Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas (PC)

Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas has been around for a while, but after playing GTA IV on the Xbox 360, I yearned to return to the hood. As of yet, San Andreas is the newest GTA release on the PC, though it was released 6/7/05 by Rockstar North. For me, San Andreas is the pinnacle of the Grand Theft Auto series, with the GTA IV installment removing substance and content for prettier graphics.

San Andreas harkens to an earlier, simpler time... before the hustle of blog's and vlog's, that's right the 1990's. The music, vehicles, landscapes, gang violence ahem...oh yeah, it's all about the gang life in San Andreas. From taking over turf, tagging, to four man drive-by shootings and break and entering's, Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas has it all straight O.G. Loc style. Born and raised in Canton!?!

San Andreas has enough houses to buy, missions to complete, mini-games, turf to acquire, vehicles to drive, women to woo, hookers to do, music to bump and more, that this game has playability for weeks! For those unfamiliar with the Grand Theft Auto franchise, 1. how cold was it under that rock and 2. this game has a sandbox (free roaming and "do as you want") game engine, that you are the main anti-hero C.J.

You have the complete freedom to do as you please in Grand Theft Auto and in San Andreas, that open ended gameplay is increased tenfold.

[A day in the life of a GTA: San Andreas gangsta - You roll into your old hood and feel hungry, you eat some pizza or burgers and then decide to stop by your dead parents house. You must worry about your physique (get diesel), so you hop on over to a gym to workout and maybe learn some new fighting moves. You get bored of the gym so you hit the bar and maybe make some scratch tossin' eight ball. You do a little off track betting, hop on over to a nightclub and dance a bit and then decide you're in the mood for a little more gambling, so you creep over to a casino. After a little casino action, you slide on over to your girlfriends crib and go out with her for a bit. Getting no play from your prune girlfriend, you head over to a hooker and proceed to solicit her wares. After finding a secluded spot and doing the dirty with the ho, you kick her out of your car and then proceed to shoot her in the head, right in view of a cop. The cop chases you for a bit, but you realize there's no escaping and shoot the cop, killing him and earning you a wanted level (AKA heat). You jack some suckers car and drive away from the crime scene, soon finding that one spot for you to lay low or that one nearby safe house for you to elude arrest or worse. yup...that's a day in the life of a GTA: San Andreas gangsta...]

The above is not even including half of the content or missions! Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas' graphics capture perfectly all of the visceral violence and gore offered up in the title. The special effects and particle effects accentuate the excellent lighting flawlessly. The scope, scale and magnatude that Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas encompasses is truly awe inspiring and grand.

...and the weapons...oh the freakin' weapons! If you like weapons in your sandbox third-person title, Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas is a weapongasm!!! From brass knuckles to knives to CHAINSAWS and every style of gun imaginable, this title has everything! What about the vehicals? ...driving...biking...motorcycling...scooters...boating...coptering...flying planes omg....omg input overload.

To give you an idea of just how open ended GTA: San Andreas is, one of my favorite past times in the game is base jumping via the paracute cheat and landing helicopters (Or the jetpack). Collecting low-riders and entering hydrolics competitions and races are also fine past times in the GTA: San Andreas universe. The missions in Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas range from truly original and inventive, to frustraiting but can be accomplished (Sometimes after a few dozen tries lol). Version 2.0 (The copy I have) comes with a dope hardbound book about the cities of San Andreas, as well as the game itself.

The music in Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas is superb and the radio stations are incredibly realistic and sometimes totally hilarious! The sounds and sound effects are sublime gifts from the Rockstar North gods and in an almost Nirvana like blend, match perfectly with the action. The gameplay is another incredibly strong suit in Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas, with auto targeting and selecting new targets easy as a blood drenched pie.

Gun fights and duel weilding has never been more wonderfully and simply executed then in San Andreas. Jumping, running, climbing, driving, flying, punching, instant kills, shooting and everything in-between is easy to execute and sheer elation to do. The first time you control the switches on a low rider, the nitrous in your car, a plane or jump from the heavens to safely parachute down to earth, you'll understand perfection. If ever there was a MUST OWN title, it has got to be Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas and the $19.99 pricetag doesn't hurt either!

[Side Note: Another fun past time is stunt flying, try flying under and around things and landing safely...loads of fun.]