True to the open-world game concept that Rockstar pioneered in “Grand Theft Auto III,” you can accept or refuse any mission in whatever order you like. Calls would come in on Niko’s cell phone (an ingenious gameplay device) and I'd feel genuinely bad about blowing off Roman’s invitation to go to a strip club. One of the game's greatest feats is getting us to care about the choices Niko makes in the game. Little Jacob, a Rasta arms dealer, rants in thick patois to a barely comprehending Niko and Francis McReary is the bent cop out for blackmail. Early on we meet Brucie, a rich, fast-talking steroid freak Roman meets online, and Dimitri, a vicious Russian gangster who enlists Niko to assassinate his boss. Like many of the gangster films “GTA IV” clearly takes cues from, the supporting characters are colorful and memorable. Their family bond is touching, even as Niko goes to extreme measures to honor it. His drunken, womanizing antics offer welcome comic relief against Niko’s sober, disciplined ways. Roman is a loveable bumbler who is in way over his head. His motive, as it is revealed later in the game, is to avenge a deadly betrayal from his past - classic anti-hero stuff.
While Niko commits atrocious acts to rise in the criminal ranks, he derives no pleasure from what he does. Niko and Roman, the underworld version of two wild and crazy guys, buck the trend of one-dimensional, cartoony video-game characters. His cousin Roman has invited him to share in his piece of the American dream unfortunately Roman is living in a hovel and deep in debt to his Russian boss. Niko Bellic, a merchant mariner and Serbian vet of the Bosnian civil war, arrives in Liberty City aboard a freighter ship. It will be weeks, if not months, before I get my fill of “GTA IV.” It will be a great shame if the inevitable hubbub overshadows the epic, revolutionary nature of “GTA IV.” The developers, Rockstar Games, have crafted a wildly ambitious game world complete with an engrossing story of an immigrant's rise to power, unforgettable characters and expertly honed gameplay.
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