GTAIV - First Reviews Are In

[Flinty]

FYI: The post below may contain spoilers which you would rather find out for yourself when you get the game.

The time to take control of Niko is nearing, but not just yet. A few magazines have published the very first reviews of Rockstar's Grand Theft Auto 4.

Thee first publisher to post their reviews was OXM UK, the Official Xbox Magazine. They scored it a perfect 10/10. Some of the points made in the review are listed below.

• Skipping a trip in a taxi costs more than simply sitting back and enjoying the view of the driver's head.
• The Statue of Happiness is clutching a coffee cup rather than the torch her real life counterpart has.
• Some celebrity voice actors play themselves in the game.
• Like Crackdown's Orbs, the collectable (hidden packages?) in GTA IV make a soft sound as you get close to them, aiding you in finding them all.
• Your in-game email account will get the odd piece of spam.
• Driving through flames will set a car's tires on fire, causing them to burst after a while.
• One mission involves traveling across town with two bodies in the trunk - if you hit a bump and it opens, you'll have to scramble to close it again before any passers-by notice.
• The mobile phone you receive at the start of the game is an old, second hand model capable only of calling and texting. You'll need to wait for an upgrade later in the story to unlock the full functionality that people get from more modern models.
• Downloadable episodes are confirmed to contain at least 10 hours of gameplay.

The second reviews was publsihed by OPM UK, Official Playstation Magazine UK. There wasn't really anything groundbreaking publised in the review, but it did just go ahead and mention every radio station in the game! O yeah, It also scored a perfect 10/10.

• We Know The Truth (Talk)
• Radio Broker (Alternative Rock, eg LCD Soundsystem)
• San Juan Sounds (Latin)
• Integrity 2.0 (Talk featuring Lazlow)
• Tuff Going Radio (Reggae, eg Bob Marley)
• Liberty City Hardcore (Punk/Hardcore)
• Electro Choc (Dance)
• Liberty City Rock Radio 97.8 (Classic Rock, eg R.E.M.)
• Massive B Soundsystem 96.9 (Dance hall)
• International Funk IF99 (Funk, eg War)
• Public Liberty Radio (Phone in speech)
• The Classics 104.1 (Old school Hip hop)
• The Beat 102.7 (Contemporary Hip-Hop)
• Jazz Nation Radio 108.5 (Jazz, eg Miles Davis)
• K108 The Studio (Disco)
• Fusion FM (Soul, eg Roy Ayers)
• Vladivostok FM (Eastern European)