Review by Shady

"If you've ever wanted to commit crimes without being thrown in jail, check out GTA"

Grand Theft Auto.. The game that many parents tried to get banned because of its blatant use of cuss words, killing, and committing crimes. Of course, they didn’t have much luck with that, did they? GTA is still here and it was popular enough to have a sequel - Grand Theft Auto 2. I am not here to review GTA2, though, I am here to review the original. Sooo.. is the original any good? Let’s continue..


One thing that just about everyone didn’t like about Grand Theft Auto (I am talking about gamers), is the graphics. Sure, the camera gives you a top down view of the game, but it is still good enough. I will admit that an all 3D version of GTA would rock, but this will have to do for now. Anyways, for what there is, the graphics are detailed and look fine. They are good, but not great.


There is actually quite a bit to do in GTA, despite only having three cities (with two levels in each). There are a whole bunch of vehicles to steal including sports cars, buses, tanks, and even TV vans. Your boss will give you some jobs (there are a lot of jobs in the game, too), and you can get the jobs by answering telephones. The jobs will earn you money and you will need money to advance to the next level. As you go on, the jobs start getting harder and harder. If you go through and complete the jobs, though, the money is very rewarding. Overall, the gameplay is good but not great.

For control, I got to admit that it is pretty weak. To go forwards, you have to hold down X and use the directional pad. To go backwards, you have to hold down triangle and use the directional pad. It is the same way both in and out of the car. Oh well.

SOUND 9/10

My favorite part in the whole game of GTA is the sound. While playing the game, you can turn on the radio for each car. The music varies from car to car. For example, if you steal a pick up truck, the radio will play “hillbilly” music. If you steal a sports car, the radio will play techno stuff. It’s great. The rest of the sound is good, too, and for the most part you can understand what everyone says.


It actually is quite fun to run over pedestrians and steal cars in Grand Theft Auto. It is fun to get in a sports car and go on a high speed chase throughout the city. Heck, you can even steal a police car if you want. There are so many vehicles in GTA that it will be fun to test each of them out.


Once you buy GTA, you will probably play it for maybe a week or so then you will probably not play it for a while. I still take it out every once in a while just to steal some cars or something, but that’s about it. Once you beat the game for the first time, I don’t think you will go through for a second.


With all of the jobs to do in each city, Grand Theft Auto turns out to be a very challenging game. You don’t have to do the jobs if you don’t want to, but it is recommended so you can move on to the next level faster. Normally, all I would do is steal a car and sell it to the crane guy and get a bunch of money. The better shape the car is in, the more money you get. I love that. But anyways, it will probably take you a while to go through the game.


My suggestion to any of you people out there that have never played GTA is to give it a rent first. If you can, rent the 2 in 1 package so you can play both the original GTA and the add on pack - London 1969. The add on pack isn’t very good, but hey, you can get two games for the rental price of one. Cool.


- Great sound
- Do jobs for the mob without getting thrown in jail
- It’s fun, for a while


- Graphics
- Not much replay value
- Can get very tough


I would recommend Grand Theft Auto to any gamers out there that are looking for a fun little game to waste a Sunday afternoon (or as long as you play it). If constant swearing and lots of killing doesn’t bother you, then give this a try. Overall, Grand Theft Auto gets a 7 out of 10 from me, Shady. Booyah.

Reviewer's Score: 7/10 | Originally Posted: 08/20/00, Updated 08/20/00

Submit Recommendation

Got Your Own Opinion?
