Grand Theft Auto 2

Back in 2001 I bought a used Playstation from someone I knew for like thirty bucks. It came with a bunch of games. I bought two more -- "The Italian Job" (which I hated) and "Grand Theft Auto 2." My other friend already had a PS2 and we had played "Grand Theft Auto III" on it, and I had hoped the "GTAII" version for original Playstation would at least be fun. I knew the graphics would be terrible, but figured the gameplay would be equal.

Unfortunately, it wasn't. This game is really poor. First of all, as I expected, the graphics are bad. But the gameplay isn't fun at all! The controls and movement are hard and never natural. The entire method of the game is annoying and you can't really do very much at all. In order to save you have to get to the starting point which is quite annoying.

People don't talk in the game, when you get mission instructions there's a static image of a man's face and then this squeaky mumbo-jumbo dialogue that is supposed to substitute for the audio... it just sounds silly and out-of-place.

Overall, this sucks. Get "GTAIII" or "Vice City" or "San Andreas." Skip this.

You are an independent crook in a corrupt city. You can work for any of the three gangs but first you must get respect – by either carrying out minor jobs for them or by inflicting damage on one of the other gangs. Each job pays big but also bring you to the attention of the law. Alternatively you can start a one man crime wave and steal cars, run down people, shoot gang members, the public and cops.

I bought this game cheap for PC, years after all the controversy raged. Personally I am not going to go out and commit crimes simply because a game with an overhead view allows me to do it – that is a game and this is real life…..just cause I still play video games as an adult doesn't mean I'm a child!

Outside of the controversy this is an enjoyable game. The basics get a bit samey but are still entertaining. Most jobs involve stealing cars, pick up this, pick up that etc but it is all still enjoyable. The jobs increase in difficulty and depending on how some of the gangs feel towards you can become more difficult. For example when a gang hates you but they're armed with pistols then no problem, but when they've got machine guns etc then just driving past a crowd could find your important vehicle destroyed.

With the mission difficulty increasing so does the problem the police pose. In the first level the basic police presence will be added to by SWAT teams unless you lay low for a moment to let the heat die down. In later stages you get ruthless special agents (who WILL kill you instead of arresting you) or in the final stage, martial law is declared and it's impossible to avoid the military for long – literally every street is full of soldiers and tanks.

The driving/walking game play is quite fun – even if the view makes for confusing controls until you get the hang of it. My main problem with it is that it gets quite samey for a while so I'd rather be able to pick it up for short times. However to save a game you must get back to the `church' (a job in itself if you don't have maps) and then it costs you money to save – setting you back in terms of progressing further into the game. This is a down side as it means anything you do needs to be save continuously as you go.

Overall a good game – looks a little basic but if you want to play then you can go through the missions – or if you want to destroy and go nuts then you can do that too!

...but still not much of an improvement. The gameplay is still EXACTLY the same and the missions are not too dissimilar either. But the cool soundtrack is still there and those radio DJs are funny as hell. Jill Tasker's news updates are awesome and there are some brilliant songs too.

The graphics have improved tho and there are some real cool weapons. Check out the colors as you blow up 10 cars with a ray gun. But this is the only real difference between this and the first.

If you have the original this is, at a push, still worth buying. But it just feels so much more like an expansion pack than a whole new game tho.

"Grand Theft Auto 2" is a game that evokes mixed feelings, especially after so many years. In 1999, this world seemed revolutionary: an open city, a variety of missions and complete freedom of action. What can I say? Back then, the computer was a novelty and such games seemed unimaginable. You could move through the streets, complete tasks for various gangs, or just cause chaos - all this gave unforgettable emotions. Especially the chaos when it was possible to compete with friends in who would last longer against the cops or collect more "stars" of pursuit (although there were no stars in the game yet, but there were small firebrands of policemen on the screen). But after 25 years, of course, you will not dare to return to this world, and you no longer feel the delight that you had in childhood.

The plot of the game is based on the confrontation of several criminal organizations with which the main character interacts by completing missions. The player has to balance between these groups, earning a reputation and moving up the criminal ladder. Each gang has its own unique tasks and styles, which makes the passing process exciting. At that time, it was a fresh concept where you could choose who to cooperate with and whose tasks to perform - the feeling of freedom was a real discovery.

The gameplay also added interest. Although bird's-eye mechanics may seem primitive by today's standards, they were a big step forward at the time. Chases, carjackings, shootouts - it all felt dynamic and exciting.

However, if you look at the game now, the graphics and overall arcade style are unlikely to impress, and the controls are still remembered for their inconvenience. And the process itself, when streets and buildings are repeated, and missions are often similar to each other, gradually loses its excitement.

But despite this, "GTA 2" remains an important part of the game's history, the very step that led the series to the greatness it has become today. And even if you don't want to play it now, it was a real hit for its time.

6 out of 10.

Ok, I will never, EVER imitate what happens in this action/driving game, but I have never been more tempted to speed a red light, steal a cop car or run over pedestrians for a laugh than after I've played GTA2. Personally, I think that this game is the perfect way to relax after being stuck in a traffic jam for hours on end, as it lets you do anything you shouldn't and get away with it...if you can lose the increasing number of cops that give chase!

GTA2 hasn't attracted as much media attention as its prequel, which just goes to show that GTA was the scapegoat of the games industry when it came out. What we have left is an addictive, long lasting and above all, FUN driving game where you have to gain respect from rival gangs, each of whom have a mortal enemy. Taking on jobs from one will affect how you play the game. For example, completing a mission for one gang will get you respect from that gang, but you'll lose respect from that gang's mortal enemy, and thusly not be offered any jobs (and driving through their neighbourhood would be a bad move).

The piéce de resistance are the massive cities that you race around. What makes the game so good is how busy and realistic they are, with hospitals, restaurants, police stations, sewage plants etc. etc. They are nothing if not believable. There are over 120 vehicles in the game (according to the blurb on the back of the box) each with their own handling, and with a quick visit to a garage you can add machine guns to the sides or arm it with a bomb. Some of them have special features like taxies which will attract paying civilians and tanks which roll right over SWAT vans and fire shells at your persuerers. Sometimes the chaos is awe inspiring, as the flames light up the screen.

Each 'job' is fun and hilarious, and they increase with difficulty throughout the game. The later missions will definately increase the lastabilty of what could have been a "one week" game. In one such mission, the Russian mafia requires food for it's members. The boss tells you to steal a bus and collect passengers. When you have enough, you take the loaded bus to the meat factory, where behind closed doors you hear the screeches of the "livestock" as they become fresh hot-dogs. Using a hot-dog van (naturally) you drop off the 'dogs at a resturant. Mission Complete! While guys like me love this kind of humour, some may find it not quite to their liking, and belive me, that was one of the tamer missions.

The only bad point about this game is that it costs points/money to save your game, so you don't really want to unless you've done 2-3 jobs in a row. This becomes repetitive if you don't have the time to do so. Other than that, make sure you don't lose the all-important map or you'll get lost very quickly!

I'd recommend GTA2 to anyone who has an unhealthy sense of humour and thinks that's it's better to kill in games than in real life. 9/10