I'm guilty of a crime, one arguably more heinous than any of the myriad of offences you can commit in the Grand Theft Auto series - I've never played a GTA game until now! I know, I know, and I call myself a reviewer! The thing is, I picked up a Dreamcast (and I stand by my decision to indulge in Sega's tragically short-lived machine!) and then an Xbox at launch, only coming back for a PlayStation 2 later on. When the GTA Double Pack came out for Xbox, I said, "I'll pick it up sometime soon." When San Andreas came out for PS2 I said, "I'll wait for it on Xbox." When it hit the Xbox, I said, "I really must get San Andreas." And then when Grand Theft Auto: The Trilogy came up for review, I said, "Me me me me me!" So, at long last I get to play one of the most successful gaming franchises of all time and you get to read a fresh and objective opinion - starting where it all began, with Grand Theft Auto III.

'The Big Bang'

When the story begins, you are a small-time crook who's betrayed by his partners in crime and left for dead after taking part in a robbery. Convicted of armed assault, it is only through good fortune that the police transport you're in is attacked to facilitate the rescue of another criminal, after which you and an explosives expert by the name of 8-Ball make your escape and drive to safety. 8-Ball's got connections in Liberty City, the backdrop for GTA III, and you quickly become involved in the Mafia, working your way up the ranks as you take on more and more dangerous missions. However, the Mafia isn't the only criminal presence in Liberty City, and it's only one of a number of gangs that you become involved with as you work your way up the ranks of organised crime and make a name for yourself. The story is very well put together and while it doesn't twist and turn all the time (although there are a couple of very cool twists in there), it escalates perfectly as you cement your relationship within an organisation, whose activities are increasingly violent and desperate, such as the full-on turf war that kicks off between the Mafia and the Triads, after a series of missions that begin with a simple case of a laundry's refusal to pay protection money to your boss, Tony Cipriani.

'Wanted, Preferably Dead'

So, here you are in Liberty City, a living, breathing cityscape that you are free to do whatever you like in - or at least that's what the game advertises. However, what the likes of Jack Thompson always gloss over is that while it is indeed possible to do what you wish, there are consequences for your actions. You see, you have a notoriety meter (represented by six police badge style stars) and the more crimes you commit, the more wanted you become. Get up to three stars and the cops are constantly turning up in force to hound you in their cars and shoot you the second you jump out on foot. Four stars or more and it becomes almost impossible to carry out a mission without taking action to get back to a low profile situation. Manage to survive to reach six stars (a feat in itself) and the army will destroy you with tanks and M16s!! Now, in case this is coming across as a complaint, on the contrary I think it's a fantastic idea! It not only makes the game more realistic and encourages you to exercise some self-control, but it means that you have to be careful when out on a mission (at least to a degree) and it most definitely does not send the message that you can go on a killing spree without consequence. You paying attention, JT?

'It's A Jungle Out There'

So, coming back to the subject of Liberty City, it is indeed one of the most well-designed, sprawling and detailed urban landscapes I've ever had the pleasure of exploring - and I know that it's only a taste of things to come in Vice City and San Andreas! There are three huge areas of the city, only the first of which, Portland, is unlocked in the beginning - the others become available after completing enough missions. Each area is divided into regions such as the Red Light District, Callahan Bridge, Saint Mark's, Chinatown and so on. Each region has a distinct flavour to it and the look of the population and buildings changes accordingly. For example, in the Red Light District, purple-suited pimps and cheap looking whores walk the streets, as well as dodgy looking men in grey hats and waistcoats, perusing the windows of the many strip clubs and porn shops. There are many members of the public - fat old ladies, vagrants, chubby men waddling around in bad Hawaii shirts, regular men and women of various types, and the gang members belonging to the Triads, Mafia and El Diablo (the Mexican gang prevalent in one particular district), each instantly recognisable from their clothing.

Similarly, the buildings change in each area and every manner of shop, restaurant and establishment can be found if you look around for it - fire station, hospital and police station, warehouses, apartment buildings, corporate buildings, a scrap yard (complete with a car crusher that you use on more than one occasion to dispose of evidence!), the Mafia's mansion, the Triads' fish factory (which of course is just a cover), a huge casino, docks complete with a ship to blow up, the list is endless - there's even a monorail that allows you to ride around each of the massive areas of Liberty City and later on you can take to the seas, nabbing a police boat and then shooting the crap out of fellow mariners!

