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Welcome To Paradise: GTA IV Is The Best Grand Theft Auto Ever!

• By Chris Morell
• November 02, 2009 15:13 PM PST
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Helicopters are a great way to see the sights of the city. It's also a really great way to rain death down on your enemies from above.

The City Is Alive...

But as interesting as those refinements are, and as interesting a character as Niko is, the true star of this show is undoubtedly Liberty City itself. The thriving metropolis seems to have a life of its own, with crowded streets and incredibly interactive pedestrians. Bump a woman on a sidewalk and she might drop her coffee, as well as a few expletives. Run over a mailbox and a fountain of mail will spew into the wind. Other GTA games have featured memorable locales but none can match the immersive detail, size and scope of GTA IV's Liberty City. Sure, those patented GTA glitchesclipping, texture pop-in, and the likestill abound but they can't take away from the majesty and beauty of the metropolis.

There's something interesting waiting around every corner, a feat which no other game has been able to accomplish before. Steal a car and a patrolman might attempt to drag you out; but push on the gas and you'll leave the unlucky copper hanging onto the open door for dear life. As you duck and weave around traffic, he'll slowly lose his grip and his body will flail around every turn until he eventually gives up. It's the little details like that that makes GTA IV more than just a great game. In other words, the story and the gameplay are the cake and the little details serve as the delicious frosting.

I Get Around

Careful exploration of the city will reveal a ton of tactial vantage points. Here, your high perch combined with your high powered sniper rifle results in a nearly unbeatable combination. It's sort of like pairing bacon with even more bacon.

As you can see, Liberty City is an intricately designed city; normally, this would make it difficult to navigate except for one thing: every car in GTA IV has built-in GPS navigation, which makes getting around the city a snap. It works exceptionally well, accounting even for one-way streets. It also comes in handy when you to evade police detection: a new "wanted level" system eliminates cop bribes of the past. Now, it's all about line of sight. Commit a crime and a flashing circular zone that represents the nearest pursuing officer's zone of sight lights up your radar; escape that area without being seen by another cop and you're golden. If you're on foot, a parked car will sometimes be your only way out, but be warned that you'll need a few seconds to hotwire it, and the nicer the car, the longer it takes to spark up. And of course, in a pinch, running your car through a Pay N' Spray can quickly get you out of a jam.

Cars are as fast and loose as ever, making super jumps and motorcycle wheelies a nice distractionunless, of course, you get stuck behind the wheel of a behemoth like a garbage truck or an eighteen-wheeler. Boats can also provide an easier getaway should you need to get wet to ditch the heat and helicopters offer up a nice aerial view of the city, as well as access to some out of the way places.

Neither rain or snow: when Niko's got a job to do, he won't let something like a late-night downpour stop him.

Aim carefully and you can take out two targets for the price of one

Trying to take out a car load of enemies with a single pistol is not the smartest thing in the world. Don't make the same mistake when you jump online for some multiplayer action, okay?

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