why does GTA always live up to the hype, and other games dont?

[scary_A]

i cant name all the games that i wanted to play so badly because of all the hype they were getting, and when they came out.. nothing special

GTA somehow ALWAYS delivers, the gameplay is just plain awesome and somehow they are able to make it better. im not even that pumped about the game, but i can see that many others are really excited. i guess im just used to each gta getting better and better, or maybe its because all the past GTAs are just good enough to last a lifetime that i dont think about a new version

with this said i really hope age of conan delivers, would be nice to have competition against world of warcraft

[SatanTheSith]

Because GTA always follows the same formula so people know what to expect.

[SatanTheSith]

I never meant it as a bad thing. Its mostly because of the epic free roaming IMO

[xXSpawnXx]

formula being, a city (split into 2/3 parts) with pedestrians and traffic, and the player is a third-person character who can drive said cars, and is developed throughout the game?
games like True Crime: streets of LA (haven't played NY, but I bet it's similar) used that exact formula, except the city was one large city.

GTA delivers because there is always a lot of work put into the games.
I don't know how much work was put into TC: SoLA, but it sucked ass. Even in comparison to the very first 3D GTA title (gta3), it was a large steamy pile of shit. The story line, the way the cars handle, the atmosphere of the city that always reminds you that this game is balls due to the shitty variety of everything scenic, it all adds up to a large turd.
In GTA3, there is much more of a "free roam" feeling. The cars turn much more freely and drive faster, stop less rigidly, and handle more realistic all together. The pedestrians were very varied, along with all the different contrasting gangs in each area of Liberty City. All together, the work put into GTA 3 pays off, and the lack of it in TC: SoLA is clearly seen.
And get this, GTA3 came out a full 2 years before True Crime.

I, for sure, have the most play time on SanAn, or Vice City out of all the games I've ever played. Understandably, all the GTA games have bad graphics in comparison to other games that come out at the same time, yet the series remains one of the most popular, if not more.

got off into a bit of a ramble, but the point is this: there is no game series as versatile, innovative, varied and free-flowing as the GTA series.

QFT! The replay value in unbelievable.

[Dayve]

It's the freedom. Any game that allows you to just do whatever you want instead of following the main storyline is a good one

[The_Guitarist]

It's the freedom. Any game that allows you to just do whatever you want instead of following the main storyline is a good one
QFT. :dunce:

[Dayve]

That isn't to say games where you have no choice but to follow the main storyline are shit, absolutely not.

[SIKKENT]

everything above is true, R* also spend alot of time and money developing these games and arent afraid of delaying their games to make sure theyre perfect

[SatanTheSith]

rockstar is a pretty cool guy.

eh kills hookers and doesn't afraid of anything

[SwyfT]

San Andreas didn't deliver for me.

[Dayve]

San Andreas didn't deliver for me.

True, i didn't like SA either. It would have been good if only the story wasn't following a bunch of scumbag crackheads who made a living by stealing drugs from other scumbag crackheads and then selling them to yet more scumbag crackheads.

I really didn't like that at all. I prefer it when i'm a classy gangster, working for classy gangsters, like Tommy Vercetti in Vice City. That one was awesome.

[rand0m]

True, i didn't like SA either. It would have been good if only the story wasn't following a bunch of scumbag crackheads who made a living by stealing drugs from other scumbag crackheads and then selling them to yet more scumbag crackheads.

I really didn't like that at all. I prefer it when i'm a classy gangster, working for classy gangsters, like Tommy Vercetti in Vice City. That one was awesome.

Well said ... QFT

[aooga12]

because they take their time and their not made by EA?

[tonythetiger]

Command and Conquer 3 lived up to the hype for me, and is made by EA:preachon:

[Jenovah]

The social satire alone is reason enough for me to buy it, I especially liked their jabs on "gansta"culture and government conspiracies in SA! :D

[Face Plant]

Because they keep what works and they improve on it.

An example would be loading. In vice loading occurred between islands, no loading in SA. In SA you had loading when you walked into indoor areas, in IV no loading for interiors. Its just the little things they do, they don't try and reinvent the wheel they just tweak

[18C]

I really like the stories too. The whole underground crime genre just gets me feeling like a badass and every single game has great, witty dialog.

