Niko has the best comebacks and meanest sarcasm out of all GTA playable characters. This guy is so cynically witty, makes you wanna watch the game cutscenes with a pen and a pad
My favorite moment in GTA 4 is when Niko puts a coin in a vending machine in Roman's office and it doesn't work and he proceeds to say "Capitalism is a dirty business".
People don’t talk enough about all the buildings you could enter in IV.. so many times I was running around exploring then happened to stumble into a fully fleshed out building that you could enter, I’d run up flights of stairs, then parkour from building to building…. very underrated imo.
This game is like a time capsule of the late 2000s. Everything from the mobile-but-not-quite-smart phones and their ringtones to the fashion is so incredibly nostalgic and instantly transports me back to that time in my life.
Another nice detail is that Niko actually starts off with an older phone that only displays basic black and white text. Like a Nokia 3310 or whatever. Over the course of the story he eventually gets a more modern (but still not smart) phone that has a color screen and supports different background themes that you can pick from. Pretty neat.
yea, i remember all that while going to the cousin's home and we played a lot gta IV and the phones and internet stuff was kinda same at the time in finland too, thought a little ahead tho but still... those were the days...
The story had so much depth that I dont even think GTA 5 rivaled. You cared about Niko and you wanted him to have a good life. You cared about the charecters and the story unfolding. The decisions you made felt impactful and it made up for all the things that were "missing". I obviously missed customizing cars, flying and a big diverse map.....But the story holds so much weight it made up for it big time. Maybe its the nostalgia talking but it was one of the most memorable games Ive ever played. I wish I could go back to being a teen playing it. Mostly because my lifes gone to shit since growing older, but a bit of it is the value and entertainment this game gave me.
@@hetapolski Mobile phones with keypads, buying ringtones, Internet cafes, and especially the music featured in game. It's like when the Internet was still developing (but made decent progress) and it wasn't widely accessible compared to nowadays. It also feels obviously nostalgic.
@@hetapolski what blueday said. Also the contemporary fashion and overall attitude. People were A LOT less politically correct. It was end of the Bush era and the height of war on terror. A lot of people were struggling and pissed off about the political landscape, and I feel like Rockstar captured that really well with the overall vibe of this game. It definitely feels like being back in 2007-2008
fun fact about GTA IV that I realized only recently after playing it for 15 years when you're wanted, if you can change your car without the police seeing you doing it then even if you remain in the wanted zone they won't recognize you because they're looking for the car you just dumped, but if you're close enough that they can see your face in your new car they'll recognize you.
@NoelCotelo I was talking about the fact that they have a harder time spotting you if you switch cars while the police are searching you, your arrow will become darker when you do this, hiding in bushes will do something similar.
It's such a wonderful, rich, dark, funny, compelling game. I've still not managed to put it down, even all these years later. I can't leave Niko and his world behind.
@@tydendurler9574 yeah the cars were like driving a boat; if there was such thing, but the physics were ahead of there time, flying through a window screen never ceased to make me laugh😄
Being a New Yorker, how much Rockstar nailed NYC was surreal. It felt like living in a virtual world of your home. That is why the game felt so immersive and real, they nailed a lot of aspects of things only you would notice if you lived here. You may not be able to visit your actual home location like in Flight Simulator, but at the time it was damn close. For example, at the beginning of the game Niko and his cousin lived in a Russian area in Brooklyn that actually exists (Brighton Beach). Driving along the Brooklyn Bridge to Brooklyn you would be greeted with a building labeled the Watchtower (Clocktower in game). Its details like that that just blow me away and get me sucked into the game world.
Yeah Rockstar really did nail the real life NYC feel in 4. It was so great Insomiac Spiderman PS4 even included an Easter Egg of Niko and Roman in their version of NYC.
I respectfully slightly disagree. I think that ALL games can be classified as art. And like art, you have your "high art" and your "low art". GTA4: high art. Ride to Hell: Retribution - low art.
Man as soon as you brought up the airport in GTA IV Multiplayer my heart dropped. My best friend was murdered last year, and I just had flashbacks of me flying the blackhawk and protecting him while he was on the ground fighting for his life, trying to drive away while others were chasing him. I miss him so much. Think about him and our times together almost every second of my days. We had so much fun together.
One of the best gaming intros ever and the most scathing and accurate take on American culture. Its just as authentic as the Sopranos or the Wire with just enough over the top to keep you playing, and the DLCs coming together to weave a larger narrative was just as impressive.
I really don't think there is a unified American culture. Trust me when I say that if you came to the deep south US where I live you would be in a totally different culture than New York.
This game is just insanely important for me. This was the first game I tried to run on my first laptop ever that didn't run properly (like 2 fps lmao). I was about 12 at the time, and I didn't know anything about computers, but this game running so poorly made me look for ways to make it run better, which led me to research what the hell a GPU even was, which led me to develop a liking and love for computers... Today I am about to graduate from college as an IT engineer and I honestly love the things a learned, the job I have, the things I have managed to create as projects from either school or work... And it all started with this game running like crap.
For me it was Vice City. I've read about it in gaming magazines (sadly the industry that is quite dead rn) and wanted to play. My PC couldn't run it so I begged my grandpa to buy me a new one. I only could use it during summer because only then I went to my grandparents, but boy oh boy how excited I was. When San Andreas came out I was ecstatic. Though I agree with some of the critic of SA in this video, that game will forever hold a special place in my heart
For me, this was the first game I bought where I didn't have the computer to run it at first, and spent toiling my life in a call center to get enough money to build my first computer I could run the game on. my previous computer was a Pentium 4 in which I barely had the money to upgrade it as a student whose parents were in a life-changing financial difficulty.
Fun fact about seatbelts in cars: If you wait about a second after starting a car, a "seatbelt" will be applied to Niko and he won't fly out the windshield in a crash. There are so many more little details like that in this game too, it's insane. Crowbcat made a great vid on the difference between IV and V in this respect.
Awesome review! GTA 4 will always be the best entry of the series for me. Everything from the atmosphere, the characters to the physics and general gameplay are simply top notch. I'm afraid we will never see something like this again in gaming but it's always nice to go back and re-experience this masterpiece.
@@Redpotato2 Nah sa is good but it's very dated and doesn't have much replay value. GTA IV has a better story, best driving and Melee combat and gunplay in the entire franchise, incredible physics, atmosphere, and probably the most memorable characters. GTA IV is so fun to just explore and do nothing related to the story, cant really say the same for SA
I personally love the injured/limping animation, and the fact that sometimes paramedics DO occasionally save/revive people. There's just tonnes of little things that gta5 removed that made the world feel real.
@austinbatton4849 Does insulting strangers make you feel like a big tough man? Please realize that ad-hoc arguments are considered a logical fallacy, therefore not allowed in a rational debate, so I won't entertain them.
The mission where you have to go to that abandoned building to get Elizabeta’s bag of money back from those gangsters was WAYYY harder to me than the bank heist mission. Getting the bag is okay but once N.O.O.S.E. shows up, if you don’t have a photographic memory of the exit to that building, that shit is insanely hard.
Replaying this game right now and had to finally google the cheat code during that mission. Playing replayed it 4 times before I beat it. A more annoying mission is where you save Roman from getting executed. It probably took me 7 times. Roman kept getting shot it in head every damn time
GTA IV is one of the best ageing games of the 21st century so far. Where most 3D games end up ageing quite badly due to visuals and mechanics becoming outdated (I think this is true for the older GTA titles), GTA IV has art style, colour palette and music that still feels so unique. The gameplay and physics still feel very nice too
GTA IV might be the game which had the biggest influence in my life. I remembered when I got my ps3 and when I was able to play games online for the first time ever. It was absolutly wild for me to see other players from all over the world running beside me. In the first week I was running around in free mode at the airport. One guy were trying to shoot me with an RPG but then someone else crashed his helicopter into the rocket to save my life. I picked that guy, who just saved me, up in a car. Now, even 15 years old, we're still best friends and still talk to each other every single day.
As a New Yorker I look back to this game even more fondly because it captures the last point in New York's life before gentrification. So it's a snapshot of a New York long gone. But one I grew up in and loved so much. Even the side content such as hanging out, bowling, bars playing pool, going to comedy clubs is very much in line with the lifestyle. I get an even BIGGER connection since i'm Albanian. Pretty funny to kick their asses in this game.
I literally commented this on another video. The time it captured in New York is vastly different than it is today. It’s really something to compare when you play it back
@@lancepage1914 i dont mean by that, i meant by plot This quote from Niko is basically the events taking place in COD, world falling apart thnx to evil dictators and war generals turning everything upside down Plus, in both GTA 4 and COD MW, we're fighting against evil Russians, if thats not coincident then i dunno what is Ninja Gaiden ? Havent heard of it in years, also NFS Carbon Own The City came in the same year as GTA 4s DLC, darkest NFS story
I absolutely loved how if you got on a motorcycle and waited a sec Niko would put a helmet on but would forego it if you pressed the gas immediately as you got on
it works the same with seatbelts in cars too - if you get in and wait a few seconds you can see him put the belt on then you won't fly through the windshield in a heavy crash
@@Maximus20778 yeah, i've been back and tested it and he doesn't, but i was sure i remember it happening. unless it was added in 5 and i'm misremembering, or for some reason it was only in the console versions
That little end of mission jingle that plays when you complete a mission has been stuck in my head, to this day. Even when I'm playing other open world games, whenever I finish a mission, I hum that jingle to myself. Every single time. It'll never leave.
The fact that there were different variations of it such as slower somber version as well as an inquisitive and mysterious one depending on how a mission ended made it so much cooler
GTA V was supposed to have end mission jingles for each character but it was cut for some dumb reason. it actually added a lot imo, there's a video on it and other cut content on youtube
I always LOVED seeing the stories for GTA IV, TLAD, and TBOGT connect to eachother, with the Diamond Deal being where Niko, Luis, and Johnny's stories interconnect being the best example.
@I yes absolutely ! Especially his friendship and business partnership with Tony are so good in the story! The connection between them is funny to watch^^
It laid the ground work for the multiple protagonists in future GTAs. I think people like me and you how it's approached in this one is that it makes it feel like there's other people living within liberty city and that niko is a small piece of the pie, that the city itself was the real main character and every MC in GTA 4 are just living their lives while also interconnecting with other people lives, very much how we exist in real life.
Where as GTA 5 and 6 multiple MCs seem too serve the story more than anything. Even though other characters will live their lives before you take control of em you know their out there your stories are directly linked in a cinematic way. While 4 it's more coincidences of life that makes them connect. Kinda like how you move somewhere and somehow in the place you move the person you know there also knows someone from where you used too live.
I remember how many of my friends were bummed how GTA IV missed the ridiculous exploration and possibilities of its predecessor San Andreas (Outskirts and Countryside, Monstertrucks, Jets, Jetpack, etc.). I kinda felt alone then because I already could appreciate how atmospheric IV was and the fantastic vibe and story it had. I appreciate it more with each year and I think I'm going to replay it on my steam deck. I think it's overall the best GTA for me.
SA is my fav. Then GTA 4. Then V.C then 5. The RPG like stats, the B&E missions. The story. The customization, body types. All that should have been in 4. Idk why they left it out. That is why it comes in 2nd for me. I love 4 but SA is IMO the best
The night club management in TBoGT actually triggers a few mini-missions where you have to do errands for celebrities etc. I found these quite fun because of the dialogue.
