Grand Theft Auto: Chinatown Wars
Grand Theft Auto: Chinatown Wars is an open world action-adventure video game developed by Rockstar Leeds in conjunction with Rockstar North and published by Rockstar Games. It was released on 17 March 2009 for Nintendo DS, 20 October 2009 for thePlayStation Portable,[3] 17 January 2010 (iPhone and iPod Touch) and 9 September 2010 (iPad) on iOS,[4][5] and 18 December 2014 for Android and Fire OS devices.[6]
It is the thirteenth game in the Grand Theft Auto series, and the first for Nintendo DS and iOS. Chinatown Wars is currently the best reviewed Nintendo DS game and the second best reviewed PlayStation Portable game on Metacritic.[13][14]
Gameplay[edit]
Chinatown Wars has a different presentation from previous games in the series, by partially resembling the first Grand Theft Auto titles. Instead of a ground-level view behind the protagonist or a top-down perspective, Chinatown Wars uses a fully rotatable camera angled down at the action.[15] Chinatown Wars also uses cel-shaded polygons with black outlines to produce a comic book-like aesthetic — a first for the series. The title takes place in the Grand Theft Auto IV rendition of Liberty City, with the exception of Alderney.
Unlike Grand Theft Auto IV, the player can disable as many police cars as possible to escape the police instead of leaving a "wanted zone." The more stars the player has, the more police they have to take out for each level. For example, for a six star level, they have to take out six police cars to get down to a five star wanted level, and so on.[16] There is also a drug dealing sub plot which allows players to peddle heroin, acid, ecstasy, marijuana, cocaine and depressants around the city. Players can make a profit by recognising market conditions and demands based on geography and plying their wares accordingly. CCTV cameras work as this game's secret packages, destroyed by throwing a Molotov cocktail bottle or a grenade. This also decreases the chances of being caught while making a drug deal[17] and provides discounts for buying drugs. Chinatown Wars applies many Grand Theft Auto IV features such as the new next gen HUD. Ammu-Nation returns in the form of an in-game website where the player can order various weapons through their PDA to be delivered to their safehouse.
Platform differences[edit]
- The Nintendo DS version of the game takes advantage of the touch screen with functions such as controlling the PDA, GPS, the radio, access to the people on the map, or using Molotov cocktails and grenades. The top screen shows the game and storyboard. Taxi whistling is supported by the DS microphone.[18] Competitive and co-operative multiplayer modes are only available through DS to DS local wireless.
- The PSP version features updated graphics, which are no longer cel-shaded, thus sporting a more "classic" look akin to previous games in the series (however, cutscenes are stylistically identical). Mini-games (such as drawing tattoos, unscrewing the car and boom panels) have been adapted from their touch-screen functionality to simpler,QTE-like mini-games. The PSP version also features extra missions and exclusive radio stations not found in the Nintendo DS version. However, PSP multiplayer supports only 2 players.[19]
- The iOS and Android versions of the game includes on-screen touch controls and mini-games that have been adapted to work well with capacitive touchscreens. The mobile versions also includes even more music and radio stations than the Nintendo DS or the Sony PSP versions, while the iOS version exclusively features a custom radio station that uses the iTunes library.
Vehicles[edit]
While stealing a moving vehicle is similar to that of previous Grand Theft Auto games, Chinatown Wars uses a different system for stealing parked vehicles. Depending on the car, it can be started in one of a few ways. Older cars require a few turns of a screwdriver in the ignition, while other cars require hotwiring. Newer, more expensive cars (with the exception of a bulletproof van) require the player to "hack" the computerised immobiliser. It is still possible to flip cars or set them on fire. The player is unable to pilot any of the aircraft in the game, but he can still see the ones at the airport or flying above him, although if a player uses a certain code on the Nintendo DS by using "Action Replay DS" the player can acquire it.
Social Club[edit]
The Nintendo DS and PSP versions of Grand Theft Auto: Chinatown Wars used Rockstar's Rockstar Games Social Club service. Players could use this service to upload their gameplay statistics. The features available through the Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection included chatting, trading items and sharing favourite GPS markers and stats with other players. Through the Social Club, players were also able to unlock new missions.
On 20 May 2014, Nintendo discontinued the Wi-Fi Connection service, making the Social Club features unavailable on the DS version.[20] With the GameSpy closure on 10 June 2014, all Social Club features for Chinatown Wars on the PSP have been discontinued.[21]
The iOS and Android versions lack the Social Club ability, thus Xin's missions were available without the need to connect to the service.
Soundtrack[edit]
Main article: Grand Theft Auto: Chinatown Wars soundtrack
Music for the opening titles of gameplay is the track 'Chinatown Wars' performed by Ghostface Killah and MF Doom[22] and produced by Oh No of Stones Throw Records.[23][24]
The DS version of the game features music by Deadmau5 among others.[25] On top of the soundtrack featured in the DS version of the game the PSP version features music byAnvil,[26] Tortoise,[27] DFA Records,[28] Turntables on the Hudson[29][30] and DJ Khalil.[31]
The iOS version originally featured all the music from the DS version and also allowed the player to customise a music playlist using songs from their music library. A subsequent update added all the music from the PSP version.