[Beldar]

My favorite types of games is driving and shooting... So, GTA combines the two, adds some missions, and its fun.

[/Tilt/]

You guys are putting a lot of thought into this. It's just fun to fuck hookers then kill them to get your money back.

[OrangeC]

I cannot wait to try out the combat in GTA4, playing a real live russian gangster film.

[Wu-tang]

True, i didn't like SA either. It would have been good if only the story wasn't following a bunch of scumbag crackheads who made a living by stealing drugs from other scumbag crackheads and then selling them to yet more scumbag crackheads.


That wasn't the story at all.

[PsiRedEye22]

Command and Conquer 3 lived up to the hype for me, and is made by EA:preachon:

Thank you! For god's sake, this needed to be said.

Kane's Wrath FTW.

[sKin]

That wasn't the story at all.

Yep, ditto. San Andreas went straight over your head. Too bad, I really really enjoyed the story.

And oh - this one will have Online Multiplayer. That alone is gonna be just amazing.

[Lividum]

And oh - this one will have Online Multiplayer. That alone is gonna be just amazing.

If SA:MP is any indication, it's cool for half an hour, then gets old really fast when the entire screen is full of hackers shooting each other and not dying.

But what the Rockstar guy said in an EGM interview made me hope that it won't suck as bad.

[evil joe]

Video games haven't really been doing it for me lately. A lot of them are just the same old shit. Shoot the bad guys while following this path. Video games were a lot more fun during Nintendo 64 times. I recently got a PS3, but I didn't have enough money to actually buy a game for it so I downloaded some demos. The only ones that I really enjoyed were TimeShift and The Darkness because they had some variety. GTA IV is going to kick all of their asses. There isn't just one single storyline that you have to follow. You can decide not to do something for someone and it changes the rest of the storyline. Hey, Lividum is almost at 13,000 posts. Congrats.

Anyone else have a PS3? My PSN username is in my sig and I want to play GTA IV with some eBaumers when it comes out.

[dtorre]

Video games haven't really been doing it for me lately. A lot of them are just the same old shit. Shoot the bad guys while following this path. Video games were a lot more fun during Nintendo 64 times. I recently got a PS3, but I didn't have enough money to actually buy a game for it so I downloaded some demos. The only ones that I really enjoyed were TimeShift and The Darkness because they had some variety. GTA IV is going to kick all of their asses. There isn't just one single storyline that you have to follow. You can decide not to do something for someone and it changes the rest of the storyline. Hey, Lividum is almost at 13,000 posts. Congrats.

Anyone else have a PS3? My PSN username is in my sig and I want to play GTA IV with some eBaumers when it comes out.

If you don't have enough money to buy a game with the system its probably best if you save your money for that overdue rent bill....or trying to keep your electricity on....J/K ....but seriously....im not

[silverspade14]

If SA:MP is any indication, it's cool for half an hour, then gets old really fast when the entire screen is full of hackers shooting each other and not dying.

But what the Rockstar guy said in an EGM interview made me hope that it won't suck as bad.

There is a huge article in the new OXM about it, it sounds amazing. And on the right SA:MP server you could have fun for a long time.

[Total Madman]

The video game market is flooded by so many shit games spewed out by EA and, well, EA. When games are released where the developers were aiming to accomplish more than shameless amounts of advertising all over the game world, and a quick buck, then we get sort of blind-sighted because we're so used to piece of shit generic games being so common. GTA is an example of this, and thus will always live up to the hype because with every GTA game you get more than just a roster update or a new ability for your money. You get vast advances on the previous game, a professional script/storyline, and a focus on pure fun rather than billboards with Coca-Cola symbols all over the place.

[J-ack]

rockstar is a pretty cool guy.

eh kills hookers and doesn't afraid of anything

That's because, if he kills them, he gets his money back.

[rand0m]

GTA 4 isn't out yet? So ... for all we know its a terrible, buggy piece of shit?

