Technology GTA 4 Thread
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First review and comparison
http://home.comcast.net/~infamousdd/CGReviews_-_Cam_Garish_Reviews_-_One_Review_at_a_Time.html
http://home.comcast.net/~infamousdd/CGReviews_-_Cam_Garish_Reviews_-_One_Review_at_a_Time.html
Good Cop, Bad Cop: GTA IV's Multiplayer
IGN AU tag-teams Rockstar's latest offering.
With everything that's been said, seen, speculated on and editorialised, I don't think anyone can dispute that Grand Theft Auto IV is destined for greatness. It's practically written in the stars. But one area that has remained puzzling and elusive has been the multiplayer component to the game. How does it work? What's the performance like? How does it control? Towering above all else, is it fun enough to pull you away from the assuredly awesome single-player story?
We're going to take a slightly different tack with our look at GTA IV's multiplayer; with a number of solid arguments for and against some of the game's decisions, we thought it might be cool to do a 'Good Cop, Bad Cop' discussion, with Cam taking the sour, embittered Bad Cop role and yours-truly taking the glowingly affirmative stance.
Who's right? Who's wrong? Honestly – you won't know until you play it.
But at least you won't have long to wait…
Controls
Good Cop Patch:
It's as good a place as any to begin, I think – how does it all control? Well, those expecting an over-the-top, arcadey experience will be surprised by the slow, deliberate and even heavy control scheme here.
Though we were assured it is possible to rocket-jump somehow (though, pointing a rocket behind you seems like it's more likely to just blow your arse through the top of your head), controlling your character feels very solid. Your running speed is realistic, and tapping A (on the 360 version) gives you a very minimal increase in speed. You can't turn on a dime anymore – your body has weight and you'll need time to slow down before you stop, which is probably important to remember when you're charging towards a cliff edge or the lip of a rooftop.
But the really impressive part of the controls? The aiming.
I found the left-trigger auto aim to be a fantastic feature. It seemed to speed up the gameplay – just lock on and start firing with the right-trigger. You can still cling to cover and blind-fire too. Plus, if you're really crafty, you can lock on and just tap the right-thumbstick upwards a tad to nail headshots. It just feels solid – and about as far-removed from even the PSP GTA multiplayer as can be.
The camera controls, on the other hand... not even I can fully defend that.
Climbing fences, jumping over rails, the ability set is nice and believable. And what better place to show that stuff off than in a strip club?
Bad Cop Cam:
Damn straight you can't defend the camera controls. Honestly, I thought battling with third-person cameras in action games went out with the Macarena. Okay, so the reality is that few open-world games get the system exactly right, but GTA IV's execution really doesn't feel smooth. Want to glance down a side street as you run past? You've got to really fight for it as the camera judders its way slowly to the side, repeatedly trying to switch forward. More often than not, you're better off not using the camera controls and instead just turning your character to face the way you want to see. It's resolutely old-school, and while everyone has the same disadvantage, there's just no reason for it to be this way. Saint's Row (a game that I really don't like in other respects) and Crackdown both have much better, smoother systems than this.
On the plus side, at least the game has a 180-degree turn system, even if it is a bit clunky (click in the right-stick to look behind then target with the left-trigger). I'd hate to think how long it would take to look behind you otherwise.
I'm also not a huge fan of the lock-on system. I understand that you kinda have to have one in there – multiplayer battles can take place over huge areas and it evens up the odds when you can target someone coming towards you in a car or other vehicle, but in deathmatch especially, we kept having these shootouts where everyone was just strafing or diving about in streets, all locked on to each other, with the person with the biggest gun, or the most health inevitably winning. Sure, the cover system works well, but more often than not – unless you take up cover well ahead of a firefight – it's going to be a disadvantage trying to use it. Unless cover is right next to you you'll end up getting capped if you try to make your way to cover, meaning that the best tactic is often stand and deliver.
Good Cop Patch:
Erm, people are locking-on, driving and shooting with big, nasty guns – to score kills, no less – is kind of how third-person multiplayer games work, Cam! You can't really hold that against the game; it's the nature of the beast.
Bad Cop Cam:
Thought you'd get the last word in eh? Go to hell. Oh, and I HATE VIDEOGAMES!
IGN AU tag-teams Rockstar's latest offering.
