Grand Theft Auto is one of the most controversial series of games ever made, due to its questionable content. Not many games deal with the subject of carjacking, running people over, and escaping the attentions of the police. But, we’re all responsible people here, we all know that we shouldn’t do this for real, and we can avoid the temptation, right? The third version of Grand Theft Auto is now available for the PlayStation 2. Say goodbye to the classic 2D top-down perspective and say hello to glorious 3D third-person action.
In GTA3 you’ve been betrayed and left for dead. Naturally, revenge is high up on your personal agenda. Finding out what happened and deciding what you are going to do about it is your main goal. GTA3 combines a structured narrative with non-linear gameplay. This means that even though there are objectives that have to be met: how you go about them is left up to your discretion.
In GTA3, you need to earn respect from the mafia bosses by performing jobs for them. This can lead you into the criminal underworld of stealing and selling cars, taking out rival gang members and bombing designated targets.
Every single vehicle in the ‘living’ Liberty City is accessible and controllable, from ice-cream vans, to fire trucks, to a wide assortment of sports cars. Vehicle damage is another new feature to the series. A total of seventeen damage zones can be affected by your hazardous driving.
Talking of new features, your notoriety rating will increase with the variety of different crimes that you commit. In the first two games in the series, you could have a maximum of four cops on your tail if you were causing mayhem. In GTA3, first the number of cops chasing you increases, then they bring in SWAT teams, the military, and finally helicopters are called in.
With over three hours of music, loads of brand new gameplay features, and an all new perspective, GTA3 is the dark side of gaming personified. Excellent.