Grand Theft Auto V - PlayStation 3

The Grand Theft Auto series is one of the biggest in video games and Rockstar proves that a franchise doesn’t need to saturate the market by having a new game release every year. It has been five years sense Grand Theft Auto IV and although Rockstar has made other games in that time, the world of GTAV alone feels like they have been working on this game that whole time.As of GTA IV, Rockstar went for more of a series tone with the franchise and it didn’t fit well with all the anarchy that players could get into. Now with GTAV the story is serious again and this time told in a more exciting way which lends itself to having some lighthearted moments that mix with the serious moments smoothly without feeling out of place for the most part. The story works well and that is helped by some of the best characters in the series and once again great depth to the world around you, but GTAV still leaves room for improvement with the characters as well as how things work in the world.Instead of playing as one character running amuck across town, this time you take on the role of three different characters. You are introduced to all three characters over the first few hours of the game one at a time, getting a small piece of their lives while doing so and learning a little about them. There is Michael, who was a career criminal that has now slowed down, retired from the life with his wife and kids in Los Santos, which is game's version of Los Angeles. He has been spending his time bored out of his mind sitting around his house drinking; meanwhile his wife and kids hate him. Then there is Franklin, who is a low rent gangster. He and his best friend Lamar are the more typical style for this kind of gang as they are doing basic crimes trying to step up to bigger things.Franklin and Lamar at the time though are working for a crooked car dealer stealing cars for him, which is what leads to the meeting between him and Michael. From there the main story really starts going as Michael takes Franklin under his wing and they start working together and making a name for themselves, at least enough to catch the attention of Trevor, who is an old partner in crime of Michaels. Trevor is your typical loose canon, basically his whole life is lead by acting out like when you get bored in a GTA game and run around causing havoc. He swears, drinks and kills as he pleases with little remorse. His main gig is running a meth lab operation in the country/deserted area north of Los Santos. Trevor has spent the last ten years thinking Michael is dead until now, leading him into town to see for himself that Michael is still alive. This leads to a shaky and uneasy relationship between these three characters.Rockstar has done a great job of making it easy to switch between these three characters, unless you are in the middle of a mission. Some missions are for just that one character you have selected, while others are for two or maybe all three. Most of the time you can switch to any of the three you’d like and be introduced to whatever is going on in their life at that time. You can switch to Michael as he wakes up screaming from night terrors or walking out of a coffee shop throwing his cup on the ground. You can switch to Franklin playing with his dog Chop or trying to keep his friends from fighting or you can switch to Trevor puking into fountains or in his underwear chasing girls out of the strip club. It is nice giving the idea that all three of these guys are out living their lives even when you are not controlling them at all.The mission structure is pretty standard for a GTA game. There is a letter on the map that pops up and you drive to it, have a little cut scene and most likely end up driving someplace else to really get going. Some missions have multiple parts to them as well. Those types of missions usually end up mixing it up with one or two of the other main characters from the game. For example there is a chain of missions were Franklin is boosting unique cars and Trevor comes in to help and they take off with the cars on the back of a truck down the highway and as Trevor you have to try getting away from the police that catch on. However you can’t shake them so the game has you switch to Franklin to climb into a \car on the back of the truck, drop it off the back and shoot the police are that are in pursuit. There are other missions where the characters find themselves in a shoot out and you can switch between them making it kind of tactical when it needs to be.This also plays into the game’s special abilities and stats for each character. All the characters have a list of stats for things like driving, shooting and energy. Again for example, Trevor is better at shooting then Franklin. However stats like the shooting don’t make any difference seeing that there is an auto-aim that makes picking off enemies (or the police) just as easy for everyone. The only statistic that seems to make any difference is the character specialty ones. Each has their own, such as Trevor goes into a rampage-esque mode and takes less damage, Franklin can use his while driving and slows down time to make better moves on the road and Michael has the ability to become more focused when in a firefight, having kind of a Max Payne feel to it, but not as dramatic. These all come in handy, however when it comes to the combat oriented ones if you use the cover system along with the previously mentioned auto-aim you will easily make it out of most encounters with enemies.There are times that missions deviate from the normal style such as when your crew takes on different heists. These missions take some extra planning and happen at pivotal points in the main story. These missions usually start out by getting information on the building or area you are going to have the heist happen and then choosing a “Plan A” or “Plan B” and depending on which you decide on you will make plans from there. You can play a sloppy way that is more dangerous or a more laid out plan that is less risky and makes for a more smooth in and out situation. From there you choose a crew (outside of the main three characters). You will higher a shooter, hack and a driver. Some of these missions you won’t need all three, maybe one or two. You will choose these people on their stats and those with higher stats will cost more money that is received from the heist. If you choose a shooter that is not as experienced he might die during the job and the money he was caring is gone and taken out of the total at the end. However, whoever you choose and make it through the mission the stats can go up, but the percentage of their take will stay the same. So it is possible to use inexperienced people and keep from paying them more as