I'll never understand why the Joni part was so badly made, her character model and the cutscenes involving her are SO bad. How could they do a GTA artwork girl so dirty?
The story and the atmosphere of this game is incredible. First, I’ve never seen a character as deep as Niko in video games, and the atmosphere, the organization and the morality of the story are a masterpiece. But also all the storyline of the diamonds completed with Johnny and Luis - who are very interesting characters and bring totally different atmosphere to the game and the city with bikers and nightlifes - is really as good as a great Hollywood movie.
Couldn’t agree more, the vibe that liberty city gives off is so (how could I describe it) gritty and dark but also fun? And nostalgic? lol I’m struggling to put into words the feelings I get from this game. But this game is certainly a story telling masterpiece as well as an atmospheric masterpiece.
I played this game all the way through almost completely blind years after completing gta 5 and I was blown away. This game is a masterpiece. The gritty setting really sold it for me, it's so much darker than most games in the series, and I love that take.
@@Redpotato2 I understand that playing old GTA games has given you a superiority complex, but if you really don't like GTA 4 why are you here in the first place? Did you seriously just come here to spout about how everyone is a kid and you're smarter than them? That's pretty sad tbh
GTA 4 and Mafia are two open world games I regularly revisit. I like that they are both kinda hard and unforgiving games, unlike most similar games and the music is so memorable in both games. They both have similar vibes in general.
Mafia 1 and GTA 3 were my first viddo games ever. I was like 3 or 4 and would play them on my dads computer. Mafia 2 anx GTA 4 i can never get tired of. 2008-11 was just a magical time for gaming.
Packie and Little Jacob are definitely 2 of my favorite supporting characters in all of literature. I think they're both shining examples of the loyal friend and guide archetypes
Lil Jacob was one of my fav. Man was ready to go to war and poke his fingers in matters that didn't involve him, just off of the fact that you slid for him a few times
I remember being like 14, playing this game and accidentally backing up into a person. The way the physics work in this game makes everything so vividly realistic, haunts me to this day haha
The ragdoll physics are still damn good even for today tbh. Rockstar called the tech Euphoria Physics. People would naturally stumble and react depending on where you shot them. Characters actually had a sense of weight to them. It was leagues above a lot of other games at the time who were just using simple ragdolls.
@@VexAcer I remember messing around with the physics on a staircase near the Algonquin hospital for hours continuously pushing and fighting multiple pedestrian's till the counter or a knock out happened at the top and watching them just rag-doll down to the bottom and thinking "gaming can't get better than this".
@@VexAcer I would post up in the way back of the hospital down a hallway with only one entrance and just shoot ops for what felt like hours; picking a different body part every shot
Yet Cyberpunk 2077 "the next generation open world game only getting relevant again thanks to that anime adaptation to boost it's popularity again" doesn't even have these sort of physics. And people STILL defend CP 77 lol.
The part about him saying this game is covered in soul really speaks to me. I’ve recently been replaying it and it’s amazing intoxicating the universe and story is in this game. TBOGB just as much. Feel like a kid again replaying this, and this analysis was spot on
When someone mentions games being "cinematic" GTA IV is the first thing that pops in my head. The way the story is presented is like a feature film, very immersive and gritty. It never tries to be a movie though, ultimately it knows is a game and plays like one. The way each mission can be completed is almost entirely up to you, one of the most interactive experiences of that generation for sure.
GTA4 story format is basically like presented into a gritty crime drama like The Sopranos, with grounded and relatable storytelling. Whereas GTA5 shorter story format is basically like your average Hollywood action movie with over the top action and comedy.
GTA IV is the best GTA game by far imo, GTA V missed the mark by a country mile. The story telling in GTA IV was so immersive and the characters were fully fleshed out whereas in GTA V the story very clearly played second fiddle to the mp. The map was also empty and boring af with numerous downgrades compared to GTA IV.
I hear that. It kinda feels a lot like how Forbidden Siren 1 and 2 are presented like 90s/80s Japanese horror films while having streamlined survival horror gameplay.
Ahh the memories. Got it when it came out, stayed the night at my buddies house and we played it like 18 hours straight. No joke. Absolutely one of my best gaming memories.
Love the driving in this game. The way they handle is like those classic action movies from the 60s and 70s like Bullit, Dirty Harry, the Getaway, French Connection. I found it so much more interesting and engaging than the arcade go-carts of GTA5 and some of the older games
I would add that while it is interesting, it can be somewhat frustrating. I remember the feeling of pure frustration that it evoked. The slow-as-molasses gameplay is a technique Rockstar loves to utilize. That's why rocket powered motorbikes have such an appeal. It's so much better than the default mode of movement. walking.
the auro this game brings is so nostolgic! the muted colour pallet, the weight of the characters and cars, the physics, the blur, the music. There is a subtle hazy glow which really is unique but I really love the look they applied to it and not tried to make it too sharp and no filter. Its like a playing a memory! epic game! The moment you look at gta V with vibrant colours and cartoony gameplay...it loses its soul! its hard to get immeresed and it being too big that its hard to really connect to areas and characters.
This game is definitely for the more mature audience appreciating keen details and realism. Also a gritty story and vibe. I recently jumped back on this game just to play around and notice things I've never seen before playing 15 years ago.
So cathartic to hear a big TH-camr finally appreciate IV's driving. I can't believe that some people still hate on it or think that it damages the overall game, I think it might be one the finest simulations of driving a real car at high speed in any video game period. I love V's driving to, but for different reasons. V's driving is super tight and 'gamey' but IV's felt like you actually had to try when attempting to outrun the cops or mantaining high speeds.
It's very similar to BeamNG, and even has soft-body deformation like BeamNG, it's why it's so much more memorable than the kid-friendly driving in GTA V.
I've done a lot of track driving, both irl and in racing sims, I'd say gta4 has the best driving physics in any open world shooter (mafia 2 was good in simulation mode but the high speed handling was bad) I just wish you could get rid of the driver assists and the automatic counter steer which makes sliding too twitchy (also the traffic spawning right in front of you whenever you look back when driving on PS3 is annoying but PC probably doesn't have that issue)
"Watching your gameplay is just like watching a great movie..." -My wife back in the day when I played through the GTA IV storyline and watched all the cutscenes. Masterpiece, just simply a masterpiece.
It had actually been around 10 years since I last did a full playthrough of GTA4, and man, playing through the game again, it felt like I never left. I remember the feeling of coming from school and just playing GTA, and if I was done with the story, I'd just start it up again from the beginning and play through it again. It didn't matter how many times I had already played, I was gonna do it again. Now I'm gonna go play episodes from liberty city.
Back in 2008 when I was 13 in a small town, the atmosphere and energy of Liberty City made me want to move to NYC so bad. Which is absolutely insane given the dark and murderous light it's painted in 😂 but it's just done so well. Anyways lived here 4 years now haha. And honestly my appreciation for how spot on Rockstar got it just grows more and more the longer I live here
I was raised in the beautiful city Rockstar North offices are. They named the local strip joints in gta 4 after the 3 strip joints as they are called the Triangle (it's known as the pubic triangle as its also the sight of Burke and hair murders. The city was also where jk Rowlings book so lots of places like the hogshead pub where I used to drink. Good old days.
Hard to think this was released in 08. I remember as a kid being so extremely excited solely because of the game's physics. I wanted to play it so bad just from the trailer.
@@element021993 It's a flat game, it's got good customization and a decent map size but it's worse in every way apart from that, the graphics and fluidity of animations. Easily one of the most overrated games in my opinion.
17:06 is like, the pinnacle of dialogue from Rockstar Games, to me. The way Packie takes a moment to process the joke before hunching forwards a little and laughing. Literally feels like the time you told your best friends a good burn. It feels like a real life convo and that's hard to achieve.
Imagine being the moral police on twitter for good boy points only to then have a review of the game that you were morally policing others about. Hypocrisy knows no bounds.
I’d say you are right about everything but the killer part. I started the story again just a few days ago and I’m surprised I forgot how Niko just doesn’t hesitate or seem to even care for a second when asked by people he just met to go murder other people he knows nothing about. I get his moral compass is broken from his past, but that doesn’t justify him in those actions. He might not act like a complete nutcase like trevor, but the way I see it he’s just as evil. Also, he worked with human trafficking, which is (not arguably) way worse than meth.
@Stezika15 yeah, but he is shown as a complete monster in other missions. For example when Manny asks him to go murder a bunch of drug dealers. Niko didn’t suggest a different solution. He didn’t try to say no. He didn’t hesitate. And yes, that can be reasoned through his military background, he follows orders because that’s all he’s ever known. But that still doesn’t justify what a horrific act of pure evil that is. And he’s doing a lot of bad things because other people push him, yes, but Manny doesn’t have Niko pressed to a corner in any sort of way. Niko just does it because Manny pays. He also mentions it several times during the game, he does what you ask if you pay him. Don’t get me wrong, I love gta4 and I think the story is really deep, but arguing Niko is a good person is just delusional. In my opinion he is the most evil of all the gta protagonists (he does get better, but so does the others).
You cant compare Niko and Trevor, Trevor is a psycopath killer who didnt get love as a kid because his father wasnt a real father and his mom was a prostitute. Niko though got love as a child from his mother but he grew up in a poor economical situation and his family lived without electricity until Niko was 12 years old. Niko have heart but the Balkan war made him cold and after the war his only way to make money was through organised crime and he became a hired muscle for Ray Bulgarin, while working for Ray he was smuggling people from Balkan into Italy through the adriatic sea. One day while he was smuggling immigrants the boat was spotted by an Italian coast guard unit, the boat also had weapons and heroin they was gonna bring into Italy from Balkan and Niko had to leave the boat with the guns and the merchandise to save him self from a long time in jail he had to swim a mile from the coast, Niko almost drowned but he was a good swimmer and he made it to Bari, a city on the Italian coast. After this because he wasted a lot of money from the weapons and drugs Bulgarin blamed Niko for stealing the merchandise and that he was hiding because of this but the truth was that he knew Ray would blame him for leaving the boat even if this was the only way for Niko to not serve long time in prison. This boat incident in the adriatic sea is why Bulgarin accuse Niko for robbing him later in liberty city when they meet because of Dimitri Rascalov. After the incident Niko understands that Ray will blame him in one way or another for loosing the merchandise and he knows going back to Bulgarin will make him get either killed or in debt big time. By this time in Nikos life he is a very broken person, he killed people, smuggled people, guns and drugs. He wants to go to Liberty City to start a new life and dissepear from Bulgarin. Europe is not safe anymore. He mail often his cousin Roman who wanted him to come to Liberty City to work for him. They grew up together but while it was war in Balkan Romans mother saved some money for Roman so he could start a life in America. After Roman leaves Serbia Niko one day finds Romans mother raped and killed. Niko tells Roman that she died in a house fire. Roman loved his mother very much she probably saved Romans life by sending him to America. Roman often tells Niko in the messages that Niko should come work for Roman in liberty city and forget about the old country. Roman owns a big luxory cab company with over 50 cars that always is online picking up fares in liberty city. He also tells Niko he lives in a big mansion and that he is a big profile in liberty citys night life. In this point in Nikos life hes tired of everything and he needs to get away from Europe so Bulgarin dont find him. Nikos friend Hossan knows people who works in a cargo ship called platybus, this ship takes Niko to Liberty City.
It was a nice little feature of putting helmets on your seat belts I really appreciated once it occurred to me how much it saved me. Not sure if that's ironic or not.
