Grand Theft Auto IV UK Roundtable

Martin: It's a lot more pendulous. At first I struggled to keep them on the road, but once I got my head round it I think I preferred the more subtle approach you have to take to driving.

Alex: Speed has a much greater impact over the way a car handles...

Martin: I like the way the handbrake puts you in a 180 straight away, which could come in pretty handy.

Alex: It was the same with Niko – there was a much greater physical presence about him. In fact it was actually a bit weird, controlling him for the first time.

Martin: He certainly had more weight than any previous GTA character.

Alex: It think that's all down to Euphoria, the engine that powers the physics. It's the thing that powers the drunk scene we saw last time in real-time. And although we didn't get to play it this time, it's still one of the most impressive things I've seen.

Martin: It's a shame we didn't go hands-on with that - I'd have loved to play around and see how Niko reacts when tanked up.

Alex: Man, imagine getting drunk then climbing into a helicopter... Carnage!

Martin: I feel queasy thinking about it. I wonder if his verbal interactions change when he's drunk, like professing love to passers-by, getting gobby with police officers and the like.

Alex: That'd be cool. What did you think of the city itself?

Martin: It's definitely benefited from being streamlined. There was so much detail that you just couldn't get when trying to recreate a whole state like in San Andreas.

Alex: I loved the countryside bits in SA, but again they got in the way after a while. The mission where you had to drive from one city to another was such a ball-ache, especially if you screwed it up right at the end.

Martin: But with the country and western station on, the windows open and not a care in the world? I loved those bits. Still, I prefer the concentration of GTA IV.

Alex: I think we've only seen the tip of the iceberg. Personally I cannot wait to sit down and play it on my own, to go wherever I want. To climb over fences and check out back yards, that kind of thing - to really explore every inch of the city and see what cool stuff has been hidden away.

Martin: Such an important part of GTA is familiarity with the city - knowing the shortcuts, where the jumps are. That was impossible in San Andreas but I reckon Liberty City will soon become really familiar, and you'll know what areas to utilise with the police on your trail.

Alex: Even though we only played it for a few hours, I was already starting to get a feel for where everything was. And the Wanted meter – it's so much better now.

Martin: There was a really nice moment when I climbed into someone's garden, to see a couple of elderly folk sitting on a bench who were a little alarmed at seeing a thug in a tracksuit on their property.

Alex: Yeah, that was great, although they acted a little oddly when they moon-walked up onto the chairs...

Martin: That's GTA though - there were still guns floating in mid-air, a few animation glitches, but you can't have such a vast and believable city without sacrifices - and the code still isn't complete, obviously.

Alex: Considering everything has been done on such a grand scale I'm surprised there weren't more problems. It was all minor stuff really, which is pretty amazing considering how much stuff is being shifted around.

Martin: The city did seem so more alive than in other GTAs. In the Destruction for Beginners mission, when we got the lift up the side of the building, looking down at the streets from a height, it was amazing how alive the whole thing seemed.

Alex: I really liked the way people went about their business. The street cleaner sweeping up rubbish, the other chap trying to fix his broken-down car, and the fact that when you tried to nick the car it wouldn't start!

Martin: I followed a girl who was having a conversation on her mobile about the affair she's having and her worries about contracting herpes.

Alex: It's little touches like that that really bring the game alive. I'd quite happily waste an afternoon watching what other people get up to.

Martin: Being a snoop is great - I love following people on their routines. There was even a chap cutting grass by the side of the road. Rockstar also said that some areas would be more populated than others. Who knows, there could even be a proper nightlife - if Niko can get drunk then maybe the NPCs can as well.

Alex: I also like the way that they the public will call the cops if they see you mow someone down and, even though it might take a minute or so for them to arrive on the scene, they'll still come after you. It's also nice that you've got a realistic chance of escaping, thanks to the new Wanted meter. I hated the way the cops always knew where you were in old GTAs, even if you sneaked down a backstreet or something.

Martin: That helped make the game come alive. It'd be really satisfying to lamp someone in the guts while they're trying to make a call to the cops about you.

Alex: Now you can switch cars, duck in buildings... Stuff that you'd probably do in real life if the fuzz was on your tail.

Martin: It will make your interaction with the environment so much more involving…

Alex Simmons: Exactly. Like when I legged it across to that little island in the middle of the park and the cops didn't really know what to do but stay back and fire, before calling in the choppers. It would've been funny to see them jump in the water and give chase though.

Martin: There will be so many more different ways that the AI will react. I'm sure that the game will constantly surprise with different routines. And did you notice the damage system on the cars?

Alex: Yep. I liked the way they didn't automatically explode when they flipped over.

Martin: I think they just take a little longer to set on fire this time around...

Alex: But some of them didn't catch fire at all. The motorbikes were cool too. Giving that Jamaican dude a backie on a scooter on the way to a hit was class, and the way Niko puts on a helmet while riding - or not, if there isn't one around - is a nice touch. It's the same with Little Jacob's patois – it's some of the funniest dialogue I've heard in a game, even though I couldn't understand half of what he was saying!

Martin: I loved the doobie smoke that filled the car when driving around. I wonder if Niko will feel the ill effects of being hot-boxed in a car like that, sparking off a variation of the drunken engine?

Alex: Good point.

Martin: But I guess that would just be asking for trouble. Rockstar in drug-sim shock!

Alex: Certainly didn't seem to have any effect, but maybe that was because he was stuck on the back of a bike. What about the missions, then?