Perhaps the most untypical GTA game to date. A relatively dramatic (within the series) story, sometimes annoying (but so lifelike!) characters, the most realistic car physics and police and pedestrian behavior. Of course, the graphics might elicit a condescending smile in 2020, but the car models look convincing enough. (very subjective) I liked Liberty City from the HD universe of GTA much more than Los Santos from GTA 5: it’s dark, oppressive, rainy, and gray, which makes it the perfect backdrop for the story of Serbian immigrant Nico Bellic. The story makes you think, and the game sets the tone for a thoughtful playthrough. Unlike GTA 5, which was filled with mini-games and open-world activities, in GTA 4, communication with friends and acquaintances is the main focus as the protagonist makes more and more connections throughout the game. Sure, they provide help and have their own features, but what’s equally important is that through communication with them, the main character reveals himself, and his motivations and beliefs become clearer. For me, this is the best part of GTA.
Grand Theft Auto IV: Complete Edition
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About this game
Liberty City in GTA IV does not try to look like a postcard. Here there are dirty back alleys, traffic jams in the rain, and phone conversations that suddenly become more important than shootouts. You freely drive around the city, take tasks from questionable acquaintances, get stuck in gang clashes, and gradually understand the rules of local life.
The main character, Niko Bellic, arrives in the US for a “new start”, but quickly finds out that the dream costs money, nerves, and other people’s promises. In this installment, Rockstar relies on drama, choices without perfect options, and realistic car physics, which makes every chase feel truly real.
The Complete Edition brings the story together and lets you experience it from different sides, including Episodes from Liberty City: The Lost and Damned and The Ballad of Gay Tony. Therefore, you do not need to collect the expansions separately.
- Release date
- December 2, 2008 / March 24, 2020 (The Complete Edition release)
- Developer
- Rockstar North, Rockstar Toronto
- Publisher
- Rockstar Games
- Platform
- PC (Windows)
- Multiplayer
- none (Multiplayer mode and Leaderboards are disabled in The Complete Edition)
- Edition contents
- Includes the episodes “The Lost and Damned” and “The Ballad of Gay Tony”
- Version
- 1.2.0.43 (September 20, 2022)
- Languages
- English, French, Italian, German
Show all languages (5)
Language support Language Interface / Subtitles Audio English French Italian German Spanish
The Rockstar game studio has never ceased to amaze since the very first appearance of the Grand Theft Auto project. The company was the first to do the almost impossible – to combine the storyline and complete freedom of action. If you don’t like going through missions, run around the big map.
If you want to have fun – do tricks on cars, get paid for it. Wanna feel like a businessman – buy real estate, and the profit will not keep you waiting. All this is featured both in the first part of GTA and in Grand Theft Auto IV.
In just the first 7 days of sales, the company sold more than 6 million copies worldwide, which brought the developers over $500 millions. It is worth noting that approximately $100 million was spent on development. During the entire existence of Grand Theft Auto 4, the company brought over $2 billion in net profit. In 2020, GTA 4 was re-released on the Steam digital platform as a Complete Edition, which included The Ballad of Gay Tony and The Lost and Damned.
Mechanics
Combat has been completely redesigned – a cover system has appeared, as in well-known shooters. Also, for easier navigation around the city, there is a radar and GPS, but with more advanced features. For example, a point can be pointed through the map, and the pointer will guide the player to the destination.
Also developers reworked the police search system. Now the police do not immediately arrive at the scene of the crime. In GTA 4, it is important to maintain relationships with other characters. To do this, you can use a mobile phone – another innovation in Grand Theft Auto 4.
The main plot develops in the fictional city called Liberty City. One of the largest cities in America, New York, is taken as the basis. In the single player game, the player meets the hero Niko Bellic, who immigrated to Liberty City from Southeast Europe. The fate of Niko is not revealed in detail, but it becomes known that he previously participated in the Yugoslav war. However, later the hero was left with nothing, and to find a better life, arrived in Liberty City.
Plot
The actual action of the game starts in 2008, in the initial cinematics it is shown how the main character arrives at Liberty City by ship at the invitation of his cousin. Niko’s relative Roman Bellic, in his letter of invitation, says that Liberty City is a city of opportunity, and that he Niko will be able to start life from scratch. But the reality is more prosaic – Roman lives in the “viper” Hove Beach, controls a small taxi service and hits on Mallory’s girlfriend.
One day, Niko gives a ride to a regular client, Roman, a rastaman named Baby Jacob. The passenger constantly smokes ganjubas, and speaks almost incomprehensible English with a clear Jamaican accent. But the main character understands him perfectly, and soon they become friends.
After a while, a relative of the protagonist Roman gets into trouble – gambling addiction leads him to big debts. Niko stands up for his cousin by punching Albanian bandits in the face. Fighting skills do not go unnoticed – Niko notices the six of the Russian mafia of Vladimir “Vlad” Glebov. The gang leader offers the main character to work for them. And this is where the thorny path of Niko Bellic begins.
Minimum:
- OS: Windows Vista / 7 SP1 / 8.1 / 10 (32 or 64 bit)
- CPU: Intel Core 2 Duo 1.8 GHz or AMD Athlon X2 64 2.4 GHz
- RAM: 2 GB
- GPU: Nvidia 7900 or ATI X1900 with 256 MB
- Free disk space: 32 GB
Reviews
Gamer
This is a fantastic game in many ways. It was unjustly forgotten due to the release of GTA V, although personally, I was pleased with GTA IV in almost all aspects more. The bleakness of this game is not typical for most GTA series. The gloomy city, the hopes that are shattered immediately after the arrival of the main character in America, the country where dreams come true and where there are opportunities. The harsh reality: suffering pedestrians, story characters with a foul temper, no dreams.
Many people liked this game because of its physics (swings), destructibility, and the extensive Russian neighborhood in the middle of the United States, but they don’t delve deeper. Seeing the trailer, everyone was waiting for it because of its appearance and mechanics, but I believe that without immersing in the main storyline and its two expansions, this game will not deliver what it’s supposed to.
Gamer
This game has one of the most serious and thought-out storylines in the entire GTA series. Niko Bellic is the only character in the GTA games who has feelings and a detailed background. He is not a psycho like Trevor, Claude, or Tommy Vercetti. He’s not a dishonest bank robber like Michael De Santa. He’s not a neighborhood gangster like CJ or Franklin. He’s not a glamorous club-goer like Luis Lopez. He’s not a mobster like Tony Soprano, and not a biker like Johnny Klebitz. He’s just a person with a difficult fate who knows he’s made mistakes and broke the law and that there’s no way out. Niko Bellic is the best protagonist in GTA, especially if you choose the Revenge ending. Vic Vance is very similar to him in terms of his story and I really like him as well. However, most players are too young to understand the full drama and character of Niko, so they find him boring. These people would rather associate themselves with the “cool guy” CJ or the crazy psychopath Trevor who kills left and right just because of his madness.
Gamer