Looking back on it, do you agree with GTA IV's 98 Metacritic score and critical acclaim?

[Jawmuncher]

One of the things that sticks out most about GTA 4 is its lack of any real legacy.
Like all these years later, what has GTA 4 really left us with? Outside some jokes of "Niko let's go bowling". The game as a whole really didn't do much for gaming or leaving an impression. Which I think speaks volumes.

 

[Cokie Bear]

Do the 235 people who voted yes actually believe GTA IV deserves to be the third best game of all time according to Metacritic? Like really? Out of all the games that have ever been released, GTA IV is in the top 3 for those 235 people?

 

[SP.]

I found Niko to be a terrible and extremely unlikable character.

 

[Juryvicious]

After playing the game near launch, I thought the reviews were a con job by the industry. Reviews back then highly prioritized graphics over everything else, case in point this game.

 

[Deleted member 44129]

As usual. Rockstar create amazing worlds with amazingly detailed systems.... And they don't play that great.

 

[Phabh]

More than RDRII that's for sure.

 

[banter]

User score is on point for if you were to review it now, but since it was so groundbreaking at the time I'd say it'd be more accurate to say 89.

 

[Taker34]

Absofuckinglutely. For some reason it took 3 tries and half a year until the game clicked for me but when it did... oh boy was it good. The ingame physics simulations are amazing, sometimes amazingly over the top and experimental. That game was a huge generational leap over San Andreas; yes it didn't have the land mass, variety of vehicles and customization options but that's because it was different. GTA IV went in a different direction and focused on a world with tons of detail instead of massive scope alone.

I spent hours upon hours doing parkour runs through Liberty City, exploring building interiors and doing silly stuff in online free-roam with friends. GTA IV was more about creating your own fun activities instead of picking a premade gamemode. A true sandbox. From what I remember you were also able to approach a mission in several different ways.

 

[Anthony Hopkins]

While I was disappointed with the reduced customisation, repetitive missions, no countryside and the level of Npc realism not matching the hype from previews.
There were a lot of great things about it, the world was still very detailed and had character, the physics in driving and on foot were cool, hanging with in game friends was cool, the story was pretty good with a impactful ending.
So while I think the perfect 10/10 scores at the time did not make sense giving the games rather obvious flaws but it's highs do reach the highest heights so a 94-96 meta is still in order for it.

It gives me shivers for a current or next gen sequal for a GTA sequal set in liberty city, I think current gen and even more so next gen could really do the vision of GTA4 justice.
Could also include some of the vast countryside north west of manhattan.

 

[Deleted member 30569]

Yes

 

[BlinkBlank]

I don't think it was a 98, but I really don't think any game can really score that hi. I would have given it closer to a low 90's as a complete package with expansions. But with all the scoring systems (like giantbombs for example, the different between 4 star (80's) and 5 star (100%) is a gap that doesn't allow a mid 80's into a high 90's score.

For 2008, it was definitely the next step and really impressive as far as story, characters had more life than much else before that, and the game had atmosphere. I for one really liked it. Even though online proved to be weak, again, it was the next step towards that crazy successful GTA V online.

 

[overcast]

I don't think it's a 9.8/10 but it was a very impressive game at the time. I agree with the unanimous praise to an extent but it's also possibly the worst mainline Rockstar game not named LA Noire.

Rockstar has topped the game in every regard, but it was pretty fun back in the day.

 

[Spedfrom]

Absolutely not. It controlled like a tank and the story-line was boring as hell. So was the city.

But then again I generally dislike GTA games. Apart from III, never finished or bought another.

 

[honest_ry]

Its the my least favourite. Even after the first or GTA London.

 

[WestEgg]

The game really suffered from what my own expectations of a GTA were at the time rather than it's own faults. The more realistic tone and car controls flew in the face of my favorite in the series, Vice City, which was just the right amount of ridiculous. This ended up making Saints Row the Third my preferred "GTA IV".

 

[jroc74]

^Yup, it actually felt like a step back from San Andreas. IV felt too toned down, too serious IMO. I did like doing 180s while driving, I'll give it that. Thats what I spent most of time doing, lol.

Hell no it didnt deserve that score..

Its the only home console GTA game I didnt even get halfway thru. I try to finish all games I play, so i still have it....but its just taking up space.

The user score is more accurate.

 

[overcast]

Do the 235 people who voted yes actually believe GTA IV deserves to be the third best game of all time according to Metacritic? Like really? Out of all the games that have ever been released, GTA IV is in the top 3 for those 235 people?

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I think you're overanalyzing it. The people that voted yes probably think it deserves overwhelming critical acclaim. Metacritic score analysis in general is way over the top. If those people believe the game is like an 8.5/10 do they think it does or doesn't deserve the MC? Some in this thread are calling this game a 5/10; relying on the MC stifles a lot of discussion in between the lines.

A 98/100 metacritic would be too high for almost any game because all have flaws.

