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7.1

Mixed or average reviews- based on 3664 Ratings

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  1. Apr 1, 2014
    6
    Pro: very good gameplay (shooting, driving, shooting and driving), good storyline and characters, graphic are not so bad, major improvement comparing to gta sa, love the details of small things (tv, pc, taxi service etc)

    cons: bugs, first timer would have lots of problem (system specs, settings, game protection), no checkpoint savegames during missions (imean if you're like 90% to
    Pro: very good gameplay (shooting, driving, shooting and driving), good storyline and characters, graphic are not so bad, major improvement comparing to gta sa, love the details of small things (tv, pc, taxi service etc)

    cons: bugs, first timer would have lots of problem (system specs, settings, game protection), no checkpoint savegames during missions (imean if you're like 90% to complete the mission and you **** up you gotta start from the beginning of the mission), less spacious than gta sa map, no planes, crappy heli controls.

    *never played its multiplayer, so aint saying any comment for that
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  2. Mar 23, 2014
    2
    Very Disappointed

    They've messed up real life simulation and fun game play. The whole game feels like a drag. Emotionally unstable protagonist which most of the times does not represent what the player wants/feels. Story-wise everything feels schemed. Majority of the characters are being killed/disposed off before you even know them. You play for around 20hours into the story to find
    Very Disappointed

    They've messed up real life simulation and fun game play. The whole game feels like a drag. Emotionally unstable protagonist which most of the times does not represent what the player wants/feels. Story-wise everything feels schemed. Majority of the characters are being killed/disposed off before you even know them. You play for around 20hours into the story to find out the real story behind it all, which in fact, is very poor. Thinking about spending time and building relationships/friendships? Absolute waste of time. Girlfriends are getting discarded like flies through "Storytelling". Constant drama and personal-family affairs are just horrible representation.

    Game-wise. Graphics are mediocre at best. They've pulled this strange, and rather unwanted, dirt-brown filter onto everything, to simulate a dirty (real life?) city. To say the least it all fails. The game was designed for a console. With limited resources and computational power in mind. And this version of the game in just a port, and a cheap one, they didn't even bother implementing anti-aliasing into the game. No matter that, knowing it's 5years old game, and the availability of graphical enhancers around this is all semi-fixable, and can be disregarded by majority.

    Mechanics. The physics, AI, and other inner mechanics are very poor designed, if they were designed at all. Vehicle controls are as crappy as ever. Especially every other car that you aren't driving. Motorcycles flying into the air like balloons on every impact. Inflammable cars with a touch of a finger. Cars no longer have fuel tanks apparently. You have to shoot the rims of the car for it to get a blazed and explode. Forget about flat tires. Firing at tires does nothing. Shoot the rims for effect. which goes in three stages apparently. Flat tire -> broken rim -> car in flames. No purchasable safe-houses. No property ownership with benefits. Just story set crappy apartments forces upon you. I recall parachutes and jet packs in previous game installments, non of that here. No "gang members" recruitment. You can't call out for someone to help. Missions scripts are more broken than ever. Sometimes it feels like you have to perform brain-surgery operation to get in place for mission to progress.

    Overally. Having played Vice City, and getting very amazed back in the day, it was improved and topped up with creativity with San Andreas. But, as it seems, they decided to literally downgrade the game for "reality feel". They've removed so much it is unbelievable this game was in production so long. No car customization, no garage, you can't call a ballet to bring you your car. They've spent so much time and effort into rag-doll simulation and animations things just fly by while you are trying to enter a vehicle. Muscle, stamina have been removed. Character customization is just non-existing. You have Niko Bellic as he is. You can buy him a nice suit. That's about it. The whole experience feels like stripped down game. It is rather ironic that throughout the game there are multiple references and mentioning of Vice City, and how much better things are there.

    Conclusion. This review is based on completing the game. I am not one of those who played couple of hours and made their conclusions. Being GTA fan for a decade it is really a shame that such a franchise ended up in such state. It is all down the hill from now on. I am really afraid even taking GTA5 in my hands. Thinking that it will be just like GTA4 with three Niko Bellics running around. Not recommended.
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  3. Mar 15, 2014
    0
    Игра нехорошая, некачественно сделана. Начиная с графики на своем ужасном движке и заканчивая миссиями, которые очень сложно пройти и сложность игры нельзя поменять. Они врут, что много денег тратят на игру, они ничего не тратят, они даже движок нормальный для игры покупать не хотят, делают на своем движке. А игру покупают, потому что она популярна и люди деградированы настолько, чтоИгра нехорошая, некачественно сделана. Начиная с графики на своем ужасном движке и заканчивая миссиями, которые очень сложно пройти и сложность игры нельзя поменять. Они врут, что много денег тратят на игру, они ничего не тратят, они даже движок нормальный для игры покупать не хотят, делают на своем движке. А игру покупают, потому что она популярна и люди деградированы настолько, что играют в такое. Expand
  4. Mar 8, 2014
    7
    A lot of people claim this is a dull GTA game, and say San Andreas is better. San Andreas had more replay value, but GTA IV's story is one of the most underrated stories in a video game ever. It knows when its a good time to be serious, and when it's a good time to be humorous. However, the PC port requires a high-end graphics card even though my computer can run games with better graphicsA lot of people claim this is a dull GTA game, and say San Andreas is better. San Andreas had more replay value, but GTA IV's story is one of the most underrated stories in a video game ever. It knows when its a good time to be serious, and when it's a good time to be humorous. However, the PC port requires a high-end graphics card even though my computer can run games with better graphics than this fine, so its clearly the game that has the problem. Expand
  5. Mar 5, 2014
    7
    It has good graphics and many activities to do, but the missions are repetitive and the plot is not good. Scams and sexual perversion is, something that is not popular video game. 7 and nothing else.
  6. Feb 17, 2014
    8
    Freedom is really the best time was the best graphics, but the mission fails, restart the system without a save point .... Was the worst. But still, no matter how it's traditional ahswiwotda gta series
  7. Feb 14, 2014
    5
    I like GTA games but this one is a bit boring. The graphics are really good but the missions failed to keep me entertained. The Windows Live was also something very annnoying.
  8. Feb 6, 2014
    8
    I love this series, from GTA 3 to San Andreas. They are simply brilliant. This one is just as great but there are 2 things which are maddening. First, my PC almost died when I started this game, and it was a high-end machine at the time. Second, the last mission is unplayable on PC. This makes it 2 titles in the series which make me abandon the game at the last mission. ExtremelyI love this series, from GTA 3 to San Andreas. They are simply brilliant. This one is just as great but there are 2 things which are maddening. First, my PC almost died when I started this game, and it was a high-end machine at the time. Second, the last mission is unplayable on PC. This makes it 2 titles in the series which make me abandon the game at the last mission. Extremely disappointed. Because everything else is perfect, 8 is a fair rating. Expand
  9. Jan 12, 2014
    9
    Greatest open world action adventure i've played.
    the world is EPIC and alive with stunning visuals,good looking NPCs and awesome weather changes.
    really Great voice actors and EPIC charachters that you gonna remember alot of them. the gameplay is really good.......when you shoot someone in his leg he falls and crawls and when you shoot someone on the roof he falls from it, i mean the
    Greatest open world action adventure i've played.
    the world is EPIC and alive with stunning visuals,good looking NPCs and awesome weather changes.
    really Great voice actors and EPIC charachters that you gonna remember alot of them.
    the gameplay is really good.......when you shoot someone in his leg he falls and crawls and when you shoot someone on the roof he falls from it, i mean the developers did awesome things in the gameplay that i've never seen in alot of games.
    AWESOME radio stations especially the Vladivostok,San juan,The beat,electro and radio Broker,btw my fav song in the game was Gruppa krovi from the Vladivostok FM.
    Stunning cars and driving is awesome and realistic,also realistic crashing and accidents are with no doubt one of the best things in the game,i mean you can just take a car and run into some people and have alot of fun.
    my problems with this game are:
    1- alot of missions are all about whacking and killing people with no strange ideas for missions like these in San andreas.
    2-the game has tons of awesome characters but alot of them you will do 2 missions or 3 only like (Manny,Play boy-X,Bruce and Little jacob)
    3-The story is good but nothing special.
    overall this game is great,you have great graphics,Awesome characters,EPIC living world,great voice actors especially NIKO and Little jacob,alot of new ideas like phone,going online and attending a shows, great main theme and radio stations,also dating was really good.
    but i guess the console version is better.
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  10. Jan 5, 2014
    3
    Very late review, but I felt a sudden need to say that this game was an utter disappointment. Flat out boring story and characters, but worst of all, I didnt have fun doing the good old GTA about in the world stuff. It just didnt invite me in...
  11. Jan 3, 2014
    8
    Nice story nice graphics nice gameplay
    Umm.. tell me a thing what is NOT nice PC optimization...
    The game has an bad optimization on PC version that you'll need an high-end graphic card to play it on low-medium settings
    Despite that it's a nice game
  12. Dec 31, 2013
    0
    Anyone that says we shouldn't complain about the game not working, is a moron. Most of us have advanced gaming rigs, like myself. There are known issues with this game that Rockstar has not patched. Its not like its a rare occasion that the game isn't working. There are tons of reports on the game being completely broken. Its not a hardware problem you idiots, its software. In other words,Anyone that says we shouldn't complain about the game not working, is a moron. Most of us have advanced gaming rigs, like myself. There are known issues with this game that Rockstar has not patched. Its not like its a rare occasion that the game isn't working. There are tons of reports on the game being completely broken. Its not a hardware problem you idiots, its software. In other words, the game was not created to be compatible-friendly to everyone. We shouldn't be expected to fix their mistakes. Play with folders and files. If I wanted to mess around in the folders, I would have pirated it. Also If it was our rigs, then why do all other games work? Literally GTA IV is the only game to not function properly.

    But besides my game not working right. The Social Club DRM is down only on GTA IV, the website will take my login, but not the game, you know, where its intended to be used. But that's fine, we could always play single player, right? Nope, because we can't save the game when you cant login to the servers. Why bother the game. Me personally can't even start up story mode, and I can't login to the servers to play online. We should not accept this garbage. I'm sure the game is fantastic when its working. But I have to judge it as its entirety. Unfortunately a poor interface destroyed a potentially excellent PC game.