Wait, WHAT? Wow Okay, I tried it thrice in-game and tried crashing on a road barrier between the off-ramp of the Algonquin - Dukes Expressway and the expressway itself. Niko always took a launch from his seat outside. I waited for like twenty seconds the third time I tried. The car was a feroci
Funny thing is, the melee combat in 4 is still the best in the series, requering proper timing and being less just mashing the punch/kick buttons, plus the animations for counters were pretty cool.
@@iceangelx22 You honestly think you would change my mind? An unknown stranger on the internet? Really? I own all of them. Multiple times. So Rockstar has my money. Still. I think Gta V is better. And there is nothing you can do to make me think otherwise. So do other things.
I remember one of my most recent playthroughs I downed a helicopter at the abandoned sprunk factory, without blowing it up, and the helicopter knocked down an empty silo/container/ water tower looking thing.
GTA IV was a gamechanger. I remember reading about it in magazines, seeing the screenshots and being so hyped for release. It was a massive step up from San Andreas in my opinion, not that SA didn't have its own charm, it is a masterpiece of its time, but IV included so many details which really make the worth breathe.
My first GTA game, and I love it in all its ugliness. I love the weird handling, I love the brown and grey color palette, I love the wonky character models. To me, it’s perfect.
Best gta ever. I enjoy satire from gta 5 but 4 was so down to earth and relatable I remember coming back from school, booting up the game, riding a sports car through the rain to the next mission with the Kanye's flashing lights playing on the radio. Reminds me of a simpler time, a better time
Fun fact, Niko's character was based on the track suit wearing sniper from the film 'Behind Enemy Lines' The actor was apparently approached to voice him but declined.
The Ballad of The Gay Tony is got to be one of the best DLCS in gaming history. The story and characters were absolutely enjoyable from Luis friends being dumbass and sharing story’s from their younger days to Bruice’s brother being dickhead but lovable especially the final mission for them was a chief’s kiss. The gunplay was really good although sometimes enemies were on the higher ground it didn’t bother me much. The LMG in the mission you did for Russian or whatever they were was fun but sometimes rageful. The Buzzard you pointed that one at first is hard but eventually when you replay the game it would feel easy to do.
Even though it’s a different GTA I think TLAD was a great DLC too it’s not always you get the chance to play like a biker or being part of a MC Club so seeing the different perspectives GTA 4 offered I think this one was good just like TBoGT
One thing that really struck me when I went back to GTA IV after playing GTA V was how realistic the whole game was in comparison, with many details in GTA IV actually missing in its successor. And it was so much more fun to drive vehicles in GTA IV because of the physics which aimed more towards a slightly funky simulation style instead of arcade-like for GTA V. You had a real sense of accomplishment sometimes when racing cops and other adversaries. I also love Niko as a character, trying to become a normal individual in a crazy world, but the crazy world always coming back to his life.
GTA 5 was a bigger game with more stuff to do, Rockstar has to sacrifice some things during the making of GTA 5 plus a lot of people complained about the driving in GTA 4 because it was "too weighty and real"
@@TheFlamingPike I've seen that video before, it doesn't negate my previous point jeef. That video link you gave is implying that I think GTA 5 is better than 4 which I'm not saying at all, I said "GTA 5 is a bigger game with more stuff to do" you're comprehension skills need work.
GTA4 has love and care in it. A lot of charm and the city was so immersive that it truly felt real. What probably made it better for me is that I took a trip to NY a month before the game came out and my hype went through the roof.
Back in 2008 I remember being at my cousins who had a 8080GT which was one of the top cards at the time and he launched GTA IV running maxed out. I was completely blown away by what I got to experience for the next hour until I had to go home. I got a new PC 3 years later and GTA IV was the first game I installed and played through all of it. Truly a technical marvel of it's time, and an unforgettable experience.
There were SO many tiny details in GTA IV that really added up when you put them all together to make it my favorite GTA. One of my favorite small details was that if you shot the car in the right spot you could actually shoot out the suspension near each wheel and essentially turn any car into a low rider at the cost of somewhat worse handling.
@@erso_returned2530 Well, I'm not a kid anymore and I'm no normie when it comes to games. Have played rdr2, great game but I don't think the physics(which is a big part of why killing npcs felt so "realistic"), is as good. Rdr2 has way better physics than GTA5 though.
People who are older than you felt that exact same feeling when GTA 3 came out. Just sick to the stomach. Funny looking back on that know because of how bad and unrealistic the ps2 textures are.
@@mattwages7692 I'm 22 so I'm still a baby. But I owned GTA SA on PS2 back then and I get what you mean. Today you look back at older games in general and you cannot imagine how someone could've been immersed at all. But back then it felt different, especially as a kid with a wild imagination who knew next to nothing about the game(s) and what was in them. The country side of GTA SA was super immersive to me and the fog made it kinda scary after having heard about the big foot rumors.
That part about complaining about money even when he got rich makes sense if you lived most of your life in poverty. This makes it even more realistic in a sense.
Niko was legitimately the most likable and relatable protagonist of any main GTA title, and he got the saddest ending. Total injustice. I've been bummed about it for 14 damn years.
This is my personal favorite gta game. It doesn’t have the same amount of content or features like SA or even 5, but what it makes up for is the amount of subtle details the setting has, the best physics that is still so good today, and the story..man oh man how much it felt like a rollercoaster. The 2nd/3rd last mission where Niko meets Darko alone represents all if GTA to me.
While I was underwhelmed at first that GTA 4 lacked any planes, tanks, military response, skydiving, underwater and wilderness sections that was present in San Andreas, the huge leap in technical fidelity and more serious story made me look past it
Yes its very immerssive The developer who made the environemental sounds, the npc way to dress talk behave, the city, the realistic story, the realistic missions, very convincing main characters Really deserve applaud cause its done in a way youre really feel like you spent some years in NY The story and characters and npc also feel real. You can tell the dude who wrote the story actualy had a social life and lived through some stuff Its not like gta 5 where most npc and characters really feel like a reality tv act. And the story realy feel like some hollywood overexageration. Although gta 5 is a master piece. The story nps and characts could definitly be a lot more convincing and real
Yep and it's not even close, aside from a few things like graphics and vehicle customisation V was just the inferior game. IV is definitely in my top 5 of best games ever played.
@@zrize101 God I loved cops and crooks. My friend was such a try hard that he marked the getaway vehicle spawn points on the paper map that came with the game. So when we found out were the crooks spawned, he knew where their vehicle was and just went a to stole it, lol. Those were the days...
This is my favorite GTA game and I believe it’s the best game in the series. The characters, story and overall atmosphere is just perfect. I love it since the day I first played it when I first got it in April 2008. It’s defiantly a contender for being a perfect game IMO. This game seems to be quite underrated in various aspects and honestly, it’s not necessarily a bad thing. Just shows how great the game was and still is and as time goes on, people look back and realizes just how fantastic it actually is. Great video man, keep up the great work!
I 100% feel you on "felt like i played it yesterday." Its been like a decade since I played, the last time being on my Xbox 360. I remember googling cheats on my mom's phone. I just bought it on the PC and got extreme whiplash nostalgia with how recent it felt.
I replayed this game a few years ago with the intention of having an "immersive storyline" in which the main characters mingled with friends inbetween missions and the three stories were played in chronological synchronization so it came off partly like playing a TV series (and with the entire original soundtrack intact). I really enjoyed the downtimes where characters would discuss things in the vehicle while on their way to some activity and it really fleshed out Niko's backstory as well as his relationship with other characters. It was also my opportunity to hang out with Dwayne, who I missed out on back when I first played through due to a glitch involved with having a full inbox in your in-game e-mail (he sends you an e-mail to ask if you want to start hanging out, but it never comes if your inbox is full after the mission regarding his fate). One time I took him bowling, and at this point I was really good at the minigame, and his character expressed hesitation because he doubted his own skill. So it was a pretty one-sided game of ten frames where I was knocking them down like crazy while he would manage to get one or two pins and gutters. Finally, in the last frame, it's Dwayne's turn and he has no chance of winning but he bowls anyway. Dude gets a strike, finally, and his character does this little celebration dance like "Yeah, I did it!" and I had this funny immersive feeling like "Way to go, dude!" like I'd been there with these two friends bowling and saw one of them finally achieve something great after struggling the entire time. It was kinda special. Dwayne and Niko's friendship isn't the most developed of the bunch, but that bit right there really made it for me, like it showed that Dwayne despite all his downfall and struggle in life could eventually improve alongside the only person who could make time for him - Niko being the only friend he really has at that point.
Dwayne was a great character, you’re a scumbag if you killed him instead of playboy, I can’t think of a time I’ve felt more sympathy for a fictional character than Dwayne.
This game is still my favorite of all time to this day. Such a dark and gritty storyline that I appreciate more and more every time I play it. I worked so hard to 100% it, achieved it, and enjoyed every second of it!
Then they ruined it in GTAV- that game felt terrible to drive. And sadly from looking at the GTA6 leak, the driving physics looked to be just as bad as V.
Driving in this game is by far the best in the series. In fact once you get the hang of it, I find it actually quite easy. For some reason people think you should be able to drive flat-out through corners without ever touching the brakes, as if you can do that in real life.
Love your reviews mate, and your pop culture references are always on point. It is like finding a long lost member of your high school gaming crew, played and loved all the same stuff, and ended up using that wisdom for constructive creative means in the form of this channel. Nice work
NPC reactions, ragdolls, and controversially the vehicle physics are all my favorite in the entire series. I get why many don't think so but I love it. I had the Xplay gameplay videos on my iPod leading up to release and remember thinking how amazing the car physics looked.
I've started replaying this game lately, and I wholeheartedly agree on the fact that this game is a real masterpiece. You know a game is great when you keep coming back to it time and time again.
GTA IV is my fav of all the GTA games, maybe I am being nostalgic but the characters and story is just amazing.... And while listening to the radio if you liked a song, there is a number you can call while that song is on and they will text you the name of that song... It was pretty cool!
The atmosphere in this game was so good. It really captured that New York sense of being lonely and kind of depressed in a city that's just really busy. The smog, the music, the generally dark story, it all just was such a vibe. I also loved getting into a helicopter and listening to The Journey radio station at night and just floating around, looking at the lights. I wish they'd remaster this and Red Dead 1 and do it properly. I want that more than GTA6.
One of the greatest games ever. Every summer without fail I replay this game and I still manage to fall deeper in love with the story. One for the history books ❤️
I remember being in the 7th grade being hype about this game coming out with classmates. It lived up to all they hype for me and it had online multiplayer. So much fun.
The heist mission was definitely realistic because if Michael didn’t die then Niko probably would’ve gotten double the payday, but still though, 250 000 is a lot for GTA 4
@@DmonDhaBossNiko doesn't care about money. He came to find a traitor and live normally and guilt free after that. Daduq would he look to quadruple his money for.
I'm probably a stern minority, but I absolutely loved rock crawling in this game. Just the way SUVs, off-roaders, and bikes were able to climb boulders with some finesse was absolute fun to me. Especially if one can obtain the police Patriot, that thing can defy gravity and is so satisfying to climb rocks with
Sorry not all SUVs, trucks or bikes can climb stuff Example, the Rancher in GTA 4 keeps getting stuck over a bump due to its axles placed so low to the ground, the Huntley Sport on the other hand isnt really an off roader, its more of a high performance car, like the actual Range Rover Sport but faster
@@pinchecabronependejo nah, i stayed away from it if possible, i prefer the previous models especially in San Andreas, thats a proper Rancher 4x4 Also, the Slamvan in GTA 4 is a joke compare to San Andreas where its more of a hot rod
The in universe Internet in this game is incredible, so many websites full of little details, listening to the Journey while browsing the net was such a strange and intriguing experience.
