Arandor
Auto-translated
Grand Theft Auto IV
I didn't play it when it was released, I just messed around with it on other people's computers. Now I decided to fully appreciate it, especially since I've already completed the other parts (except for the first ones). It's funny that I finished the 5th part in a month, while this one took me half a year and took more time in hours. I don't know how that happened, maybe the game itself is longer. I won't write much, I'll just briefly describe my impressions and some moments. The main campaign is already a bit forgotten, but the beginning was pleasant, and I immediately liked the darker atmosphere compared to other parts (in this regard, it's more similar to the 3rd). In general, the cityscape somehow creates a better atmosphere in these games, especially the poor neighborhoods, industrial areas, etc. There was not enough of this in the 5th, as well as in Vice City. In particular, I would like to highlight some missions where you had to enter the entrances of apartment buildings, climb the stairs, enter dirty apartments to some dealers, and take them out. It immediately gave the feeling that you were a character from some American gangster movie, or Danilo Bagrov, who came to the USA. It was atmospheric. The roads on the first island (and the small one) are the same, with lots of turns, hills, and streets, but because of this, you can't really speed up and it's not very fun to drive on them. The second one is better in terms of driving, and the third one is so-so again. And I don't remember the other parts very well, but in this one, it seems like there are a lot of character deaths during the plot, especially at the beginning. It's not that it's bad, it's just that this feature stood out. Otherwise, everything was quite familiar, and there were no particular difficulties, except that I didn't immediately learn how to get into a taxi and didn't understand how to find out the exact address when on a date. I also didn't like the fact that "friends" often call you and invite you somewhere, and if you refuse, your friendship decreases. Only after a while did I learn how to refuse them without losing friendship points, which are needed for bonuses. Although playing billiards or air hockey with them is quite good, I played about 20 games of the first one. I can also add random encounters/acquaintances, the ability to choose in some missions, police missions, and the internet, where you can read interesting news, including about your affairs. The missions were generally easy, I didn't have to replay much, except for the last one, considering the script that only works at 30fps, and because of this, I had to lower it technically.
The Lost and Damned
A terrible add-on with unpleasant characters. All the pleasant and funny ones remained in the other two stories. When I launched it, everything looked even more dull for some reason, and it seemed like the game was running worse, like some kind of demo. But maybe it was just a coincidence, and the difference is only in the design of the radar and other details. I can only add that the story is intertwined with the main campaign and the second add-on, and otherwise, there is nothing interesting, except that you can ride a motorcycle as much as you want, if you haven't done so before. But considering that we spend most of the time on the third island, it's not that great. The road rash-style races and gang upgrades didn't impress me much. And here they showed a completely naked man (but there are still no women).
I accidentally found out that a character from the add-on appears in the 5th part.
The Ballad of Gay Tony
The opposite of the first add-on. A pleasant protagonist, more vivid characters, and fewer annoying ones, and the plot is even more intertwined with the main campaign and answers questions that may have remained. But most of all, I liked the concept of the story itself, namely that we are co-owners of nightclubs, hang out among famous (and not so famous) people, make useful acquaintances with influential people, try to resolve the problems that have arisen, while also dealing with work matters, and so on. This is not just another story about a con man who came from somewhere or a homeless person who wants to get rich. And almost the entire plot takes place on the second island, and that's cool. The only downside is that they overdid it with the helicopter missions, considering how boring they are and how much time they take. But at least the dealings with "drug friends" are not as stressful as the biker showdowns, because your partners are immortal and you don't have to worry about their lives.
At the beginning, I didn't like much of the radio, except for a couple of well-known songs on some radio stations, but they rarely played, so I often listened to Journey, where there was also a well-known track by a Frenchman (I don't know where I know it from). There was also a melody on this radio that strongly reminded me of the music from Heroes 3 (if you're interested, it's Philip Glass - Pruit Igoe). After a while, I got used to the available genres (I couldn't just turn off the radio, although there seems to be a button for that) and about 1/3 of the stations played periodically, most often the music that I was used to, but when I was completing the last DLC, I almost always drove to electronic music. It was very much in line with the club affairs, + it created the right mood and atmosphere, and besides, there are no stressful tracks there, and some are even pleasant.
I won't give a rating, but I think this part is one of the best.