    Personally I have to do a 0 because it was not functioning at all. I tried fixing it for hours, tried all the known methods, and had no luck. If I was able to actually play the game then I could have been a little more focused on the game's mechanics.

    ##tl;dr Version##
    1. DRM, servers are down only in game. You can't play online.
    2. DRM also is required just to save local story mode.
    3. Thousands of cases of the game not even functions, and users are on their own to fix them.
    4. Personally in my cause, I couldn't fix them.
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  13. Dec 14, 2013
    10
    Rockstar really impressed me with this. Besides the bugs, the game is awesome. We had a 360 console for everyone and it blew up so then we all had got our own and then must of our owns blew up so now we're playing it on pc. No performance issues or any problems with the difficulty level. I have quite a GTA collection. 10/10 including all GTA games.
  14. Dec 3, 2013
    8
    Pro of GTA IV.

    -It got very nice ragdoll system -Good police AI but not very good -Cover system -HUD take up less screen -GPS system,it helped me much when I am new to this game -Funny characters,I really like Roman and Niko much -Rockstar being creative by making thing looks grey and blurry to fit atmosphere of the game -Swing set glitch! Cons of GTA IV -Peds not using
    Pro of GTA IV.

    -It got very nice ragdoll system
    -Good police AI but not very good
    -Cover system
    -HUD take up less screen
    -GPS system,it helped me much when I am new to this game
    -Funny characters,I really like Roman and Niko much
    -Rockstar being creative by making thing looks grey and blurry to fit atmosphere of the game
    -Swing set glitch!

    Cons of GTA IV

    -Peds not using ragdoll on far away
    -Worst performence on PC,my game's FPS stuck between 5-15 on my high end PC
    -Too many cheaters on multiplayer
    -Some vehicles is spawned on wrong place which cause epic traffic jam
    -Friend feature will getting annoying if you played GTA IV from a long time.
    -Unable to customize your vehicle
    -If your car park has more than 2 vehicles,one of your vehicle will gone due to a bug.
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  15. Nov 30, 2013
    1
    I think earlier versions had nicer control and more fluid gameplay on PC. Besides, the ton of copy protection took me hours to figure out (it's really a huge pile of and bugs are abundant, I'll go with Saints Row from now on.
  16. Nov 23, 2013
    8
    Metacritic doesn't let you delete reviews so I'm writing a load of useless, pointless garbage to fill up the minimum of one hundred and fifty characters.
  17. Nov 21, 2013
    6
    This game is rather hard to rate due to it's terrible port to the PC.
    However, gameplay wise it offers a heck of a lot, but not enough to beat San Andreas or the mighty king that is Vice City.
    I did enjoy the game, but there is so many graphical issues and performance issues that take you from the immersion.
    Not a bad game, not a fantastic one either, but worth a play.
  18. Nov 20, 2013
    1
    1 point, because of included video editor. When this game was released, I bought it (was the last game I ever bought) and was very, very disappointed. I will not talk bout windows live and social club crappy malware applications, don't worry. Shortly: After Vice city and San Andreas has arrived a called GTA IV. Graphic was ugly, no anti-aliasing, but including disgusting grainy shadows1 point, because of included video editor. When this game was released, I bought it (was the last game I ever bought) and was very, very disappointed. I will not talk bout windows live and social club crappy malware applications, don't worry. Shortly: After Vice city and San Andreas has arrived a called GTA IV. Graphic was ugly, no anti-aliasing, but including disgusting grainy shadows and colors was totally bleached, aka desaturated. Just ugly, absolutely ugly and playable barely at 30 fps on superb PC. Story is also boring as fuk, full of non-sense stereotype missions, all you do is driving a fukin car, and driving a car in this game is like driving a on wheels. When you finish the game, you have like million dollars, but all you can do is buy a million of hotdogs or t-shirts. Where else to spent all those money? It's useless! Remember how you was counting every penny in Vice city to buy Malibu club? Forget that! This is GTA IV, this is You can't even do a taxi missions. No taxi missions in a city situated into pseudo-New York! Fukin scandal, there's nothing to do after you finish story line. Whole city is empty, boring, dull. This game is a of a decade. Oh, and this is great: Your phone is constantly ringing and that fat fuk cousin of yours always want to go bowling, great. This game ruined my Christmas in 2008, thanks Rockstar for this lazy utter crap. Expand
  19. Nov 20, 2013
    6
    Just finished the game and I have to say that I did enjoy most of it. The story kept me playing and wanting to know what happens next. Characters were well written. Performance was decent, better what I expected. But here comes the big downside; it is a port and not a good one. The aiming felt terrible, everything but precise. I also felt some mouse input lag, though it might be partlyJust finished the game and I have to say that I did enjoy most of it. The story kept me playing and wanting to know what happens next. Characters were well written. Performance was decent, better what I expected. But here comes the big downside; it is a port and not a good one. The aiming felt terrible, everything but precise. I also felt some mouse input lag, though it might be partly because of the occasional slowdowns. Everything above I can deal with, since the story was quite good and the world was somewhat interesting, but there was this huge glitch in the last mission. Probably not news to anyone anymore but god damn was it frustrating. Google it. Never ever again. For the summary: Great story, great characters, decent world and decent frame rate but such a horrible pc port which is the reason why I wouldn't play it again on pc. Expand
  20. Nov 16, 2013
    5
    Many people here seem to be complaining about performance issues without stating their card.

    I'm running the game on a GT 635m, It runs alright with no shadows on at 1360x768, Textures Medium, V-Sync on and Tripple buffering, I also went into the Geforce Control panel and manually enabled FXAA which cleans up those edges without destroying frame rate. As for gameplay, I just found it
    Many people here seem to be complaining about performance issues without stating their card.

    I'm running the game on a GT 635m, It runs alright with no shadows on at 1360x768, Textures Medium, V-Sync on and Tripple buffering, I also went into the Geforce Control panel and manually enabled FXAA which cleans up those edges without destroying frame rate.

    As for gameplay, I just found it boring. The physics are good but the storyline is pretty tedious, I can't relate to the main charactor because he seems to be a dick head and no matter how you dress him he looks like a tramp. The whole game world is grey with some kind of weird bloom so without mods it's even ugly to explore.

    There are better games out there, Sleeping Dogs/Saints Row both do a better job of entertaining open world gaming.
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  21. Nov 13, 2013
    6
    Learning nothing about improving the experience for the player but making better graphics and more interesting characters we have GTA IV. It's not horrible but it's blown out of the water by the saints row franchise.
  22. Nov 13, 2013
    10
    Grand Theft Auto IV was an amazing culmination of graphics and story and of course our favorite reason to play GTA, the ability to walk up to anyone and....... kill them. But what stood out to me the most was GTA IV Story. GTA IV's protagonist, Niko Bellic, is a man that a lot of people can relate to; he is just tired and always drawn into things he doesn't want to do but he does themGrand Theft Auto IV was an amazing culmination of graphics and story and of course our favorite reason to play GTA, the ability to walk up to anyone and....... kill them. But what stood out to me the most was GTA IV Story. GTA IV's protagonist, Niko Bellic, is a man that a lot of people can relate to; he is just tired and always drawn into things he doesn't want to do but he does them because he needs to; a very admirable quality. He also has a hint of P.T.S.D syndrome from going through war and doing a lot of things he didn't want to do and seeing a lot of things he didn't want to see. Yet he toils on to help his cousin with his financtial problems and then protect him from various very bad characters. He is a big step up from GTA III's protagonist who's name isn't even mentioned in game and he doesn't even talk. So the compelling story and the amazing, borderline lag your computer graphics is why I think this game is so great. Expand
  23. Nov 11, 2013
    10
    best game best gamebest game best gamebest game best gamebest game best gamebest game best gamebest game best gamebest game best gamebest game best gamebest game best gamebest game best gamebest game best gamebest game best gamebest game best game
  24. Nov 9, 2013
    5
    What a mess, where can I start... This is hard to write, because this game is what ruined one of my favorite game series for me. First of all, the installation process. It took me hours to get running! I had to install Rockstar Games Social Club, then the atrocious Games for Windows Live, verify the game online and click on buttons of message boxes that had screwed up fonts, so I had noWhat a mess, where can I start... This is hard to write, because this game is what ruined one of my favorite game series for me. First of all, the installation process. It took me hours to get running! I had to install Rockstar Games Social Club, then the atrocious Games for Windows Live, verify the game online and click on buttons of message boxes that had screwed up fonts, so I had no idea what I was actually pressing and had to get through all this with trial and error. After I've finally gotten everything running another disappointment followed. The game couldn't run even at 10 fps on full graphics on my gaming PC that could handle anything for years to come after that, worst optimization I have ever come across. The game itself was okay, but OK doesn't cut it for a GTA title. Niko was a very plain and boring character (What was his motivation to do everything he did? He needs money? Wow... great story right there.) and Liberty City felt too grey and boring. The missions were also a pain to get through instead of actually being fun, the same boring thing over and over again. It's too bad, this game could really have been something, in reality it was just an over-hyped piece of Expand
  25. Nov 3, 2013
    2
    First off. terrible port even with my core i5 4570 and amd 7870 the game lags like The textures are just so bad same with meshes in doors. And the story line is just the same over and over do this go do that bla bla all you do is drive there do that then do it again its boring as hell. I hope they actually optimize GTA V for pc this time instead of spending 2 mins porting it to pc
  26. vpm
    Nov 1, 2013
    8
    I'm just going to keep this simple, since the game is quite old already and way too many people have reviewed this.
    Nowadays, this game is great fun. Sure it's still quite the technical drama with the memory leaks and all, but on a decent system it's more than playable. I've been playing it on my system for almost 3 years now. What makes this game really fun is its great modability. There
    I'm just going to keep this simple, since the game is quite old already and way too many people have reviewed this.
    Nowadays, this game is great fun. Sure it's still quite the technical drama with the memory leaks and all, but on a decent system it's more than playable. I've been playing it on my system for almost 3 years now. What makes this game really fun is its great modability. There are some gems out there, transforming this game into something I think even Rockstar wouldn't have come up with.
    I use just one mod in this game (since something like ICE only make it extra buggy): Realistic handling damage. This makes for a decent driving experience and jacks up the difficulty (police chases) a lot. Cars simply don't handle like tanks anymore. Once you crash, you're done!

