First impressions: GTA IV feels fresh with improved shooting

by Mike on May 6th, 2008

Some things in GTA never change, like shooting people in the face.

Grand Theft Auto IV still feels like a GTA game. You’re treated to the familiar tongue-in-cheek humor no matter what corner of virtual New York you look at, you still drive around a massive city, you still jack cars like there’s no tomorrow, and you still shoot people in the face.

However, the act of shooting people in the face has noticeably changed—it feels refined compared to its earlier counterparts. Niko Bellic, the likeable protagonist, can now shoot like an action flick hero. There’s a little bit of Gears of War and Uncharted: Drake’s Fortune in there, thanks to the new cover system in place.

Players can now fire blindly behind cover without exposing Niko and can slide to cover when gunshots start ringing. The aiming is somewhat similar to The Godfather, which incidentally is a GTA clone. One can aim at individual body parts while locked on, as a target’s health is shown on a target circle. Strangely, people can take quite a lot of punishment from gunfire. This means headshots are the way to go, but it’s easier said than done.

I’ve yet to master the game’s nuances in gunplay and try the nastier types of hardware. Like previous GTA games, it takes a while before you get a hold of the good stuff. I refuse to consider my first shotgun (picked-up from a shootout alongside Little Jacob) as part of the “good stuff.”

As of this writing, all the gunshots I hear and produce are of the sissy kind.

Image of Grand Theft Auto IV is courtesy of Rockstar Games.

Tags: grand_theft_auto, grand_theft_auto_4, GTA, gta_4, gta_iv, ps3_games, xbox_360_games

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