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If you need celebrities to make a game good, thats pretty sad. The lack of celebrities lets the characters stand on their own more rather than having Samuel L. Jackson be a cop. That just doesn't let the characters stand alone and actually hinders character development. The motorcycles aren't bad, planes wouldn't work in NYC (September, 11th, no way they would have them), and the humor is there but not as over the top. The soundtrack is weak, I agree, as is the lack of character customization. I'm glad the skills (especially driving and shooting) are gone. There's a learning curve to driving and the skill level is in the hands of the player holding the controller and not something you just build up by playing a ton. Also, I never was a big fan of property buying so it didn't bother me, but it wouldn't really fit with the story. Niko was concerned with finding Florian and then that other guy Darko, not living a life of women and cars and property. Also, weapons, no need to have all those extras, they aren't practical, though they are kinda fun.
So what you see as a huge downgrade I see as something that may add just a bit of fun but its a game maker or breaker like you think. So I'm satisfied. Its no 10, I don't get why people jumped on the hype wagon and claim its the best ever, because its not. That being said, its an extremely immersive, polished, and fun. So I give it a good 9. I finished it, that says enough that I didn't get bored for the 35 hours it took me to beat the main story and do a bunch of other stuff. I also didn't rush, which says that the extras were enough to make me forget about the main mission for hours at a time.
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