they get better.Some heists will need extra steps to complete before starting the heist. Maybe the job requires masks, clothing and weapons. You can have one of the main characters go buy it all or have one of each do a few steps making it feel like it was a team effort to get everything set up. You will sometimes also need to get yourself a getaway car and find a good place to stash it for once the job is done you can get away easily and quickly. Sometimes the job will call for specific vehicles like garbage trucks or maintenance vans and you will have to steal those as part of the set up. All this is a nice and welcome changed from the typical mission structure of the GTA series and they come a long just in time to keep things fresh and different. The only complain about this is there should have been a lot more of these types of missions.So you have your story missions and heists and of course there are side events. Outside of that there are random events that pop up when you are cruising around, these are usually simply things like someone stealing a purse from a woman or stealing a car. You can stop these from happening and do one of two things, keep the money you pick up or keep the vehicle that you get from the thief. After all you are playing as one of three criminals in their own right. There are also missions referred to as "Strangers and Freaks". These missions have little structure to them, but just enough to be something different. They are pretty typical for an open world game and each character have different events that unfold from them. Trevor for instance runs into some border control nut jobs in the desert bent on locking up whoever they assume is an illegal alien. Michael lets some random woman talk him into a footrace and Franklin gets mixed up with a weirdo that wants to get marijuana legalized. It is missions like this that keeps GTAV down to earth and brings in some humor. It keeps the game from feeling too serious all the time. There are also other things to do like street racing what not to do in the world, like any game of this caliber. Of course there is the simplest thing to do like joy ride around and see how long you can last with five wanted stars.As mentioned and of course expected there is a ton of driving that happens in this game. Unfortunately Rockstar still doesn’t seem to grasp the concept of gravity when it comes to the driving. The GTA series sense turning into a third-person game in GTA3 has had an awful time with the driving. Even now in GTAV it feels like you’re driving on icy roads while there is hardly any gravity. It is something that you do get use to, but really shouldn’t have to after all this time. I hate to bring it up, but the Saint’s Row series has had a better handle on driving the entire time compared to the GTA series. Also the flying is still a problem and like driving only becomes bearable after getting use to it. Although, when it comes to flying there is also the landing which is even more of a chore. Landing a plan in GTAV reminded me of trying to land a fighter jet on the aircraft carrier in Top Gun of the NES.GTAV is by far the best game in the series. Rockstar is so great a creating a world to live in and great characters to play as and they have out done themselves here once again. Driving is the only real downer about this game and even though you shouldn’t have to get use to it, once you do it works pretty well. There is also an online component to the game, but that is not out until October 1st. With all that GTAV offers though it is alright for Rockstar to take their time and get the online done right. There is no need to rush it with some much in the world already. GTAV might not be as surprising as it seemed like it would be, playing as more then one character and having such a huge open world, but it still makes it the best. I can see already other games trying to bring in the multiple main character aspect that GTAV has and they already perfected it as far as I am concerned. I just wish that GTAV came out earlier to help get through the summer drought of no game releases, but it is here now and worth picking up right away. It will also keep those afloat for awhile that don’t plan picking up next-gen systems anytime soon.

I'm not trolling with the subject, but it may draw some fire. First, a caveat: I am a longtime fan of the GTA series, but I am merely a casual gamer these days and have played very few other games in the current generation. Therefore, my opinions and comparisons are based mostly on previous GTA games. That said, this is clearly the best video game I have ever seen or played. However, it is certainly not perfect, as I will explain. This review is based solely on the PS3 version of the game, and it contains some minor spoilers.First a few quibbles, because the rest of the world has already spewed forth innumerable praises.* The driving physics model is absurdly unrealistic, and vehicles take far too much damage before they are destroyed or undrivable. Examples: almost any car can drive up the side of a steep mountain, braking is almost instantaneous in many cars, and you can easily recover from just about any loss of traction. Given the high level of realism in many other aspects of the game, this is disappointing. I say this from the POV of a fan of driving simulators like Gran Turismo, the only other game series I've played consistently over the last 10 years. However, I understand why R* did this, because it makes driving less frustrating, and it will probably appeal to the majority of GTA players. Therefore, this is a forgivable shortcoming, but I would like to see (in an update if possible) a settings option to enable a more realistic model.* SPOILER ALERT! I'm only about 50% complete, but so far several key missions and heists are designed to fail, or you don't get a significant payout even with success. Again, I can understand why R* did this, because it fits with the story and they don't want to give you tons of money at the beginning of the game. Still, it can be frustrating.* Some elements of play control are difficult to the point of frustration, such as free aiming on moving targets and piloting helicopters. However, I'm sure these tasks would be much harder still in real life, so not a big deal.* As in previous GTA games, very few buildings can be entered, and most immovable objects are indestructible. Given the size and detail of the playable world, this is hardly a reasonable gripe, but it's worth mentioning.