[Miamivicecity]

Do you guys sometimes just walk the streets of LC and soak up everything? I do it all the time and I just LOVE how muck work R* put into the city. Not only does it look great every block is as detailed as the last and nothing feels overlooked.

Although GTA V will probably be more detailed I don't think it'll make GTA IV obsolete. It really was a head of its time in terms of a "living, breathing city" IMO.

This post has been edited by Miamivicecity on Thursday, Jun 7 2012, 11:24

[DTUMan]

Your not the only one that just walks the streets of Liberty City just for the hell of it . I mostly like walking through Star Junction and other areas in Algonquin as they have the most detail and life in terms of a "living, breathing city" (as you mentioned). That statement is more then true in my opinion as I am not sure if there is any other game, that is set in a modern-day location (let alone a game that is open-world as well) that has the ambiance and detail of what a living, breathing city should actually be like.

I will always appreciate the work that Rockstar put into Grand Theft Auto IV's rendition of Liberty City and whether people like it or not - the level of detail that has been put into Liberty City is going to be the basis of future Grand Theft Auto games, including Grand Theft Auto V in my opinion. There's definitely no going back in that regard.

[Miamivicecity]

QUOTE (DTUMan @ Thursday, Jun 7 2012, 22:35)

Your not the only one that just walks the streets of Liberty City just for the hell of it . I mostly like walking through Star Junction and other areas in Algonquin as they have the most detail and life in terms of a "living, breathing city" (as you mentioned). That statement is more then true in my opinion as I am not sure if there is any other game, that is set in a modern-day location (let alone a game that is open-world as well) that has the ambiance and detail of what a living, breathing city should actually be like. I will always appreciate the work that Rockstar put into Grand Theft Auto IV's rendition of Liberty City and whether people like it or not - the level of detail that has been put into Liberty City is going to be the basis of future Grand Theft Auto games, including Grand Theft Auto V in my opinion. There's definitely no going back in that regard.

I just wish I could revisit the very moment Niko walked out of the Hove Beach safehouse the first time. It just blew my mind the day GTA IV was released.

[jpm1]

GTA IV is definitly a great game . and R* made a great move by creating a game very open to modding . i'm modding my vanilla and even after thousands of changes it's still very difficult to get the game become unstable . everything is made so that your modding errors do not lead to a crash. take the radios for example , if you mess up installing a radio the game won't crash , it will just send you advertising . not only you have a game that is highly detailled and that spawns random objects every time you play , but you can mod it as you like . i won't finish without takling about the timecyc/weather . i was stunned by the timecyc quality . sometimes when i manage to get the correct settings my spirit flow away flew seconds , i just canno't tell if i'm in a game or IRL anymore . rare are the games that did that to me , maybe that's the only one .

[AlexGTAGamer]

I too love walking the streets of L.C taking in the sites and the details in the game, and even listening in on the humorous conversations of pedestrians on the streets.

My favourite place to walk around is Hove Beach. I enjoy reading the storefront signs looking for gags and easter eggs in the signs, and then getting chased down the street by some angry Russian gangsters who don't like the fact that I'm in their area.

[Deadly Target]

Yep. It's still the greatest, most detailed open-world city out there after all these years. Even the cities in these upcoming games like Sleeping Dogs and Watch Dogs look bland compared to LC.

[disco]

Yep, I also do this. I also like walking into the subway and catching a train. As mentioned before, the little details Rockstar have put in IV are immense, and it's those little details that make a big overall difference to the game; "The minnows maketh the man" -Rusty Galloway, 1947.

I hear a lot of people talk about how they miss the cartoony over-the-top style that the older GTA's had, especially VC and SA, but hell no, I want the realism meter cranked up every time they release a new game, and it looks like that's exactly what I'm getting, thank god.

[Linki]

Yes, I do that a lot.