    Some things Rockstar did a very good (not great) job at:
    - Integrating Euphoria
    - Traffic simulator
    - Interesting enough & lengthy campaign (not minding our protagonist is just an overgrown delivery boy)

    They flunked at the port, but everybody knows that by now. As I said, it's very well playable when you know your hardware (see EyjoK.'s review) and install the proper mod(s).
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  27. Oct 24, 2013
    9
    GTA IV is a fantastic game, with excellent fiction and a city that has its own character. I am on my second play through now in preparation for GTA V for the PC and it feels as fresh as it did 3 years ago. I must say that you really need a fast CPU to get good frame rates from this game... I upgraded from a Core2Quad to a Core i5 4670K recently and the game finally runs at 60fps usingGTA IV is a fantastic game, with excellent fiction and a city that has its own character. I am on my second play through now in preparation for GTA V for the PC and it feels as fresh as it did 3 years ago. I must say that you really need a fast CPU to get good frame rates from this game... I upgraded from a Core2Quad to a Core i5 4670K recently and the game finally runs at 60fps using the same video card... NVidia GTX 480. The game does NOT run better with a better video card. Expand
  28. Oct 17, 2013
    7
    Decent-ish PC port. My computer is lucky enough to run it, GFWL isn't screwing up for me or anything, but the missions are a bit boring, and the final mission is bugged. You MUST use a xbox controller or a framerate limiter to be able to do the QTE/Button mashing on the last level(s). Depending on either a deal or revenge. The one thing that the PC version makes up for is the replay editorDecent-ish PC port. My computer is lucky enough to run it, GFWL isn't screwing up for me or anything, but the missions are a bit boring, and the final mission is bugged. You MUST use a xbox controller or a framerate limiter to be able to do the QTE/Button mashing on the last level(s). Depending on either a deal or revenge. The one thing that the PC version makes up for is the replay editor and mods like Simple Native Trainer and LCPDFR. Expand
  29. Oct 11, 2013
    1
    This game is completely and utterly terrible. Its boring and repetitive and ridiculously frustrating. The only thing I liked was the city. Liberty City breathes and feels real, That's the only thing I like about this game, other then that, it's simply terrible and a waste of money. Even the textures are terrible for its time.
  30. Oct 6, 2013
    6
    Grand Theft Auto is Grand Theft Auto. It's a game where you get to steal any car you want, murder any person you want and get away with it scot-free (well almost, unless you're caught in the act but the cops are pretty incompetent). It's every misogynist's fantasy and it does it very well. However, the game is pretty dated now so you're probably better off with newer and far superior fareGrand Theft Auto is Grand Theft Auto. It's a game where you get to steal any car you want, murder any person you want and get away with it scot-free (well almost, unless you're caught in the act but the cops are pretty incompetent). It's every misogynist's fantasy and it does it very well. However, the game is pretty dated now so you're probably better off with newer and far superior fare such as Mafia II or Sleeping Dogs, if you're into this sort of thing. Expand
  31. Oct 6, 2013
    7
    Grand Theft Auto IV has a great engine, the graphics are okay, it has great multiplayer and it runs really smooth. But the score was brought down by low view distance, boring story and one of the worst things to ever happen to games industry also known as games for windows live.
  32. Sep 26, 2013
    2
    I tried valiantly to get into this, since I have been a devote fan of the GTA franchise since I first fired up top-down GTA ever so many years ago. However, I have some fairly sizable complaints. And I feel they're likely shared by others...

    While the in-game graphics are lovely, and my rig handles in-game play with ease even at higher detail I noticed immediately that the cut-scenes
    I tried valiantly to get into this, since I have been a devote fan of the GTA franchise since I first fired up top-down GTA ever so many years ago. However, I have some fairly sizable complaints. And I feel they're likely shared by others...

    While the in-game graphics are lovely, and my rig handles in-game play with ease even at higher detail I noticed immediately that the cut-scenes are the herky-jerkiest mess of nausea-inducing graphical horror imaginable. If my machine can handle maxed out graphical settings in-game, why in the world are cut-scenes such a dreadful chore to render?

    Vehicle controls are not just modestly too realistic, they're OVERLY realistic: Making the game feel more like work than an escape probably wasn't the best course to take here. The higher-end cars would seem to be the way out of this quagmire, yet they actually magnify this effect. They're not stogy and unresponsive, no, but they're overly twitchy and even less fun to pilot.

    I've played some disappointing Rockstar games in my time, but this one easily tops the list. I say this only having played for a few hours, but I can't honestly think of anything I'd rather continue doing less than muddle through this fiasco.

    If you're eagerly awaiting GTA 5 for the PC and are seriously thinking of purchasing this to fill your wistful, empty hours until it is finally released to us PC plebs, I implore you not to bother.

    I'd honestly rather replay one of the decent GTA releases, GTA:VC including the impossible RC helicopter missions and ridiculous "try until you want to cry" boat missions all the way through again, rather than continue with this shambolic offering an hour longer.

    For shame, Rockstar. For shame.
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  33. Sep 24, 2013
    9
    It's very apparent that GTA IV on PC is a sloppy console port, but it's really not the worst out there. It can run well on medium-end hardware with the right tweaks used, you just need to have a brain and enough dedication to search for the tweaks yourself. If you don't, then get the 2nd best version (Xbox 360). Aside from tech issues... Gameplay is solid. Story is interesting (EFLC dlcIt's very apparent that GTA IV on PC is a sloppy console port, but it's really not the worst out there. It can run well on medium-end hardware with the right tweaks used, you just need to have a brain and enough dedication to search for the tweaks yourself. If you don't, then get the 2nd best version (Xbox 360). Aside from tech issues... Gameplay is solid. Story is interesting (EFLC dlc applies). Memorable characters. Lots of humor mixed with seriousness. The character behavior is quite realistic and so are the ragdoll physics. Vehicle collision physics are amazing, like no other game I've seen. Driving cars feels a little weird (fixable with mods). Mods keep this game alive! If you decide to get it on PC, get some mods! Here's a few that will make it worth your while: Icenhancer, Realistic Driving, Simple Native Trainer. I don't know how big multiplayer is nowadays, but back then, it was FUN! But so is single player, running over 30 pedestrians all at once, filling the screen with realistically flopping bodies and watching where they all land. It never gets old to me! Am I deranged? :P Expand
  34. Sep 20, 2013
    10
    GTA as a Game never ever disappointed me. Played every single GTA and i never enjoyed any Game series so much. The Game might be a bit "empty" compared to San Andreas, but GTA IV has a great story and a main character. Physics are also good.

    The city appeared more alive compared to any other GTA because of those little quests and random events. We can all agree that the PC port is a
    GTA as a Game never ever disappointed me. Played every single GTA and i never enjoyed any Game series so much. The Game might be a bit "empty" compared to San Andreas, but GTA IV has a great story and a main character. Physics are also good.

    The city appeared more alive compared to any other GTA because of those little quests and random events.

    We can all agree that the PC port is a complete disaster. Horrible performance and lots of bugs Rockstar just rushed it and put no effort into it. They made fun of their huge PC playerbase, there is nothing more to say. But yeah, even though the Game ran like crap, even with my good PC, i still loved the Game.
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  35. Sep 16, 2013
    2
    I don't get it. I just don't get it. This game does not deserve the 98/100 critic score on 360, even without the problems of this horrible PC port, the game isn't that great. Is Rockstar paying off reviewers for high scores? This game is boring. Sure the story is engaging, but 90% of the time you're just driving around a city. It takes itself too seriously, sure the world has some goofyI don't get it. I just don't get it. This game does not deserve the 98/100 critic score on 360, even without the problems of this horrible PC port, the game isn't that great. Is Rockstar paying off reviewers for high scores? This game is boring. Sure the story is engaging, but 90% of the time you're just driving around a city. It takes itself too seriously, sure the world has some goofy stuff, but the story of the game is too dark and serious, look at Saint's Row, it's cheesy and over the top, that's funny. And now GTA5 has a 98/100 too, and that's depressing. People go after CoD for this all the time, but every GTA game is the same, you drive around, kill people, do missions. There's so many better games out there that just came out that aren't getting any attention, Rayman Legends for instance, that game tries so many fresh ideas, and it works. But gets no attention. This is truly sad for the gaming community. Expand
  36. Sep 13, 2013
    10
    This game should be recognised as one of the all time best games for the PC. The gameplay, the new features, mainly the graphics are all superb. Mind blowing storyline, that's all i can say. I mostly loved the three leaf clover mission which u do under Packie if i am not mistaken. That was the best ever GTA mission i've ever done. That was massive climax in the game.
  37. Sep 9, 2013
    6
    This game is a blast to play. The freedom it gives and the options you have are loads of fun, but... BUT... The story is very hard to get into. One of the worst expositions in a game. It didn't make me interested to play it. You just do very mundane chores for about three hours. A very fun game with a bland story.
  38. Sep 3, 2013
    8
    I have to admit this game received mixed reviews. This games still deserves credit though. Its something new. First, I would start with its negative review. So many glitches. It sucked. It lacks a lot from its previous successors.Now, the positive reviews. The game's great. Great graphics, storyline, mechanics and creativity and new features.
  39. Aug 28, 2013
    1
    Rockstar has been making the exact same game ever since GTA3 came out on PS2. Why are people acting like GTA4 is something different? It’s not, except for two things: it’s on a new generation of consoles and is actually worse than GTA3.

    First off: anyone praising the graphics is blind or has never played a video game before this one. Textures are muddled, colors are drab, environments
    Rockstar has been making the exact same game ever since GTA3 came out on PS2. Why are people acting like GTA4 is something different? It’s not, except for two things: it’s on a new generation of consoles and is actually worse than GTA3.

    First off: anyone praising the graphics is blind or has never played a video game before this one. Textures are muddled, colors are drab, environments are bland, all of which combines to make it difficult to see where you are and where you’re going.

    Second: they jacked up the driving physics of the game so now it feels like everything is moving underwater. Turns that used to be simple now send you sliding into walls, which gets frustrating given the large number of slow, crappy cars you seem to be forced to drive in this game.

    Third: the stale mission-structured gameplay is exactly the same as it was over 10 years ago. It’s so tedious now. You get a mission giver, you have to drive across town to start the mission, then you have to drive to your mission destination, then back to your house if you want to keep your car. Fail the mission and you have to start the commute again. They have even added in “features” like toll booths now, which create traffic on bridges that honestly make you feel like you are commuting to work because if you charge through them you get an automatic wanted rating.

