cheapskate

What's the best GTA rip-off/clone?

I read an article recently, complaining about all the recent GTA knock-offs, but for the most part I've found them to be pretty enjoyable games. Here's a list of all the GTA wannabes that I could think of... but which one is the best? I don't think any of them can beat the original, but hell, I don't think there's too much to complain about here either!

Simpsons Hit and Run - Just picked this up cheap last night (couldn't stand to pay full price) and I'm loving it! Fun game, especially for Simpsons fans. Camera is a little wonky while on foot, but not terrible. I voted for this as my favorite GTA clone so far! If you're a Simpsons fan, you have to do yourself a favor and buy this game.

True Crime: Streets of LA - Finished this a few weeks back. Not overly impressed. The game had some really neat ideas (shooting from your car, upgrading your weapons/moves by training) but the controls were complicated and awkward, the story and characters were awful, the city (although huge) was dull and repetitive, and like a lot of games lately, the whole thing has felt like a "training mission". By the time you get all the cool stuff, the game is over! Despite the controls and camera, I breezed through the game (multiple endings) easily - not a lot of challenge.

Driv3r - Haven't played this one yet - will pick it up cheap, but reviews are not good at all.

The Getaway - Good game! Had issues (slow moving overall, leaning against walls for health? left and right signals instead of directional arrow or maps?) by trying to be too realistic. Fantastic atmosphere, good story - unfortunately you could not skip the protracted cut-scenes *sigh*, but I'm looking forward to the sequel!

Mafia - Have only played the PC demo, not the console version. Word has it the PS2 port is pretty grim.

So what do the rest of you think? Am I missing any good ones?

Decker

Simpson easily from that list. Really impressed with the city modeling in both The Getaway and especially True Crime (where I can drive to my mom's apartment, my old work, etc), but both games have serious control and gameplay problems.
I would have included Spiderman 2 in that list and might have voted for it.

goLUCKY

I may have to look into picking up Simpsons Hit and Run.

Maryang Palad

Jak II should be included in the list. Simpson's Hit & Run comes next to Jak II.

cheapskate

I saw Spiderman 2 and Jak II listed as GTA clones in that article, but I got the impression that they simply used the "open ended gameplay" and "large city environments" elements of GTA. They aren't quite what I was thinking of as a rip-off, but having not played them I could be way off!

And... since only mods can change the polls... *shrug*

madcougar

Spiderman 2 is great. But Simpsons Hit and Run is my favorite.

Trigger

Mafia easily... it's far from a clone or a rip-off. It's original and had been in production before GTA3 was. It's a brilliant game and the graphics are incredible. The story is better than most movies I've seen as well. The console ports are terrible, so this is only based on the PC version.

Simpsons H&R wasn't very good IMO. It got old quickly and you have to really really like the simpsons to want to stick with it I think. I like the Simpsons, but I guess I am not in love with them.

True Crime was a good idea with poor execution. Far too buggy and the promise of a realistic recreation of LA was grossly exaggerated.

The Getaway was like GTA3 on rails, it was pretty fun, but didn't live up to the hype.

Driv3r was released too soon I think. I'd have to play it more to give my opinion, but reviews are saying it's too buggy and seemingly unfinished. The little bit I did play it were disappointing.

Get Me Coffee

Simpsons Hit and Run!!!!!! This game F'in RULES!!! Lots of fun, and lots of laughs! Plus you have an original story!

Spider-man 2 was great for about 2 days then after that it BLEW! It got so damn boring! I'm a huge spidey fan! But this game just left me in the cold, could have been so much more. Lets hope that the next spidey game (ultimate Spider-man) that is coming 2005 will be greatly improved.

nickdawgy

Simpsons Hit and Run, Mafia, and True Crime are all fun. Driv3r was awful.

Spider-Man 2 is awesome. I don't know how Get Me Coffee can say it blows when he was pretty much getting all hot and bothered every time he talked about it

The Getaway was ok, but not being able to skip the cutscenes when you died, and the having to play missions over and over really sucked.

