50 Reasons You Need GTA IV - Part Two
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31. Shoreside Lift Bridge
Some eagle-eyed detail-spotters may have noticed a cable car moving across the bridge featured in the trailer. Originally we believed this to be a PS3 incarnation of the Shoreside Lift Bridge from GTA III's Liberty City; however, it's more likely to be a recreation of the Manhattan Bridge, or the Algonquin Bridge in GTA IV. We can expect this to connect the Manhattan-like bustle of Algonquin to the leafy suburbs of Alderney (Shoreside Vale in GTA III). This would also suggest the return of Francis International Airport; maybe you shouldn't cancel that ticket to Vice City after all. Maybe you can fly abroad.
32. The Population
Part of getting to grips with every new GTA game means learning to live with the freaks and creeps that populate each new episode. The recently released trailer shows Liberty City is packed with life. These new pedestrians carry their groceries and books,which suggests that ploughing through them will result in a mess of squashed fruit and torn pages.
This could be the most visceral game yet seen on a console! Interestingly, these characters will do everything us real people do, including smoking, sitting on benches, and reading books and papers. It's clear from the snippets released by Rockstar that GTA IV will be a more vibrant city, bursting with life.
33. Liberty Tree
The city's premier paper is returning in GTA IV and that may mean a number of things. Firstly, the crime lords of the city are going to take offense at what's being written about them and will, no doubt, plot some form of revenge on the hapless hack responsible - so you'll be firebombing those offices seen in the trailer.
Secondly, perhaps you'll get the chance to work for the rag - ditching your criminal career to prove the pen is mightier than the sword, living out your Clark Kent fantasies knee-deep in the sleaze of GTA's newest metropolis.
Don't forget to visitwww.rockstargames.com/libertytree in the coming months either. After the release of GTA III, this site began to publish live news articles on events occurring in the city.
34. Sixaxis control
We've been able to fly in GTA since Vice City and San Andreas introduced jet planes, so what can GTA IV offer? Well, us PS3 owners should have the unique opportunity to fly our Learjets using the Sixaxis controller. Tilting our way through the skyscrapers of Liberty City should be a huge leap forward for the series. Problem is, Rockstar has stated there won't be any jet planes in GTA IV. This doesn't mean we shouldn't dismiss the idea of flight altogether; helicopters will surely make it into the new game.
35. Rail network
One of the most stunning sequences in the GTA IV trailer was the railway station montage. Clearly modelled on New York's art deco classic, Grand Central Station, these scenes demonstrate the RAGE engine's ability to diffuse light and deliver a smoky atmosphere, as sunlight streamed through the stained-glass dome and steam and smoke floated over the platforms.In regards to gameplay, this clearly means that the railway system in place for GTA III will be ramped up, creating a broader network between districts and, who knows, perhaps out into the forests beyond the city.
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