With everything that's been said, seen, speculated on and editorialised, I don't think anyone can dispute that Grand Theft Auto IV is destined for greatness. It's practically written in the stars. But one area that has remained puzzling and elusive has been the multiplayer component to the game. How does it work? What's the performance like? How does it control? Towering above all else, is it fun enough to pull you away from the assuredly awesome single-player story?
We're going to take a slightly different tack with our look at GTA IV's multiplayer; with a number of solid arguments for and against some of the game's decisions, we thought it might be cool to do a 'Good Cop, Bad Cop' discussion, with Cam taking the sour, embittered Bad Cop role and yours-truly taking the glowingly affirmative stance.
Who's right? Who's wrong? Honestly – you won't know until you play it.
But at least you won't have long to wait…
Controls
Good Cop Patch:
It's as good a place as any to begin, I think – how does it all control? Well, those expecting an over-the-top, arcadey experience will be surprised by the slow, deliberate and even heavy control scheme here.
Though we were assured it is possible to rocket-jump somehow (though, pointing a rocket behind you seems like it's more likely to just blow your arse through the top of your head), controlling your character feels very solid. Your running speed is realistic, and tapping A (on the 360 version) gives you a very minimal increase in speed. You can't turn on a dime anymore – your body has weight and you'll need time to slow down before you stop, which is probably important to remember when you're charging towards a cliff edge or the lip of a rooftop.
But the really impressive part of the controls? The aiming.
I found the left-trigger auto aim to be a fantastic feature. It seemed to speed up the gameplay – just lock on and start firing with the right-trigger. You can still cling to cover and blind-fire too. Plus, if you're really crafty, you can lock on and just tap the right-thumbstick upwards a tad to nail headshots. It just feels solid – and about as far-removed from even the PSP GTA multiplayer as can be.
The camera controls, on the other hand... not even I can fully defend that.
Climbing fences, jumping over rails, the ability set is nice and believable. And what better place to show that stuff off than in a strip club?
Bad Cop Cam:
Damn straight you can't defend the camera controls. Honestly, I thought battling with third-person cameras in action games went out with the Macarena. Okay, so the reality is that few open-world games get the system exactly right, but GTA IV's execution really doesn't feel smooth. Want to glance down a side street as you run past? You've got to really fight for it as the camera judders its way slowly to the side, repeatedly trying to switch forward. More often than not, you're better off not using the camera controls and instead just turning your character to face the way you want to see. It's resolutely old-school, and while everyone has the same disadvantage, there's just no reason for it to be this way. Saint's Row (a game that I really don't like in other respects) and Crackdown both have much better, smoother systems than this.
On the plus side, at least the game has a 180-degree turn system, even if it is a bit clunky (click in the right-stick to look behind then target with the left-trigger). I'd hate to think how long it would take to look behind you otherwise.
I'm also not a huge fan of the lock-on system. I understand that you kinda have to have one in there – multiplayer battles can take place over huge areas and it evens up the odds when you can target someone coming towards you in a car or other vehicle, but in deathmatch especially, we kept having these shootouts where everyone was just strafing or diving about in streets, all locked on to each other, with the person with the biggest gun, or the most health inevitably winning. Sure, the cover system works well, but more often than not – unless you take up cover well ahead of a firefight – it's going to be a disadvantage trying to use it. Unless cover is right next to you you'll end up getting capped if you try to make your way to cover, meaning that the best tactic is often stand and deliver.
Good Cop Patch:
Erm, people are locking-on, driving and shooting with big, nasty guns – to score kills, no less – is kind of how third-person multiplayer games work, Cam! You can't really hold that against the game; it's the nature of the beast.
Bad Cop Cam:
Thought you'd get the last word in eh? Go to hell. Oh, and I HATE VIDEOGAMES!
I've often asked myself what I would do without a cell phone. In "Grand Theft Auto IV," just as in real life, the answer is simple: not much.
In the new Grand Theft Auto game released at the end of April you can play in a team deathmatch with up to 16 people.
Just as Rockstar Games created seamless transitions in past GTA titles, jumping from the single-player campaign to the new multiplayer component is as easy as pushing a button.
You can drive in a 100 mph car chase with five cops on your tail. Walk down the street and admire the light shining through the arches of a bridge. Or jump off a 200-foot skyscraper.
Just hit a face button, toggle to "multiplayer," and the game jumps online and entirely new modes.
During our hands-on test time at Rockstar Games in New York the publisher revealed for the first time four new multiplayer modes (the total number will be more than 15), including team deathmatch, GTA race, cops 'n robbers, and hangman's noose.
