Grand Theft Auto IV

Grand Theft Auto IV (commonly known as Grand Theft Auto 4 or GTA IV or GTA 4) is an United Kingdom action-adventure video game that marks the beginning of the fourth Era in the GTA series. It is developed by Rockstar North and published by Rockstar Games, and is available in 3 different platforms: PlayStation 3, Xbox 360 and the Windows operating system. Like Grand Theft Auto 3, GTA 4 also utilizes 3D graphics to enhance the realism of the game. The GTA series has been known to generate many controversial issues since its very first installment due to its violent and sexual content in the game. Grand Theft Auto IV continues to bring up more controversial topics with regard to some of the new features that has been brought into the game.

Gameplay

Like its predecessors, Grand Theft Auto IV features a gameplay where the protagonist, in this episode calls Niko Bellic, can freely explore and walk around a big open space. The character is capable of jumping, running, driving and even swimming. Different weapons such as knives, pistols, shotguns, rifles, and grenades are available for the protagonist to choose from. He also has the ability to conduct illegal activities such as killing, stealing and cars hijacking. One of the new features in GTA 4 is that the protagonist can drink and drive. The game attempts to simulate a more realistic driving experience, as the more alcohol the protagonist ingests, the harder it is for the player to control the vehicle. Automobiles are not the only transportation that are available in GTA 4, helicopters, motorcycles and boats are also options for the protagonist to make use of.

Story

Coming "fresh off the boat" from Eastern Europe, protagonist Niko Bellic hopes to pursue the American dream that his cousin Roman has been describing to him in the emails. The ideal picture of his life in America, however, turns out to be a complete disappointment as Roman has in fact been deceiving Niko the entire time in the emails. As Niko realizes the unfortunate situation that Roman is in, together they slowly slip into the criminal underworld, where unlawful activities begin to take place.

Setting

GTA 4 takes place in a fictional city names Liberty City, which is primarily based off New York City (NYC). Liberty City is divided into 5 different areas, 4 of which represent the 4 boroughs in NYC (Brooklyn is Broker, Manhattan is Algonquin, Queens is Dukes, The Bronx is Bohan) while the fifth one (Alderney) represents NYC's adjacent state New Jersey.

Ethical Issues in Grand Theft Auto IV

Immediately after it was released, Grand Theft Auto IV has reached the top of the bill board and has become the “fastest selling game ever on Play.com (a UK online game store) and has broken the record previously held by GTA San Andreas,” as stated by Luzio, play.com's head of games. GTA 4 acquired the labels of "PS3 Greatest Hits" and "Xbox 360 Platinum Hits" and it went out of stock very quickly. Those who are so passionate about this game no doubt a

Grand Theft Auto 4 banned in Thailand

On August 2008, 4 months after GTA 4 was released, a 18-year-old high school student in Thailand was accused of stealing a taxi and stabbing the taxi driver to death in attempt to reenact a scene in GTA 4. The police claimed that the 18-year-old student confessed to the stealing and murdering of the 54 year-old taxi driver. The teenager said that he "wanted to find out if it was as easy in real life to rob a taxi as it was in the game." His other reasoning for committing this crime was that he wanted money to play the game, but his parents did not have enough money. After this incident, Thailand banned this game in attempt to prevent any other similar incidents to take place in the future.