So, the first review for this game has come and gone. Almost immediately after being posted, the site retracted the article, claiming they wanted to review the final version. We here at GameRevolver have a copy of this article, and we will share the highs and lows with you now.
*DISCLAIMER*
Please bare in mind that these are not the views of GameRevolver.com, nor that of RockStar Games. This is a review snippet from CGReviews.com, and is based on the preliminary version of the game. Once again, this review is based on an early version of the game, and does not necessarily represent the finished product.
*DISCLAIMER*
*this is the NOT the entire original post, yet clips of the highlights. For the entire interview, you will need to contact CGreview.com Comments in red are 360 specific, comments in blue are PS3 specific.
When speaking in general about the game, CGReviews, Cam Garish, simpley stated the following:
"Grand Theft Auto IV is a digital masterpiece. Period. You will like the Xbox 360 version of this game. You will like the PS3 version of this game. Technically, they are the same! However, there are some minor variations."
The review states that their is a mandatory, 10 min install on GTAIV for the PS3, and an optional install on the 360. The review also comments that the 360 version runs a bit choppy, with pop ins and frame rate issues without the install, although hardly noticeable. here is there quote:
"When popping the disc into the PS3 for the first time, you’ll have a brief installation. Don’t worry, it only takes ten minutes or so, and there’s a pleasant bit of GTA history trivia to keep you occupied. So, unlike with Devil May Cry, you’ll be able to eat your sandwich prior to playing the game.
On the 360, this installation is optional if you have a hard drive. I advise to proceed with installation—it reduces the already minimal frame rate issues on the 360. When the game finally begins, you’ll be treated to the best opening credit sequence I’ve seen for a game in a long, long time."
STORY
As for the story, the article leaves this section nearly blank, wishing not to spoil any surprises, the only note being that the game has a much more indepth, and involved story than previous GTA installments.
GAME PLAY
There are numerous notes in this section, but since the game was not viewed in the finished form, we will cut this out as things may have changed. we will leave you with the following quotes:
The Good:"Vehicles are fantastic."
"The cover system is effective and easy to get used to."
" The squeaky car animation used when hookers do their thing is now accompanied by foggy windows—sweet."
"You can store your favorite vehicles in garages or parking spaces."
"There will be one time moments of sheer bliss—and it’s worth every second."
"Riding in a Taxi is awesome."
The Bad:
"The absence of the Dodo stinks."
"Going on rampages is now almost impossible."
"The ability to commit crimes is much more difficult."
"The 5-0 in GTA4 are smart, and they work really hard to bring you down."
"Euphoria didn’t do as much as I hoped."
CONTROLS
As seen on CGReviews.com:
"I preferred the PS3 controls because I’ve always played GTA on PS hardware. The controls aren’t identical to previous games, but the learning curve is really small. Most people will probably prefer the 360 controller, but that’s to be expected.
There were a couple minor things about the controls that bugged me. I’ll mention the single big thing: running. Tapping a button to run works well in theory, but I just know that the wear and tear on my controller has to be increasing exponentially. Still, it’s better than having fatigue in game, as how much you run literally depends on your fatigue in the real world. If you’re tired of tapping, you walk or take a cab. If the cops are on your tail, you muster up the energy to tap some more. All in all, it works as a concept…but it’s bitter-sweet. "
GRAPHICS
This is where things get interesting. We are sure that both versions of the game will be amazing, but the key points hit here are just enough push for us to say that even with a slew of DLC, the PS3 seems to be the better experience.
"The PS3 has a more relaxed color pallet, but this gives everything a more realistic look. If you don’t like the realistic look, and you have a HDMI connection, you can fiddle with your PS3 display settings and get it looking much more saturated. The textures are just as sharp as the 360 version, and there’s little to no pop-in or screen tearing. The PS3 takes longer to load than the 360, but I took several different head counts in game at different locations, and I always found the PS3 to be more populated than the 360. This could be attributed to the dynamic nature of the world, but it’s hard to tell. Either way, the difference was never more than five to seven pedestrians or three to four cars—it’s not really much of an advantage.
The 360 is bright. Boy is it bright. Based on discussion history, this one will be claimed to look better, but it’ll really be preference. The texture quality is the same on both systems, but the 360 has a more cartoon-like look. This isn’t a bad thing. It just depends on preference. I’d compare the difference to that of Oblivion on each system. The 360 also suffers from some frame rate drops that are almost non-existent on the PS3. Installing the 360 version on your system’s hard drive, however, will bring performance almost up to par with the PS3.
MULTIPLAYER
Another fun fact is in the multiplayer. While details are still very sketchy, The review specifically quotes the following:
"I know, you want details, but all I can confirm is split-screen on PS3 only. I was alone, so I didn’t actually get to have any matches, but I could tell that the split-screen worked really well. There was a significant decrease in the amount of traffic and pedestrians, but it didn’t ruin anything. This is understandable. Rendering two instances of Liberty City is a chore for any machine. I can’t conclude one way or the other why the split-screen mode was not available on 360, but I assume by the drop in on-screen objects on the PS3 that the 360 just couldn’t handle it. If you own a 360, don’t worry. You have Xbox Live…so you’re set."
So what have we learned from this article? Well, we learn that even after the complaints and issues Rockstar has had with developing on the PS3, the game is smoother, contains more on-screen action, color scheme is more ’real-to-life’ and Multiplayer is offered up split-screen on PS3 only. This is not to say that the game is bad on either system, rather, both versions are amazing. We will allow your imaginations to go to work now, dreaming up the coolest of cool thought about your next GTA venture.
As for the conclusion, we feel the review is/was incomplete, as did the reviewer, so we will not post their final score, although we will say it scored very high! Please stay tuned for GameRevolver.com’s debut review, to be posted at Midnight, April 29th!
