Postpartum Depression in Liberty City
by: Lord Bling on 03-Jul-2008 10:21:08 AM
Niko, I wish I knew how to quit you.
In my previous blog post about GTA IV, I'd mentioned that I'd beaten the single player story, but wouldn't go back to'; digg_topic = 'Xbox';
Niko, I wish I knew how to quit you.
In my previous blog post about GTA IV, I'd mentioned that I'd beaten the single player story, but wouldn't go back to get 100% completion because "I doubt I'll ever get THAT bored." Well, I did it. 50 Unique Stunt Jumps? Check. All random pedestrian missions? Check. 30 Most Wanted Missions? Check. Shot all 200 Pigeons? Check.
So why did I do it? I have other games to play. In fact, I have too many. I still plan on beating Bully, Rainbow Six Vegas 2, and The Bourne Conspiracy. I recently picked up The Incredible Hulk, Quake Wars, and Guitar Hero Aerosmith, but haven't even taken the shrink wrap off of those yet. I received CSI in the mail from GameFly that I need to at least give an hour to. And on top of all that, I'm still in the second act of Metal Gear Solid 4 on the PS3, which has been great so far, and apparently gets even better. So why did I spend countless hours last week shooting at a bunch of birds? I hadn't even beaten a GTA game since part 3 on the PS2, and I can't remember the last time I'd worked so foolishly to get 100% completion in ANYTHING. Was I really THAT bored?
I think the answer is simple: I missed Liberty City. The more I played the game, the more real the city felt. I'd gotten to the point to where I knew it like the back of my hand. I rarely used checkpoints anymore. I started listening to stations I hadn't listened to yet, and I found myself enjoying more of them than I thought I would (Classics FTW!). I'd broken into the sports car shop in Algonquin so often, they practically held the door open for me. And yet, I never felt like I was whoring for achievements. I found that I really wanted to spend more time in this town. I'd reach to put in some other game, but then the song 'Back in the New York Groove' would get in my head again. It was a fitting song to play over the credits, and it stuck with me. Next thing I know, I'm calling Brucie to set up another race, because I liked the way he says, 'Punish those bitches!' Or I'd go drinking again with Packie, just hoping he'd slur his way through 'Danny Boy' in the cab once more. You know, for old time's sake.
Right before I saved for the last time, I did something that bothers me even now, as I think about it. I called Little Jacob and loaded up on body armor and Molotovs. Why? Why would I do that? It's OVER. Nothing more to see here folks, move along. And yet, in an open world game, is it really ever over?
Rockstar, my hat's off to you. You've created the closest thing to a virtual city I've ever seen. You somehow made me feel nostalgic for it, even after spending more than 70 hours there. I've complained before about the little problems I had here and there with it, but at the end of the day, Grand Theft Auto IV will still go down as one of the best gaming experiences of this generation.
P.S. I should probably make a separate post about this, but there's nothing I can say that hasn't already been said. I finally got the Red Ring of Death. It happened yesterday afternoon, when I had two pigeons left. Maybe after all of my jokes to hoZt, Gunnz, and Miles about their troubles with theirs, it was karma showing up to strike my launch Core unit down? Or maybe it was trying to weep over Bill Gates' retirement? In the end, it doesn't matter. The coffin is on its way. I'd thought about buying a used one at a game store, and then returning it after mine came back, but fortunately, I didn't have to. A friend of mine (who's even more impatient than I am) did the same thing when he got the RRoD last year, but never returned the used one, so he's letting me borrow that one until mine comes back from the dead. Microsoft, I wish I knew how to quit you too.
