I doubt there are many gamers out there that have not heard about Grand Theft Auto III (GTA3), the Game of the Year for 2001 for Playstation 2, released last October. Now, publisher Rockstar Games has finally released a version for the PC. Although the PC version doesn't offer any significant new content, GTA III PC still remains a great game even six months after its initial PS2 debut. I still remember the original Grand Theft Auto (1997), with simple graphic, a few weapons and top-down view only, but the game was fun! The sequel, Grand Theft Auto 2 (1999) looked like a clone of the original GTA with tons of new weapons, updated engine a few added features. So what you can expect from GTA3? The concept in GTA3 is pretty much the same, but the game sports a fully 3D engine, new 3rd person mode. Once again you must make money on the streets of Liberty City (based on New York City) in any way possible. If you never played any GTA game, It's not easy to exactly describe the gameplay. Basically, you make contacts with gang wars and corrupt police in the criminal underworld of Liberty City and these bad guys giving you various jobs such as stealing cars to order, planting car bombs, etc...The story line develops through these "crime" missions and take place both in vehicle and on foot, the missions themselves being well varied and quite a lot of fun. Well, most tasks are essentially the same, but if don't feel like playing missions at all, you can just drive around the city or just go insane and start massacre people until the cops will kill you :P   Also the story line is pretty basic, but it fits pretty well into the game. GTA3 features 73 non-linear missions (over 40 hours of game play), various weapons at your disposal (including baseball bats, M16, AK47, Uzi, flame-thrower), 20 mass-destruction challenges, 100 hidden secret packages to find, approximately 50 different vehicles from sports cars to ice cream trucks,  20 cinematic superjumps hidden throughout the city, sub-missions for "special vehicles" (for ambulance, fire truck, police car and tax), import/export garage (find 16 models of cars and get free cars for the rest of the game). The game also includes over 10 different stations to listen (3 hours of music) and ability to listen to your mp3's while you drive.

What is different between PS2 and PC version of GTA3?  Well, the PC version has absolutely nothing new in terms of gameplay. Also the graphic aren't much different from the PS2 except for the higher resolution, but the graphics are still pretty good. The PC version allows you to play the game in resolutions as high as 1600x1200, also textures have been reworked and are now much sharper. The PC version also adds ability to play your mp3's while you drive, mouse/keyboard controls (improved aiming system), and new replay option.  Sadly one of the biggest negatives is the steep system requirements. With recommended minimum - 700Mhz CPU with 128MB of RAM and a 32MB graphics card is game very hardly playable - requires to turn every detail to its lowest setting.  I played the game on my highly tweaked Athlon 900Mhz/512MB, GeForce 2 MX/32MB at 800x600 with most of the options turned down to keep things running smooth.

Is GTA3 worth your hard earned money? The answer is surprisingly simple, if you have never played the PS2 version, definitely yes, because gameplay is superb and the game has really incredible replay value  If you like games of this type and you don't have PS2, then you should get this game. I gave the game 91% - it loses a few points for high system requirements, a few texturing issues, and also because there's no multiplayer. if you want more information (especially about game tweaking), don't forget to visit GTA3 forums. You can also try semi-nude prostitutes nudepatch (I tested it - see shots) and mp3 randomizer for your mp3 files. Playable demo is not available yet.