* SPOILER ALERT! If it's possible, the socially deplorable aspects of GTA5 are even more extreme than previous games. Violence, drugs, sex, and even torture are depicted graphically and some would say "glorified." There are no strong female characters, and some have gone so far as to cite extreme misogyny. There is sometimes a tone of satirical commentary against these ills of society, but it's not really consistent. Personally, these aspects do not detract from the game experience. I consider myself to be a mature adult who is capable of watching an R-rated action movie without walking out of the theater cursing and murdering people, and I feel the same about GTA5 and all other games I've seen that contain these controversial elements. Even though you must choose to make the game character perform those actions, the distinction between screen and reality is just as stark. However, it's rated M for a reason (lots of reasons), and I definitely do not think it is appropriate for any child with an incompletely developed sense of moral character to play or even to watch.* Bugs: There is a growing list of problems on the R* website, but I've hardly noticed them, so I don't care too much. Perhaps the biggest concern seems to be that saved vehicles sometimes disappear. My only related experience so far was one time I found a rare vehicle that I wanted to save, so I drove it to my garage, parked just outside so I could remove another car to make space, and when I turned back around, the first car had vanished. There are occasional frame rate drops and noticeable pop-in of graphics elements, but I'm amazed these issues aren't worse considering the extreme level of detail in a game running on 7-year old hardware. I've seen one noticeable freeze, which lasted for just a few seconds during very fast moving aerial combat.I will give only a brief summary of the high points, because you can find more detail in myriad reviews here and elsewhere:* Immersive open world with stunning visuals and sounds: Every element of the game world has been meticulously created, and the results are extraordinary. From the cracks in the streets to the clouds in the sky, vast mountains, wildlife, detailed underwater landscapes, and on and on. The lighting is incredibly realistic, too, with beautiful sunrises and sunsets, faithfully recreated shadows, and accurate colors that really pop off the screen. Depending on the weather, you can see clear across the entire game world if you get high enough, and you can even see the curvature of the Earth. I'm familiar with Los Angeles, and I can often navigate in Los Santos based on real world knowledge of the area. Sounds are great too, including music, voices, vehicles, wildlife, etc. This is the first game I've played where I drive and fly around just to see the world, and it looks more like a movie than a game. It doesn't hurt that I'm playing on a 10 foot projection screen with sound at realistic levels on a good surround sound system.* There are 3 main "protagonist" playable characters, and you can switch at almost any time off-mission and often during missions as well. This means there is almost always something interesting going on with at least one of the characters, and also makes for much more interesting mission design. The characters themselves are often hilarious to watch and interact with, despite their numerous flaws. I find myself taking on personality traits of the characters when playing them, such as the radio stations I listen to and the types of random carnage I inflict.* SPOILER ALERT! The story is compelling, and the missions are varied and interesting from the very beginning of the game. Even though many of the missions essentially boil down to drive somewhere, kill someone, steal something, and drive back, the implementations are much more creative, interesting, and just plain fun. The heist missions are the real showcases for the 3-character format, and often involve switching multiple times to help each other. They also require various small setup missions, and you can choose in advance between different strategies, usually a stealthy approach or a straightforward overwhelming display of force. All missions can be replayed instantly from the pause menu.* R* have really learned their lessons and improved on many of the problems with previous GTA games. Examples: the entire world is open almost from the very beginning; mission checkpoints are introduced seamlessly, so you don't have to repeat an entire mission if you fail; NPC "friends" who demanded too much of your time are gone; not as many tedious missions are required; fixed-wing aircraft are back; weapons are retained when you are killed or busted.* Computer AI is much better than GTA4. Your partners will actually help on missions, and NPCs react in much more lifelike ways. This is particularly noticeable in combat, where different characters behave very differently. Example: gang members will often just rush at you, whereas police and military will utilize cover and attempt to flank and surround you.* The diversity of vehicles and transportation is better than ever, including cars, trucks, bicycles, motorcycles, ATVs, boats, jet skis, submarines, planes, helicopters, parachutes, and even an army tank. The fighter jet is so much fun it might be worth the price of the game alone. OK not really, but it's awesome.* As usual with GTA, the music is great and very contemporary. I loved the Vice City soundtrack, GTA:SA was even better, but GTA4 was disappointing in this regard. GTA5 is much better, but I don't think as many tracks will stand out in my mind as VC or SA. IMO, the big improvement to the score in GTA5 is the original soundtrack, which plays during missions to add more drama to the action. It's just like in a movie, and it's very well suited to each situation.Conclusion: The real standout of GTA5 is the world itself, which is immersive on a whole new level than any other game I've seen, and makes me see for the first time that movie-level realism is not far away in games. Everything fits together to make a game that has a great story and is totally addictive and just plain fun, more than any other game I've played as an adult. GTA5 feels like the culmination of everything Rockstar have learned with the GTA series, and is more fully realized than I could have imagined. For me, it exceeds the uber-excessive hyped up expectations in almost every significant way. I'm not much of an online multiplayer guy, but everything I've heard about the online part of GTA5 sounds great, and will give even more replay value to a game that already has easily 100 hours in it if you want to do side missions and secrets (I've heard a standard play through takes ~40 hours if you stick to the story missions). GTA5 is not the perfect game, but it is the perfect swan song for the current 8th-gen systems, and it sets a bar that I believe will be very high even for the next generation. If you have a PS3 or XB360 (and you're "mature"), this game should absolutely be in your library.