I remember walking down from my safehouse in Northwood to Star Junction. I would have the HUD off completely and have the camera angle close - it always feels very surreal every time I do this. And even if I'm not causing any trouble, sh*t still goes down.
I was standing at the lights waiting to cross the road in Star Junction and a car crash happened. The crowd reacted, the guy got out and pulled out the other guy, one of the passengers in the wreck crawled out and stumbled away in pain. The police stopped the fight and arrested the guy who was winning the fight. It was awesome. This sort of stuff is an everyday occurrence in LC.

@Deadly Target: I know. Games like Watch Dogs, Sleeping Dogs, etc. All of them seem so bland and lifeless, even if they better LC in some technical areas.

This post has been edited by Linki on Friday, Jun 8 2012, 01:55

[NateShaw92]

QUOTE (Miamivicecity @ Thursday, Jun 7 2012, 12:11)

QUOTE (DTUMan @ Thursday, Jun 7 2012, 22:35) Your not the only one that just walks the streets of Liberty City just for the hell of it . I mostly like walking through Star Junction and other areas in Algonquin as they have the most detail and life in terms of a "living, breathing city" (as you mentioned). That statement is more then true in my opinion as I am not sure if there is any other game, that is set in a modern-day location (let alone a game that is open-world as well) that has the ambiance and detail of what a living, breathing city should actually be like. I will always appreciate the work that Rockstar put into Grand Theft Auto IV's rendition of Liberty City and whether people like it or not - the level of detail that has been put into Liberty City is going to be the basis of future Grand Theft Auto games, including Grand Theft Auto V in my opinion. There's definitely no going back in that regard. I just wish I could revisit the very moment Niko walked out of the Hove Beach safehouse the first time. It just blew my mind the day GTA IV was released.

get amnesia. hit your head really hard.

[gezebo]

i won't finish without takling about the timecyc/weather . i was stunned by the timecyc quality . sometimes when i manage to get the correct settings my spirit flow away flew seconds , i just canno't tell if i'm in a game or IRL anymore . rare are the games that did that to me , maybe that's the only one .

[ZombLee]

One of my favourite things to do is just walk down the street, taking in the atmosphere.

QUOTE (disco @ Thursday, Jun 7 2012, 23:33)

Yep, I also do this. I also like walking into the subway and catching a train. As mentioned before, the little details Rockstar have put in IV are immense, and it's those little details that make a big overall difference to the game; "The minnows maketh the man" -Rusty Galloway, 1947. I hear a lot of people talk about how they miss the cartoony over-the-top style that the older GTA's had, especially VC and SA, but hell no, I want the realism meter cranked up every time they release a new game, and it looks like that's exactly what I'm getting, thank god.

I love the sound effects in the subway. I wish there were trains in multiplayer.

and yeah, I'm glad R* took the realistic route instead of some sh*t like Saint's Row.

[Miamivicecity]

QUOTE (disco @ Friday, Jun 8 2012, 10:33)

I hear a lot of people talk about how they miss the cartoony over-the-top style that the older GTA's had, especially VC and SA, but hell no, I want the realism meter cranked up every time they release a new game, and it looks like that's exactly what I'm getting, thank god.

It's simply not the same in the GTA III era GTAs. It feels so um dead?

[huevos_benedicto_180]

Wait for Zee to get in here!

Yeah, as it goes I think they did an excellent job with the living breathing city, and I would defy anyone to give a game which has done a better job since. They did say in the previews that no one block feels the same, and I would definitely have to agree.

I remember the first time I played the game, walking from Roman's flat to the cab depot and being in awe at how detailed the streets around me were (although if you look closely at the beginning of the game the lighting is more prevalent than at the end of the game, as if Rockstar were showing off the graphics at the start).

[Mokrie Dela]

i used to, but havnt played IV for over a year!

I do it in RDR a lot though, and when i pick up GTA again, i will do so again. I just can't NOT do it.

I have memories of walking on the beach in VC too, "training" with the katana at sunrise/set on the beach (like the back of the case). Not many games allow you to do that, either they lack the atmosphere, or the game forces you to progress and not slow down to take it in (Max Payne for example).

