Grand Theft Auto IV PC

Conclusions

So, here’s the rub. There are really only two main reasons to buy the PC version of Grand Theft Auto IV and there’s one retort to both of them.

The first reason is simple; you might buy Grand Theft Auto IV on the PC because you just don’t have a console at home but you still want to play the game that everyone’s been talking about. No, we don’t mean Eastenders: The Simulation.

The second main reason we can see why someone would want to play GTA IV on the PC is because they prefer gaming on a PC and want to get the most of the game. That’s an argument we can definitely go along with too as the PC version will undoubtedly get modded to hell and back in due time, provided Rockstar doesn’t crack down on PC gamers through the various authentication systems used to protect the game.

Unfortunately though, our response to these conclusions is simply that the game isn’t any better on the PC. It doesn’t matter how you look at it, the PC version of the game is just not the definitive Grand Theft Auto Iv experience.


Sure, the PC port of the game still has all the same features and the game has been faithfully shifted over to this far superior platform as perfectly as you could imagine, but the game was clearly designed for a console. That much is obvious from the savegame system alone, which still only saves your progress when you return to your bed.

There have been improvements to the PC release, but they aren’t the improvements that were really needed either. Increasing the number of players in multiplayer and adding in some truly hilarious commentary for the Independent Radio Station is all well and good, but we would have preferred some tweaks to the car physics so that we no longer feel like we’re driving a chunk of jelly through the city.

Tying the game to so many authentication systems is also an issue for us. A well-designed authentication and social system should be totally transparent for those people who don’t want to use it and shouldn’t loom over the gaming experience like a hungry journalist eyeing up the last muffin in the fridge. Neither Rockstar nor Microsoft can claim that about their systems and defaulting the Rockstar Social Club to run whenever Windows starts is a major pain.

The problem here though is that if Grand Theft Auto IV were released on the PC at the same time as the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 then we might not have had these qualms. The fact that PC gamers have had to wait so long though and been rewarded so minimally is a small but significant gripe.


Rockstar has given us what we’d expect of a PC version of the game, but only just and there are several improvements that should have been made but weren’t. That, combined with the other problems, is enough to get us riled up.

Grand Theft Auto IV is a great game once you get into it, of course. The open-world, the awesome soundtrack and the total free-reign to cause carnage and experiment with the game world make this a really impressive game. The PC version also brings across and opens up the chance for players to create their own stories and thrilling police chases, which is something we love.

That said, while the game itself is great, the PC version of GTA IV isn’t the definitive one that players should be looking to get intimate with. It’s playable and fun and just what you would want from a Grand Theft Auto game, but it doesn’t outperform the Xbox 360 or PlayStation 3 versions and frankly feels like more of a token gesture than a sincere effort to make the most of what the PC could bring to the game.

Score Guide