Plot[edit]
Huang Lee, the spoiled son of a recently murdered Triad boss, arrives by plane in Liberty City with Yu Jian, a sword that Huang's father won in a poker game and has decided to use as an heirloom, to deliver it to the new patriarch of the family, Huang's uncle Wu "Kenny" Lee. Shortly after landing, Huang's escorts are killed by assassins and he is shot and kidnapped. The assailants steal the sword and, thinking Huang is dead, dump his body in the water. Huang manages to survive and informs Kenny that Yu Jian has been taken. Kenny explains that he had intended to offer the sword to Hsin Jaoming, the ageing Triad boss in Liberty City, as a means of securing a position as his replacement. Kenny is dishonoured and reduced in power due to the loss of Yu Jian, leaving him and Huang working to keep their businesses afloat.
Eventually, Huang is contacted by Zhou Ming, a high-ranking Triad member, and Chan Jaoming, son of Hsin. Both men are also competing to be Hsin's replacement, and employ Huang to combat each other's efforts. After Chan hires Huang for a deal that goes badly, Huang is intercepted by LCPD Detective Wade Heston, a crooked cop under pressure from Internal Affairs. Heston offers an alliance with Huang to find the men responsible for the theft of Yu Jian and the murder of Huang's father. Huang agrees and finds that Heston suspects a Korean gang allied with the Triads is behind the events. After combating the Koreans for a while, Heston plants a bug in the Koreans' headquarters, from which he learns that there is a splinter group inside the gang called the Wonsu. Heston determines that the leader of the Wonsu will be the one responsible for Yu Jian's theft, and is also a police informant who has been causing trouble for the Triads.
Meanwhile, Hsin enlists Huang in finding the informant, only to then suspect Huang himself and attempt to kill him. Kenny arrives and convinces Hsin to give them time to find the real rat, bringing haste to Huang's mission. Hsin puts Huang on to investigate two gangs who may be housing the rat: the Angels of Death, and the Korean Mob. Huang gets into contact with Lester Leroc, a PI inside the Angels of Death, and performs his own work against the Koreans. Huang is temporarily thrown off course by the intervention of mafia member Rudy D'Avanzo, who tricks Huang into believing the mole is a Messina Family member named Jimmy Capra. Hsin later reveals D'Avanzo's trickery and Huang kills him.
Both the Koreans and the Angels are found to be innocent, leading to a new course of investigation. Heston employs Huang to hack into the servers of the FIB to find the informant. The information recovered names both Zhou Ming and Chan Jaoming as having talked to the police about Triads. This is taken to Hsin, who, disgraced that his own son is a suspect, instantly steps down as leader and appoints Kenny as the new head of the Liberty City Triads. Huang then executes both Chan and Zhou, despite each of them denying their guilt. Shortly after the killings, Huang is contacted by Heston, who informs him the information they recovered was fake, and that he has learned of a meeting between the leader of the Wonsu and his allies. Huang and Heston go to the meeting and find Kenny, who admits that he was responsible for the theft of Yu Jian and Huang's father's death. Heston and Huang pursue Kenny across town, cornering him at Hsin's residence. Here Kenny explains that he was tasked by Hsin to retrieve Yu Jian, thus Huang's father would have to die for it to be passed on to him, in exchange for a position underneath Chan. Kenny complied with this, but attempted to have Yu Jian stolen to keep himself from such a dishonourable position and later framed Zhou and Chan to cover his tracks.
After a final confrontation between Hsin and Kenny, Hsin demands the hand over of Yu Jian. Kenny ironically responds by stabbing Hsin with the sword as his way of presenting it to him. With Huang as witness to the murder and truth, Kenny engages in an inevitable final battle with Huang, who is the only one left in the way of Kenny's undisputed rise to power. Huang eventually kills Kenny, fulfilling his promise to avenge his father. Immediately the IAD and FIB arrive to arrest Heston and Huang, however Heston claims that he was in deep undercover and orders the arrest of everyone except Huang. Hsin praises Huang with the loyalty and nobility to become his true successor as Triad boss.