 

[Anthony Hopkins]

I don't think it was a 98, but I really don't think any game can really score that hi. I would have given it closer to a low 90's as a complete package with expansions. But with all the scoring systems (like giantbombs for example, the different between 4 star (80's) and 5 star (100%) is a gap that doesn't allow a mid 80's into a high 90's score.

For 2008, it was definitely the next step and really impressive as far as story, characters had more life than much else before that, and the game had atmosphere. I for one really liked it. Even though online proved to be weak, again, it was the next step towards that crazy successful GTA V online.

Click to shrink...

I loved GTA4s MP, I was addicted to cops n crooks.

 

[IDreamOfHime]

Ballad of gay Tony is a 98. Base game is a 85.

 

[blackmass]

The game came out like more than ten years ago and it was awesome back then. I don't get you guys.

 

[h0tp0ck3t]

Take that score and deduct one point for every time Roman calls you to go bowling

 

[Alwayscrazybacon]

Ballad of gay Tony is a 98. Base game is a 85.

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I'd agree with this, it fixed a lot of the issues with IV.

 

[KentP]

No, it simply wasn't fun to play

 

[BasilZero]

No.

Game was a major disappointment coming from SA. It was R's first HD GTA and it shows.

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This

 

[LossAversion]

Yep. GTA IV is still my favorite GTA game. Niko's story was great, the city was incredible, and I didn't have any problems with the gameplay. All of the "problems" that people bring up with GTA IV that were "fixed" in GTA V made GTA V a more boring experience for me. The gunplay lost all of it's impact, the cars had no weight to them, and a lot of details were left behind. Not that GTA V is a bad game. I just vastly prefer the atmosphere and vibes of GTA IV. It felt amazing working your way up to an expensive car, a nice suit, and a high rise apartment. The bank heist is still one of the best missions ever. I could spend hours just driving around in that city. It felt so lived-in. It was such a memorable game.

 

[SpinierBlakeD]

It's far and away the best GTA game.

 

[mute]

Its an earlier example case of why I don't put too much stock in metacritic or reviews in general.

 

[Deleted member 27551]

Yea I felt it was dull and boring, a step back from the last one.

 

[Prolepro]

I loved it at the time and enjoyed it far more than V while playing it, but no.

 

[blinky]

GTA4 was a pretty good game, but it pretty much defines "over-rated."

 

[Papaya]

This and RDR2 are pretty overrated, IMO. GTAIV a lot more so, though. RDR2's gameplay is a lil janky, but GTAIV is boring and it just does not feel good.

 

[Adamska]

It is and always will be an amazing game. The city feels alive in a way few games can replicate even now (and even then, the games that do replicate that feeling are Rockstar's own GTAV and RDR/RDR2). It might not offer as many varied activities as some expected, but it offers plenty of other interactivity opportunities and is very fun to play and just live in. I must've played a few hundred hours on PC.

 

[not_smiff]

No. I didn't enjoy it when i bought it day 1. Only day 1 hype job I ever regret.

 

[btags]

Do the 235 people who voted yes actually believe GTA IV deserves to be the third best game of all time according to Metacritic? Like really? Out of all the games that have ever been released, GTA IV is in the top 3 for those 235 people?

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As a person who voted yes, I will say no it is not. That being said, I don't think the score a game gets at release should necessarily be indicative of how it ranks in terms of all time. It is simply a score for the game in the context of when it released. That is like when people compare metacritic scores for sequential games in a series and are surprised by a later game getting a lower score. Just because a game has a lower metacritic score does not mean it is objectively worse than another, just that it was not as impactful at the time of its release.

I can understand people who didn't like GTA IV, but as someone who hated the clunky controls of the previous games (yes, I know the controls were still clunky, but go back to any of the xbox/ps2 gen games and tell me GTA IV is not a vast improvement), IV was a good step in the right direction to making the games actually fun to play (especially with the auto aim stuff off, as I play in all Rockstar open world games). Sure, there was some clunky stuff about it here and there, and I know people didn't like the more serious tone (I liked it), but the amazing tech on display, the incredible atmosphere of the open world, and the fact that this game, unlike all the previous games in the series, actually got me into playing GTA make it earn its metacritic in my mind.

This is all subjective so if people don't believe it deserved its score, cool.

 

[ThatRandomCliff]

I was extremely dissatisfied with the game. To me, the world felt too small. SA was not anywhere close to a perfect game but it was miles better than IV. Now, maybe I am remembering wrong, but I seem to remember in an interview someone from RockStar said that their aim for IV was maturity and realism. The game was far from realistic and it didn't feel mature either.. And that disappointed me so much. Perhaps I bought into the hype a bit too much and that is what disappointed me.

 

[JeTmAn]

GTA IV sucks

 

[Deleted member 4260]

Absolutely not. I liked the game back then (even played the DLCs) but there were so many flaws with the game that there was no way that Metacritic score was justified. The story is whatever and the mission design sucked because iirc there were no checkpoints, which made it frustrating. Not to mention, a lot of the missions are boring, which the DLC improved on imo.