[Official General]

QUOTE (Linki @ Friday, Jun 8 2012, 01:50)

And even if I'm not causing any trouble, sh*t still goes down. I was standing at the lights waiting to cross the road in Star Junction and a car crash happened. The crowd reacted, the guy got out and pulled out the other guy, one of the passengers in the wreck crawled out and stumbled away in pain. The police stopped the fight and arrested the guy who was winning the fight. It was awesome. This sort of stuff is an everyday occurrence in LC.

Very rarely would serious sh*t go down, you gotta create most of that yourself. I just wish there was more crime and violence happening in the streets in GTA IV.

What you described there aint all that exciting, motorists fight all the time and punch each other about, its not that spectacular to watch after a while.

Thankfully I found other exciting and fun ways to start crazy havoc and enjoy myself while free roaming in GTA IV, otherwise I would criticized the game even more. But using my perseverance and genius I was able to start explosive gunfights between rival gang members, so crazy that many innocent bystanders and even police would get sprayed, hit and killed.

[AlexGTAGamer]

QUOTE (Official General @ Saturday, Jun 9 2012, 03:22)

Very rarely would serious sh*t go down, you gotta create most of that yourself.

What do you mean "rarely happens"? The first time I played GTA IV when I was walking through Hove Beach a gunfight broke-out between a Russian gangster and the LCPD that also involved more Russian gangsters who then joined in to help their fellow criminal.

Gun fights happen all the time for me in IV, mostly in Alderney between the LCPD and Korean hoods I've found.

And even a few days back I was casually walking the streets in Cerveza Heights when a poor motorist crashed into a petrol pump at a gas station, causing a huge chain reaction. Explosions happen all the time on the bridges and motorways in the game whenever I play, as do random fist and gun fights.

[seagull1971]

QUOTE (huevos_benedicto_180 @ Friday, Jun 8 2012, 11:38)

Wait for Zee to get in here! Yeah, as it goes I think they did an excellent job with the living breathing city, and I would defy anyone to give a game which has done a better job since. They did say in the previews that no one block feels the same, and I would definitely have to agree. I remember the first time I played the game, walking from Roman's flat to the cab depot and being in awe at how detailed the streets around me were (although if you look closely at the beginning of the game the lighting is more prevalent than at the end of the game, as if Rockstar were showing off the graphics at the start).

Yes I noticed that also. However imo the greatest real time game ever !

[Official General]

QUOTE (AlexGTAGamer @ Saturday, Jun 9 2012, 23:29)

QUOTE (Official General @ Saturday, Jun 9 2012, 03:22) Very rarely would serious sh*t go down, you gotta create most of that yourself. What do you mean "rarely happens"? The first time I played GTA IV when I was walking through Hove Beach a gunfight broke-out between a Russian gangster and the LCPD that also involved more Russian gangsters who then joined in to help their fellow criminal. Gun fights happen all the time for me in IV, mostly in Alderney between the LCPD and Korean hoods I've found. And even a few days back I was casually walking the streets in Cerveza Heights when a poor motorist crashed into a petrol pump at a gas station, causing a huge chain reaction. Explosions happen all the time on the bridges and motorways in the game whenever I play, as do random fist and gun fights.

You see that is NOT what I mean, I'm not talking about police vs gangs gunfights, I'm talking about gangs vs gangs gunfights that are not scripted. You almost never see that in GTA IV.

[dragon_goran_mijo]

I love walking past the suburban gang infested areas like North Holland and South Bohan at night. The shady atmosphere is alluring, it makes me situate myself in the area for hours, just exploring and doing mischievous things.

[Racecarlock]

I actually did walk recently after having yet another drunk blackout and I ended up, this time, in the dumpster in the middle of the triangle (Times square). Walking does help with taking in the atmosphere, but I also couldn't help but notice some flaws. For example, I actually used a bus to get on top of the maginot theater sign. What's flawed about that? Well, the city doesn't seem to have a bus system. I've noticed this before, but this was one of those take in the details walks, so it really stood out. I didn't stop playing and I didn't think less of the game for it, instead just walking to rotterdam tower and base jumping off of it a few times, but it is noticeable and one thing I hope they get in the next game.