[silverspade14]

GTA 4 isn't out yet? So ... for all we know its a terrible, buggy piece of shit?

No, because people from gaming websites/magazines have played it and they all love it.

[PsiRedEye22]

I just think people that think GTA is the best series ever have serious bloodlust and only like the game because it's so violent. I've only heard a handful of opinions from people that have really good reasons on why they love the GTA series, but most of the people that claim they like it for other reasons are really just lying.

Not that I have a problem with bloodlust, it's the best shaman ability ever, I'm just saying that it doesn't make a game. I've always thought the GTA storylines were pretty weak and thrown together with pop culture references not unlike Scary Movie. I dunno, maybe I'm just a perfectionist, I only truly love a handful of games.

[rand0m]

No, because people from gaming websites/magazines have played it and they all love it.

well ... maybe they where bribed ...

[h4z4rd]

GTA 4 will be great if not the best installment in the series. Rockstar has an excellent track record with the GTA series, which is something that can't be said for a lot of game development companies.

Sure some people claim GTA:SA didn't deliver or was lacking, but I thought it was a great game. Rockstar expanded on the environment and map and experimented with character development which I thought was an overall success. GTA:SA also included more side missions which added even more open-ended gameplay...not to mention there were no loading screens for the different sections of the map which I thought was cool. I guess the dislike for GTA:SA by some can be summed up by the choice of character and setting, i.e black guy in the ghetto. Either way, you can't say San Andreas didn't add anything new to the series because it definitely did.

[TehCream]

The good thing about GTA games is they take their time and make sure every little detail about it is perfect. True Crime SoLA sucked and I was really disappointed with it. Also Total Overdose had some great hype but didn't live up to it in my opinion. I still have it but only played through it once.

[IGneois]

well ... maybe they where bribed ...

or maybe they played it before they praised it



GET IT?!?!?!!?

BUY A PS3

GTA 4 isn't out yet? So ... for all we know its a terrible, buggy piece of shit?


OMG ARE YOU SERIOUS!!! YOU WERE PS3 FUCK MY ASS WITH THIS MACHINE ALL THE WAY TIL LAUNCH..THEN AFTER LAUNCH....THEN A FEW MORE MONTHS.....then you never bought one.

get it?





hypocrit

[CSPope]

The good thing about GTA games is they take their time and make sure every little detail about it is perfect. True Crime SoLA sucked and I was really disappointed with it. Also Total Overdose had some great hype but didn't live up to it in my opinion. I still have it but only played through it once.
True Crime SoLA was ok in my opinion. A really shitty game in the same genre would have to be True Crime SoNY. Wtf was up with that game.

I like GTA games b/c it's got a lot to do. The story is pretty decent and I always thought they were funny. I will admit that the violence is also one of my favorite parts. However, my favorite aspect about the game is the sense of freedom you have while playing it.

[WolfVonNiflheim]

The reason? Let's say reasons, easy:

* Huge and detailed player environment. Everything is in style here, going from clothes to cars. Cities are not
repetitive and you can clearly see from the surrounding buildings what kind of city district you are in. It feels real in
every way, even the "chat radio" stations. Radio news broadcasts that mention mayhem you caused, the list goes on.

* Excellent storyline development. Involving main story and numerous interesting side stories. Nice voice acting, well
designed characters. Being part of a gangster epic has a certain charm to it.

* Briliant variety in mission design. Going from picking up people to hardcore "Die Hard" like rocket launcher carnage.

* Minigames. Car tuning, looking for hidden packages, ....

* Player freedom

* Easy and intuitive interface

* Functional graphics (not talking about GTA4 here)

This is of course based on my experience with the previous GTA's.

The only thing that really pisses me off about the new GTA: no PC version. I'm hoping I read this wrong or was otherwise
misinformed. No PC version for a game that was clearly born on PC... A serious shame I say.

[h4z4rd]

^^^They will make a PC version of GTA 4, it's rumored to be released at the end of the year. Rockstar is quite notorious for not discussing details of the PC version for all their major GTA releases. From what i've noticed, it seems the PC version always gets released at least 6+ months after the console release.

