Grand Theft Auto and I met in a run-down video store in the summer of ‘98. A friend and I were rummaging around for titles we had yet to rent, and this jumped out at us. We took it home and couldn’t stop playing it. Taking turns running around causing mayhem was just so much fun. I don’t think we ever delved too deeply into the depth of the game and all its missions. This was also the first game that when my buddy’s mother saw it, she wouldn’t allow it in her house. Thereby making it way, way cooler.
I played every subsequent GTA game, except one of the mission packs, and enjoyed them all. GTA 3 was defiantly a huge turning point—I mean how could it not be; a full game world in lush 3D for the first time. And it was quite fun. But the game I could never put away was Grand Theft Auto: Vice City. Vice City left behind the dark, urban jungle of Liberty City and jumped back in time to the neon teal and sandy beaches of 1986. The way that game fully immersed you in its depiction of the 1980’s was great! The game really came to life. Vice City marked a huge leap in story telling. Sure, it was telling Scarface for the most part, but that’s fine with me. Vice City had fully realized characters, and GTA 4 is looking to take that to the next level.
Odd as it was, I was a little apathetic up till a few weeks ago. Didn’t think i was gonna get the game, let alone be excited about it. Then Rockstar started letting info trickle out, and with each tidbit I got more excited. Multi player? Alright, finally a GTA to play with my friends. Totally amazing look? Great about time they updated it all. The real turning point came, for me, at the end of March, and one sentence summed it up: “Science is good when it teaches you how to turn a million ungrateful foreigners into glass”. With the release of a few snippets of audio from the radio station, I was officially pumped. It’s the humor that was missing form all the initial trailers. It’s back and seems to still be in full effect.
What am I expecting? I’m not sure. But I’m definitely expecting to have a blast. And from what I hear, things will be different.