7. Compelling Characters
There are always a lot of antagonists in GTA games. Not all of them are unlikeable, though. Even a**holes like Officer Tenpenny and Lance Vance are given personalities that make the player almost reluctant to have to kill them. GTA IV introduces slimy characters that you love to hate. The story's
main antagonist, Dimitri Rascalov, is Niko's mortal enemy throughout the entire game. He starts off as an almost enjoyable man, but quickly turns satanic with the introduction of Ray Bulgarin. Dimitri quickly becomes a despicable human being, kidnapping Roman and taunting Niko about not finding his body after gunfights. Even supporting characters like Ray Boccino and Francis McReary, who are not necessarily antagonists for Niko, are made to be unlikeable. Even some "friends", like Manny and Michelle, are not particularly cared for. On the other hand, there are certain characters that the player hates to love. Brucie, for example, is a steroid junkie who has an overwhelming ego (which we understand when we meet his brother Mori in TBoGT). The unidentified man from United Liberty Paper is also a generally liked character, mostly for his dry sense of humour and his loyalty to fulfilling promises. The entire game introduces characters that are much more relatable - for good and for bad - than any other game. Rather than being simple pawns, each character has their own motivation for everything that they do. Players are allowed to hate them or love them - as long as they're getting paid.