Okay, so Roman is less a beloved character, more of a universally reviled one. His constant calls of "Cousin, let's go bowling" were singularly the most annoying thing about GTAIV, his cheery voice instantly bringing up feelings of rage and hatred as soon as the phone rings. But no one was expecting the game to end with his death. Depending on your choices throughout the game (whether you choose to deal with Dimitri, or get Revenge on him), one of two possible endings were available, both taking place at Roman and Mallorie's wedding As the happy couple leave the church a hitman sent by Dimitri pulls a gun on Niko. As Niko disarms him and kills the assassin, the gun goes off and the stray bullet hits Roman, killing him in front of his new bride and sending Niko into an apoplectic rage, firing repeatedly into the body of the hitman. For all Roman was a deeply irritating character, he was integral to Niko's story. He was family, he was stability and he was the driving motivator for Niko to clean up the town and get out of the underworld for good. Roman was the comic relief to Niko's straight laced delivery and was often the butt of jokes between other characters. His death (or Niko's girlfriend's death if you chose the Revenge option) shatters Niko's world, that everything he worked for is for nothing as the closest person to him is taken away by an act of calculated violence from one of the most devious characters in Liberty City. Moreover, for all everyone cursed Roman everytime he called, no one expected him to be the one who dies. It's a genuine shock that the nice guy of the game is the one to bite the bullet.