I absolutely loved spending time surfing the in game internet. Some stuff on there was absolutely hilarious to read. And yeah, surfing the internet with The Journey playing in the background, just pure gold.
5:00 I love that the cop doesn't turn on his turn signal to indicate his random lane change but you still get a wanted level for hitting him even though he caused the collision
I remember everything of my trip in high school when we traveled to Nyc just because i had the impression that i had already been there because of Gta IV. Everything from the architecture, the locations and monument were spot on. I could reoriented myself at the age of 16 in the biggest city i’ve ever been, it was amazing and im really grateful that ive played this game so much.
Hands down my favourite GTA game, without question. Hundreds upon hundreds of hours in it, and I still keep discovering new things. The physics are unmatched, esp on pc where you can muck about with them even more. I've been replaying it again on the Steam Deck, since it's one of those games I always have installed and it's a dream having that puppy available portably wherever I am.
Likewise with Max Payne 3. I'm entirely convinced if the game was released tommorow not a lot of people will bat an eye (if it advertised to be made by a smaller studio and not a publicly listed billion dollar one). Because Max Payne 3 is so technically advanced that it surpasses pretty much most games today. The only sign of again are the graphics, which are reasonably minor if you just max them out on PC.
@@Jupa Max Payne 3 is not even the best Max Payne game, and in fact, barely is a Max Payne game. Not knocking it, I love all 3, but 3 itself is the hardest to replay, has the worst story, and seriously, the Housers cannot touch Sam Lake's writing and dialogue. Max in 3 doesn't have a single memorable line that isn't just dramatic hyperbole, for the most part.
@@filthyshoggoth I didn't like it when it came out, for the same BS reasons anyone who liked MP1&2 would've had. But in hindsight, and, again, devoid of all nostalgia, it very much is the best Max Payne. And, (again in hindsight) Max Payne 1's story was pretty bad, Max Payne 2's was much worse. Max Payne 3's the only one of the bunch that even has what you could call a proper story and not just a videogame premise.
@@filthyshoggoth Seriously? MP3 by far has the most memorable and relatable lines ever in the series, not to mention the gunplay is still remaining unmatched. "The way I see it, there are 2 types of people in this world, there are those people who try to build their Future, and there's other one who try to rebuild their past" "I'm in my best when I'm in my worst" "Starting to feel like I'm not going to leave that place, like one of those nightmare where you keep running and running until you eventually discover you're chasing after yourself" etc. The game has the most impactful story pieces for 3rd person shooter. Those who saying that MP3 is not a Max Payne game, are clearly don't know the character of Max Payne and his journey in general.
Recently replayed this and was taken aback by the detail. Never noticed the pretend 2G interference comings in over the radio before your phone rang or when coming out of tunnels while phone reconnected to towers. Haven't heard that noise in years.
I’ll never forgive Rockstar Games for ignoring the 10 year anniversary of this masterpiece.
I'll never forgive them removing music with an 'update' instead of renewing licenses. Those greedy ass b*tches
Agreed this game is a masterpiece and deserved it!
don't worry, they'll celebrate 20th anniversary with the release of GTA VI..
Good, they would have completely butchered the re-release.
They didin't ignore,they remebered by removing one of the most iconic radio stations in the OG version,and many other songs.
This game easily taught a generation of young gamers that a life of crime is nothing but a nightmare and I love how gritty the message is
Yea, gta iv is a tragedy about how good intentions mean shit when you're broke and only skills are a hard head and a hard fist.
Right. And then there's GTA 5 that absolutely glorifies it and screams "crime does pay"
@@youngkhronic2243 i liked gta 4 more then gta 5
Yeah thats why they hated it.
@@youngkhronic2243 Exactly, GTA V's story feels glorified and like it's all fun and games.
Niko has the best comebacks and meanest sarcasm out of all GTA playable characters. This guy is so cynically witty, makes you wanna watch the game cutscenes with a pen and a pad
Where's Barbara with big *THITTIES* and Stephanie who *SUCCS* like a vacuum?
- Niko Bellic 2008
"what's your name?"
"big mouth prick"
Actually I think Huang lee had the best comebacks
@@malletUsergaming Who is Huang lee?
@@don2772 the protagonist of Chinatown Wars
There isn’t a single game out there that has the sheer amount of real world detail this game has.
the only thing that compares is by rockstar themselves with rdr2
ooh, true@@joeJOE-zy7rw
rdr 2 does
Idk about that
Red Dead 2
My favorite moment in GTA 4 is when Niko puts a coin in a vending machine in Roman's office and it doesn't work and he proceeds to say "Capitalism is a dirty business".
@@mrscruffles801 It gave him lemon lime.
@@Geekysam713 capitalism be scamming
I agree though it is a dirty business.
@@Geekysam713 Nah he wants Cabbage flavor.
"Yeah... like war?"
People don’t talk enough about all the buildings you could enter in IV.. so many times I was running around exploring then happened to stumble into a fully fleshed out building that you could enter, I’d run up flights of stairs, then parkour from building to building…. very underrated imo.
Yeah bro you could just spend hours exploring not even doing missions and it was never boring
lmao no, san andreas was wayyy better.
@@SonyCamry bro you probably weren’t even born when that game released
@@cripwalkonmyheart Yes i was, san andreas was way better than GTA IV in terms of random exploration.
@@SonyCamry I just love GTA IV sorry mate 😔
This game is like a time capsule of the late 2000s. Everything from the mobile-but-not-quite-smart phones and their ringtones to the fashion is so incredibly nostalgic and instantly transports me back to that time in my life.
Definitely, the fashion, mobile phone, Internet cafe's, the websites, the music.
we have to go back
Another nice detail is that Niko actually starts off with an older phone that only displays basic black and white text. Like a Nokia 3310 or whatever.
Over the course of the story he eventually gets a more modern (but still not smart) phone that has a color screen and supports different background themes that you can pick from. Pretty neat.
@@VexAcer I only just learned recently that you can get a custom ringtone by paying one of the Saxophonists throughout the city.
yea, i remember all that while going to the cousin's home and we played a lot gta IV and the phones and internet stuff was kinda same at the time in finland too, thought a little ahead tho but still... those were the days...
The story had so much depth that I dont even think GTA 5 rivaled. You cared about Niko and you wanted him to have a good life. You cared about the charecters and the story unfolding. The decisions you made felt impactful and it made up for all the things that were "missing". I obviously missed customizing cars, flying and a big diverse map.....But the story holds so much weight it made up for it big time. Maybe its the nostalgia talking but it was one of the most memorable games Ive ever played. I wish I could go back to being a teen playing it. Mostly because my lifes gone to shit since growing older, but a bit of it is the value and entertainment this game gave me.
San Andreas is better than 4.
Nostalgia . Nostalgia
Nostalgia is such an illness my friend . If u have memories with old outdated game cuz u were a kid thats doesn't mean it has the best story
just shut up @@element021993
Sir, have you played gta 5 story mode?
this game is filled with that late 2000s vibe and actually has a world worth a damn still amazing.
how would you descibe 2000's vibe
@@hetapolski Mobile phones with keypads, buying ringtones, Internet cafes, and especially the music featured in game. It's like when the Internet was still developing (but made decent progress) and it wasn't widely accessible compared to nowadays.
It also feels obviously nostalgic.
@@hetapolski 2000s vibe
Essentially early post - 9/11 still when tech seemed more..... basic and beginning to become more pervasive/intrusive.
@@hetapolski what blueday said. Also the contemporary fashion and overall attitude. People were A LOT less politically correct. It was end of the Bush era and the height of war on terror.
A lot of people were struggling and pissed off about the political landscape, and I feel like Rockstar captured that really well with the overall vibe of this game.
It definitely feels like being back in 2007-2008
Almost 15 years later and Niko still can’t say no to bowling.
@don't be surprised let's be honest no one has
Still disagree, GTA 4 was boring even back then
@don't be surprised let’s be honest, you need us to report you.
I just stopped answering the phone 🤷♀️
He bowls like an angel.
fun fact about GTA IV that I realized only recently after playing it for 15 years
when you're wanted, if you can change your car without the police seeing you doing it then even if you remain in the wanted zone they won't recognize you because they're looking for the car you just dumped, but if you're close enough that they can see your face in your new car they'll recognize you.
thats in gta 5 aswell
Wow didn't know that, gotta try it during my next playthrough. With decent FPS this time :)
I thought mostly everyone realized this for some reason.
@@tumble8323nah
@NoelCotelo I was talking about the fact that they have a harder time spotting you if you switch cars while the police are searching you, your arrow will become darker when you do this, hiding in bushes will do something similar.
It's such a wonderful, rich, dark, funny, compelling game. I've still not managed to put it down, even all these years later. I can't leave Niko and his world behind.
One of the finest games ever. I loved the plot, the city, the grittiness and tragedy. It's easily one of the best mobster games ever imo.
"finest game ever" 😒
Dude, it controls and plays like shyte!
Still disagree, GTA 4 was boring even back then
@@tydendurler9574 yeah the cars were like driving a boat; if there was such thing, but the physics were ahead of there time, flying through a window screen never ceased to make me laugh😄
@@twotails but better than 5 with its missed opportunities on a story with loud and lame characters
@@emaheiwa8174 Wrong. GTA 5 is far better than 4
Being a New Yorker, how much Rockstar nailed NYC was surreal. It felt like living in a virtual world of your home. That is why the game felt so immersive and real, they nailed a lot of aspects of things only you would notice if you lived here. You may not be able to visit your actual home location like in Flight Simulator, but at the time it was damn close. For example, at the beginning of the game Niko and his cousin lived in a Russian area in Brooklyn that actually exists (Brighton Beach). Driving along the Brooklyn Bridge to Brooklyn you would be greeted with a building labeled the Watchtower (Clocktower in game). Its details like that that just blow me away and get me sucked into the game world.
Yeah, I played this summer of 2008 and then went to NYC for a month straddling Xmas the same year and I felt like I had been there before.
You live in NY? I'm sorry.
@@YiddishDancingClown your username fits your comment bozo
Yeah Rockstar really did nail the real life NYC feel in 4. It was so great Insomiac Spiderman PS4 even included an Easter Egg of Niko and Roman in their version of NYC.
I so sorry
GTA IV is one of the few games you can call Art. The details, the story, the cultural impact and the ambition were amazing.
Agreed. Bloodborne aswell
I respectfully slightly disagree. I think that ALL games can be classified as art. And like art, you have your "high art" and your "low art". GTA4: high art. Ride to Hell: Retribution - low art.
@@thepassingstatic6268 I loved your example.
I wouldnt call gta 4 art.... its an amazing game, but that's it
Videogames are 100% an artform, but just like in paintings or sculptures, not every game can be the Mona Lisa or Michaelangelo's David.
Man as soon as you brought up the airport in GTA IV Multiplayer my heart dropped. My best friend was murdered last year, and I just had flashbacks of me flying the blackhawk and protecting him while he was on the ground fighting for his life, trying to drive away while others were chasing him. I miss him so much. Think about him and our times together almost every second of my days. We had so much fun together.
