GTA:SA for PC  

I haven't played the previous games. I'm thinking about getting it for the PC.

Not Particularly, because I think GTA:SA is a vastly inferior game to VC. I played through some of the PS2 version and realized it just wasn't any fun.

VC worked on alot of levels...a varied 80's soundtrack (rap, funk, rock, pop, nu-wave, and two hilarious talk radio stations, commercials and DJ's), a really "fun" location to drive around and cause mayhem in (Vice City was beautiful), and last but not least a generous jolt of humor and fun "playability". The game never once took itself too seriously and was always loads of fun to play. It felt like an episode of Miami Vice while you played a game, in other words it was like playing out a movie with the way the missions went.

But San Andreas is an entirely different game....Its ditched all of that humor and "fun" in favor of trying to make you a bad-@ssed gangbanger, the game has become cluttered with needless fluff that just gets in the way of having a fun game experience..the whole dating thing, the clothes, the hairdos, the eating.....the working out. It breaks what the core game is all about.

The locations for San Andreas are also no fun, at least to me. Downtown cities are tight and congested, and the "wide open plains" between cities are nothing but a monotonous chore to drive and navigate.....granted having the roads is nice, but man you'd think they could have included some "direct routes" between the major cities. The driving model is definately better in SA, I'll give them that....but overall the game just doesn't feel like its any fun to play for me.

I miss the crazy Gary Busey voice, the Dennis Hopper missions, the Burt Reynolds and LoveFist missoins of VC. In SA you get "angry gang banger" and "angry latino stereotype crazy girlfriend" and "angry suit"....it all gets a little tiresome.

The options are vast in SA, but is the game any FUN? To me the answer is no. Where I looked forward to each new mission in VC, in this game each new mission is just a chore to get through to "open up something else".

I'm only about 1/2 way into SA, but I still play VC more just to re-do side missions and occasionaly just drive around, collect my cash, enjoy the sunset on the beach...and then set a whole bunch of tourists on fire :)

Not Particularly, because I think GTA:SA is a vastly inferior game to VC. I played through some of the PS2 version and realized it just wasn't any fun.

VC worked on alot of levels...a varied 80's soundtrack (rap, funk, rock, pop, nu-wave, and two hilarious talk radio stations, commercials and DJ's), a really "fun" location to drive around and cause mayhem in (Vice City was beautiful), and last but not least a generous jolt of humor and fun "playability". The game never once took itself too seriously and was always loads of fun to play. It felt like an episode of Miami Vice while you played a game, in other words it was like playing out a movie with the way the missions went.

But San Andreas is an entirely different game....Its ditched all of that humor and "fun" in favor of trying to make you a bad-@ssed gangbanger, the game has become cluttered with needless fluff that just gets in the way of having a fun game experience..the whole dating thing, the clothes, the hairdos, the eating.....the working out. It breaks what the core game is all about.

The locations for San Andreas are also no fun, at least to me. Downtown cities are tight and congested, and the "wide open plains" between cities are nothing but a monotonous chore to drive and navigate.....granted having the roads is nice, but man you'd think they could have included some "direct routes" between the major cities. The driving model is definately better in SA, I'll give them that....but overall the game just doesn't feel like its any fun to play for me.

I miss the crazy Gary Busey voice, the Dennis Hopper missions, the Burt Reynolds and LoveFist missoins of VC. In SA you get "angry gang banger" and "angry latino stereotype crazy girlfriend" and "angry suit"....it all gets a little tiresome.

The options are vast in SA, but is the game any FUN? To me the answer is no. Where I looked forward to each new mission in VC, in this game each new mission is just a chore to get through to "open up something else".

I'm only about 1/2 way into SA, but I still play VC more just to re-do side missions and occasionaly just drive around, collect my cash, enjoy the sunset on the beach...and then set a whole bunch of tourists on fire :)

So many games can be looked at in terms of dollars per hour of gameplay, but for me, the GTA games are about hours of gameplay per dollar! FYI, on the PS2 version, my ingame clock says I spent about 93 hours getting to 100% (which of course does not include the many times I needed to reload and retry!).

I have to admit that GTA:VC is a sentimental favorite, between the music and the whole Miami Vice vibe (and some FABULOUS voice actors). Also, playing the earlier games in the series makes the references in the later games funnier.

However, I am psyched to get GTA:SA on the PC too, so I can crank the resolution and gaze on the eye candy. GTA:SA does have a different vibe, but I appreciate the expansions to the GTA:VC gameplay. So much of it is optional customization - if you don't want to get hung up on clothes, haircuts, girlfriends, vehicle mods, etc. you don't have to. Eating is not too much of a chore (and the lines of the fast food workers are hilarious). Swimming, flying planes, parachuting, gambling are all good. The vehicle schools are very cool - lots of mini-missions that also help you to master all the vehicles. I also like that each area (cities and rural areas) have their own distinct look and feel.

So, I love it! It's a ball, and I look forward to running through it again.

(PS: As ever, James Woods rocks! And who can beat the coolest cat ever, Samuel L. Jackson, as a corrupt cop? Love it!)

:D

Loved VC. I grew up in South FL during the 1980's so the whole Miami Beach thing is pretty fun. Plus the music, etc... - just really well done all around. To be honest, I loathed the whole rap/gangbang/grunge and whatever else anyone wants to call it scene/era. I don't have a HTPC but I'll probably play it some on the Xbox (I assume it's being released at the same time?) just because I like to sit back on the couch and play that game. I still play VC, if SA is half as good that would be nice but it has never sounded appealing to me (other than being GTA) and I hope I don't hate it as much as I'm afraid I might.

From what I heard from a co-worker about him disliking GTA:SA but loving GTA:VC, I think there is a cultural difference between the two. Not many people are able to make the leap from the imersion in VC to SA.

I hope to buy GTA:SA soon. I want to hear the reviews first.

I must be the only person who liked the game/story of SA better then VC. The controls and missions were better in SA. But i liked the whole, family member dies, guy comes back and comes to power of his neighborhood, only to be knocked back down.

IF i had to give the edge to either one, it would be SA but both are great stories. (also keep in mind that in High School i was the urban white guy. :p )