I didn't play it when it was released, I just messed around with it on other people's computers. Now I decided to fully appreciate it, especially since I've already completed the other parts (except for the first ones). It's funny that I finished the 5th part in a month, while this one took me half a year and took more time in hours. I don't know how that happened, maybe the game itself is longer. I won't write much, I'll just briefly describe my impressions and some moments. The main campaign is already a bit forgotten, but the beginning was pleasant, and I immediately liked the darker atmosphere compared to other parts (in this regard, it's more similar to the 3rd). In general, the cityscape somehow creates a better atmosphere in these games, especially the poor neighborhoods, industrial areas, etc. There was not enough of this in the 5th, as well as in Vice City. In particular, I would like to highlight some missions where you had to enter the entrances of apartment buildings, climb the stairs, enter dirty apartments to some dealers, and take them out. It immediately gave the feeling that you were a character from some American gangster movie, or Danilo Bagrov, who came to the USA. It was atmospheric. The roads on the first island (and the small one) are the same, with lots of turns, hills, and streets, but because of this, you can't really speed up and it's not very fun to drive on them. The second one is better in terms of driving, and the third one is so-so again. And I don't remember the other parts very well, but in this one, it seems like there are a lot of character deaths during the plot, especially at the beginning. It's not that it's bad, it's just that this feature stood out. Otherwise, everything was quite familiar, and there were no particular difficulties, except that I didn't immediately learn how to get into a taxi and didn't understand how to find out the exact address when on a date. I also didn't like the fact that "friends" often call you and invite you somewhere, and if you refuse, your friendship decreases. Only after a while did I learn how to refuse them without losing friendship points, which are needed for bonuses. Although playing billiards or air hockey with them is quite good, I played about 20 games of the first one. I can also add random encounters/acquaintances, the ability to choose in some missions, police missions, and the internet, where you can read interesting news, including about your affairs. The missions were generally easy, I didn't have to replay much, except for the last one, considering the script that only works at 30fps, and because of this, I had to lower it technically.
The Lost and Damned
A terrible add-on with unpleasant characters. All the pleasant and funny ones remained in the other two stories. When I launched it, everything looked even more dull for some reason, and it seemed like the game was running worse, like some kind of demo. But maybe it was just a coincidence, and the difference is only in the design of the radar and other details. I can only add that the story is intertwined with the main campaign and the second add-on, and otherwise, there is nothing interesting, except that you can ride a motorcycle as much as you want, if you haven't done so before. But considering that we spend most of the time on the third island, it's not that great. The road rash-style races and gang upgrades didn't impress me much. And here they showed a completely naked man (but there are still no women).
I accidentally found out that a character from the add-on appears in the 5th part.
The Ballad of Gay Tony
The opposite of the first add-on. A pleasant protagonist, more vivid characters, and fewer annoying ones, and the plot is even more intertwined with the main campaign and answers questions that may have remained. But most of all, I liked the concept of the story itself, namely that we are co-owners of nightclubs, hang out among famous (and not so famous) people, make useful acquaintances with influential people, try to resolve the problems that have arisen, while also dealing with work matters, and so on. This is not just another story about a con man who came from somewhere or a homeless person who wants to get rich. And almost the entire plot takes place on the second island, and that's cool. The only downside is that they overdid it with the helicopter missions, considering how boring they are and how much time they take. But at least the dealings with "drug friends" are not as stressful as the biker showdowns, because your partners are immortal and you don't have to worry about their lives.
At the beginning, I didn't like much of the radio, except for a couple of well-known songs on some radio stations, but they rarely played, so I often listened to Journey, where there was also a well-known track by a Frenchman (I don't know where I know it from). There was also a melody on this radio that strongly reminded me of the music from Heroes 3 (if you're interested, it's Philip Glass - Pruit Igoe). After a while, I got used to the available genres (I couldn't just turn off the radio, although there seems to be a button for that) and about 1/3 of the stations played periodically, most often the music that I was used to, but when I was completing the last DLC, I almost always drove to electronic music. It was very much in line with the club affairs, + it created the right mood and atmosphere, and besides, there are no stressful tracks there, and some are even pleasant.
I won't give a rating, but I think this part is one of the best.
Be strong. Believe