Grand Theft Auto 4: A look back on an open world classic
GTA 4 was once hailed as the pinnacle of technical achievement in open world design. A richly detailed city and a focus on gritty realism to sell the cynical and satirical life of Niko Bellic and others in the “land of opportunity.” But what happens when the standards of realism is elevated, when the technical achievement is thoroughly outmatched by the ever shifting rat race to make the biggest most detailed game? What happens when making your protagonist bluntly state the themes of the game is not enough? As you might have guessed, I don’t think the once pinnacle of open world games is all that impressive anymore. Recently I had finished Red Dead 2 and despite sorely lacking in combat depth, I was thoroughly enraptured by its slow methodical approach to gameplay and the quaint humanity afforded to its wide cast of characters. I remembered below the satirical edge of GTA, the 4th entry attempted something similar so jumped back in to see how it held up. What caught my