 

[kittens]

It felt like a massive disappointment coming from San Andreas. I played maybe 10 hours and then never went back.

 

[L Corleone]

I'm a huge fan of GTA IV, I love the world, the soundtrack, the online modes and most of all the physics and mechanics and it's hands down the best GTA in that department.

That being said, the main story missions were bland, the story was bland, and the gameplay was bland, the DLC fixed this big time.

Does it deserve 98? Hell no. Still one of my all time favorites.

 

[wondermagenta]

It's a very impressive game and it's easy to see where the scores are coming from. I personally don't find it very enjoyable to play, but while most people would probably agree with hindsight, whether or not those scores are "deserved" isn't for any individual person to decide.

 

[Deleted member 49132]

One of the things that sticks out most about GTA 4 is its lack of any real legacy.
Like all these years later, what has GTA 4 really left us with? Outside some jokes of "Niko let's go bowling". The game as a whole really didn't do much for gaming or leaving an impression. Which I think speaks volumes.

Click to shrink...

You can't be serious with this.

For one, GTAIV had one of the most profound modding scenes/communities ever seen in a non-valve game.

People made "machinima" videos for the game for years and years, it was one of the most popular games on the internet, especially on YouTube, for years and stayed relevant all the way up to the release of V.

There are many games that wouldn't exist today (and definitely not in their current form) if it wasn't for the GTA franchise, and GTAIV especially. One that immediately comes to mind is Watch Dogs.

Maybe you just weren't paying attention, but GTAIV definitely had and still has a legacy, moreso than the vast majority of modern AAA games.

 

[TinTuba47]

I had some fun with it, but got bored quickly. Never finished it.

Not the best game ever. Not the best Rockstar game. Not even the best GTA game

 

[Jawmuncher]

You can't be serious with this.

For one, GTAIV had one of the most profound modding scenes/communities ever seen in a non-valve game.

People made "machinima" videos for the game for years and years, it was one of the most popular games on the internet, especially on YouTube, for years and stayed relevant all the way up to the release of V.

There are many games that wouldn't exist today (and definitely not in their current form) if it wasn't for the GTA franchise, and GTAIV especially. The immidiate one that comes to mind is Watch Dogs.

Maybe you just weren't paying attention, but GTAIV definitely had and still has a legacy.

Click to shrink...

Modding comes with any popular PC release. All the older titles are still modded to this day. Especially San Andreas.

People making machinma and such is not what I meant personally by legacy. In our particular point in time, is anyone talking about GTA4? Has GTA4 done anything for gaming as a whole? You're right it has a legacy, really any game does to a point and definition. But I would say GTA4's isnt an important one still.

If watch dogs has any game to thank its GTA 3, much like all open world games do. Since it pioneered the whole genre and all.

 

[WiZaRdOuS]

Modding comes with any popular PC release. All the older titles are still modded to this day. Especially San Andreas.

People making machinma and such is not what I meant personally by legacy. In our particular point in time, is anyone talking about GTA4? Has GTA4 done anything for gaming as a whole? You're right it has a legacy, really any game does to a point and definition. But I would say GTA4's isnt an important one still.

If watch dogs has any game to thank its GTA 3, much like all open world games do. Since it pioneered the whole genre and all.

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So by that argument, everything after gta3 is null and void for legacy and inspiration?

 

[HighspeedRefleX]

I think GTA IV is boring TBH. It's a huge step down from San Andreas and GTA 5 is better in every way possible.

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Don't know about the 98 MC score but I have to disagree with that. There are things that IV did better and they are pointed out in many online videos.

 

[Bane]

I didn't agree with it maybe 15 hours into the game. By the time it came out I'd noticed I don't like most Rockstar games and was going to avoid it, then the reviews came out and I ended up going to a Gamestop midnight opening to get it. I dug it enough at first but then hit the wall I usually do with their games. I had a lot of fun in the MP lobbies fucking around with friends but this is the best example of AAA hype infecting reviews. And one of the only times I let reviews sway me to get something I had no interest in, I dare say I was hornswaggled!

 

[NekoFever]

It's not 98 good, and it's arguably the weakest of the 3D GTAs, but I still like it a lot. If anything I'd argue that the hate it gets is more OTT than the positive review scores.

Do the 235 people who voted yes actually believe GTA IV deserves to be the third best game of all time according to Metacritic? Like really? Out of all the games that have ever been released, GTA IV is in the top 3 for those 235 people?

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This implies that the people who voted yes agree with every other high score on Metacritic.

 

[marrec]

Definitely not. It killed GTA for me, I still haven't picked up GTAV because my time with GTAIV left such a bad taste in my mouth.

 

[EvilBoris]

It's so weird, it shows how hype can affect reviewers too.
It ran like crap and it handled like crap and the game hadn't evolved past the previous games.

 

[Mr. Poolman]

No.

Game was a major disappointment coming from SA. It was R's first HD GTA and it shows.

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We have the correct answer here.