Sorry for your loss
Stop fishing for internet points, its weird
Keep your head up boss
Shame you weren't in the chopper covering him that day 😢
@@TheCamieman don't make me cry 😢
One of the best gaming intros ever and the most scathing and accurate take on American culture. Its just as authentic as the Sopranos or the Wire with just enough over the top to keep you playing, and the DLCs coming together to weave a larger narrative was just as impressive.
This a third person game like Fortnite. For little kids. Grown adult men play first person shooters only.
@@lopiklop ok
I had a dream I was watching The Wire. I've never seen it.
It wasn't actually The Wire. The black Allstate guy was the star. (I know his name but I know that no one else does)
I really don't think there is a unified American culture. Trust me when I say that if you came to the deep south US where I live you would be in a totally different culture than New York.
This game is just insanely important for me. This was the first game I tried to run on my first laptop ever that didn't run properly (like 2 fps lmao). I was about 12 at the time, and I didn't know anything about computers, but this game running so poorly made me look for ways to make it run better, which led me to research what the hell a GPU even was, which led me to develop a liking and love for computers... Today I am about to graduate from college as an IT engineer and I honestly love the things a learned, the job I have, the things I have managed to create as projects from either school or work... And it all started with this game running like crap.
So now you're running it with a NASA computer at 250 FPS at 4150x2950?
😁👍
same here lol! now im working as a sys admin
@@jerevanski 😮👍
For me it was Vice City. I've read about it in gaming magazines (sadly the industry that is quite dead rn) and wanted to play. My PC couldn't run it so I begged my grandpa to buy me a new one. I only could use it during summer because only then I went to my grandparents, but boy oh boy how excited I was. When San Andreas came out I was ecstatic. Though I agree with some of the critic of SA in this video, that game will forever hold a special place in my heart
For me, this was the first game I bought where I didn't have the computer to run it at first, and spent toiling my life in a call center to get enough money to build my first computer I could run the game on.
my previous computer was a Pentium 4 in which I barely had the money to upgrade it as a student whose parents were in a life-changing financial difficulty.
Fun fact about seatbelts in cars: If you wait about a second after starting a car, a "seatbelt" will be applied to Niko and he won't fly out the windshield in a crash.
There are so many more little details like that in this game too, it's insane. Crowbcat made a great vid on the difference between IV and V in this respect.
This is cool, I never actually knew this haha
wow
same with motocycle helmets
@@Gggmanlives I think there was a button on the PC version to actually put the seatbelt on.
I have played this hundreds of hours and never noticed lol cool feature
Awesome review! GTA 4 will always be the best entry of the series for me. Everything from the atmosphere, the characters to the physics and general gameplay are simply top notch. I'm afraid we will never see something like this again in gaming but it's always nice to go back and re-experience this masterpiece.
I'm just about to start playing this for the 1st time today.
Calm down son, GTA 4 wasn't even that great. Even GTA sa blows it out of the water with one freakin swing.
Gta iv isn't even that great - kid who never even played gta 4 rofl
@@Loreny_Storage been playing GTAs since you weren't even born my guy.
@@Redpotato2 Nah sa is good but it's very dated and doesn't have much replay value. GTA IV has a better story, best driving and Melee combat and gunplay in the entire franchise, incredible physics, atmosphere, and probably the most memorable characters.
GTA IV is so fun to just explore and do nothing related to the story, cant really say the same for SA
I personally love the injured/limping animation, and the fact that sometimes paramedics DO occasionally save/revive people. There's just tonnes of little things that gta5 removed that made the world feel real.
As someone who had seen forbidden war footage in Ukraine, I can say that IV's physics is better than V.
And you could Knock people out and they would wake up after awhile in gta 5 one punch kills people 😂
@@barz86 oh, and you could start fights with random pedestrians much more reliably and easily.
@@dark2023-1lovesoni you virgins are so weird about this shit, doesn’t make 4 the better game get real 5 is better
@austinbatton4849 Does insulting strangers make you feel like a big tough man? Please realize that ad-hoc arguments are considered a logical fallacy, therefore not allowed in a rational debate, so I won't entertain them.
The mission where you have to go to that abandoned building to get Elizabeta’s bag of money back from those gangsters was WAYYY harder to me than the bank heist mission. Getting the bag is okay but once N.O.O.S.E. shows up, if you don’t have a photographic memory of the exit to that building, that shit is insanely hard.
You're right. I just did it and barely got out alive. Took me 2 tries.
Replaying this game right now and had to finally google the cheat code during that mission. Playing replayed it 4 times before I beat it. A more annoying mission is where you save Roman from getting executed. It probably took me 7 times. Roman kept getting shot it in head every damn time
Man im struggling on the mission with Manny chasing the train
@@sarahryan422if you use cheat codes during missions in gta your a pussy
@@dontreadmyprofilepicture5797 Or or…hear me out…I just don’t want to replay the same mission from the very beginning multiple times 🤗 pussy
GTA IV is one of the best ageing games of the 21st century so far. Where most 3D games end up ageing quite badly due to visuals and mechanics becoming outdated (I think this is true for the older GTA titles), GTA IV has art style, colour palette and music that still feels so unique. The gameplay and physics still feel very nice too
Yeah about that optimization
@@Maximus20778 just use a downgrader, improves optimization and even restores cut music due to licenses running out
i agree with rdr1 snake eater half life 2 portal left 4 dead i mean half of those are valve games lol
No. Was bad.
@@WiseOwl_1408 disagreed
GTA IV might be the game which had
the biggest influence in my life. I
remembered when I got my ps3
and when I was able to play games
online for the first time ever. It was
absolutly wild for me to see other
players from all over the world running
beside me. In the first week I was
running around in free mode at the
airport. One guy were trying to shoot
me with an RPG but then someone else
crashed his helicopter into the rocket to
save my life. I picked that guy, who just
saved me, up in a car. Now, even 15
years old, we're still best friends and
still talk to each other every single day.
That's legit beautiful
As a New Yorker I look back to this game even more fondly because it captures the last point in New York's life before gentrification. So it's a snapshot of a New York long gone. But one I grew up in and loved so much. Even the side content such as hanging out, bowling, bars playing pool, going to comedy clubs is very much in line with the lifestyle. I get an even BIGGER connection since i'm Albanian. Pretty funny to kick their asses in this game.
New York sucks.
Niko is Serbian, are you going to fight about kosovo? from one balkan brat to another bratkoo🤣 (its a joke guys)
O shqipe respekte te rujt zoti 🇦🇱❤️
I literally commented this on another video. The time it captured in New York is vastly different than it is today. It’s really something to compare when you play it back
As someone who has never been to NY, can you elaborate more on the gentrification?
"War is where the young and stupid are tricked by the old and bitter into killing each other."
- Niko Belic
Never played any gta game but that quote is so true
Kinda disturbing considering that COD MW and World At War came out during the same year
@@AnthroGearhead Your comment isn't relevant to the quote or GTA in any way.
Ninja Gaiden 2 came out that year, too.
@@AnthroGearhead i may add to. All COD games < GTA4. Not even a comparison deserved.
@@lancepage1914 i dont mean by that, i meant by plot
This quote from Niko is basically the events taking place in COD, world falling apart thnx to evil dictators and war generals turning everything upside down
Plus, in both GTA 4 and COD MW, we're fighting against evil Russians, if thats not coincident then i dunno what is
Ninja Gaiden ? Havent heard of it in years, also NFS Carbon Own The City came in the same year as GTA 4s DLC, darkest NFS story
I absolutely loved how if you got on a motorcycle and waited a sec Niko would put a helmet on but would forego it if you pressed the gas immediately as you got on
it works the same with seatbelts in cars too - if you get in and wait a few seconds you can see him put the belt on then you won't fly through the windshield in a heavy crash
@@mhara_x that isn’t true it’s a myth it’s been debunked
@@mhara_x that's a total myth as I've waited for so long and he does nothing and he still ejects out the window.
@@Maximus20778 yeah, i've been back and tested it and he doesn't, but i was sure i remember it happening. unless it was added in 5 and i'm misremembering, or for some reason it was only in the console versions
@@mhara_x it happens randomly due to some code error in some cars only
See you later JackThompsonLives, it's been mildly amusing.
That little end of mission jingle that plays when you complete a mission has been stuck in my head, to this day. Even when I'm playing other open world games, whenever I finish a mission, I hum that jingle to myself. Every single time. It'll never leave.
wild , same type shii im going thru now . im finna cop another copy bruh
The fact that there were different variations of it such as slower somber version as well as an inquisitive and mysterious one depending on how a mission ended made it so much cooler
GTA V was supposed to have end mission jingles for each character but it was cut for some dumb reason. it actually added a lot imo, there's a video on it and other cut content on youtube
I always loved the somewhat 'realism" they added to this game. Felt more gritty/serious than other game in the series.
Hey, what's up Danksy ?
Thats a mod bro.
@@Gatorade69 yoo!
San Andreas is better than 4.
@@element021993RDR 2 is rockstars best game
I always LOVED seeing the stories for GTA IV, TLAD, and TBOGT connect to eachother, with the Diamond Deal being where Niko, Luis, and Johnny's stories interconnect being the best example.
TLAD and TBOGT just made GTA4 so much more better to replay. They acted like a catalyst for the base game, especially with EFLC as a package
same here ! :3
for me, TBoGT is an absolute masterpiece and the favourite of the 3
But of course GTA IV and TLaD are quite good too ^^
@I yes absolutely !
Especially his friendship and business partnership with Tony are so good in the story!
The connection between them is funny to watch^^
It laid the ground work for the multiple protagonists in future GTAs. I think people like me and you how it's approached in this one is that it makes it feel like there's other people living within liberty city and that niko is a small piece of the pie, that the city itself was the real main character and every MC in GTA 4 are just living their lives while also interconnecting with other people lives, very much how we exist in real life.
Where as GTA 5 and 6 multiple MCs seem too serve the story more than anything. Even though other characters will live their lives before you take control of em you know their out there your stories are directly linked in a cinematic way. While 4 it's more coincidences of life that makes them connect. Kinda like how you move somewhere and somehow in the place you move the person you know there also knows someone from where you used too live.
I remember how many of my friends were bummed how GTA IV missed the ridiculous exploration and possibilities of its predecessor San Andreas (Outskirts and Countryside, Monstertrucks, Jets, Jetpack, etc.). I kinda felt alone then because I already could appreciate how atmospheric IV was and the fantastic vibe and story it had. I appreciate it more with each year and I think I'm going to replay it on my steam deck. I think it's overall the best GTA for me.
SA is my fav. Then GTA 4. Then V.C then 5. The RPG like stats, the B&E missions. The story. The customization, body types. All that should have been in 4. Idk why they left it out. That is why it comes in 2nd for me. I love 4 but SA is IMO the best
The night club management in TBoGT actually triggers a few mini-missions where you have to do errands for celebrities etc. I found these quite fun because of the dialogue.
I'll never understand why the Joni part was so badly made, her character model and the cutscenes involving her are SO bad. How could they do a GTA artwork girl so dirty?
@@thebadwolf3088 i agree
Yeah that paparazzi and delivery one.
That’s rockstar
The story and the atmosphere of this game is incredible. First, I’ve never seen a character as deep as Niko in video games, and the atmosphere, the organization and the morality of the story are a masterpiece. But also all the storyline of the diamonds completed with Johnny and Luis - who are very interesting characters and bring totally different atmosphere to the game and the city with bikers and nightlifes - is really as good as a great Hollywood movie.