The city itself still looks pretty good even by today's standards - sure, this isn't pushing the Xbox, but the game is a few years old now after all. It's actually a real testament to Rockstar that this old PS2-developed game still looks good enough in 2005, and certainly there's enough detail in every respect to immerse you into the game. You occasionally notice things being drawn in, rather than scaled from the distance, but there's no bad pop-up, the scaling is very smooth and there's no clipping or glitches - for such an interactive and varied cityscape, it's a definite achievement. The many different citizens look good too - not massively realistic but there's just a hint of stylisation here that works in the game's favour without spoiling the realism. There's a day and night cycle too (one game minute is a second in reality) and even changing weather, so rain comes at times and fog closes in too, which is very atmospheric.

The fact that the city is so full of life, with all manner of people going about their business, really does make this game a joy to play, because it feels like a real city. There's plenty going on too - you'll see people fighting in the streets and mugging in each other, an ambulance turns up when someone is injured and you'll see moronic drivers have accidents on occasion. Oh yes, did I mention that there are a few vehicles on the road too?

'Welcome To Liberty City - No Need To Drive Carefully'

There is endless variety in the kind of vehicles you can get hold of - everything from a hot rod to a battered old estate and a big rig to a stretch limo. And at any time you have the complete freedom to run in front of a vehicle to stop it, then yank the owner out and drive off! Be swift though, or some owners will yank you back out and beat you down with a baseball bat, or shoot you. Particularly satisfying is stealing a car from a gang member then reversing over him before you speed off! Each vehicle handles differently too, so you'll find your favourites as you progress, plus some vehicles are better for certain missions, like a hot rod for racing, or a police car (which are very hard to destroy) when you know you're going to be taking a lot of damage. The handling can be a bit dubious and some cars will skid and spin all over the place if you're not careful, but this is something you get used to and, hell, it's part of the fun! Collisions with lampposts or other road users can result in you veering off in some unexpected direction, while taking a sharp corner on a hill will see your car flipping over - although at least half the time you'll end up back on four wheels.

Still, you get used to the handling and you accept that on missions where you cannot allow your vehicle to be destroyed (some allow you to switch cars, while with others you have to keep the same vehicle in one piece, as well as the people in it!) you simply have to slow down, pay attention to other drivers and (horror of horrors!) stop for red lights. Okay, so that's probably going too far, because you can weave in and out of the slow moving traffic without incident if you're not going like a bat out of hell, but if you smash your vehicle up too badly, then it'll set on fire and explode, thus failing the mission. End up on your roof and you've only got a few seconds before the fire starts, so bail out and run for it! The explosion, when it occurs, looks great, and it kills or injures anyone caught in the blast radius, then the many people going about their business scream and run over to survey the scene, to which the police or paramedics often arrive in quick response. The cars themselves all look great, with lovely shiny paintwork (at least before you start driving!) and great damage modelling, as windows smash, bumpers and panels get scratched and battered, plus all the doors can come off, including the bonnet and boot (that's hood and trunk for any Americans reading this!)

If you decide that you want to get your car looking good as new (or have to do this for a mission), you can head to the Pay 'N' Spray, where they fix up your car, change the engine and give it a new paint job - which also reduces your wanted rating to zero, as the cops will no longer recognise your vehicle. It's very handy to have in a pinch, just make sure you can remember where it is! You can also head over to 8-Ball's too if you like, to have a bomb put into your vehicle, then set it to blow, hop out of your car and run for it! With the vehicles also comes some of the time-wasting side missions; steal a taxi and you can pick up and drop off passengers against a tight time limit, in an ambulance you must get wounded people to the hospital (and a bumpy ride will finish them off, so you must drive both speedily and with care!) while stealing a cop car gives you access to vigilante mode, where you must hunt down criminals and waste them - somewhat hypocritical of you, but hey!

