You had one job: Make a bigger, shinier version of the GTA formula. Now obviously it must be said that GTA IV is still a phenomenal game, and stands alone as a great entry in the Rockstar pantheon as when they tried to do something a little bit different with one of their own IP's, rather than starting off a whole new franchise. For many though (as we covered over here) the Niko Bellic-fronted foray into more serious territory is the one that they just couldn't get on board with. Let's take Niko himself to start with, as even though he was another fully-voiced protagonist who also had a few humorous one-liners, come the game's end he was utterly unmemorable thanks to an overall attitude that didn't really seem to engage with the people around him. Niko wasn't all to blame though, the list of annoyances would go on to include some shockingly difficult driving mechanics, the character of Roman ringing you up every few minutes to hang out, and an overall tone that just didn't 'feel' like GTA. It was too dour, too melancholy and just too boring. Even the soundtrack itself and the DJs within didn't have the personality of San Andreas or especially Vice City, although people would come to refer to the series' new direction in relation to that of Saints Row as "Michael Mann to Michael Bay", this instalment might have worked better as spin-off, rather than the main sequel to part three.