Couldn’t agree more, the vibe that liberty city gives off is so (how could I describe it) gritty and dark but also fun? And nostalgic? lol I’m struggling to put into words the feelings I get from this game. But this game is certainly a story telling masterpiece as well as an atmospheric masterpiece.
Waiting for that remastered like crazy
The late 2000s energy of this game... man, the nostalgia. not only for the game but for the world back then. The internet wasn't so fkd up just yet
* Early 2000's?
@@CDN0128 it's set in 2008
💯
@@Grandmastergav86 Yourube is smart enough to learn pig latin... But no smart enough to stop me calling you an utter Khunt
@@Grandmastergav86 the top half of your head looks like Phil Helmuth mid autistic meltdown after someone just called him with pocket 2's
I played this game all the way through almost completely blind years after completing gta 5 and I was blown away. This game is a masterpiece. The gritty setting really sold it for me, it's so much darker than most games in the series, and I love that take.
Gta 3 too.
Sorry to hear you’re going blind, sending prayers
@@Blakholet got me dying😂
Well i don't remember asking... Kid.
Gta 4 is bonkers
@@Redpotato2 I understand that playing old GTA games has given you a superiority complex, but if you really don't like GTA 4 why are you here in the first place? Did you seriously just come here to spout about how everyone is a kid and you're smarter than them? That's pretty sad tbh
GTA 4 and Mafia are two open world games I regularly revisit. I like that they are both kinda hard and unforgiving games, unlike most similar games and the music is so memorable in both games. They both have similar vibes in general.
I always consider GTA IV to be the Mafia of the 7th generation.
@@youmakenosense7437 You make no sense
So true!
To me, GTA 4 always felt like it's the Grand Theft Auto Series' "Mafia The City of Lost Heaven"!
Mafia 1 and GTA 3 were my first viddo games ever. I was like 3 or 4 and would play them on my dads computer. Mafia 2 anx GTA 4 i can never get tired of. 2008-11 was just a magical time for gaming.
How could the new studio fuck up Mafia 3 so bad, I mean 2 and 1 Definitive Edition were such good stuff
Packie and Little Jacob are definitely 2 of my favorite supporting characters in all of literature. I think they're both shining examples of the loyal friend and guide archetypes
ur gay
“Got any drugs on you boay”?!! Loved packie haha
Lil Jacob was one of my fav. Man was ready to go to war and poke his fingers in matters that didn't involve him, just off of the fact that you slid for him a few times
Jacob also had some wisdom
@@TheMassiveGamer yeah for sure Jacob was a g..always loved the smoke blowing out the car when you picked him up 😄
I remember being like 14, playing this game and accidentally backing up into a person. The way the physics work in this game makes everything so vividly realistic, haunts me to this day haha
You can shoot the guns out of the enemies's hands!
The ragdoll physics are still damn good even for today tbh. Rockstar called the tech Euphoria Physics.
People would naturally stumble and react depending on where you shot them. Characters actually had a sense of weight to them. It was leagues above a lot of other games at the time who were just using simple ragdolls.
@@VexAcer I remember messing around with the physics on a staircase near the Algonquin hospital for hours continuously pushing and fighting multiple pedestrian's till the counter or a knock out happened at the top and watching them just rag-doll down to the bottom and thinking "gaming can't get better than this".
@@VexAcer I would post up in the way back of the hospital down a hallway with only one entrance and just shoot ops for what felt like hours; picking a different body part every shot
Yet Cyberpunk 2077 "the next generation open world game only getting relevant again thanks to that anime adaptation to boost it's popularity again" doesn't even have these sort of physics. And people STILL defend CP 77 lol.
The part about him saying this game is covered in soul really speaks to me. I’ve recently been replaying it and it’s amazing intoxicating the universe and story is in this game. TBOGB just as much. Feel like a kid again replaying this, and this analysis was spot on
When someone mentions games being "cinematic" GTA IV is the first thing that pops in my head. The way the story is presented is like a feature film, very immersive and gritty. It never tries to be a movie though, ultimately it knows is a game and plays like one. The way each mission can be completed is almost entirely up to you, one of the most interactive experiences of that generation for sure.
GTA4 story format is basically like presented into a gritty crime drama like The Sopranos, with grounded and relatable storytelling. Whereas GTA5 shorter story format is basically like your average Hollywood action movie with over the top action and comedy.
@@channe3049 crazy thing about that is gta5 took so many cues from the sopranos yet everyone compares gta4 to the sopranos
GTA IV is the best GTA game by far imo, GTA V missed the mark by a country mile. The story telling in GTA IV was so immersive and the characters were fully fleshed out whereas in GTA V the story very clearly played second fiddle to the mp. The map was also empty and boring af with numerous downgrades compared to GTA IV.
I hear that. It kinda feels a lot like how Forbidden Siren 1 and 2 are presented like 90s/80s Japanese horror films while having streamlined survival horror gameplay.
This a third person game like Fortnite. For little kids. Grown adult men play first person shooters only.
Ahh the memories. Got it when it came out, stayed the night at my buddies house and we played it like 18 hours straight. No joke. Absolutely one of my best gaming memories.
Neeeeerds! I'm in
This a third person game like Fortnite. For little kids. Grown adult men play first person shooters only.
Sounds kinda ghey
@@lopiklop the coolest guys play text based shooters
@@lopiklopwhat
Love the driving in this game. The way they handle is like those classic action movies from the 60s and 70s like Bullit, Dirty Harry, the Getaway, French Connection. I found it so much more interesting and engaging than the arcade go-carts of GTA5 and some of the older games
That's actually a really interesting interpretation of the driving mechanics. I haven't heard that before.
I would add that while it is interesting, it can be somewhat frustrating. I remember the feeling of pure frustration that it evoked. The slow-as-molasses gameplay is a technique Rockstar loves to utilize. That's why rocket powered motorbikes have such an appeal. It's so much better than the default mode of movement. walking.
Yeah getting chased by cops is actually fun in gta 4.
Yes
@@lopiklop He literally says it in the video.
the auro this game brings is so nostolgic! the muted colour pallet, the weight of the characters and cars, the physics, the blur, the music. There is a subtle hazy glow which really is unique but I really love the look they applied to it and not tried to make it too sharp and no filter. Its like a playing a memory! epic game! The moment you look at gta V with vibrant colours and cartoony gameplay...it loses its soul! its hard to get immeresed and it being too big that its hard to really connect to areas and characters.
This game is definitely for the more mature audience appreciating keen details and realism. Also a gritty story and vibe. I recently jumped back on this game just to play around and notice things I've never seen before playing 15 years ago.
So cathartic to hear a big TH-camr finally appreciate IV's driving. I can't believe that some people still hate on it or think that it damages the overall game, I think it might be one the finest simulations of driving a real car at high speed in any video game period. I love V's driving to, but for different reasons. V's driving is super tight and 'gamey' but IV's felt like you actually had to try when attempting to outrun the cops or mantaining high speeds.
That's what sucked it didn't feel like gta driving it felt like knock off gt controls
It's very similar to BeamNG, and even has soft-body deformation like BeamNG, it's why it's so much more memorable than the kid-friendly driving in GTA V.
I love GTAIVs driving physics. It requires a little practice to get control of it, but once you do it feels so good to drive (and crash).
I've done a lot of track driving, both irl and in racing sims, I'd say gta4 has the best driving physics in any open world shooter (mafia 2 was good in simulation mode but the high speed handling was bad) I just wish you could get rid of the driver assists and the automatic counter steer which makes sliding too twitchy (also the traffic spawning right in front of you whenever you look back when driving on PS3 is annoying but PC probably doesn't have that issue)
i think this and evolution skateboarding have that heavy but satisfying control going on
"Watching your gameplay is just like watching a great movie..." -My wife back in the day when I played through the GTA IV storyline and watched all the cutscenes.
Masterpiece, just simply a masterpiece.
It had actually been around 10 years since I last did a full playthrough of GTA4, and man, playing through the game again, it felt like I never left. I remember the feeling of coming from school and just playing GTA, and if I was done with the story, I'd just start it up again from the beginning and play through it again. It didn't matter how many times I had already played, I was gonna do it again. Now I'm gonna go play episodes from liberty city.
Back in 2008 when I was 13 in a small town, the atmosphere and energy of Liberty City made me want to move to NYC so bad. Which is absolutely insane given the dark and murderous light it's painted in 😂 but it's just done so well.
Anyways lived here 4 years now haha. And honestly my appreciation for how spot on Rockstar got it just grows more and more the longer I live here
@@KrisVic91wow. u are
very gay 🫥👌🏾
Isn’t the dark and murderous aspect accurate though
@@shawnchristianson324 No, it isn't.
@@shawnchristianson324 real life doesn’t have an “atmosphere” bro
I was raised in the beautiful city Rockstar North offices are. They named the local strip joints in gta 4 after the 3 strip joints as they are called the Triangle (it's known as the pubic triangle as its also the sight of Burke and hair murders. The city was also where jk Rowlings book so lots of places like the hogshead pub where I used to drink. Good old days.
Hard to think this was released in 08. I remember as a kid being so extremely excited solely because of the game's physics. I wanted to play it so bad just from the trailer.
5 is better.
@@element021993 It's a flat game, it's got good customization and a decent map size but it's worse in every way apart from that, the graphics and fluidity of animations. Easily one of the most overrated games in my opinion.
@@element021993you need to play 4 again and you see 4 is better then 5. I replayed both in the story mode and 4 is better.
@@stephenswift9896 I can easily turn a blind eye to V's story, but I cannot do so for driving and gunplay, they feel so bad/boring compared to IV's
Same
17:06 is like, the pinnacle of dialogue from Rockstar Games, to me. The way Packie takes a moment to process the joke before hunching forwards a little and laughing.
Literally feels like the time you told your best friends a good burn. It feels like a real life convo and that's hard to achieve.
Imagine being the moral police on twitter for good boy points only to then have a review of the game that you were morally policing others about. Hypocrisy knows no bounds.
bot
@@zerrierslizer1how is he a bot? gman is the bot for telling us not to kill anyone in a gta game
@@groundhardskinny and when in the video did he say that?
niko is genuinely loyal and kind to family and friends. He's funny, determined, honest, smart. Not just an evil killer like trevor.
I’d say you are right about everything but the killer part. I started the story again just a few days ago and I’m surprised I forgot how Niko just doesn’t hesitate or seem to even care for a second when asked by people he just met to go murder other people he knows nothing about. I get his moral compass is broken from his past, but that doesn’t justify him in those actions. He might not act like a complete nutcase like trevor, but the way I see it he’s just as evil. Also, he worked with human trafficking, which is (not arguably) way worse than meth.
@Stezika15 yeah, but he is shown as a complete monster in other missions. For example when Manny asks him to go murder a bunch of drug dealers. Niko didn’t suggest a different solution. He didn’t try to say no. He didn’t hesitate. And yes, that can be reasoned through his military background, he follows orders because that’s all he’s ever known. But that still doesn’t justify what a horrific act of pure evil that is. And he’s doing a lot of bad things because other people push him, yes, but Manny doesn’t have Niko pressed to a corner in any sort of way. Niko just does it because Manny pays. He also mentions it several times during the game, he does what you ask if you pay him. Don’t get me wrong, I love gta4 and I think the story is really deep, but arguing Niko is a good person is just delusional. In my opinion he is the most evil of all the gta protagonists (he does get better, but so does the others).
You cant compare Niko and Trevor, Trevor is a psycopath killer who didnt get love as a kid because his father wasnt a real father and his mom was a prostitute.
