Below are the first two hours of my journal in to Liberty City, what i say, what i did, and what i felt. Needless to say there will be some spoilers, but only of the first 2 hours of a 30 hour game.
10:25AM - I picked up my copy at Circuit City?walked in, store was basically empty. Chose to get it there cause they had the best deal, also they are not Gamestop. I asked the clerk if they had a rush. She said like eight people, no one lined up before opening, no madness. The guy right behind me bought a new 360 with his copy. Good for him!
10:33AM - Popped the game in, scrambled to get my computer up and running so I could write this.
10:35AM - Opening cinematic, very pretty, interesting bunch of people on board. All looking to make it here in America. Also some kinda dominatrix whipping a guy?
10:38AM - I kinda feel for these people, no one seems “evil”. They all just wanna make I big, own a house and a dog, and white picket fence. As opposed to the gangsters of past GTA’s these people just wanna start fresh.
10:40AM - My drunk cousin is here to pick me up. My first time driving. Nice simple addition of highlighting the route on your map. Nice and slow, it is my first time in this country after all.
10:42AM - Cousin mentions some kinda terror threat has the bridges closed off. I was wondering what they were gonna do to keep you boxed in.
10:44AM - Nico is explaining that he has some kinda trouble in the old country. So he came to America to start fresh.
10:45AM - Damn the lighting is nice! They way the high beams cut across the store fronts. And street light cast real shadows. Knock down a street light, guess what?it is pitch black there now.
10:46AM - I quick tour of the apartment, WAIT! Where is the mansion i was promised. Quickly seeing things might not be so rosy for my cousin.
10:47AM - TV!!! With multiple channels and shows. “One fading dream and a ton of booze”, mock reality shows about washed-up celebrities. Perfect.
10:50AM - First runiin with the fuzz. Some hobo got to close so I clocked him. Hobo started chasing me, cops start chasing us.
10:55AM - I really like the new escape mechanic. Similar to Assassins Creed. You gotta be a bit stealthy. A big circle will pop up on you mini map where cops first pick up the chase. You need to get outta sight and out of this circle and lay low until they call off the search. If the cops spot you, the circle re-centers on you, and you’re back to square one.
10:56AM - The dock I went and hid at seemed alive. Guys walking around reading clipboards, looking at projects.
11:03AM - Some quick wheel work and we escaped some thugs that my brother owed money.
11:05AM - Those jerks showed up at the shop and were roughing up my cousin. Niko has skills to hurt fools?punch and arm wrench, and he swipes a guy’s knife and chases them off.
11:07AM - Pulling out of the cab station and there is a fist-fight going on ’cause of a car accident, so I call the cops!
11:11AM - Pick up a few girls at the subway station and drop them off at home. One of them gave me their number!
11:13AM - Gotta look my best. Shopping for new clothes makes total sense, you see something you want for sale you just walk up to it and hit a button to try it on, anything you see in the store is for sale. Got a sweet new jacket.
11:18AM - I gave my new lady friend a call and she told me to come by anytime. Right after that, I get another call?my cousin is in deep shit.
11:22AM - Kinda got my butt kicked, nice easy option for mission restarts. Just dial the phone! Got back to the fight, you have a few punches and kicks and dodges to work with, and it works well for the most part.
11:25AM - Now we are chasing their boss?dark alleyways, tight corners. Hitting newspaper boxes and watching them explode into clouds of paper.
11:27AM - Something I noticed, careful driving pays off. Smacked my car into a few to many posts and your headlights will break. No headlights means you can barely see where your going. No good in a tight space.
10:29AM - Niko can disarm guys. Took this guys knife and went to town on him. And I have killed my first person.
10:31AM - I got a text from that girl asking where I was. Oops, rush over there and make it all better.
11:35AM - I little cut scene about when benefits you get from making friends, And about places you can take them. Hey a strip club! This game just shoves tits in your face, literally.
11:37AM - Out on my first date! She seems worried I didn’t show up last night. Off to the FUN FAIR! (aka Carnival) Her car is way nicer then mine, has a nice talking GPS unit, with turn-by-turn directions.
11:40AM - Bowling! Kicked her ass! 57 to 28.
11:55AM - Dropped her off and went home to sleep and watch some TV?Katt Williams comedy special, remastered with references to Liberty City. Nice touch!
12 Noon - Off to the a strip club with cousin! Across a toll bridge, which if you blow through the cops will be on you quick!
12:20AM - A little more random driving, seeing the sites a bit, eating some hot dogs.
That draws my first two hours to a close. What jumps out at you immediately is this small details, the way people walk, Especially the way Nico’s animation changes depending on the level of the surface he is running on. Standing and seeing him sift his weight on uneven surface is really cool.
I just realized something, I’m two hours in to Grand Theft Auto IV and haven’t stolen a car yet. Huh.
Look forward to more blog posts, as well as something about tonight’s foray into multi-player.