Graphics 4/5
Very, very good in most cases, but there’s quite a lot of framerate slowdown, and even a little bit of pop in on my 360 when things are moving quickly. I really like the rain effects, and the game is just really awesome in 720p.

Sound 5/5
I like the radio stations, though I don’t spend a whole lot of time listening to them. All other effects, from gunfire to random pedestrians, are good. I think the television stations and the internet sites aren’t quite as funny as they think they are, but it’s a good effort.

Gameplay 3/5
Here’s where I was disappointed. You can create one of the best looking, best sounding cities, but the actual gameplay is absolutely nothing new. In fact, it is a step back from San Andreas, which let you own property and fight gang wars, etc. Here, those aspects have been removed.

Problem #1: Story/mission types: In the first six or seven hours, your missions — no exaggeration — consist of the most inane, boring, linear jobs you can imagine. Literally five missions to start off involve shaking people down for protection money. New characters give you jobs that involve killing drug dealers and running cars off the road. There’s nothing here that we haven’t seen a million times in GTA 3 or its sequels.

Problem #2: The cell phone helps the game feel more realistic, but there’s all sorts of problems here. First of all, calling people is useless b/c you usually just get voicemail. The phone is basically a way for people to call and say “Come to my location on the map and I will give you another inane mission.” You can, however, use the phone to call up women for dates and hang out with friends, which will allow you to get little benefits from your friends in the game (e.g. one character will let you use his cab service free).

I’ve never felt more like a loser than when I dated a girl in a videogame. It gets comical when you crash the car and she doesn’t even notice. So the dating mechanic seems more like an afterthought, and the darts/bowling minigames you can play to hang out with friends are, again, not half as fun as real life darts or bowling. In fact, there’s a trick I found that nets you strikes 99% of the time in bowling — try that in real life! The idea that these games are ’so developed they can be their own game’ that the reviewers keep repeating is, frankly, a little over the top.

Rockstar had an opportunity here to really take this series to the next generation. Instead, the missions are really linear and it feels like a hi-res GTA3.

Multiplayer - N/A
Have not played online. If you’re mainly interested in gaming on Xbox live then I guess this review does not apply. But I think most people are mostly interested in single player.

Overall, it’s a 3.5/5. A solid game for a little bit, but longtime fans of the series will be disappointed. 10/10 is really silly. I’m starting not to trust game reviewers…

Way fun, very smart.
I think everything has been said about GTAIV. If I could fix anything with the game, it would be a different color scheme for the cell phone, and improved jumping/climbing abilities, because sometimes, he just can’t climb stuff that he easily could.

Good fun but overrated!
Don’t get me wrong on this review this is not a bad game. It is my opinion that it has been over hyped and over rated. Basically you get in this game what all the other GTA games offer. That being the ability to live the life of a criminal which to some people nowdays that seems to be the only ambition in life they have. So wht more can you ask for in a video game that you get weapons,cars,hookers,strip clubs,drinking and dope smoking. Now the fun aspect is being able to do this without real consequence to your self and others unless you are some moron that goes out and tries to be Niko for real then you deserve what ever you get. That is the difference between entertainment and reality my friends. This game is overall fun and fairly easy to play and the graphics are great.

Guess I didn’t drink the GTA Kool-Aid
If you didn’t like previous GTA games, this one is probably not going to do much to change your mind, so pay no attention to the hype. It’s basically like the others.. unrealistic driving controls, sloppy combat controls, shoddy camera angles, cheesy dialog, lots of profanity, etc. Added to this game is a much improved cover system that still pales in comparison to Gears of War or Rainbow Six (or so I’m told.. I didn’t make it that far), and a story that reaks of a second-class gangster flick.

Note that I played this game for about 4 hours, which was about all I could stand. People say that the game becomes fun eventually, but I play video games for entertainment and having to play one for 5+ hours in the hopes that I might enjoy myself eventually is just too much work for me. Then again, I’m a casual gamer and would rather play XBLA titles than an ‘epic’ game like this. I only became interested in GTA4 when people started talking about it like it was the second coming. But honestly, there’s nothing new to see here. That being said, if you loved the previous entries in the series and want more of the same, you’ll probably love this game too. Just don’t go in expecting anything revolutionary. It’s amazing what passes for innovative these days.

Must-have!
If you have a 360 and you don’t have this game, you’re seriously missing out. IMO, the multiplayer alone is worth in case you’re bored of mission-style gameplay.