Comments
 | Blog Response: Postpartum Depression in Liberty City Posted: 3 months ago Hats off to Rockstar? Hats off to you my friend. That is a great feat. I still havn't finished the story because i've been doing to much exploring. You didn't say anything about multi-player though, have you tried it? Click here to see the blog |
 | Posted: 3 months ago pigeons?i have not seen a single one. Bling, how in the hell did you have the patience to complete 100%! LOL I have taken small break from GTA4 to play Army of Two, but my game time has been extrememly limited lately. Although i have had some fun MP matches in GTA4 lately. the hard part is getting in a room where anyone is interested in using mics and working together. thats the hard part. --------------------------------- semper ubi sub ubi |
 | Posted: 3 months ago Yeah Marchant11, I've done a little multiplayer, but not much. It was a fun distraction, but I'd rather play a game that's built more around the multiplayer (CoD4, etc.). In GTA IV, it's more molded to fit what's already been done in Single Player. I will say though, that I need to try some of the co-op missions. I usually just do Free Mode and enjoy running around with friends, blowing shit up.  CyanDahaka, if I didn't have the strategy guide, I would NEVER have had the patience. I'd found maybe 20 or 25 pigeons while playing the story mode. And in all honesty, going back to find them all would've been easier if I hadn't shot a single pigeon in the story mode. I gave up on a couple because I'd thought I'd already shot them earlier, and then it turned out that I hadn't, but couldn't find where they were, and so I spent a lot of time going back to places I'd already been. But if I didn't have the strategy guide, I wouldn't have even tried in the first place. Some pigeons are put in places that you'd never find on your own (i.e. one on the very top of the southwest support structure of Broker Bridge, only accessible with a helicopter). But even with the strategy guide, I still had to go to GameFaqs and Achieve360Points to find alternate screenshots and videos. The official guide shows good pictures of where each one is, but sometimes they're from an angle you don't recognize, etc. I literally printed out a separate map with the locations, and then watched corresponding videos and highlighted the ones I wasn't 100% sure of. Out of 200, I'd highlighted 10 or 11, and after double-checking five or six of them, I found the two I was missing. By the way, if you haven't gone drinking with Packie and taken a cab home, do it, and don't skip the ride. I almost had tears in my eyes because I was laughing so hard. His rendition of 'Danny Boy' should've been on the soundtrack. Whomever did the voice acting for his character is simply AWESOME. --------------------------------- 'I wanna get my knees dirty.' -- Gunnz, Netcast 37 |
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| Posted: 3 months ago the drinking stuff is hilarious! drunk driving is hard. I must admit. i am fond of the cheats they stay in your phone. I am having trouble getting the achievement for blowing up 10 cars at once. once i had ten cars, but needed to back up to use my RPG, when i turned around, the cars were gone --------------------------------- semper ubi sub ubi |
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| Posted: 3 months ago That's an easy one Cyan. Go to Times Square (errrr, Star Junction), and steal a bus. Then drive it onto the Broker Bridge, and wedge it sideways onto it so people can't pass by. Most people will drive right into place next to the bus, but if not, jack a few and drive them up to the front yourself. Make sure there's at least ten cars around (but it won't be hard to get 10 because it's a busy bridge). Then, use the RPG or throw a grenade into the front. As Little Jacob says, 'Der be an explosion!' Might kill your guy if you're standing too close, but you'll still get the achievement. Here's a video in case you want a visual:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BG2A1J-GJ7E&feature=related --------------------------------- 'I wanna get my knees dirty.' -- Gunnz, Netcast 37 |
 | Posted: 3 months ago Hopefully now Bling you can try and catch my gamescore! You are about 1500 behind me! Good luck pal. |
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| Posted: 3 months ago I'm done trying to stay up there with you Bones. I still wh0re here and there, but with a few good PS3 games, a couple of good PSP games, and a couple of PS2 games I keep swearing I'm going to finish (Shadow of the Colossus being first on the list), I'm not gonna be too crazy on the 360 for a while. Enjoy your lead! I may come back and pass you again some day. --------------------------------- 'I wanna get my knees dirty.' -- Gunnz, Netcast 37 |
 | Posted: 3 months ago Good stuff Bling. Your dedication is to be commended.I don't think i'll ever get that bored --------------------------------- Gamer Tag - Tha Sentinal. Hit me up. |
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| Posted: 3 months ago Careful there Damez! You might end up like me. LOL--------------------------------- 'I wanna get my knees dirty.' -- Gunnz, Netcast 37 |
 | Posted: 3 months ago Lord Bling that is just insane. I don't think I could do it. I'll give it a try after Bungie. Thanks for wishing me luck getting to 7 billion but I was hoping I wouldn't have to do it alone (ha/ha). I really want to see if I get that into GTA4 I was pretty close to what you describe while I played GTA3. --------------------------------- "Shall we play a game?" |
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| Posted: 3 months ago I got %100 in GTA 3 and got real close to that in San Andreas (i think like 96 or something) and i will definately be doing to the stunt jumps and side missions, but the pigeons is a different story.--------------------------------- Gamer Tag - Tha Sentinal. Hit me up. |
 | Posted: 3 months ago Wow, 100% WHORE!!!!ojojoj. Major respect to you, i didnt even have the patience to collect more than 30 flags in the"Kingdom" in Assassins creed, plus the frekking guards were constantly after me. Weird, my xbox died on me too on sunday, so I wont have it to play with for a few weeks. OWW well. I feel your pain. --------------------------------- "Man, shooting cops and getting Head never gets old"- Gunnz; Netcast #54 |
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