[rand0m]

WolfVonNiflheim you sound like you've played GTA4, hopefully you've just quoted shit from people who have since some of that sounds pretty sweet.

I just wanna see the Euphoria engine in action, anyone thats played Crackdown and seen the way people fly through the air after been hit with a car should agree.

[dextersmom]

GTA doesn't live up to the hype. The hype lives up to GTA.

[Total Madman]

GTA doesn't live up to the hype. The hype lives up to GTA.

Ah shit, that was awesome.

[silverspade14]

WolfVonNiflheim you sound like you've played GTA4, hopefully you've just quoted shit from people who have since some of that sounds pretty sweet.

I just wanna see the Euphoria engine in action, anyone thats played Crackdown and seen the way people fly through the air after been hit with a car should agree.

Are you saying that you didnt like the way people looked when they got hit with cars in Crackdown? It was comical but its not like the game was trying to be realistic or anything.

[rand0m]

Are you saying that you didnt like the way people looked when they got hit with cars in Crackdown? It was comical but its not like the game was trying to be realistic or anything.

Not that I don't like the way they get hit, it's just slightly uneventful when they fly through the air. Hopefully they in GTA4 you get a little more intelligent AI that roll and try to catch themselves ... or you know ... crumple up and die ...

[Sander]

Every time a new GTA game comes out i play it and im left thinking 'WOW, No way can they make a better sequal than this' then roughly 12 months later when the next GTA comes out im like 'WOW, No way can they make a better sequal than this'. Rockstar North is truly one of the greatest game producers ever, hands down. And hopefuly im going to do some work experience there (live quite near Rockstar North)

Yep, ditto. San Andreas went straight over your head. Too bad, I really really enjoyed the story.

And oh - this one will have Online Multiplayer. That alone is gonna be just amazing.

Ha, you think thats all? FULL CITY MULTIPLAYER, Yes, you can play the WHOLE MAP on Xbox live against people, unlike saints row were it was just small places like buildings etc. Not that it matters to me, i'll be glues to the storyline for years, then when i think its time i'll go onto XBL.

[Lividum]

The latest EGM had a preview of the multiplayer mode in GTA4. I think it's safe to retract my previous doubts of how good it will be. It's really well thought out, unlike SA:MP.

[psychomonkey62]

It's all about beating hookers over the head with a large purple dildo you found in a police station.

Then taking a helicopter and slicing people up on the street with the propellor.

Then parachuting out of a 747 after doing a barrel roll.

Then gambling at a casino, losing, and killing everyone inside, resulting in a really high wanted level.

Then taking a flamethrower to the military that comes to kill you, and dying in a hail of gunfire, flames, and explosions.

Ah........good times.

[silverspade14]

The latest EGM had a preview of the multiplayer mode in GTA4. I think it's safe to retract my previous doubts of how good it will be. It's really well thought out, unlike SA:MP.

http://xbox360.ign.com/articles/865/865088p1.html
Here is even more about it.

[High On PCP]

Personally, I was burnt out on the GTA series after GTA 3.

[Knocc Out]

I thought San Andreas was more like a step back, they scrapped design and story in favor of customization.

[GoGoGooManGo]

It's the same formula Call of Duty has. Unlike other games, Call of Duty and GTA minimize pushing the envelope to the extent of updating graphics and scale. They deliver exactly what they promise and what the fans love and don't get too experimental...in a good way I'd say.

[WolfVonNiflheim]

WolfVonNiflheim you sound like you've played GTA4, hopefully you've just quoted shit from people who have since some of that sounds pretty sweet.


I clearly stated in my post that I based those points on my experience with the previous GTAs (all except GTAII actually, haven't really played that one). In my opinion it lives up to the hype because this game actually delivers what it promises. They have also been tuning the formula ever since the first top down version. So I can only imagine that the new version will deliver an experience similar, and lets hope even better, than the previous ones.

Could you point me to a game that does the same or better than GTA in the experience they try to deliver? And graphics certainly isn't everything in a game, look at tetris.

Feel free to wipe the floor with the points I listed about the GTA series in my previous post. Since your post also seems to hint that I overexagerated.