Among those modes are options for traditional adversarial games (deathmatch or team deathmatch, for example), or co-op games such as cops 'n crooks and hangman's noose, where teamwork is essential.
We played the Xbox 360 version and didn't see the PS3 build. Also, representatives reiterated it will ship both versions April 29.
Don't Miss
* iReport.com: Review "Grand Theft Auto" games
* GameTap.com: "Grand Theft Auto IV" single-player preview
* GameTap.com: "Saints Row 2" in the shadow of GTA IV
GTA IV supports up to 16 players (on both PS3 and Xbox 360) online, and each mode offers enormous customizations specific to each mode. In team deathmatch, you can set up an equally balanced eight-on-eight battle or a lopsided two-on-14 fight.
You can pick a custom or quick game, and party leaders can tweak options to alter each game significantly: You can change weapon types (all handguns for instance or only snipers), add or subtract police, traffic, pedestrians, or blips (i.e., enemy location).
New strategies are created by the addition of enemy blips and the cover system, enabled by pressing the right shoulder button. Enemies show on screen while moving and disappear when stationary.
The amount of times I snuck up and shot an enemy dead was matched by the times opponents jumped from hiding to tan my behind. I also was able to tweak the reticule width, gamertag display, weather type, daytime, and control even voice chat options.
"If players want they can jump online and never even play the single-player again," Jeronimo Barrera, vice president of game development, told GameTap. "Online is a serious time sucker. You're going to have to be really careful if you're married," he added with a smile.
The online game is split into two types, ranked and unranked.
Many developers find gamers are wary of playing ranked games because skilled players lay in wait for newbies. But the reward for ranked players is cash. Cash is earned by winning levels, and it earns players more character customization options.
More significantly, cash awards are accumulated throughout a persistent career, which is how Rockstar "ranks" your skill level.
While the single-player campaign doesn't support co-op like "Gears of War," a good example of cooperative opportunities to earn more cash is found in cops 'n crooks, which enables up to 16 people to play in two distinct teams.
If you coordinate with the whole team and get your boss character from point A to point B, your team earns more points than if only a single player (and the boss) got there.
Likewise, the higher difficulty level that's selected (from easy, medium, and hard), the more money each win earns. When you're not playing as the crooks escorting a boss, you're the cops in pursuit.
Sometimes co-op play is as simple as charting a map. Players who jump in an escape car but aren't driving can set on-the-fly way points using the on-screen map. If your GPS buddy is map savvy, he or she will lead you through town using the most direct route, which appears on screen for your team.
GTA Race is ripped straight from previous GTA single-player campaigns. Up to 16 people can play in a no-holds barred lap race to the finish. But like past GTA games, cars are destructible, and drivers can arm themselves with pistols, machine guns, rifles, and more.
This means you can drive any car, moped, or forklift you see; heck, even walking across the race line even counts, as long as you're first. As our three-hour session revealed, it's just as much fun preventing others from crossing the finish line and disrupting their racing lines with Molotov cocktails and grenades as it is to win. (Another mode Rockstar casually mentioned was GT mode, which is a straight weaponless race.)
Sticking with tradition, no cars are licensed, but fans can pick from car classes, and in each class, they can pick from familiar favorites such as Infernos, Turismos, Comets, and Supercars, to name a few.
Hangman's noose is part of a collection of co-op, objective-based missions engaging four humans versus a countless AI horde.
Each mission starts with a cutscene, is followed by a set of goals, and requires teamwork to achieve success. These ministories aren't part of the single-player game; they're random. Our mission opened up with an unending stream of SWAT police (called "noose" in GTA IV) driving into an airport runway, flanking and surrounding our team.
The object was to survive the first few waves of noose attacks, secure a vehicle, prevent Kenny Petrovic from dying, and get to the designated location. Within seconds of jumping into a car, the difficulty level increases, as multiple helicopters swarm the skies. Cop cars congregate setting up road blocks, pedestrian cars get in the way, and, in the medium and hard levels, GTA's trademark orchestrated blend of chaos, skill, and madness ensues.
Rockstar's multiplayer mode debut is a first for the series. The four modes we played show Rockstar North has made the hard transition past its successful trilogy, offering an impressive variety in gameplay types (more than 15 modes total), hundreds of custom options including character creation, and the organic integration of full world online maps including vehicles such as cars, boats, and helicopters
In the new Grand Theft Auto game released at the end of April you can play in a team deathmatch with up to 16 people.
