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By Joe Robinson
"Life is complicated"
- Niko Bellic
Never has such a short sentence summed up a game that is so ethically questionable, yet so diverse and ambigious, so perfectly.Life is complicated, and no one’s life is more complicated then that of Niko Bellic – protagonist to Rockstars’ new game: Grand Theft Auto IV.
Morally ambiguous as ever, the critically acclaimed developer has taken the series to the next chapter by officially crowning their latest release as the fourth GTA. (As opposed to Vice City and San Andreas, which are considered ‘spin-offs’ of the third game.) Returning to Liberty City, GTA IV lets you take over the life of Niko Bellic, a Serbian with a dark past and the desire to make a new life for himself in America.
From the moment you step off the boat, you can tell there’s something different about this game. The rain falling down around you, the street lights desperately trying to hold the darkness at bay, even the people going about their business… for the first time, Liberty City feels alive.
This sense of realism is a feat not many can achieve, and whilst Rockstar come close, they don’t quite manage it with perfect execution. Like the previous GTA games, IV carries with it some bugs, some oddities, and those little things that can sometimes ruin the experience for you. The controls can also seem a bit ‘fiddly’ at times, especially with the new ‘cover & shoot’ combat system that’s been added. But if you look past this, if you ignore the hype and just enjoy the game for what it is, then you’re guaranteed a worthwhile experience.
One of its high points is the story, the character of Niko Bellic. Unlike previous GTA titles, Niko’s story revolves around the irony of his situation; that of a man who wants to do good, who doesn’t want to be controlled by others, yet inevitably finds himself reacting to other peoples actions. Previous characters, whilst being well-rounded, have often come up short when trying to factor in the sociopathic behaviour that comes as a result of the players actions.
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