    Oh, and did I mention something about keeping a car you want available? Well, in this game they decided to do away with garages for some reason. You know: the places you used to be able to store vehicles. Now your various pads with have one or two parallel parking spaces out in the middle of the AI-trafficked street and if you park a car there *perfectly* it will be saved. However, if it’s a big car or if the AI traffic knocks it slightly out of place, it will be gone when you reload.

    Possibly the most annoying new “feature” of this series is the dating mini-games. You can hang out with certain people to increase their affection toward you, which reaps you certain benefits, but then ALL of them CONSTANTLY call you to hang out, even if you’re in the middle of a mission getting chased by the cops, or in the middle of commuting to do your next mission, or commuting home from your last mission. Whatever. And if you tell them no, even if it’s your own cousin asking you to go bowling again, though you just went bowling with him two days ago, he will get upset and you’ll lose affection. You can’t tell them no.

    Also, Liberty City is big but incredibly empty. You will not be rewarded for exploring b/c there is simply not much out there. Instead of secret packages to collect, this time around you have to kill special pigeons, which are very frustrating to find even with the help of a guide. I got to about 20 or so before I asked myself why the hell I was doing it, because I wasn’t having any fun.

    Finally, the “story” I keep seeing so many positive reviews refer to is stupid & nonsensical. You’re an illegal alien who begins a career as a professional criminal as soon as you step off the boat. Not much different from any other GTA protagonist aside from not already being a US citizen, right? Except now you’re Borat. AMAZING! There IS NO story! You’re a criminal who makes friends with other criminals throughout the game and then commits criminal acts. *spoiler*

    Furthermore, while there may well be 20 hours’ worth of cutscenes (which tend to go on forever) & dialogue (which also never ends during your mission commutes with NPCs), it seems like it was all written by a 10-year old boy. Penis & fart jokes, characters needlessly dropping f-bombs twice a sentence to be “edgy” (I guess), and all-around lame humor in general that makes you roll your eyes and want to skip through every cutscene you come across. Unless you are a 10-year old boy, in which case I guess you’d be in heaven. Maybe that’s the targeted demographic now?

    But Rockstar will keep making the same game as long as sheep keep buying it. Anyone who wants to see what an improvement in this genre looks like, I’d direct you toward Saints Row the Third. Not the best game ever, but one that is actually, you know, “fun” to play. Something Rockstar left out of GTA4.
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  40. Aug 24, 2013
    7
    The story is great, but the most of the missions involve shoot outs which get's annoying and very repetitive. The PC port is horrible, the controls are fine but the performance is the real issue. My recently bought computer could not keep a steady frame rate at even lowered graphic settings...
    The game doesn't have as much features as San Andreas does, but this one introduces car damage
    The story is great, but the most of the missions involve shoot outs which get's annoying and very repetitive. The PC port is horrible, the controls are fine but the performance is the real issue. My recently bought computer could not keep a steady frame rate at even lowered graphic settings...
    The game doesn't have as much features as San Andreas does, but this one introduces car damage physics, realistic ragdolls ect.
    But other then that, you can't do as much as in San Andreas, in which case the selection of clothing is very limited, you cannot tune your cars, work out to gain strength ect. Later you will be finding yourself not knowing how to spend all of the money you've earned from the missions, there is more ways to earn the cash then to spend it... After all I'll still give this game a very weak 7.
    I'm really looking forward to GTA V and let's hope it wont port as badly as this one did.
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  41. Aug 23, 2013
    0
    Is Grand Theft Auto IV a good game? Yes, absolutely, I have not one bad thing to say about it. Is it a good PC port? Absolutely not, in fact I would call it number one for worst PC port of all time. Rockstar clearly spent most of their time jerking off instead of creating a perfect port of one of the best games of its time. Everything is buggy, and I am running a VERY high-end system, andIs Grand Theft Auto IV a good game? Yes, absolutely, I have not one bad thing to say about it. Is it a good PC port? Absolutely not, in fact I would call it number one for worst PC port of all time. Rockstar clearly spent most of their time jerking off instead of creating a perfect port of one of the best games of its time. Everything is buggy, and I am running a VERY high-end system, and can just barely max the game on highest resolution. There should be NO reason that a guy running a GTX 760 with 2GB of GDDR5 shouldn't be able to handle this game no sweat. I cannot believe Rockstar would screw its fans and players over like this, and the fact that the game has such high praise from critics, they should all be ashamed for letting this slip through the cracks. As a second complaint, being a guy who has Windows 8, the DRM best known as Suckurom crashes when I even attempt to start the game, a bigger kick in the head when I can completely circumvent it after pirating the game so I could actually play it (thanks a ton, you pricks.) If GTA V ever gets ported to PC I hope Rockstar at least learns from a few of their mistakes. Expand
  42. Aug 22, 2013
    9
    This game is awesome (like almost every Grand Theft Auto title), but it has two things which can scare PC gamers away Games for Windows Live and SecuROM, not to mention the quality of porting this game can stutter on high-end PCs, but if you don't mind things I mentioned above, you will have a really good time.
  43. Aug 20, 2013
    3
    GTA 4 is a good game, but by no means 10/10 perfect, game of all years. It is let down by it's clunky cover, shooting and driving controls, repetitive missions, unnecessary plot points and frankly, an overrated story which really only gets good half way through. normally, this game, despite all its faults would have warranted a 7.5/10, but the PC version of the game is absolutely terrible.GTA 4 is a good game, but by no means 10/10 perfect, game of all years. It is let down by it's clunky cover, shooting and driving controls, repetitive missions, unnecessary plot points and frankly, an overrated story which really only gets good half way through. normally, this game, despite all its faults would have warranted a 7.5/10, but the PC version of the game is absolutely terrible. Why? With my relatively recent and powerful GTX570 and AMD 6-core CPU, i expect a game as old as GTA IV (at this point, 5 years old), to be able to run at a decent frame rate on highest settings. Unfortunately, due to the horrible optimization, I manage a meagre 15 fps on highest settings, whilst looking much worse than newer games such as Just Cause 2 or Saints Row 3. On top of this piss poor optimization job, Both the Rockstar Social Club and Games for Windows Live layers just add another layer of annoyance to the game. Clearly, PC is not the platform for this game, and even then it is highly overrated. If you want game similar to this, invest in Saints Row 3, or play San Andreas. Expand
  44. Aug 20, 2013
    10
    People who give this a 1-5 have not played the game on PC. The game works with Windows 7, and over and under to a certain point, there is in fact really good graphics that your computer has to handle, in which almost every persons' computer can handle. This is a wonderful game with many perks, all say there are 'bugs' these are easter eggs. Not bugs.
  45. Aug 10, 2013
    10
    Awesome game. Intriguing story, awesome graphics, fun to play. Well, mybe PC port could be better (back when released only ultra-hi-end PC could run it maxed), but now game runs flawlessly for most gamers. Great modding community.
  46. Aug 5, 2013
    3
    Don't know about the whole buggy aspect, I ran this for over fifteen hours of gameplay without any trouble on a win7 32bit. It's pretty fun, but pales in comparison to GTA San andreas, or better yet, Saints Row 3.
  47. Aug 1, 2013
    6
    Le doy 6 porque tiene buenos graficos; pero la historia es un verdadero desastre. Nada emocionante como las anteriores versiones de GTA. Para pasar el rato.
  48. Jul 29, 2013
    9
    All round good game! Diverse and immersing storyline, interesting and varying missions and plenty to do when the main story is complete. Diverse range of vehicles, weapons, side missions, collectibles and unlocks provide a great and fun environment to play in. However constant harassment by friends to "go bowling" or "play pool" becomes extremely frustrating. Also hand to hand combat andAll round good game! Diverse and immersing storyline, interesting and varying missions and plenty to do when the main story is complete. Diverse range of vehicles, weapons, side missions, collectibles and unlocks provide a great and fun environment to play in. However constant harassment by friends to "go bowling" or "play pool" becomes extremely frustrating. Also hand to hand combat and traversing on foot fails to provide fluent and enjoyable game play at times. Not to mention common freezing and lag issues. Expand
  49. Jul 26, 2013
    3
    Maybe the console version is a great game, but (for me at least) the PC port is borderline unplayable. The controls are horrendous and the cars drive like greased bricks with an inexplicable tendency to flip over at the tiniest bump in the road. Your character moves like he's 300 lbs and fights like his arms are 2 inches long.
    Really what kills it for me is the control of the vehicles
    Maybe the console version is a great game, but (for me at least) the PC port is borderline unplayable. The controls are horrendous and the cars drive like greased bricks with an inexplicable tendency to flip over at the tiniest bump in the road. Your character moves like he's 300 lbs and fights like his arms are 2 inches long.
    Really what kills it for me is the control of the vehicles (or lack thereof). It's supposed to be a driving game, yet I'm pretty sure no one who developed (or ported) this game has ever driven a car. The cars barely turn at any speed unless you powerslide, at which point you will inevitably over-slide your turn and continue sliding until you hit something or do a complete 180. Also, all the cameras except the on-the-hood one lag behind the turns, making it impossible to see oncoming traffic or obstacles for a few seconds when you make a turn. Oh, and the cars flip over at the slightest hint of an elevation change.
    This may be unnecessarily critical, but one of the things that bothered me the most was the menus. The mouse moves abysmally slowly, even at the highest sensitivity. This is infuriating when setting the GPS: you have to painstakingly move the mouse to the region you want, but when you click, it recenters the mouse and you have to move it back to the spot again to set the GPS. I know this is nitpicking, but when your mouse moves at one pixel per hour, it worsens an already frustrating experience.
    All in all, I was extrememely disappointed with this game, and I don't see me giving it another chance, at least on PC.
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  50. Jul 22, 2013
    10
    This game is absolutely amazing. Now i play a lot of video games but whenever i play with friends or am just overall bored i always come back to this game! With its action packed story-line to its amazing multiplayer this game is for anyone wanting a blast and a blast to last forever!
  51. Jul 21, 2013
    8
    The patches that were released have made this feel slightly less of a console port, which is a good thing.
    The major negative is that you really do need a good PC to run this. I do so I really love this game. Good story and great features of gameplay. The graphics are great and there is a massive modding community out there so once you completed it there is huge re-playability. I still do
    The patches that were released have made this feel slightly less of a console port, which is a good thing.
    The major negative is that you really do need a good PC to run this. I do so I really love this game. Good story and great features of gameplay. The graphics are great and there is a massive modding community out there so once you completed it there is huge re-playability. I still do prefer GTA:SA though to be honest but this is an excellent GTA game.
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  52. Jul 16, 2013
    1
    This game is great. Unfortunately the combination of Games for Windows Live and Rockstar Social Club leads to a DRM f@%kfest that renders what might have been a great port into a useless pile of unplayable garbage. Glitches, fps drop, and crashing are what I come to expect from a port but when I can't even start the game due to login issues I have to say its bad
  53. Jul 13, 2013
    0
    I got this for £5 on Steam which was brilliant but when I went to play the game it all went wrong because of the stupid Microsoft Live sign in to save game progress, I signed up for it all yet it still doesn't work so every time I log in it still tells me to create an account, F**k you Microsoft for ruining a great game. Just buy it on console.
  54. Jul 6, 2013
    7
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. Welcome to Liberty City, again, in High Definition this time. Right after the universally acclaimed and controversial release of Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas, in 2004, the guys from Rockstar North have been hard at work to bring us a new, different gaming experience. Four years later, we meet Niko Bellic in Liberty City, trying to get away from his dark past, and chase the "American Dream" along with his cousin, Roman.

