After sitting down with the game for a few minutes early in the show, the folks at Rockstar Games gave me a more in-depth look of their upcoming massive title for the Nintendo DS.
Original I only got a chance to spend about 10 minutes with this game on the Comic-Con floor, but thatâs clearly not enough time, nor an adequate place, to really dig deep and see what it has to offer, especially one as large as this.
https://lastchance.cc/ten-minutes-with-grand-theft-auto-chinatown-wars-5148231%3C/a%3E%3C/p%3E
I saw roughly five missions from the game while also seeing how the GPS/PDA system works. I also checked out early parts of the story. This demo took place in the Rockstar press van at the Comic-Con, which allowed me to hear and see the game much more clearly than on the show floor.
What Needs Improvement?
Cut Scenes: With the exception of the opening of the game, the mission-start cut scenes I saw werenât very riveting. They mainly consisted of motionless, nicely hand-drawn profile shots with subtitles, which is certainly a step down from the console versions. While no one should have expected a fully voiced game on a DS cart, Iâd like to see just a bit more going on in terms of action and emotion to keep me more engaged. Hopefully the missions I didnât see provide that.
Radio: While the music in this game is completely original and sounds pretty good coming from a DS, itâs mainly just repeating beats and notes. No lyrics. The five different styles of music are Electronic, Hip-Hop, Funk, Rock, and Jazz.
What Should Stay The Same?
Scale: This game is enormous. All the touches youâve come to expect from a GTA game are all here. Each building and neighborhood was closely examined and given itâs own personality. Thereâs not a lot of repeating textures or copy-and-pasting going on either. Besides being massive in size, itâs still a living, breathing city. Pedestrians have their own active A.I., thereâs some nice physics going on with the cars and environment, and a full day/night cycle.
Connectivity: This game not only allows you to upload an insane amount of stats to the Rockstar Social Club to see where you stand with the rest of the world, but you can also trade items and information with your friends, such as drugs, weapons and way points and chat with them in-game on your instant messenger.
Makinâ Money: Just like todayâs economy, money is tough to come by in Chinatown Wars. No longer will you be a billionaire halfway through like in previous GTA games. Any expensive item you wish to purchase is going to have to be earned the hard way. Donât worry; there are plenty of extra ways to make some dough besides completing missions, such as selling six different kinds of drugs to neighborhood dealers.
Touch Screen: There are a variety of touch screen interactions that youâll come across. These range from filling up bottles at a gas station to make Molotov cocktails, paying a road toll, and even hot-wiring select cars. For one mission I had to actually assemble the sniper rifle I used to assassinate someone, while another time I had to complete a short âSimon Saysâ mini-game to arm a bomb. They donât seem to be forced on you all the time, either, and they helps break up the gameplay a bit.
Final Thoughts
Iâm glad I got a lot more time to sit down with Chinatown Wars. I knew this game was big, but not this big. Itâs an ambitious title for the DS, and one Rockstar seems to be taking very seriously. While I nearly spent two hours with the game, I still didnât feel like I even scratched its surface.
