them. SA did good making them not a req. for 100% completion)

Replayable Missions List in V (hurts the immersion of replaying the game from start to finish)

Dodo in III (utter garbage)

[GTA-Biker]

Favorite:

-burglary (GTA SA)-very fun side activity,and fits the crime themed game like GTA perfectly,makes me wonder why was it only in SA so far

-gambling (GTA SA)-it was very fun to go to casinos and betting shops,and I could make some money too

-buying safehouses (GTA VC, SA, Online)-I prefer choosing which properties I want and how many of them,as opposed to having it preset

-clubhouses (GTA TLAD, Online)-it's cool to have a place where your gang hangs out,so far they were exclusive to biker gangs,but it would be cool if other gangs would have some similar hangout places

-customization for characters, vehicles, weapons...-I just like to customize stuff the way I like

-arcade/console mini games (GTA SA, 4, Online)-I like to take a break from regular gameplay occasionally,and play a game within a game

-gang wars/taking over rival gang's turf/businesses (SA, VCS, TLAD)-it makes the player feel like the protagonist is really a gang member when he can work for his gang

-gang recruitment/backup (GTA VC at 100%, SA, VCS, TLAD)-same as above

-underground fight club (GTA TBOGT)-it's a cool side activity,and fun too

-street racing (GTA TLAD, 5)-street racing is very fun,especially in TLAD where you can use a bat from bikes

-ability to use melee weapons from bikes (GTA TLAD, Online)-I love hitting NPCs or their cars from a bike

 

Least favorite:

-yoga, tennis, golf (GTA 5, golf also in VCS and TBOGT)-they're boring

-shark cards (GTA Online)-I never bought one,and I'm not planning to

-businesses (GTA 5)-what's the point of buying a bar or some other business if I can't even enter it?

Edited December 31, 2016 by GTA-Biker

[The Rockstar Gamer 108]

Favourite:

1) Call backups feature in TLaD.

2) Call Clay for Bikes.

3) Dancing in TBOGT.

4) Accessing Computers in GTA IV.

5) Accessing the Mobile Phone in GTA IV.

6) Free Roam in VC & IV (But Not in EFLC)

7) Recruiting gang members in SA.

 

Not at all Favourite:

1) Gang Territory Disputes in GTA III / VC / SA.

2) Hidden items like packages in VC, Pigeons in IV, Horseshoes in SA etc.

3) Girlfriend system in IV & SA.

4) In IV & TBOGT, your friends will ask you for drink when you're just going to attempt a mission.

5) The police in VC & III are dumb man! They just open the door & you're busted!

[AnDReJ98]

Favorite:

 

- Business system from VCS. A very underrated feature that should be back in the future titles. It was one of the things that made VCS so special and no other GTA has anything close to this.

 

Least favorite:

 

- Yoga, i don't think i have anything to say about this.

- Under the ocean in GTAV. Probably the most wasted space ever.

[combustion]

Favourite:

 

- Radio Wheel (V)

- Random Encounters (IV)

- Director Mode, Snapmatic and Rockstar Editor (V)

- Garages (Online)

- Replaying missions (TBOGT, V)

- Vigilante missions (IV)

- Police database (IV)

- Internet, mobile phones and television (IV, EFLC)

- Friendship system (IV)

 

Least Favourite

 

- Flight School (SA, V & Online), as well as all of San Andreas' schools.

- Adversary Modes (Online)

- SA's RPG elements like being forced to eat, work out etc. (San Andreas)

- Properties (V) -

- Heists (Online)

- Cinema (V)

- Yoga (V)

- First-Person mode (V)

- The submersible & underwater exploration (V)

- Body Armour (V & Online)

- Stunt races (Online)

- Shark cards (Online)

[EvilEmperorZoRG]

Favorites:

 

Radio Stations

Vigilante Missions

Buying houses and properties

Clothes

80s (in VC games of course)

Helicopters

Drive by shootings

Nighttime lights (yep I love it... In IV especially)

Gunfight missions

Tanks

Malibu Club Rampage with a Katana and Automatic in the backround lol

Every GTA theme and intro/loading screen

 

Many others I can't think of now...

 

Least favorites:

 

The save system in 3D era games

Friends dislike you in IV if you deny an activity with them

Bikes in IV & VC (The handling)

Police AI (3D era)

Races

RPG elements in SA

Missions with time limit

Edited January 6, 2017 by EvilEmperorZoRG

[--Vega--]

Favorite:

 

- Business system from VCS. A very underrated feature that should be back in the future titles. It was one of the things that made VCS so special and no other GTA has anything close to this.

Bingo. Was the best addition they ever added to a GTA game, used it on a very underrated game and haven't brought it back since... I have NO IDEA WHY. That system could have been easily put into V, pooled between the 3 protags (considering you leave all three alive) and added loads of replay value. Pure laziness on R*s part.