    I remember when it was first released for the consoles, I was so excited about it that I have watched all of the gameplay missions on YouTube long before it was released for the PC, not owning a console. It's a pity that Rockstar North keeps neglecting their PC fans like that. GTA IV was released on the PC seven full months (and a few days) after the initial console release. Having it come out so late for the PC was definitely a disappointment for me, and dozens of thousands of other fans.

    Grand Theft Auto IV was a major turn in the GTA series. Two major improvements GTA IV brought to the table were new graphics and a brand-new kick-a** engine. At first glance, it seemed as if this game was complete as it was, without the need of a story or anything else at all, it seemed simply amazing, and so it was... at least for a while. Although the graphics and engine improved, the gameplay seemed a little too repetitive after a while, thus making it a little boring, at best.

    The story structure took a different approach from the one in GTA San Andreas: The player was no longer demanded to do this and that and be everybody's b*tch (don't get me wrong, I love GTA San Andreas' plot!), instead he was given more control over the game, that being proved by some critical decisions the player has to make, which all lead to different results.

    In GTA IV you play as Niko Bellic, a Yugoslavian man, in his mid-late 30's who came to Liberty City to chase the American Dream... and kill two guys who betrayed him while he was in the army. That's how to plot kicks off, following a series of twists and events in the search of the almighty dollar and the taste of the sweet revenge.

    Even though GTA IV has a pretty solid plot and activities like bowling, going to comedy clubs, visiting strip clubs, taking helicopter rides above LC, drinking, eating at restaurants and a few others, the gameplay is becoming obsolete after a certain amount of hours into the game. After finishing the main story, I was left looking for ways to get entertained, but shooting cops is not always fun and it became boring after a while doing the same thing over and over again having the same results.

    Every game in the GTA series is known for its great music catalog and GTA IV made no exception. Having a vast amount of radio stations, with hand-picked tracks, the music is great as expected. The sounds were also great. Voice acting was flawless, I was not disappointed for a second, great performance from everyone on the team.

    There are many other aspects of the game that I could talk about, but I'll just stop here as this is not a paid review, it's written almost 5 years after the release of the game and I'm not sure anyone will read this much anyway.

    I gave it a 7 out of 10 because of the delayed release on the PC, for the inevitable repetitive gameplay after a while, also for the lack of places to spend the big hard earned bucks.

    Conclusion: GTA IV truly stands out in the GTA series but it could have been even better. It dissapoints at certain points but it makes up on others. Let's hope GTA V will be a combination of San Andreas & IV in terms of gameplay/graphics/plot.
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  55. Jul 1, 2013
    10
    i am making a new review as update for my review that i wrote in march.i said there is a problem that the game is slow,so i succeded to fix it and now i am doing a new review with an higher score.so here is the new review.
    gta iv is a masterpiece,it is one of the bests games i ever played.the cars are fast,the gameplay is great,the story is good.there is nothing to complaing
  56. Jun 29, 2013
    10
    The game of the century, such game will be made once in a century, best game ever, the best free roaming game ever, best gameplay, best graphics, best story and best physics.
  57. Jun 15, 2013
    6
    I love the GTA series but this was disappointing. I guess I should start playing Saint's Row if I want to have fun, and play this if I want... I don't know what it gives me.

    I'm going to finish it, but over half way in it is so dull, the story doesn't have the sense of fun as the others did. I always loved GTA for being a bit ridiculous, but still kind of realistic. They're made this
    I love the GTA series but this was disappointing. I guess I should start playing Saint's Row if I want to have fun, and play this if I want... I don't know what it gives me.

    I'm going to finish it, but over half way in it is so dull, the story doesn't have the sense of fun as the others did. I always loved GTA for being a bit ridiculous, but still kind of realistic. They're made this one too realistic.

    That being said I got it for $5 on Steam so I can't complain.
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  58. Jun 11, 2013
    0
    i really think i just wasted 20 bucks. after having to sign in twice, the game wouldn't let me advance after the first autosave because it wouldn't download my account, and when i chose the option to not autosave, the game got stuck in a loop and took me back to the autosave options. ive played this game on other platforms and loved it, then i download it and noticed microsofts recenti really think i just wasted 20 bucks. after having to sign in twice, the game wouldn't let me advance after the first autosave because it wouldn't download my account, and when i chose the option to not autosave, the game got stuck in a loop and took me back to the autosave options. ive played this game on other platforms and loved it, then i download it and noticed microsofts recent tendency to kill everything it touched.

    i would recommend this for any platform other than the pc. Microsoft had to go messing things up again and totally destroyed the game.
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  59. May 25, 2013
    10
    I can't believe there are people complaining about how CPU and graphic intensive this game is. It's GTA IV. There's massive amounts of things going on. How does the fact that your PC is terrible, make this a bad game?

    Apart from all that, it had a very nice storyline, that usual GTA feel to it, loads of things going on, things to do etc. Lots of attention to detail. Great game. Enough said.
  60. Apr 29, 2013
    9
    I would like to say to everybody that are reading these reviews, that this game is definitely worth your money. There is tons of content, collectibles, customization and much more in this game to keep you playing for hours. Even if the singleplayer sucked (but you know it won't, it's Grand Theft Auto!) the multiplayer is one of the best that I have ever seen, there are countlessI would like to say to everybody that are reading these reviews, that this game is definitely worth your money. There is tons of content, collectibles, customization and much more in this game to keep you playing for hours. Even if the singleplayer sucked (but you know it won't, it's Grand Theft Auto!) the multiplayer is one of the best that I have ever seen, there are countless different modes (I'm not even kidding, there is like 13 or something), each offering lots of value to play. I mean, there has to be a reason that IGN gave this game a 10/10, right? However, you might be mislead by the user score of 6.0 and the almost 500 negative reviews. There are many complains involving the issue of "the world being too small" and people going on this forum, b*tching that their computer can't handle the game and it is impossible to run. I would like to clear up the issues of both these problems. Firstly, if you find the world too small, go back to San Andreas and ride your jetpack, OK? this has to be if not the most then one of the most detailed open world cities that I have ever seen in a video game. Incredible graphics make the city feel much more realistic than any open world game before, and obviously a ton of work was spent on it. If you think you can do a better job, why don't you come down to Rockstar and try making the map yourself. This game is much more mature than any of the other ones, and adds a more realistic feel to it, and in addition, if you can't stand that there are little to no cheats, head down to GTAInside.com and get some mods, there has got to be thousands of them. Also, another complaint is that their computer can't handle it. THIS IS A LIE!!! No, they most likely can't handle max graphics, because imagine a whole city that detailed running in perfect graphics, do you really think that your computer can handle it. Even when you turn your graphics down a bit, the graphics are still awesome. If you are so concerned that your computer can't run GTA 4 on max graphics, then go buy a better computer and stop b*tching about is on these forums, I saw so many complaints on here, I almost didn't buy the game myself! Now, if you are blessed with a PC whose specs can easily handle this game on max, go check out the ICenhancer mod, it will literally blow you away. Overall, I would just like to say that this game is definitively worth checking out, it is one of the most complete games, with the best story, that I have ever played. And even almost 5 years after it's launch, it still remains to be one of my favourite games of all time. Expand
  61. Apr 27, 2013
    4
    It's GTA. Nothing terribly new, nothing terribly revolutionary. Not a bad sandbox setup but I expect more from a sequel and not just more of the same old, same old. Missions get pretty boring and repetitive. Gun play is so-so. Sadly this game is marred by not breaking from the herd enough and re-invigorating the series in light of Saints Row and Just Cause coming out and putting togetherIt's GTA. Nothing terribly new, nothing terribly revolutionary. Not a bad sandbox setup but I expect more from a sequel and not just more of the same old, same old. Missions get pretty boring and repetitive. Gun play is so-so. Sadly this game is marred by not breaking from the herd enough and re-invigorating the series in light of Saints Row and Just Cause coming out and putting together similar concepts. Oh, and yes, playing it on PC can be a mess depending on your hardware specs and that it is a half-cooked port. Expand
  62. Apr 7, 2013
    10
    AMAZING JUST AMAZING! I have always loved all the GTA series, I've played every single GTA and this is the best one! Graphics are amazing, only thing is you need lots of vram, i had x2 GTX 460's and i cannot max the game, I'm close to it tho,cant wait for GTA V I'm sure it will be just as amazing. I must say you do need a very good PC to play GTA iv, as it does not support SLI or anythingAMAZING JUST AMAZING! I have always loved all the GTA series, I've played every single GTA and this is the best one! Graphics are amazing, only thing is you need lots of vram, i had x2 GTX 460's and i cannot max the game, I'm close to it tho,cant wait for GTA V I'm sure it will be just as amazing. I must say you do need a very good PC to play GTA iv, as it does not support SLI or anything but I'm sure future Grand theft auto games will have no issues. Expand
  63. Apr 4, 2013
    8
    I'm really surprised about the score distribution here.

