The Plusses in this
game:
+The full and original GTA III experience
+Decent graphics
+Full list of radio stations and audio content
The Minuses in this
game:
-Horrible aiming system
-Clunky camera
-Complicated controls
Final Rate: 6.5 / 10
Controller support:
No
System requirements:
iOS devices: Compatible with iPhone, iPod touch, and iPad.
Requires iOS 4.3 or later.
Android devices: Compatible with most new smartphones and
talets. Requires Android 2.2 and up
While it may be hard to believe for quite a lot of older
gamers, over 10 years separate us from the initial release of the iconic Grand
Theft Auto III, a title that pretty much changed the way we view open world
titles, as well as games in general.
Now, as a testament to how much technology, not just games,
has progressed since then, Rockstar has released a special Grand Theft Auto
III: 10 Year Anniversary Edition onto mobile platforms like the iOS (including
iPhone, iPod Touch or iPad) as well as Android (including various mobile phones
and tablets).
We have had the chance to try out the title on the Asus
Transformer tablet, powered by Nvidia’s Tegra 2 technology, and see just how
the game looks after more than 10 years since its initial release.
So, does this re-release honor the classic game or should it
be thrown into the trunk of a car and crashed through Liberty City? Let’s find
out.
In case you’re among the few people in the world who don’t
know what GTA III is, here’s a brief description of the game.
It’s an open world title, with its action taking place in
Liberty City, although it’s not the one from GTA IV, however. This copy of
1990s New York is constituted of several island neighborhoods connected by
various bridges and filled with all sorts of characters and criminal
organizations.
You play as Claude, a silent protagonist that’s just been
part of a prison break, who needs to make a name for himself by doing all sorts
of various jobs for all sorts of various criminal organizations, from the mob
to the Yakuza. The missions usually consists of some mix between driving and
shooting, but you can also engage in a variety of side missions, like driving
Liberty City residents by taxi, saving them with an ambulance or making the
streets a safer place through Vigilante activities.
This is what made GTA III such an impressive game, that
after you got over the open world, the great third person shooting or driving,
not to mention the graphics that were stunning at that time, you could still do
all sorts of things and not get bored during your adventures in Liberty City.
While the original game is still here and as glorious as
ever, it’s time to talk about the 10 Year Anniversary Edition and how it
actually feels on a tablet, instead of regular gaming devices like consoles or
the PC.
This is where things go awry, however, as the touchscreen
input generates some mixed results, largely because Rockstar didn’t really try to
adapt the controls to the special needs of a phone or tablet. Instead of
rethinking some actions, the studio just threw on the screen a variety of
buttons that are clunky, to say the least.
Thus, you can use the left side of the device to control
Claude’s movements, thanks to a dynamic virtual joystick that appears wherever
you press your thumb. On the right side of the screen, however, is where things
get really messy. While on foot, you have buttons for things like running,
jumping, punching or shooting, as well as entering cars or changing your camera
settings. While in a car, you now have buttons for braking or accelerating, as
well as for the handbrake, horn, or camera, not to mention getting out of the
car.
While this cluster of buttons makes controlling GTA 3
difficult, things get even more awkward while trying to move the camera around.
The auto-adjust does a decent job of following your car or character around
but, if you want to manually adjust it, be prepared to get angry, as you can
only tilt or pan the camera by pressing with two fingers on the center of the
screen and the movement of the camera based on your input is clunky, especially
when on foot.
Then we have the even more awkward shooting, which becomes a
chore thanks to an auto-aim system that targets people based on their proximity
to the player. While such features were present in other GTA games recently,
the one in this 10 Year Anniversary edition is horrible, managing to even
target pedestrians around Claude instead of enemies that are shooting at him.
Also, once the player meets more than one enemy, your chances of surviving the
encounter drop considerably, especially if you factor in the clunky camera or
the lack regenerating health or even the infamous cheats that could be used to
cause even more havoc in Liberty City.
These control and camera issues are quite a shame, as the
game looks pretty good, especially when compared with previous console
iterations of the original GTA 3. While the PC version may look better, it’s
still quite impressive to see the classic game running on a mobile platform,
even if its age is showing through character models or the damage on the
vehicles.
Sound-wise, you’re treated to the full GTA 3 package, with
lots of varied radio stations offering hours of entertainment while you drive
around Liberty City, although the audio quality depends on the speakers of your
device.
Conclusion:
Grand Theft Auto III: 10 Year Anniversary is a technical
achievement but, unfortunately, it’s borderline unplayable game. While it shows
how far mobile gaming and platforms have come in terms of quality, it’s let
down by complicated controls and the clunky auto-aim system.
You could get the game just for nostalgia’s sake or for a
quick drive in a car around Liberty City, but trying to complete the campaign
will only result in frustration.
Grand Theft Auto III: 10 Year Anniversary Edition is
available for the iOS and Android platforms, costing $4.99 or €3.99.
by
-Tricker
