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After reading an article on IGN celebrating a decade since the release of Grand Theft Auto III, i thought it would be an appropriate time to have a retrospective thread here allowing other GTA fans an opportunity to give their thoughts on what kind of impact GTA III had on their 'gaming lives' at the time, what they thought of subsequent GTA titles, and what they think the future holds for GTA and it's spin-offs.
GTA III had been out for a good few months before i got my mits on a copy. My PS2 time was likely consisting purely of Gran Turismo III back then, having come out only 4 months previously. It was only on the recommendation of a friend that i bothered to rent it. I was totally overwhelmed when i began playing it, the graphics, the intuitive controls, the soundtrack and of course, the vast sand-box playing area were like nothing else on a console at that time. Games like Tomb Raider or Driver offered a peek at these elements, but nothing had combined them all or allowed such freedom to roam. It was a gaming revolution.
Subsequent GTA III titles, Vice City and San Andreas, improved on the original in both scale and variety of main story missions and sub-missions. GTA IV brought us back to Liberty City but with next-gen graphics and online multi-player capability. By this time things had moved on in the gaming world and for me, GTA IV was starting to feel a little stale, i'd seen it all before. Although Red Dead Redemption very much followed the GTA game style, i found it's atmosphere refreshingly different enough that it's still a game i'll happily slot into the PS3, even though i'd long since finished the main and most of the sub-storylines.
I've not read much about future GTA games, so i don't know whether they'll be Vice City or San Andreas-like takes on GTA IV, or whether we'll skip straight to GTA V, possibly on the next next-gen consoles.
GTA III had been out for a good few months before i got my mits on a copy. My PS2 time was likely consisting purely of Gran Turismo III back then, having come out only 4 months previously. It was only on the recommendation of a friend that i bothered to rent it. I was totally overwhelmed when i began playing it, the graphics, the intuitive controls, the soundtrack and of course, the vast sand-box playing area were like nothing else on a console at that time. Games like Tomb Raider or Driver offered a peek at these elements, but nothing had combined them all or allowed such freedom to roam. It was a gaming revolution.
Subsequent GTA III titles, Vice City and San Andreas, improved on the original in both scale and variety of main story missions and sub-missions. GTA IV brought us back to Liberty City but with next-gen graphics and online multi-player capability. By this time things had moved on in the gaming world and for me, GTA IV was starting to feel a little stale, i'd seen it all before. Although Red Dead Redemption very much followed the GTA game style, i found it's atmosphere refreshingly different enough that it's still a game i'll happily slot into the PS3, even though i'd long since finished the main and most of the sub-storylines.
I've not read much about future GTA games, so i don't know whether they'll be Vice City or San Andreas-like takes on GTA IV, or whether we'll skip straight to GTA V, possibly on the next next-gen consoles.