    I suffered from technical difficulties only in the last mission, where a bug caused me to fail the mission and start over from the beginning of a mission (far behind). Overall the gameplay is fluent enough and the story is really well developed. I highly recommend buying the Episodes from Liberty City DLC as it focuses on the
    I'm really surprised about the score distribution here.

    I suffered from technical difficulties only in the last mission, where a bug caused me to fail the mission and start over from the beginning of a mission (far behind).

    Overall the gameplay is fluent enough and the story is really well developed. I highly recommend buying the Episodes from Liberty City DLC as it focuses on the stories of some side characters in the original game and can get the player really invested in the subplots going on in the game world during Niko and Roman's struggles in Liberty City.

    To me the most important aspect in Grand Theft Auto games is the design of characters, missions and the setup. In GTA4 the setup is great, our protagonist Niko Bellic included. Some of the voice acting and dialogue are however really overblown and ridiculously stereotypical, and at times I would have liked for the writers at Rockstar to show a bit more respect for the intelligence of their audience.

    GTA4 does have its share of problems, though. I won't complain about the PC port, as it has worked like a dream for me. There are some flaws in the design and gameplay mechanics as well. For example the relationship/girlfriend aspect of the game really felt like it was slowing the gameplay down and some of the missions should have been cut out as well.

    In addition to this I would have liked more use of the vertical dimension of the city: in a sandbox game it would be good to have the option to easily go to the roof of more buildings, gun people down from tactical locations, skydive etc. (Skydiving was added in the DLC, but it doesn't satisfy my urge to skydive to a meet with gun-dealing Jacob.) Also the ability to make decisions that affect the story could have been utilized more.

    In The Ballad Of Gay Tony story of the DLC a very pleasant feature was added. When dying or otherwise failing a mission, retrying would allow you to continue at the point where the player failed. This should be a norm in GTA games, as it cuts down on the pointless delay of running to buy a body armor, going to a safehouse to regain health and continuing on to your next mission.

    With its minor design flaws, GTA4 is still an amazingly enjoyable game with a really touching and compelling story.
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  64. Apr 2, 2013
    8
    A good game if you like the GTA theme. Runs ok on a reasonable pc/vga combo, I'm getting playable frame rates on a HD6770 card, with all but one of the settings on high, and the three sliders on 35/50/50 (from the top, down) My console buddies say it looks better & runs smoother than it does on the ps3. I'd imagine it looks stunning with a 2Gb card and some texture/rendering mods. A goodA good game if you like the GTA theme. Runs ok on a reasonable pc/vga combo, I'm getting playable frame rates on a HD6770 card, with all but one of the settings on high, and the three sliders on 35/50/50 (from the top, down) My console buddies say it looks better & runs smoother than it does on the ps3. I'd imagine it looks stunning with a 2Gb card and some texture/rendering mods. A good game still, with the mods to make what you will of it. Pick it up on Steam (when it's on sale) for less than a tenner. Expand
  65. Mar 29, 2013
    5
    This is a really rubbish port. The engine runs horribly and there seems to be a particular issue with ATI cards (I have a 7970OC Edition). The FPS is crap and the game is incredibly jerky. I have many games with much better graphics that are smooth as silk. The controls are rubbish too. Niko runs like a spaz, the cars handle like crap and the camera is annoying. The only reason why I'veThis is a really rubbish port. The engine runs horribly and there seems to be a particular issue with ATI cards (I have a 7970OC Edition). The FPS is crap and the game is incredibly jerky. I have many games with much better graphics that are smooth as silk. The controls are rubbish too. Niko runs like a spaz, the cars handle like crap and the camera is annoying. The only reason why I've come up to a 5 is because the environment is really well created, the game is extremely funny and the music tracks are really good.