Niko though got love as a child from his mother but he grew up in a poor economical situation and his family lived without electricity until Niko was 12 years old.
Niko have heart but the Balkan war made him cold and after the war his only way to make money was through organised crime and he became a hired muscle for Ray Bulgarin, while working for Ray he was smuggling people from Balkan into Italy through the adriatic sea. One day while he was smuggling immigrants the boat was spotted by an Italian coast guard unit, the boat also had weapons and heroin they was gonna bring into Italy from Balkan and Niko had to leave the boat with the guns and the merchandise to save him self from a long time in jail he had to swim a mile from the coast, Niko almost drowned but he was a good swimmer and he made it to Bari, a city on the Italian coast.
After this because he wasted a lot of money from the weapons and drugs Bulgarin blamed Niko for stealing the merchandise and that he was hiding because of this but the truth was that he knew Ray would blame him for leaving the boat even if this was the only way for Niko to not serve long time in prison.
This boat incident in the adriatic sea is why Bulgarin accuse Niko for robbing him later in liberty city when they meet because of Dimitri Rascalov.
After the incident Niko understands that Ray will blame him in one way or another for loosing the merchandise and he knows going back to Bulgarin will make him get either killed or in debt big time.
By this time in Nikos life he is a very broken person, he killed people, smuggled people, guns and drugs. He wants to go to Liberty City to start a new life and dissepear from Bulgarin. Europe is not safe anymore.
He mail often his cousin Roman who wanted him to come to Liberty City to work for him. They grew up together but while it was war in Balkan Romans mother saved some money for Roman so he could start a life in America. After Roman leaves Serbia Niko one day finds Romans mother raped and killed. Niko tells Roman that she died in a house fire. Roman loved his mother very much she probably saved Romans life by sending him to America.
Roman often tells Niko in the messages that Niko should come work for Roman in liberty city and forget about the old country. Roman owns a big luxory cab company with over 50 cars that always is online picking up fares in liberty city. He also tells Niko he lives in a big mansion and that he is a big profile in liberty citys night life.
In this point in Nikos life hes tired of everything and he needs to get away from Europe so Bulgarin dont find him. Nikos friend Hossan knows people who works in a cargo ship called platybus, this ship takes Niko to Liberty City.
@@tx668xD yeah, Niko is like a altered Scott Atkins or Jason Statham
@@tx668xD niko gets told to kill and does it to criminals. trevor would kill everyone.
If you don't speed away right away, Niko puts his seat belt on.
I’d thought I’d remembered that. I was looking for this comment. I remember if you also don’t speed right away on a bike Niko puts a helmet on.
@@M15T3RM the helmet most definitely reduced crash damage, too. I remember noticing that.
It was a nice little feature of putting helmets on your seat belts I really appreciated once it occurred to me how much it saved me. Not sure if that's ironic or not.
Wait, WHAT? Wow
Okay, I tried it thrice in-game and tried crashing on a road barrier between the off-ramp of the Algonquin - Dukes Expressway and the expressway itself. Niko always took a launch from his seat outside. I waited for like twenty seconds the third time I tried.
The car was a feroci
not true
Funny thing is, the melee combat in 4 is still the best in the series, requering proper timing and being less just mashing the punch/kick buttons, plus the animations for counters were pretty cool.
Everything is better in V. Everything. Just stop. 4 is nothing special.
@@adriantrusca1245 Alright, man. I definitely asked your opinion. Definitely.
@@adriantrusca1245 Nah. GTA V did things worse in so many ways. NPCs die so easy in V and it's not satisfying at all
@@mrscruffles801 to only argue or disagree with gtaiv fans, looser lmao
@@iceangelx22 You honestly think you would change my mind? An unknown stranger on the internet? Really? I own all of them. Multiple times. So Rockstar has my money. Still. I think Gta V is better. And there is nothing you can do to make me think otherwise. So do other things.
I remember one of my most recent playthroughs I downed a helicopter at the abandoned sprunk factory, without blowing it up, and the helicopter knocked down an empty silo/container/ water tower looking thing.
Thank you for unlocking a HUGE Part of my Childhood, Gman.
Achievement unlocked: Nostalgia bomb (50 pts)
@Donald Oge I reported them for spam. I ain't clicking no damn links bro. They're probably bots
GTA IV was a gamechanger. I remember reading about it in magazines, seeing the screenshots and being so hyped for release. It was a massive step up from San Andreas in my opinion, not that SA didn't have its own charm, it is a masterpiece of its time, but IV included so many details which really make the worth breathe.
My first GTA game, and I love it in all its ugliness. I love the weird handling, I love the brown and grey color palette, I love the wonky character models. To me, it’s perfect.
Thats how I feel about vice city
This hasn't aged well after he cried about it
Best gta ever.
I enjoy satire from gta 5 but 4 was so down to earth and relatable
I remember coming back from school, booting up the game, riding a sports car through the rain to the next mission with the Kanye's flashing lights playing on the radio.
Reminds me of a simpler time, a better time
Fun fact, Niko's character was based on the track suit wearing sniper from the film 'Behind Enemy Lines'
The actor was apparently approached to voice him but declined.
He was also the side character in Mission Impossible Ghost Protocol
Mashkov he later said he regrets not going for it
The Ballad of The Gay Tony is got to be one of the best DLCS in gaming history. The story and characters were absolutely enjoyable from Luis friends being dumbass and sharing story’s from their younger days to Bruice’s brother being dickhead but lovable especially the final mission for them was a chief’s kiss. The gunplay was really good although sometimes enemies were on the higher ground it didn’t bother me much. The LMG in the mission you did for Russian or whatever they were was fun but sometimes rageful. The Buzzard you pointed that one at first is hard but eventually when you replay the game it would feel easy to do.
Top 3 DLCs in Gaming history for sure.
GTA: TBoGT might be the best DLC in gaming history but Half-Life: Opposing Force is the best expansion packs of all time
Even though it’s a different GTA I think TLAD was a great DLC too it’s not always you get the chance to play like a biker or being part of a MC Club so seeing the different perspectives GTA 4 offered I think this one was good just like TBoGT
Tbogt is deffo the best dlc it was sooooo good
The silenced p90 and the golden uzi were my favorite guns
the car physics were so good in this game. they were challenging and fun.
I liked how cars actually felt heavy...
And the best damage detail too
I was so dissappointet with gta 5 var physics!!!
One thing that really struck me when I went back to GTA IV after playing GTA V was how realistic the whole game was in comparison, with many details in GTA IV actually missing in its successor. And it was so much more fun to drive vehicles in GTA IV because of the physics which aimed more towards a slightly funky simulation style instead of arcade-like for GTA V. You had a real sense of accomplishment sometimes when racing cops and other adversaries. I also love Niko as a character, trying to become a normal individual in a crazy world, but the crazy world always coming back to his life.
GTA 5 was a bigger game with more stuff to do, Rockstar has to sacrifice some things during the making of GTA 5 plus a lot of people complained about the driving in GTA 4 because it was "too weighty and real"
@@IllMatic97 Yeah.. I disagree. Check out this classic Crowbcat video that proves otherwise: th-cam.com/video/GWVtZJo-HqI/w-d-xo.html
@@TheFlamingPike I've seen that video before, it doesn't negate my previous point jeef. That video link you gave is implying that I think GTA 5 is better than 4 which I'm not saying at all, I said "GTA 5 is a bigger game with more stuff to do" you're comprehension skills need work.
@@IllMatic97 How would you define bigger? As in bigger maps? Size in GB? Also it's "your"... Your english needs work.
@@TheFlamingPike God, you're a tool
One of the best stories of any game ever made. GTA 5 was nothing compared to 4 in my book. Enjoyable once, but 4 is timeless.
GTA4 has love and care in it. A lot of charm and the city was so immersive that it truly felt real. What probably made it better for me is that I took a trip to NY a month before the game came out and my hype went through the roof.
love the pfp, that game helped shape my childhood, along with gta 4 lol.
@@Winkmyster were you also familiar with that glitch on one of the sly cooper games on ps2 capable of wiping your entire data for the game? or just me
@@Icewallowcome012 Nope, never had a problem.
Back in 2008 I remember being at my cousins who had a 8080GT which was one of the top cards at the time and he launched GTA IV running maxed out. I was completely blown away by what I got to experience for the next hour until I had to go home. I got a new PC 3 years later and GTA IV was the first game I installed and played through all of it. Truly a technical marvel of it's time, and an unforgettable experience.
There were SO many tiny details in GTA IV that really added up when you put them all together to make it my favorite GTA. One of my favorite small details was that if you shot the car in the right spot you could actually shoot out the suspension near each wheel and essentially turn any car into a low rider at the cost of somewhat worse handling.
This a third person game like Fortnite. For little kids. Grown adult men play first person shooters only.
@@lopiklop This is what a lame ass 14 year old says. Grow tf up
@@lopiklop decent bait, 7/10, throw in another insult and would've been better
@@lopiklop 😂😊
WTF? LOL You were able to do similar things since Vice City HA HA HA HA Fking fanboys
As a kid, this game was the most immersive thing I had ever played. Actually made me feel weirded out when I killed NPCs.
You shouldn't play rdr2 then because it feels worse in rdr2.
@@erso_returned2530 Well, I'm not a kid anymore and I'm no normie when it comes to games.
Have played rdr2, great game but I don't think the physics(which is a big part of why killing npcs felt so "realistic"), is as good.
Rdr2 has way better physics than GTA5 though.
People who are older than you felt that exact same feeling when GTA 3 came out. Just sick to the stomach. Funny looking back on that know because of how bad and unrealistic the ps2 textures are.
@@mattwages7692 I'm 22 so I'm still a baby.
But I owned GTA SA on PS2 back then and I get what you mean.
Today you look back at older games in general and you cannot imagine how someone could've been immersed at all.
But back then it felt different, especially as a kid with a wild imagination who knew next to nothing about the game(s) and what was in them.
The country side of GTA SA was super immersive to me and the fog made it kinda scary after having heard about the big foot rumors.
@@erso_returned2530 GTA 4 is in our timeline so it feels real, killing NPCs in a wild west setting feels like a movie.
That part about complaining about money even when he got rich makes sense if you lived most of your life in poverty. This makes it even more realistic in a sense.
Bro has a WHOLE ass review of GTA 4 and yet gets offended you can kill civilians 😂
bot
yes you are@@zerrierslizer1
@@mohamedmohie5922 bots can't answer replies, so this alone proves you wrong.
bussy @@zerrierslizer1
@@yee6870 yes, i have a butthole. what is your point?
Niko was legitimately the most likable and relatable protagonist of any main GTA title, and he got the saddest ending. Total injustice. I've been bummed about it for 14 damn years.
Sometimes crime doesn't pay
Niko really deserved happy ending. Maybe he got that in revenge ending who knows?
meh I preferred CJ
@@IskenderCaglarM41B441 for all the people he’s murdered, the ending is perfect for him
@@JMR_2028 He deserved better
I've replayed this story and the DLC so many times, these games really defined a great time in my life. I can't wait to revisit them soon
This is my personal favorite gta game. It doesn’t have the same amount of content or features like SA or even 5, but what it makes up for is the amount of subtle details the setting has, the best physics that is still so good today, and the story..man oh man how much it felt like a rollercoaster. The 2nd/3rd last mission where Niko meets Darko alone represents all if GTA to me.
Couldn't agree more.