Just as Rockstar Games created seamless transitions in past GTA titles, jumping from the single-player campaign to the new multiplayer component is as easy as pushing a button.
You can drive in a 100 mph car chase with five cops on your tail. Walk down the street and admire the light shining through the arches of a bridge. Or jump off a 200-foot skyscraper.
Just hit a face button, toggle to "multiplayer," and the game jumps online and entirely new modes.
During our hands-on test time at Rockstar Games in New York the publisher revealed for the first time four new multiplayer modes (the total number will be more than 15), including team deathmatch, GTA race, cops 'n robbers, and hangman's noose.
Among those modes are options for traditional adversarial games (deathmatch or team deathmatch, for example), or co-op games such as cops 'n crooks and hangman's noose, where teamwork is essential.
We played the Xbox 360 version and didn't see the PS3 build. Also, representatives reiterated it will ship both versions April 29.
Don't Miss
* iReport.com: Review "Grand Theft Auto" games
* GameTap.com: "Grand Theft Auto IV" single-player preview
* GameTap.com: "Saints Row 2" in the shadow of GTA IV
GTA IV supports up to 16 players (on both PS3 and Xbox 360) online, and each mode offers enormous customizations specific to each mode. In team deathmatch, you can set up an equally balanced eight-on-eight battle or a lopsided two-on-14 fight.
You can pick a custom or quick game, and party leaders can tweak options to alter each game significantly: You can change weapon types (all handguns for instance or only snipers), add or subtract police, traffic, pedestrians, or blips (i.e., enemy location).
New strategies are created by the addition of enemy blips and the cover system, enabled by pressing the right shoulder button. Enemies show on screen while moving and disappear when stationary.
The amount of times I snuck up and shot an enemy dead was matched by the times opponents jumped from hiding to tan my behind. I also was able to tweak the reticule width, gamertag display, weather type, daytime, and control even voice chat options.
"If players want they can jump online and never even play the single-player again," Jeronimo Barrera, vice president of game development, told GameTap. "Online is a serious time sucker. You're going to have to be really careful if you're married," he added with a smile.
The online game is split into two types, ranked and unranked.
Many developers find gamers are wary of playing ranked games because skilled players lay in wait for newbies. But the reward for ranked players is cash. Cash is earned by winning levels, and it earns players more character customization options.
More significantly, cash awards are accumulated throughout a persistent career, which is how Rockstar "ranks" your skill level.
While the single-player campaign doesn't support co-op like "Gears of War," a good example of cooperative opportunities to earn more cash is found in cops 'n crooks, which enables up to 16 people to play in two distinct teams.
If you coordinate with the whole team and get your boss character from point A to point B, your team earns more points than if only a single player (and the boss) got there.
Likewise, the higher difficulty level that's selected (from easy, medium, and hard), the more money each win earns. When you're not playing as the crooks escorting a boss, you're the cops in pursuit.
Sometimes co-op play is as simple as charting a map. Players who jump in an escape car but aren't driving can set on-the-fly way points using the on-screen map. If your GPS buddy is map savvy, he or she will lead you through town using the most direct route, which appears on screen for your team.
GTA Race is ripped straight from previous GTA single-player campaigns. Up to 16 people can play in a no-holds barred lap race to the finish. But like past GTA games, cars are destructible, and drivers can arm themselves with pistols, machine guns, rifles, and more.
This means you can drive any car, moped, or forklift you see; heck, even walking across the race line even counts, as long as you're first. As our three-hour session revealed, it's just as much fun preventing others from crossing the finish line and disrupting their racing lines with Molotov cocktails and grenades as it is to win. (Another mode Rockstar casually mentioned was GT mode, which is a straight weaponless race.)
Sticking with tradition, no cars are licensed, but fans can pick from car classes, and in each class, they can pick from familiar favorites such as Infernos, Turismos, Comets, and Supercars, to name a few.
Hangman's noose is part of a collection of co-op, objective-based missions engaging four humans versus a countless AI horde.
Each mission starts with a cutscene, is followed by a set of goals, and requires teamwork to achieve success. These ministories aren't part of the single-player game; they're random. Our mission opened up with an unending stream of SWAT police (called "noose" in GTA IV) driving into an airport runway, flanking and surrounding our team.