'Have Gun, Will Kill People'

While you have the complete freedom to shoot any member of the public (resulting in screams of terror and people running for cover), or beat someone down with a baseball bat, smacking them over and over as blood spurts out everywhere (calm down JT, it's just a game!), most of the killing you carry out comes in the form of the many missions on offer - over 70 throughout the whole game. And it's fair to say that the variety is simply staggering. Steal a rival member's car and rig it with a bomb, then return to watch it blow up, drive mob members to a bank heist and then make a speedy getaway, break someone out of jail, set a bunch of triads on fire with a flamethrower, race hoodlums through the streets, escort the Mafia Don's squeeze around for a night of drug-fuelled partying, pick up or drop off packages, the list is almost endless - and missions often don't go to plan, adding to the variety and creating new objectives as you play. You can also pick from a range of missions too, as you generally have several contacts you can go to for a new mission, so if you keep failing one (some are pretty tough to survive, let alone complete!) then pick something different and come back for that tricky one later. Your handy map shows the location of all available contacts and you just show up in the right location when you're ready for action.

Each mission is introduced by a cut scene, which are always well scripted and nicely directed - the voice acting is excellent throughout the game and the host of characters you meet on your travels have real personality, to the point that you actually become quite attached to some of them, even if they are criminals! Tony Cipriani is particularly funny, a mob boss who's constantly being nagged by his impossible to please mother! The important thing is, there's always a reason for your missions, as well as an ongoing storyline that takes into account past events and that makes it more interesting than just killing for killing's sake. It's nice to get praised and thanked for a job well done when the next mission starts, too!

Of course, you'll need weapons if you're going to hit someone (although a lot of the time you can simply run people over from the safety of your vehicle!) and there's a nice range here, including pistols, Uzis, the sniper rifle, shotgun and even the occasional flamethrower, as well as grenades and bazookas. The weapons are quite effective, but make sure you lock on to your targets, otherwise it can be tricky to kill them. Bullets whiz past with quite a neat effect and in the middle of a heated gang shooting match they're flying all over the place.

'A Word From Our Sponsor'

One of the crowning achievements in GTA III is the great range of music available to listen to on the simply hilarious radio stations, of which there are no less than ten to pick from, plus your own custom soundtracks are fully accessible if you do get bored of what's available. Indeed, the sound department excels in all areas, from the speech and screams of members of the public to car engines, screeching tyres, police sirens and gunfire. But the radio DJs are the best part - each station has its own DJ and they're perfectly stereotyped satires of real-life counterparts.

Head radio has Michael Hunt (classic gag that, try calling him Mike!) and is the main station for Love Media, 'making every city in America sound the same'. Then you've got Lips 106 who like things short and hot, Flashback FM for Eighties nostalgia, plus stations for classical music (perfect from cruising around in the Mafia stretch limo), reggae, hard dance, rave, hip hop, and even Chatterbox, a talk show that is simply hilarious to listen to - it loops round in less than an hour, but it is pure comedy gold and every caller is distinctive and funny - including a familiar sounding mobster who's desperate for affection from his impossible to please mother - a lovely touch! Each station also plays commercials, which are laugh out loud funny satires of everything you can think of - self-help programs, video games, exercise equipment and much more. They all even have their own catchprases and jingles, while each DJ talks between songs in typically amusing fashion. This really is the final ingredient that completes the personality of Liberty City, as well as the feeling that this is a living, breathing place.

'Thirsty For More'

There's so much more to GTA III than anyone could ever cover in a review (at least one that's under 20,000 words!) so I'll leave you to discover all the rest for yourself. Suffice to say, even in 2005, Grand Theft Auto III is a truly diverse and entertaining gaming experience that everyone should play - at least everyone who's over 18, that is! Even on its own this would still make a great purchase for Xbox, but as a part of a triple pack (and undoubtedly the weakest part, as the sequels improve on this in every possible way), it's essential gaming. So if, like me, you've somehow missed out on the GTA games until now, then you're in for a real treat. If you're a veteran, it's still worth a look on Xbox - I have no idea about the PS2 version, but on Xbox your game loads within a few seconds and the breaks between city areas only last for one second, so there're effectively no load times in this free-roaming marvel. And when you're done with Liberty, it's time to warp back in time to the Eighties for a trip to Vice City…

Reviewed by Geoff Holland for AceGamez (All Rights Reserved).