While I was underwhelmed at first that GTA 4 lacked any planes, tanks, military response, skydiving, underwater and wilderness sections that was present in San Andreas, the huge leap in technical fidelity and more serious story made me look past it
The Urban atmosphere and the city crowd feelings are outstanding in this game,it even surpasses its successor
Not really, Gta 4 Liberty City is boring. San Andreas is better.
@@element021993 san andreas is overrated as hell saints row 2 is a better gangster game.
Yes its very immerssive
The developer who made the environemental sounds, the npc way to dress talk behave, the city, the realistic story, the realistic missions, very convincing main characters
Really deserve applaud cause its done in a way youre really feel like you spent some years in NY
The story and characters and npc also feel real. You can tell the dude who wrote the story actualy had a social life and lived through some stuff
Its not like gta 5 where most npc and characters really feel like a reality tv act. And the story realy feel like some hollywood overexageration. Although gta 5 is a master piece. The story nps and characts could definitly be a lot more convincing and real
This was the best GTA by far and the multiplayer was amazing.
I loved playing the cops vs crooks gamemode, but it was usually hard to find matches. Freestyle in tbogt was the best
Yep and it's not even close, aside from a few things like graphics and vehicle customisation V was just the inferior game. IV is definitely in my top 5 of best games ever played.
The buzzard was OP
@@zrize101 God I loved cops and crooks. My friend was such a try hard that he marked the getaway vehicle spawn points on the paper map that came with the game. So when we found out were the crooks spawned, he knew where their vehicle was and just went a to stole it, lol. Those were the days...
@@Themistocles30 I was easily in the top 100 pilots in that game. God I miss completely obliterating lobbies by myself..
This is my favorite GTA game and I believe it’s the best game in the series. The characters, story and overall atmosphere is just perfect. I love it since the day I first played it when I first got it in April 2008. It’s defiantly a contender for being a perfect game IMO. This game seems to be quite underrated in various aspects and honestly, it’s not necessarily a bad thing. Just shows how great the game was and still is and as time goes on, people look back and realizes just how fantastic it actually is. Great video man, keep up the great work!
I 100% feel you on "felt like i played it yesterday."
Its been like a decade since I played, the last time being on my Xbox 360. I remember googling cheats on my mom's phone.
I just bought it on the PC and got extreme whiplash nostalgia with how recent it felt.
I replayed this game a few years ago with the intention of having an "immersive storyline" in which the main characters mingled with friends inbetween missions and the three stories were played in chronological synchronization so it came off partly like playing a TV series (and with the entire original soundtrack intact). I really enjoyed the downtimes where characters would discuss things in the vehicle while on their way to some activity and it really fleshed out Niko's backstory as well as his relationship with other characters. It was also my opportunity to hang out with Dwayne, who I missed out on back when I first played through due to a glitch involved with having a full inbox in your in-game e-mail (he sends you an e-mail to ask if you want to start hanging out, but it never comes if your inbox is full after the mission regarding his fate). One time I took him bowling, and at this point I was really good at the minigame, and his character expressed hesitation because he doubted his own skill. So it was a pretty one-sided game of ten frames where I was knocking them down like crazy while he would manage to get one or two pins and gutters. Finally, in the last frame, it's Dwayne's turn and he has no chance of winning but he bowls anyway. Dude gets a strike, finally, and his character does this little celebration dance like "Yeah, I did it!" and I had this funny immersive feeling like "Way to go, dude!" like I'd been there with these two friends bowling and saw one of them finally achieve something great after struggling the entire time. It was kinda special. Dwayne and Niko's friendship isn't the most developed of the bunch, but that bit right there really made it for me, like it showed that Dwayne despite all his downfall and struggle in life could eventually improve alongside the only person who could make time for him - Niko being the only friend he really has at that point.
This a third person game like Fortnite. For little kids. Grown adult men play first person shooters only.
He can give you backup goons if your in trouble with cops they got me out of a tight spot once.
@@lopiklop lol whut?
@@colebailey He’s trolling
Dwayne was a great character, you’re a scumbag if you killed him instead of playboy, I can’t think of a time I’ve felt more sympathy for a fictional character than Dwayne.
This game is still my favorite of all time to this day. Such a dark and gritty storyline that I appreciate more and more every time I play it. I worked so hard to 100% it, achieved it, and enjoyed every second of it!
San Andreas is better.
The one thing I really loved in this game was the driving, to many it may seem like a commute, but the semi-realistic driving is just so much fun
.
Soft-body collision physics also made it a real risk/reward scenario when doing chase scenes.
Then they ruined it in GTAV- that game felt terrible to drive. And sadly from looking at the GTA6 leak, the driving physics looked to be just as bad as V.
Driving in this game is by far the best in the series. In fact once you get the hang of it, I find it actually quite easy. For some reason people think you should be able to drive flat-out through corners without ever touching the brakes, as if you can do that in real life.
@Geographer Sudoku K
It's fun, until you want to do the 100% and you're constantly tripping over random objects lying on the ground
Love your reviews mate, and your pop culture references are always on point. It is like finding a long lost member of your high school gaming crew, played and loved all the same stuff, and ended up using that wisdom for constructive creative means in the form of this channel. Nice work
Glad this came out just as I was revisiting these games too. I really miss the more gritty and sad implications of the GTA world.
Y’all are literally on a bandwagon for this game lmao
@@austinbatton4849 it's called an opinion
@@austinbatton4849 Basement time Austin.
@@austinbatton4849 y'ALL aRe liTERaLLy oN a bAnDwAgOn fOR thiS gAmE LmAO
Maybe you'll get that in gta 6
NPC reactions, ragdolls, and controversially the vehicle physics are all my favorite in the entire series. I get why many don't think so but I love it. I had the Xplay gameplay videos on my iPod leading up to release and remember thinking how amazing the car physics looked.
I've started replaying this game lately, and I wholeheartedly agree on the fact that this game is a real masterpiece. You know a game is great when you keep coming back to it time and time again.
GTA IV is my fav of all the GTA games, maybe I am being nostalgic but the characters and story is just amazing....
And while listening to the radio if you liked a song, there is a number you can call while that song is on and they will text you the name of that song... It was pretty cool!
The atmosphere in this game was so good. It really captured that New York sense of being lonely and kind of depressed in a city that's just really busy. The smog, the music, the generally dark story, it all just was such a vibe. I also loved getting into a helicopter and listening to The Journey radio station at night and just floating around, looking at the lights. I wish they'd remaster this and Red Dead 1 and do it properly. I want that more than GTA6.
agree gta 4 is unique compared to the other gta games and is my personal favorite gta game.
One of the greatest games ever. Every summer without fail I replay this game and I still manage to fall deeper in love with the story. One for the history books ❤️
I remember being in the 7th grade being hype about this game coming out with classmates. It lived up to all they hype for me and it had online multiplayer. So much fun.
this channel:
" I dont harm npcs in video games"
-twitter oct 14 2023
be wary there's a bot here calling others bots
Dude, you have 36 bots and 0 friends.
It might be time to get some therapy, because that's dedication to behaving like a grade A basement dweller ..
The heist mission was definitely realistic because if Michael didn’t die then Niko probably would’ve gotten double the payday, but still though, 250 000 is a lot for GTA 4
There's nothing to spend it on
@@DmonDhaBoss on god a few businesses or some side activities like high stakes gambling ( which oddly enough is mentiontioned multiple times )
@@DmonDhaBossNiko doesn't care about money. He came to find a traitor and live normally and guilt free after that. Daduq would he look to quadruple his money for.
I'm probably a stern minority, but I absolutely loved rock crawling in this game. Just the way SUVs, off-roaders, and bikes were able to climb boulders with some finesse was absolute fun to me. Especially if one can obtain the police Patriot, that thing can defy gravity and is so satisfying to climb rocks with
Sorry not all SUVs, trucks or bikes can climb stuff
Example, the Rancher in GTA 4 keeps getting stuck over a bump due to its axles placed so low to the ground, the Huntley Sport on the other hand isnt really an off roader, its more of a high performance car, like the actual Range Rover Sport but faster
@@AnthroGearhead There's an error in Rancher's collision model. You can apply community patch to fix this issue.
@@pinchecabronependejo nah, i stayed away from it if possible, i prefer the previous models especially in San Andreas, thats a proper Rancher 4x4
Also, the Slamvan in GTA 4 is a joke compare to San Andreas where its more of a hot rod
The in universe Internet in this game is incredible, so many websites full of little details, listening to the Journey while browsing the net was such a strange and intriguing experience.
I absolutely loved spending time surfing the in game internet. Some stuff on there was absolutely hilarious to read. And yeah, surfing the internet with The Journey playing in the background, just pure gold.
5:00
I love that the cop doesn't turn on his turn signal to indicate his random lane change but you still get a wanted level for hitting him even though he caused the collision
I remember everything of my trip in high school when we traveled to Nyc just because i had the impression that i had already been there because of Gta IV. Everything from the architecture, the locations and monument were spot on. I could reoriented myself at the age of 16 in the biggest city i’ve ever been, it was amazing and im really grateful that ive played this game so much.
This a third person game like Fortnite. For little kids. Grown adult men play first person shooters only.
@@lopiklop are you autistic
Hands down my favourite GTA game, without question. Hundreds upon hundreds of hours in it, and I still keep discovering new things. The physics are unmatched, esp on pc where you can muck about with them even more. I've been replaying it again on the Steam Deck, since it's one of those games I always have installed and it's a dream having that puppy available portably wherever I am.
As someone who nostalgia got zero hold on, I'm really impressed how well this game holds up.
It's still one of the best game you can play today.
Likewise with Max Payne 3. I'm entirely convinced if the game was released tommorow not a lot of people will bat an eye (if it advertised to be made by a smaller studio and not a publicly listed billion dollar one). Because Max Payne 3 is so technically advanced that it surpasses pretty much most games today. The only sign of again are the graphics, which are reasonably minor if you just max them out on PC.
@@Jupa awesome for real. I played it on launch and beat it recently. Just incredible physics.
@@Jupa Max Payne 3 is not even the best Max Payne game, and in fact, barely is a Max Payne game.
Not knocking it, I love all 3, but 3 itself is the hardest to replay, has the worst story, and seriously, the Housers cannot touch Sam Lake's writing and dialogue.
Max in 3 doesn't have a single memorable line that isn't just dramatic hyperbole, for the most part.
@@filthyshoggoth I didn't like it when it came out, for the same BS reasons anyone who liked MP1&2 would've had.
But in hindsight, and, again, devoid of all nostalgia, it very much is the best Max Payne.
And, (again in hindsight) Max Payne 1's story was pretty bad, Max Payne 2's was much worse.
Max Payne 3's the only one of the bunch that even has what you could call a proper story and not just a videogame premise.
@@filthyshoggoth Seriously? MP3 by far has the most memorable and relatable lines ever in the series, not to mention the gunplay is still remaining unmatched. "The way I see it, there are 2 types of people in this world, there are those people who try to build their Future, and there's other one who try to rebuild their past" "I'm in my best when I'm in my worst" "Starting to feel like I'm not going to leave that place, like one of those nightmare where you keep running and running until you eventually discover you're chasing after yourself" etc. The game has the most impactful story pieces for 3rd person shooter. Those who saying that MP3 is not a Max Payne game, are clearly don't know the character of Max Payne and his journey in general.
Recently replayed this and was taken aback by the detail. Never noticed the pretend 2G interference comings in over the radio before your phone rang or when coming out of tunnels while phone reconnected to towers. Haven't heard that noise in years.