    However, I am left not being able to play the game though because it's so jerky and the controls are so rubbish. If only the engine worked properly on PC and the gameplay was like GTA3 where the cars handled properly and the character moved around like a proper game character where left was strafe left, right was strafe right and backwards was back-peddle, not turn around and look at the camera like a dick. What do Rockstar care though? They got their money and made more than $1bn from the game.
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  66. Mar 28, 2013
    7
    I really enjoyed this game, and was pretty late into buying it. At the time, I did not have the computer required to run it, but when I did, I had a lot of fun. The missions get tedious and boring at times, but the open world without consequences is always something to go back to. The PC port has some annoying bugs, and even after a few years, the graphics are still decent.
  67. Mar 19, 2013
    8
    After playing the game I can simply conclude that the "offical" reviews are just plain bias, written by bribed reviewers who can only give every overrated overhyped game sequel like this a high score no matter what. First of, GTA IV's game world is really fantastic, with every little detail put into the environment and most impressively, the AI pedestrains that populate it. It really setsAfter playing the game I can simply conclude that the "offical" reviews are just plain bias, written by bribed reviewers who can only give every overrated overhyped game sequel like this a high score no matter what. First of, GTA IV's game world is really fantastic, with every little detail put into the environment and most impressively, the AI pedestrains that populate it. It really sets the benchmark of a true open world game. Problem however, is that there's close to NOTHING, NOTHING to do in the huge city the devs constructed. All you have is a few side missions up to 10 given by friends and cop missions that all can be completed within 1-2 hours. After that, you'll be left in a huge empty world like Mafia II where you have no incentives or reason to go out and explore further. Not the mention 90% of the main missions are nothing of entertainment. Most of them will just have you driving up and down various places far away before some small shootout or something and the end, end of mission. There's really no thrill to it and the driving feels like a waste. It does have new features like taking the trains, bowling, playing pool and watching shows that spice up the experience but all these get repetitive over time. Seems like the devs spent too much time making features like the live shows you can attend or the TV programmes than the actual side missions they could have improved on and added. To sum it up, this is a game with huge potential but with so much wasted on. Expand
  68. Mar 16, 2013
    0
    worst pc port game I have ever played in my life. I have duel GTX 680s and the game wont even let me play with hiccups every 2 seconds. lame. companies sacrificing quality for profit as usual./
  69. Feb 27, 2013
    4
    The game was looking good at first, the graphics and textures are okay, although it's extremely laggy even if you have a PC much above the requirements, which I don't quite understand, so it does not work properly on computers. The cars are cool and the damage engine for them is great. Although there is some bugs with cars such as getting stuck or not seeing any sport cars which oftenThe game was looking good at first, the graphics and textures are okay, although it's extremely laggy even if you have a PC much above the requirements, which I don't quite understand, so it does not work properly on computers. The cars are cool and the damage engine for them is great. Although there is some bugs with cars such as getting stuck or not seeing any sport cars which often happens. The game is quite boring and the missions have no point and it's repetitive, I had no money in this game, then a mission where you rob a bank now I'm rich with nothing to do with the money? The only thing you can buy in this game is clothes and guns. This game is overrated. You are very limited on what you can do, there is no upgrades or level up systems, and it's extremely repetitive, the map is a decent size. The story is very bad, which is linear and repetitive and it's not interesting at all. I would not recommend this game. Expand
  70. Feb 18, 2013
    10
    By far the best GTA, just know that you should buy it if you have a SUPERULTRAMEGA-PC.
  71. Feb 14, 2013
    6
    The game would have been great if its performance wasn't so bad. The game stuttered like crazy when I first bought it, even if I put it on the lowest graphics. Once I installed a patch and got more RAM it ran better, but the frame rate was still low, aside from performance issues the game was enjoyable, but it was a bit darker and less goofy than previous GTA games. The game wasn't quiteThe game would have been great if its performance wasn't so bad. The game stuttered like crazy when I first bought it, even if I put it on the lowest graphics. Once I installed a patch and got more RAM it ran better, but the frame rate was still low, aside from performance issues the game was enjoyable, but it was a bit darker and less goofy than previous GTA games. The game wasn't quite as funny as Vice City and San Andreas, but the missions were still very fun. The soundtrack was not as good as the previous games either, and the character "Roman" was more annoying than funny. Overall the story-line and acting was very good, the soundtrack was ok, some parts were funny but the game really needed to run better. Expand
  72. Feb 13, 2013
    10
    Kill People Shoot School. this game has so much swag it had me rolling in stitches when i killed Hoes In the street and nobody cared because hoes. #YOLO
  73. Feb 8, 2013
    7
    This would get a 9 if not for all the technical problems. What i am talking about is this game would never start because Rockstar social club and windows live. THAT impossible to start the game you NEED xliveless to start it. Now to the game it is about a man named Niko Bellic who moves to Liberty City (New York). He moves there because he pissed of the mob and his cousin Roman said heThis would get a 9 if not for all the technical problems. What i am talking about is this game would never start because Rockstar social club and windows live. THAT impossible to start the game you NEED xliveless to start it. Now to the game it is about a man named Niko Bellic who moves to Liberty City (New York). He moves there because he pissed of the mob and his cousin Roman said he had a very good life there. Well big surprise! He does not he lives in a ****ty apartment in a ****ty neighborhood on the ****ty island and he owns a ****ty cab company. You work for him until you work for likable people that does not call every hour and say EEY COUSIN WANNA GO BOWLING?! When you find out people who where in your child squad from the war you go after the traitor and when you kill him YOU DON'T FEEL DIFFERENT! Expand
  74. Feb 2, 2013
    2
    First I had problems installing it, it had a bug in the installation proccess, I 've had to open a support thread. Only then after one month I was told that I was forced to install Microsoft Marketplace manually, I had to create two accounts. One "RockStar Club" and a Microsoft account. It found it very annoying.
    I expected more for this game. I found the controls too hard to grasp at
    First I had problems installing it, it had a bug in the installation proccess, I 've had to open a support thread. Only then after one month I was told that I was forced to install Microsoft Marketplace manually, I had to create two accounts. One "RockStar Club" and a Microsoft account. It found it very annoying.
    I expected more for this game. I found the controls too hard to grasp at first. The graphics is still very good. But I didn't have as much fun as I had with previous GTA. It is for sure a worst GTA. I'd say the experience was bad.
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  75. Jan 31, 2013
    10
    Grand Theft Auto 4 is the best of the series, a third-person shooter that combines frantic shooter sections with a deep storyline, which focuses on the protagonist Niko Bellic, who seeks his fortune in the land of opportunity, but soon discovers the hostility of a city that thinks only of capitalism do not worry about criminals and the mafia who commit crimes of crimes, killingGrand Theft Auto 4 is the best of the series, a third-person shooter that combines frantic shooter sections with a deep storyline, which focuses on the protagonist Niko Bellic, who seeks his fortune in the land of opportunity, but soon discovers the hostility of a city that thinks only of capitalism do not worry about criminals and the mafia who commit crimes of crimes, killing necessario.Niko Bellic if it was subjected to the orders of someone willing to pay well, in order to support himself and his cousin Roman who made you think by e-mail to be wealthy and was full of debiti.Vi will then catapulted into an adventure without equal that will have you playing for hours.
    Also speaking in general Grand Theft Auto 4 has a graphics among the most efficient of all time, which allows them to rebuild the city of New York to the smallest detail, and a physics engine that reacts depending on the circumstances and stress esterne.Le sections multiplayer are truly beautiful and I recommend everyone to try them. I think there is a lot of ignorance about this title Rockstar, one of the most beautiful and profound of all.
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  76. Jan 7, 2013
    3
    Decent game but wayyyyyyy to many glitches. I find myself redoing missions over and over again because of getting stuck or some weird sh** going on, isn't why there is game tester before you release a game?? I mean seriously it's rockstar shouldn't they know how to flush out these bugs before hand...Also the graphics aren't that great the gun people look choppy I have a great graphics cardDecent game but wayyyyyyy to many glitches. I find myself redoing missions over and over again because of getting stuck or some weird sh** going on, isn't why there is game tester before you release a game?? I mean seriously it's rockstar shouldn't they know how to flush out these bugs before hand...Also the graphics aren't that great the gun people look choppy I have a great graphics card and all gtx 560... car's look good buildings look great as will, story line isn't bad it get real annoying when you gotta pick up your friends and do things with em so often get old... Expand
  77. Jan 5, 2013
    9
    Grand Theft Auto IV is more than capable of being a 10/10 but its let down by a disappointing port to the PC. The video editor is a great addition but more time spent making this game run well would have been preferred.
  78. Dec 29, 2012
    0
    Don't get the hype, there is nothing "revolutionary" about this game. All I experienced was an extremely dull game with often repetitive missions and monotonous combat.
  79. Dec 22, 2012
    10
    Personally one of the only games in my steam library (besides Portal series/HL series) that I've actually completed and played again! The new generation of sandbox gaming.
  80. Dec 21, 2012
    10
    I bought this game for 8 Euro on Steam and it was worth it. Many people here say they have FPS drops, bugs, etc... But I didn't have any of these problems. The game is fun and for me the story is somehow exiting and if you have already done the singleplayer, go on multiplayer. Bored with multiplayer? Get a trailer get some friends and do **** No internet? Go on singleplayer and do ****I bought this game for 8 Euro on Steam and it was worth it. Many people here say they have FPS drops, bugs, etc... But I didn't have any of these problems. The game is fun and for me the story is somehow exiting and if you have already done the singleplayer, go on multiplayer. Bored with multiplayer? Get a trailer get some friends and do **** No internet? Go on singleplayer and do **** I've played this game for 187 hours. Expand
  81. Dec 19, 2012
    5
    I've already reviewed this game at great length for the Xbox 360; mainly noting its dissapointment compared to San Andreas or indeed any other GTA (except maybe GTA III). If you're looking for single player content, this game simply doesn't have any. With a generic (for a GTA game) story, repetitive missions, and a plot/setting/context with zero creativity and some half-arsed mini-gamesI've already reviewed this game at great length for the Xbox 360; mainly noting its dissapointment compared to San Andreas or indeed any other GTA (except maybe GTA III). If you're looking for single player content, this game simply doesn't have any. With a generic (for a GTA game) story, repetitive missions, and a plot/setting/context with zero creativity and some half-arsed mini-games thrown in; it's definitely a game which Rockstar played it safe with - something which nobody expects from a Grand Theft Auto title- which always push the boundaries in open-world freedom of expression and creativity. Multiplayer is new and it has got some good variety but somehow doesn't feel right either. The reason for this is down to the controls. Only official Xbox 360 controllers are supported, and the auto-aim means multiplayer has almost zero skill in combat. It's still fun to play though occasionally due to the variety, which includes three co-op missions. So if you decide to use mouse and keyboard, you'll find the default button mapping to be pretty much perfect. However, the one thing that ruins the whole experience of making it fluent; and this applies more on PC than console - is the extremely clunky response for movement and the camera. Sometimes you feel that you have no control over Niko. My final complaint is with the stability issues and lack of optimisation for PC. Yes, you can still have your own music station as before, but the graphics are far too inefficient. Don't get me wrong, this is an amazing looking game even for today, but it is in desperate need of anti-aliasing even at 1920x1080, especially given the nature of the game. If you don't have around 1.5GB dedicated graphics memory you can't really max it or run it well. I have a 1GB GTX 560 Ti and considering I get 48 FPS on BF3 on High in multiplayer, you'd think this game on max would be a piece of cake. But the draw distance consumes ridiculous amounts of VRAM. The Xbox 360 version, despite getting crap framerate, had at least more consistency in graphics. Screen tearing, freezes, pink textures, AI behaving weird, bugs, glitches - anything you can think of is present. Given the quality of the game as a whole, these technical issues make a mockery of all the claimed $100 million budget. There's also the problem that there is no cfg file where you can adjust anti-aliasing or set a frame limit. You can manually limit the frame rate by entering a command line into a shortcut pointed at the executable, but this still doesn't make for smooth gameplay experience. Even commandline fixes within the game directory can't fix the random freezing, crashing and sometimes textures not loading bugs, which is extremely frustrating. OK that's me done complaining. So what credit does this game actually deserve? The most notable and most significant in my opinion, is how the driving mechanics and the car designs themselves are better than any other open-world game. Not only do cars look beautiful and unique, but they handle differently too. It's very fun to just drive on this game and very rewarding. Better than a lot of racing games if you ask me. Other accomplishments include a decent attempt at capturing New York City. Although most of the city looks pretty bland and copy and pasted throughout and most of it doesn't get used in the main story, it's still not a bad effort given the size. It's very grande and distinctly recognizable. The city does feel authentic and AI is quite good - certainly more realistic than the previous games which had rubbish ragdoll physics and very blocky movement. This is down to the brilliant Euphoria engine in conjunction with RAGE. Other good points about this game include the very nicely paced progression and robust game mechanics such as the combat and the wanted system for losing cops. The classic GTA humour and chat stations are here too. The attention to detail is also impressive- everything from easter eggs to the realistic volume of the radio according to how far away you are from your car. What else? The only thing that remains to be credited is that overall, as a package, it's a solid game. It may not do anything new or do anything exceptionally well, and the content is lacking. However if you consider it on its own without comparing to other open-world games it's a very high quality game on the whole. Sure the PC version isn't optimised and it deserves negative marks for its lack of innovation and the miniscule amount of content for an open-world game, but if you can overlook these issues there's a decent experience to be found here. Just tread with caution and be prepared for some heavy technical issues on the PC version. Expand
  82. Dec 16, 2012
    4
    Very good game, but worst port that has ever made to the PC. Bilions of bugs, very bad optimized, so very "heavy" game, and very bad FPS. The game isn't protected very well from cheaters.
  83. Dec 10, 2012
    6
    Annoying and boring missions, that try to draw you in, but fail and little action, the story falls flat. The mechanics are not very good either, but that what makes this game fun because of the goofy mechanics. Only buy at a low price.
  84. Dec 8, 2012
    2
    Nicely done but becomes a little repetitive after a while. There should be more around the story, or more interesting missions than just go and shoot a bunch of people to steal something. Yet, it's addictive and characters are quite developed with clear cut personalities (Little Jacob is AWESOME!).
    However, after playing for 60 hours, I'm struggling real bad with some missions, after
    Nicely done but becomes a little repetitive after a while. There should be more around the story, or more interesting missions than just go and shoot a bunch of people to steal something. Yet, it's addictive and characters are quite developed with clear cut personalities (Little Jacob is AWESOME!).
    However, after playing for 60 hours, I'm struggling real bad with some missions, after retrying them for like 20 times. No way to skip them, no help, it SUCKS! I'm so fed up to redo the same things again and again and have Nicko not respond to what I ask him to do, ending up dying in the most retarded ways ever. I give up. It ruined my game experience so bad that I now hate the game. Well done Rockstar for not putting any save-points for the long missions and force the player to do the same things during 30 minutes every time, again and again, for nothing.
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  85. Nov 29, 2012
    10
    If you don't mind the 'realism' this is one of the best action games ever. The game looks awesome, the storyline is epic, the weapons are fun, and you can have at least hundred hours of playtime..
  86. Nov 27, 2012
    10
    This game is one of the best games I ever played. It is very fun and I can't stop playing it. The graphics are very good, and the playability is very well-made. It's worthy of a ten.
  87. Nov 27, 2012
    10
    I can say that this game is very high on it's requirements to run it for pc. But it is awesome for it's modding community and thats actually why I got this game. The modding community is awesome and there is very much mods that are available to download. It is just amazing how much mods it is there. The main storyline isn't bad, it has much awesome missions, but after completing them manyI can say that this game is very high on it's requirements to run it for pc. But it is awesome for it's modding community and thats actually why I got this game. The modding community is awesome and there is very much mods that are available to download. It is just amazing how much mods it is there. The main storyline isn't bad, it has much awesome missions, but after completing them many times you might want to do some fun with the game, and get some mods. That is what I did. I highly recommend you to buy this game. :) Expand
  88. Nov 21, 2012
    0
    No one wants to take responsibility for this travesty, but the fact is Steam continues to distribute this buggy game despite the fact that it does not work for Windows 7. I have Windows 7, but this game was written for XP or Vista, as a result I cannot even get this game to start up. If you have Windows 7 save yourself money and time and just do not buy this game. I have always been a fanNo one wants to take responsibility for this travesty, but the fact is Steam continues to distribute this buggy game despite the fact that it does not work for Windows 7. I have Windows 7, but this game was written for XP or Vista, as a result I cannot even get this game to start up. If you have Windows 7 save yourself money and time and just do not buy this game. I have always been a fan of GTA games, but have never tried to play one on PC before; the experience I have gone through with GTA IV has made me never want to buy Rockstar games on the PC platform ever again. Expand
  89. Nov 20, 2012
    4
    This game was a disappointment to me. I really enjoyed GTA III and GTA:San Andreas, but just couldn't get into this one. The characters weren't as interesting to me, and the missions where just not as fun as some of the earlier GTA games. Hopefully the next installment of GTA improves upon this.
  90. Nov 13, 2012
    9
    I have been playing Grand theft auto series since the very first version of this game. I remember I used to run it from a floppy disk. Its great to see how much this game keeps evolving. I really do not understand why so many people is bashing on this game. While I understand there are considerable flaws mentioned before as bugs and glitches, every damn game has them. BFD. Anyway, the gameI have been playing Grand theft auto series since the very first version of this game. I remember I used to run it from a floppy disk. Its great to see how much this game keeps evolving. I really do not understand why so many people is bashing on this game. While I understand there are considerable flaws mentioned before as bugs and glitches, every damn game has them. BFD. Anyway, the game has a few additions compared to the older GTA series, it has several interactions with NPC characters as friendship, dating etc. I see many people complaining about them, that it takes out the real action of the game, complaints about the story being too long. I don't get it. It is not like you are being forced to date every npc in order to progress as they only add certain perks during the story. When a game is too short, people complain about it. When its too long, they complain too! This game is a great addition to the series and one of my favorites by far. Lots of in game content to do if you wanna stall your progression a bit, you can unlock perks from dating chicks and raising up friends rep, get extra cash from side jobs, there is just lots to do for a single player game. This game is not intended to be finished in one or two sits, if that is your intention, you should stay away from it. Also, to maximize fun, I totally recommend not to use any sort of cheats and take your time with all the game brings up to this release. As for the graphics, I play with 2 different computers, the poorest GPU I play this game with is a nvidia 9600gt, which is pretty old and run the game pretty well. It is not all about your graphics card, you need enough RAM memory and a decent processor to get it run smooth. I bought it for about 13-15 bucks on steam, I am about 40 hours played and there is still lots to do. Worth every penny. Not to mention there is still the multiplayer option, for those who like playing versus or free for all matches. The only thing I can really say that I dislike about the franchise this far is the requirement of social club and games for windows live registration. You got to create one account on each site in order to utilize all the game features. All in all, its a really fun game if you are a fan of the series and worth every dollar spent. Expand
  91. Nov 8, 2012
    10
    The most advanced in the series to date, absolutely amazing game. Though has some optimisation issues and it took several years until the majority of PCs started to run this beast smoothly =)
  92. Nov 7, 2012
    4
    My initial opinion of the game was high but I soon began to see it's flaws. First the campaign is pretty good but drags on too long, and go here and kill this type missions get repetitive. The game also holds your hand for too long, with tedious tutorial missions. The main character Niko Bellic is a really cool character, almost too cool to the point where he feels manufactured and not aMy initial opinion of the game was high but I soon began to see it's flaws. First the campaign is pretty good but drags on too long, and go here and kill this type missions get repetitive. The game also holds your hand for too long, with tedious tutorial missions. The main character Niko Bellic is a really cool character, almost too cool to the point where he feels manufactured and not a believable character. The buddy system where friends call you up wanting to do activities is incredibly annoying and unnecessary also they punish you for not doing stupid things with your "friends." Onto technical issues, oh where to begin, the frame rate dips often, texture pop-in and blurry textures are everywhere. The controls are pitiful they are so unresponsive and unnecessary, it's incredibly frustrating. So in my opinion buy the game just not for PC. Expand
  93. Oct 5, 2012
    3
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. GTA IV was a big step back to me. Look at the massive array of vehicles in San Andreas. Bicycles, dirt bikes, quads, tractors, different types of helicopters and airplanes, the jetpack, etc. Why take all that stuff out?