Development[edit]
On 15 July 2008, it was announced at a Nintendo press conference that Grand Theft Auto: Chinatown Wars would be released to the Nintendo DS in the following Winter.[32]According to Nintendo World Report, Chinatown Wars contains over 900,000 lines of "hand-optimized" code.[33]
Release[edit]
Marketing[edit]
In the GameStop pre-order commercial for Grand Theft Auto: Chinatown Wars, the dialogue referred to the real-life corporate bailout in 2008.[34][35] A new gameplay trailer was released on 6 March 2009, showing gameplay involving using a sniper rifle and interacting with keypads with the Nintendo DS' stylus.[36] GameStop had a promotion where they sent around a van letting people try the game before it was released.[37] Other stores gave away a "credit card" which activates $10,000 of in-game money and earlier access to better weapons.[35][38] Amazon provided a code to unlock an exclusive bulletproof Infernus with preorders.[39]
Reception[edit]
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Nintendo DS version[edit]
Grand Theft Auto: Chinatown Wars has received widespread critical acclaim. On GameRankings, it is currently the highest rated Nintendo DS game ever, with an average review score of 92.85.[60] The game holds a 93 aggregate score on Metacritic which is the highest score on that site for a DS game.[61] The game also has the highest rank for the Nintendo DS at GameSpot, with a rating of 9.5/10.[62] Official Nintendo Magazine rated the game 94%, praising the visuals and variety in gameplay, concluding in their review that "Rockstar has captured and condensed the Grand Theft Auto series' high points and crammed them into one terrific title. Think the DS can't handle GTA? Think again."[63] IGN UK gave it a rating of 9.2, calling it "a masterpiece of handheld gaming"[64] while IGN US gave the game a 9.5 out of 10.[65] Eurogamer gave it a rating of 10/10, saying "Overall this is GTA as it first was, with the inherited wisdom of GTA as it's been since, finished off with all sorts of things that would happily belong in a GTA of the future."[66]1UP gave it a A-, saying that "from the start, Chinatown Wars looks impressive".[67]
Chinatown Wars generated lower than expected sales in its first week in the United Kingdom, and did not even sell to level with the debut of Vice City Stories, which was Rockstar's expectation.[68] In the United States, it sold just under 90,000 units during its first two weeks on the American market.[69] This led Best Buy to sell the game at a reduced price for a limited time; the response to this was very positive.[70]
PSP version[edit]
Rockstar confirmed via a press release that Grand Theft Auto: Chinatown Wars was going to be released for the PlayStation Portable on 20 October 2009. It was speculated that the PSP version would revert to the third person view. However it retained the top down view from the DS version, and also received acclaim.[71] The game is available on UMD as well as via the PlayStation Network.[72] 1UP gave the PSP version an A-, citing the experience is good the second time around, and it is efficient for people who are playing for the first time. IGN gave the PSP version a 9.3/10, compared to the 9.5/10 on DS.
Unlike the DS version, which reached number 5,[73] the PSP game did not chart in the UK top 40 upon release,[74] nor did it chart in the US monthly top 20.[75]
iOS and Android versions[edit]
Chinatown Wars was released on iPhone and iPod Touch on 17 January 2010. The touchscreen minigame mechanics originally seen in the Nintendo DS version returned in a similar fashion. The graphics, when compared to the DS and PSP versions, are not cel-shaded like the DS version and lack the ambient lighting and effects seen in the PSP version. An update released on 28 March 2010 added the radio stations that were formerly exclusive to the PSP version.
The iPad version was released on 9 September 2010, with 1024x768 high definition graphics. It received critical acclaim, with IGN's Levi Buchanan giving it a 9.0/10, calling it "a phenomenal play".[76]
On 13 October 2013, Chinatown Wars was removed from the App Store with no statement given by Rockstar. It is to be believed that it was due to compatibility issues with iOS 7; on 21 December 2013, the game returned to the store with the compatibility issues fixed. An additional update was released on 18 December 2014 that provided support forRetina Display resolutions and wireless controller support.[77]
Chinatown Wars made its debut on Android devices on 18 December 2014, featuring the same graphical improvements and features as the latest iOS update. The Android version was developed by War Drum Studios.[2] Currently, both the iOS and Android versions contain no multiplayer or Social Club compatibility.
Awards[edit]
At the 2009 Spike Video Game Awards, Grand Theft Auto: Chinatown Wars received the Best Handheld Game award. However, the version was not specified. It also won the Best Nintendo DS Game of 2009 Award from GameSpot.[78] The game was nominated for three of GameSpot's awards: Game of the Year, DS Game of the Year, and Action Game of the Year, winning DS Game of the Year.[78] Chinatown Wars was nominated for Game of the Year by Nintendo Power, as well as Nintendo DS Game of the Year, Best Nintendo DS Graphics, and Best Adventure Game.[79]
Controversy[edit]
Chinatown Wars continues the series' tradition of controversy because of a drug dealing minigame that includes heroin and ecstasy.[80] Protesters against the game include Darren Gold of the anti-drug abuse charity Drugsline, who stated: "Anything using drug-dealing as entertainment is sending out the wrong message. Glamorisation doesn't help our work trying to educate kids of the dangers of substance misuse."[81] In an interview with Edge magazine, Dan Houser said "we wanted to have a drug-dealing mini-game in lots of the GTA games. [...] We played with it a little in Vice City Stories, because it worked really well juxtaposed with the main story. It works well with what GTA is, with driving around the map, and it gives you another thing to think about – another layer or piece of the puzzle to keep you motivated... It does intersect with the main story and things you learn from it work with the story, but it mostly runs on its own."[82][83]