Darkfriend

Completely agree. Speaking of GTA, the first thing I tried in Spiderman 2 was punching and flinging web at civilians; nothing happens, they just cuss you out and move on...

So after doing a couple of "missions" I was just content to web sling in the city, ignoring those idiotic little girls who lost their balloons

Get Me Coffee

Hey Nickdawgy, You know I was soooo pumped to play this game. Hell look a few pages back and you can find a thread I started about the game. It's just that SM2 left me in the cold. This game had such possiblities It could have been one amazing game! I do love the city engine and swinging, don't get me wrong. But the game went stale really, really fast. CROSSIG FIGURES FOR THE NEXT SPIDEY GAME NEXT YEAR!

gorgo99

Spiderman 2 is good, but as the reviews say, repetitive. Still, you can't beat the feeling of swinging around Manhattan...

Simpsons Hit and Run is fun, but became annoying to me because you're more restricted than in GTA with how you beat the missions... it's all driving and figuring out shortcuts. Still, it's funny as hell, and I love the writing/voices/etc.

True Crime is boring. Lots of good ideas, but the combat is boring, driving places takes too long and is boring.

cheapskate

I've been playing Hit and Run for a couple of days now, and it does feel a lot more restricted than GTA. The feeling of the city, although big, is more closed in; but finding the shortcuts is pretty fun! (usually by accident). However, like Trigger said, if you're not a huge Simpsons fan then it's probably not worth more than a rental. If the game were simply generic cartoon characters, it wouldn't have the same appeal.

nickdawgy, is Driv3r really that bad? I was thinking of getting it when it dropped in price. Blockbuster has about 85,000 copies on the shelf and will probably sell it cheap. The reviews I have read say that the driving engine is actually pretty good, just some problems with glitchy environments and getting stuck in walls etc. I remember playing the original Driver for PS1 mostly for the mini-games like pursuit and getaway... or whatever they were called. Is it worth it just for that?

I'm not as hot on Spidey 2 anymore...

fumanstan

I voted Simpsons. I tested Driv3r a month before it was released and it was a piece of crap then.

Trigger

Mafia is a million times better than Simpsons Hit and Run... the only explaination for these poll results I can see is that people either only played the console version or they didn't play Mafia at all.

nickdawgy

Driv3r was fun to a point, but very difficult. I enjoyed the cut scenes, though.

The driving part seemed stiff, and the on foot part of the game was terrible. It may be worth it when it drops in price but I only paid $27 for it, and still got rid of it.

nickdawgy

Mafia started out slow but got much better. A very cool game.

Tony Dvdfan

I would say Simpsons, but i havent picked up Mafia yet....will have to pick that up soon.

cheapskate

The Simpsons are dominating!

I bet if I had posted this poll before any of these games had come out... and said "Which of these GTA clones are you looking forward to the most?" it would be the exact opposite. Most likely with DRIV3R in the lead...

The more you know... *strokes chin* ... I vow never to trust a PREVIEW again... *shakes head*

beefjerky

Okay, which GTA clone that features real cities has the best representation of said city? I'm talking best true to life representation. I'm a sucker for virtual recreations of real cities, and I've always wondered which game had the most accurate recreation.

nickdawgy

True Crime was accurate. I heard The Getaway was, too, but I've never been to London, so I dunno if that is true or not.

cheapskate

The Getaway was probably the most accurate. I've been to London a few times, but have never committed any serious crimes, so it's hard to say.

The problem with True Crime was, although it may have been an accurate depiction of LA, it doesn't matter how accurate it is if it's a boring city to drive in!

That was one of the main problems I had with True Crime - it was boring and repetitive, just like LA! It takes forever to get anywhere - just like LA! Sometimes it's better to use a little artistic license to make things a little more interesting.

Absolute Zero

I think Jak 2 is the best clone. I like True Crime and I would have liked The Getaway more if it weren't for the English accents. I don't know why it bothered me. If its in movies or anything else I don't mind, but The Getaway just got irritating after a while.