The object was to survive the first few waves of noose attacks, secure a vehicle, prevent Kenny Petrovic from dying, and get to the designated location. Within seconds of jumping into a car, the difficulty level increases, as multiple helicopters swarm the skies. Cop cars congregate setting up road blocks, pedestrian cars get in the way, and, in the medium and hard levels, GTA's trademark orchestrated blend of chaos, skill, and madness ensues.
Rockstar's multiplayer mode debut is a first for the series. The four modes we played show Rockstar North has made the hard transition past its successful trilogy, offering an impressive variety in gameplay types (more than 15 modes total), hundreds of custom options including character creation, and the organic integration of full world online maps including vehicles such as cars, boats, and helicopters
Four More Multiplayer GTA IV Modes Revealed
The official Grand Theft Auto IV site just updated with another wealth of information including details on four new multiplayer modes.
The new modes, all described in detail on the jump, include Team Mafiaya Work, Team Car Jack City, Turf War and Race.
Hit the jump for a run down of the ones we already have heard about as well.
Newly Detailed Modes
Team Mafiaya Work: (2 to 8 teams) You're a member of a crew doing contract work for the mafiya—including such plum gigs as escorting wanted men, picking up MacGuffins and stealing cars. Work as a team to complete contracts before the time period ends and get the rewards. You'll probably want to do your best to scupper the other crew's work as well. Each contract you complete gives your team cash, and the crew with the most cash at the end of the round wins.
Team Car Jack City: (2 - 8 teams) Cars spawn parked around the map and the teams must steal then and take them to a drop off point. Teh cash teams get for dropping of stolen vehicles depends on their condition—teams get less cash the more damaged they are. The exception to this are special bonus cars, stuffed with drugs, which five a set amount of cash on delivery no matter how damaged they are. Your crew has to get hold of whatever vehicles the boss wants. Whichever crew makes the most money wins. Simple.
Turf War: (2 teams only) A timed capture-the-base mode. There are a number of bases around the map that you have to take by stand on on them for a short period of time. The more players that are on a base, the faster it can be captures. The more bases that your team owns, the faster your team's cash score increases. If the rival gang is on or near a base, you won't be be able to take control of it—so do what you can to try and... displace them. The team with the most cash at the end of the round wins.
Race: Race to the finish through each checkpoint in order. If you take a wrong turn or mess up in some way, you can respawn your vehicle on the last checkpoint you passed. There is a large selection of races for cars, boats , and helicopters—you can choose laps and vehicle class/type. This mode has two sub-modes: Free Race and Cannonball Run.
Free race are point-to-point races. First one to reach the end point inws.
Cannonball Run are races where you have to reaverse several checkpoints any way you can.
The official Grand Theft Auto IV site just updated with another wealth of information including details on four new multiplayer modes.
The new modes, all described in detail on the jump, include Team Mafiaya Work, Team Car Jack City, Turf War and Race.
Hit the jump for a run down of the ones we already have heard about as well.
Newly Detailed Modes
Team Mafiaya Work: (2 to 8 teams) You're a member of a crew doing contract work for the mafiya—including such plum gigs as escorting wanted men, picking up MacGuffins and stealing cars. Work as a team to complete contracts before the time period ends and get the rewards. You'll probably want to do your best to scupper the other crew's work as well. Each contract you complete gives your team cash, and the crew with the most cash at the end of the round wins.
Team Car Jack City: (2 - 8 teams) Cars spawn parked around the map and the teams must steal then and take them to a drop off point. Teh cash teams get for dropping of stolen vehicles depends on their condition—teams get less cash the more damaged they are. The exception to this are special bonus cars, stuffed with drugs, which five a set amount of cash on delivery no matter how damaged they are. Your crew has to get hold of whatever vehicles the boss wants. Whichever crew makes the most money wins. Simple.
Turf War: (2 teams only) A timed capture-the-base mode. There are a number of bases around the map that you have to take by stand on on them for a short period of time. The more players that are on a base, the faster it can be captures. The more bases that your team owns, the faster your team's cash score increases. If the rival gang is on or near a base, you won't be be able to take control of it—so do what you can to try and... displace them. The team with the most cash at the end of the round wins.
Race: Race to the finish through each checkpoint in order. If you take a wrong turn or mess up in some way, you can respawn your vehicle on the last checkpoint you passed. There is a large selection of races for cars, boats , and helicopters—you can choose laps and vehicle class/type. This mode has two sub-modes: Free Race and Cannonball Run.
Free race are point-to-point races. First one to reach the end point inws.
Cannonball Run are races where you have to reaverse several checkpoints any way you can.
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