I've never thought M-rated games were all they were made out to be. Violence, killing, blood, gore, profanity... it's not "Mature" like the rating says. So, when coming to a game like Grand Theft Auto III for PlayStation 2, I didn't think it would be so great... but after seeing it for myself, then playing a friend's version of it, I started to think otherwise, prompting me to rent it. Now, I've played it enough to make my own verdict on it.
This game is rated on a 0-4 star scale. It is also a M-rated game, due to the things I said above, like violence, killing, blood, gore, profanity, sexual themes... as for me, I don't like any of it either (well, the killing's part of the game), but I simply try to ignore anything that bothers me and enjoy the game anyway. Unfortunately, if you're in a situation where you're under 17 and your parents check every game you play, then this might not work for you.
Graphics: ***
Everything in this game is smooth. There
are no rough edges, sharp polygonal features, just smoothness.
You'll see lots of round things. I
love that in a video game, because not even everyone's favorite game in
the graphics category, Super Smash Bros. Melee, is able to produce roundness
and not lots of sharp edges. However, something bad that Super Smash Bros.
Melee does not have, and this game does, is blurriness. This game can be
pretty blurry and fuzzy, although it's not like you can't see where you're
going. The trees are made of paper, so this wasn't the first game to ever
not make something out of cardboard. However, the
graphics overall are good, especially
the explosions.
Sound: ***
While the music track in this game (on the radios of the cars) isn't the greatest, you just can't beat some of the jokes heard on the radio. It's also a lot of fun to put on the classical music station as you escape from the police. Nothing beats a chase scene with opera singers singing away. Lots of other phrases can be heard by other people in this game, like the hilarious stuff you'll hear people say as you pass by them. The sound effects are adequate, as well.
Difficulty: *
I'll be totally honest here... it really isn't all that difficult to escape from the police in this game, even without using the codes. If you try to stay out of trouble after getting one star, then just drive away for a long time, in the middle of nowhere, you should lose them, or maybe even find a police power-up that will cancel out any stars you may have. Even then, it is a lot of fun to get in trouble with the law, because you then can steal guns or their cars.
Characters: 1/2
The characters are very forgettable,
and the ones that you will remember are very annoying. Basically, you
won't find much excitement when it
comes to the actual characters themselves.
Controls: ***1/2
For there being so many controls, I was so surprised how easy it is to control everything in this game. You'll find it so easy to do stuff in this game without having to think about what does what, and that's what 3D games should be like.
Camera: ***
A new category added to my Reviews of
3D games, the camera has a lot to do with controls. It can make it hard
to control, or easy. This game's camera is very good. You will be able
to see a lot you want to, and it doesn't usually get turned around that
often (like Donkey Kong 64's camera). Two problems: people can
attack you from behind easily due to
you not being able to see behind you, and you can't choose views in your
car. The car views are fixed on whatever the game decides, but usually
they are all right anyway.
Story: *
This game's story isn't very important.
After you perform a couple of missions, you'll be free to do
whatever you want, and then that's
where the game takes off. It's most fun not to even do much that has
anything to do with the story, and
just play on your own, which most of this game is made for. It's a proof
of my firm belief that the storyline to a game does not make a game. It
never has and never will. In some cases, a depressing storyline can hurt
the game (Pokémon Gold comes to mind), but in this case, the lack
of a real story or goals to achieve just makes the game better.
Gameplay while in car: ****
This game is the ultimate driving experience.
No, I'm not comparing this to racing games like Mario Kart 64.
I'm talking about non-racing driving
games, such as Crazy Taxi, the Driver series, etc. This is what it's
supposed to be like, with real car
damage, the possibility of your car eventually catching on fire and exploding,
and having to get out of your car in a hurry. You first steal a car, then
drive wherever. As your car gets hit by other cars or by other obstacles,
it will start to fall apart, slowly. If you do certain stuff in front of
the police, then you'll certainly be chased by them, with a star appearing
at the top right corner of the screen. The more stars, the more desperate
the police are to chase you. You will need to either escape them, stay
away from trouble for a while, or use a cheat to get rid of those stars
and get rid of them. Stuff like the fire engine, ambulance, tank, and police
car will even let you have missions, and the fire engine has a water cannon
that can squirt people around (and even squirt them into the
river). The tank is the ultimate weapon of destruction; it is completely
invincible and has a cannon, but it is very slow, which hurts if you get
slowed down too much. If the police are after you, you may get taken out
of your tank. The tank is hard to get in the game (you need to be
a real criminal to do that), but if you use the cheat code to get it, you'll
have a ton of fun with it.
Gameplay while out of car: ***
Here's where you can steal cars, which
is the real fun of the game. Of course, if you get some weapons, you
can have some more fun, like using
flamethrowers on cars and watching them explode. You can get out of
your car and push it over the edge
into the water, which is pretty funny, too, especially if it's a big bus.
You can also attack other people and use weapons, but the danger is that
the guns are very hard to direct. You can't seem to get a shot on what
you're trying to shoot, even a person right next to you. Others may attack
you back if you attack them, and certainly the police will try to arrest
you (and you will receive stars) if you attack someone in front of them,
or if you attack them. The game is realistic, making your player have to
catch his or her breath after a while, but that can slow down this game
a lot, especially if you're chasing someone or something. The camera is
more annoying outside of your car than inside it, but you can explore more
places outside of it.
Level: ***1/2
Considering there's only one level,
you may think, the score here can't be very high. But, in this case, the
level is so huge, and has so much to
do in it, it does get a pretty high score. That's not to mention that
there are parts to it I haven't explored
yet, due to not being able to unlock them while I had the game (the subway
and the tunnel, at least), so I added an extra 1/2 star onto the score.
Believe me, there's a whole lot to explore, even if you are one of
those people who play the game morning til night.
Replayability: ***
The nice thing about this game is that
it takes a long time for this game to get old. Even if you do explore
every inch of the game, you can always
do something more, and you can always get into another fight. There
is only a finite amount of space in
this game, which can make some parts of it get old, but other than that,
you should be able to play this one for a long, long time, much longer
than your typical platformer.
Fun Factor!: ****
The game has pretty good scores in most categories (though not all), but this category is the one that won me over. It is too fun to put down. It is one of the few games that is fun to watch people playing it, but of course, even more fun when playing it yourself. The pure fun of killing someone in front of the police, fighting them off, stealing their car, driving away, and starting a police mission while in their car, is simply amazing. Try to beat the hilarity of your opponents coming after you when you're in the tank. Or how about the police chasing after your gigantic bus onto a ferry? Those are things you simply can't beat, things that Crazy Taxi never could pull off.
OVERALL: ****
I am always very hesitant to give out
the big 4 stars. Only certain games that redefine the experience of a
certain genre deserve this rating.
This game redefined the non-racing driving experience, making Crazy Taxi
look bad in comparison. Not only that, half the game goes on outside the
car, making this two genres in
one. Imagine getting in and out of
the go-kart in Mario Kart 64, and you've got some of the feeling there.
Yes, a "M" rating means nothing when it comes to game quality. It doesn't
make it better; it doesn't make it worse. If you have a PS2, this is a
must-buy, must-have. I don't own it yet (as of early October 2002), but
it's certainly one I want for Christmas this year, and certainly one every
PS2 owner should have. I can't wait for the sequel to this one, too. As
a reviewer of this game said, "I'd rather be playing this game than talking
about it." A year later, only now I realize how true that statement was-
and is.
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