    GTA IV also completely **** up the physics of the game. Driving is half as fun as it was in the previous games. And people generally respond to this by saying that it's "realistic", but no. It's not realistic in any way. Making it slow paced and boring doesn't make it realistic. It just makes it slow paced and boring.

    The shooting was improved a bit, but still needed a lot of work. The people who defend this game will claim that sticking your arm up while behind cover will cause Niko to shoot inaccurately, but it certainly hasn't worked that way for me. It seems to shoot wherever I point, regardless of the fact that Niko isn't even looking or aiming. Also, when you do choose to aim from behind cover (for whatever reason), it will cause your cross-hairs to move up a bit. Not a serious issue, but it's stupid that you have to keep in mind to aim a little bit below their head.

    The weapon variety was also significantly reduced and simplified compared to San Andreas. Of course San Andreas also had weapons that were just flat out better than others, but GTA IV's weapon system operates by "tiers", where you have tier 1 weapons, tier 2 weapons, etc. One tier being completely better in every way than the other. It leaves no room for options and determining which weapons are best for you personally. Of course, SA had SOME weapons which were flat out better than others, but to a much smaller degree than GTA IV.

    Niko is a walking contradiction, he speaks out against violence, but he's perfectly willing to kill if he gets money for it. Meanwhile, the guy he's trying to track down ends up telling him that he sold him out for $1,000. Niko acts all surprised and offended by this - but he does things like that all the time. The cheesy attempt to include a "2deep4u" story winded up backfiring. Rockstar should have stuck with the classic humor based, light hearted style story, rather than what was the equivalent of a B movie written by some emo kid.

    Ultimately, my dislike for GTA IV can be traced back to one thing - Lack of variety. Look at all of the content from SA that they just flat out REMOVED. Just look at the build up of content and gradual perfection of concepts from GTA 3, to Vice City, to San Andreas. I thought Rockstar would continue that system. I was under the impression that what we saw in SA would be perfected and build upon, just as they had done in the past - Not just completely thrown away. I really thought Rockstar was on to something. I thought they had it figured out. I guess not.
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  94. Oct 1, 2012
    10
    I don't how they manage to make a game so fun like this one. Even if you end the story the game never ends. The effects and design of this game it's not at 100% mostly because of some vehicles that are not 100% functional like they used to be on GTASA, but that's mostly because it's a new engine. Maybe on the future, with GTAV we will be able to see this game working at 100%, and believeI don't how they manage to make a game so fun like this one. Even if you end the story the game never ends. The effects and design of this game it's not at 100% mostly because of some vehicles that are not 100% functional like they used to be on GTASA, but that's mostly because it's a new engine. Maybe on the future, with GTAV we will be able to see this game working at 100%, and believe me, i'm going to be there, playing it. Expand
  95. Sep 30, 2012
    4
    this game is great in some aspects, such as the story (the most mature history in any gta) the characters, the graphics and A.I. but the port of this game for PC is such a bad port, its like rockstar made it in one day... the poor controls, the awful bugs (specially the one on the **** last mission) you have to do wonders to repair a broken port like this and in top of that the musicthis game is great in some aspects, such as the story (the most mature history in any gta) the characters, the graphics and A.I. but the port of this game for PC is such a bad port, its like rockstar made it in one day... the poor controls, the awful bugs (specially the one on the **** last mission) you have to do wonders to repair a broken port like this and in top of that the music isn't as good (good thing for the personal radio) and the game isn't that challenging, so if you are a fan of gta try this, if you are not, go and play San Andreas and avoid this one Expand
  96. Aug 17, 2012
    9
    After upgrading my computer to 2012 standards, I can finally enjoy the game at it's highest detail. With mods like iCEnhancer , it looks totally amazing, almost real-life visuals! On top of that, good old GTA gameplay and amazing voice acting and euphoria physics are just too much fun to play with!
    Too bad we had to wait 3 years to finally properly run this.
  97. Aug 17, 2012
    6
    Grand Theft Auto 4 is a great game, don't misunderstand me, but the PC version is insane. Because it needs an insanely powerful PC to play it. But, still, if you have a super powerful PC, than this game will be fun, single player and multiplayer. Can't wait to play the console version. 65 out of 100 (For the powerful PCs, 96 out of 100)
  98. Aug 15, 2012
    8
    GTA singleplayer gameplayer never fails to entertain me, at least not until I've done everything possible in the game about three times over. GTA IV holds true to that, except with a disappointing end game where you're still limited for monetary income even after the storyline. No army to fight against, no endless wallet, and sadly it's a console port which definitely shows. TheGTA singleplayer gameplayer never fails to entertain me, at least not until I've done everything possible in the game about three times over. GTA IV holds true to that, except with a disappointing end game where you're still limited for monetary income even after the storyline. No army to fight against, no endless wallet, and sadly it's a console port which definitely shows. The multiplayer can be difficult to get working, but a playerbase exists and offers some cheap laughs. Windows Live is a noteworthy problem, but not a gamebreaker. Expand
  99. Aug 14, 2012
    9
    The GTA series are the only open-world games where I've been content just goofing off around the city, and GTA IV specifically has had more replay value for me than any other game I've owned. Years after the initial release, this is still the game I go back to when I'm bored with everything else.
  100. Aug 10, 2012
    10
    The best AAA game ever. Rockstar North had amazingly high hopes for this game and pulled it off. Is the story worthy of literary awards? No, but as far as videogame stories go, it is friggin Shakespeare. They actually get you care about the characters, and you really want to know how things turn out. The driving is first rate, smooth and fun, but still requiring skill. It's greatThe best AAA game ever. Rockstar North had amazingly high hopes for this game and pulled it off. Is the story worthy of literary awards? No, but as far as videogame stories go, it is friggin Shakespeare. They actually get you care about the characters, and you really want to know how things turn out. The driving is first rate, smooth and fun, but still requiring skill. It's great fun to master the mechanics, and then proceed to drive fast and furious. The combat, a little clunky, but it is a minor flaw in what otherwise is the best game of this generation. Expand
Metascore
90

Universal acclaim - based on 40 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 38 out of 40
  2. Negative: 0 out of 40
  1. PC Gamer UK
    92
    It's the peripheral distractions of both going out with Roman, and meeting your girlfriends, that really make your virtual life so worth living. Although incredibly simplistic, they're oddly touching...One of the finest videogames ever. [Christmas 2008, p.87]
  2. PC Format
    89
    The most grown-up GTA and the best realised, but it doesn't respect the PC much. Enjoy the multiplayer madness if you can. [Christmas 2008, p.96]
  3. A genuinely ground-breaking blockbuster in videogame history. There were moments playing GTA IV that I thought back to my initial experiences with games, and realised exactly how far we've come. There's never been anything quite like GTA IV in the world. That there makes me genuinely happy to be a gamer.