San Andreas is all about drivin’ cars and poppin’ caps in the asses of unwary fools, but it could go to a Halloween ball as one of the most ambitious RPGs in recent memory. Sure, the game is set in a thinly veiled analogue of real-world California and Nevada, there’s no magic, and the only dragons to be found are tattooed on the Chinese mafiosi who give you odd jobs. But look again: Underneath it all, San Andreas is a massive, Morrowind-scale undertaking.

In a decidedly Boyz the Hood–esque game world populated with three major cities and a dozen tiny towns, you’ll take on the role of smooth gangsta Carl “CJ” Johnson. Like traditional RPGs, San Andreas has plenty of guilds and factions (street gangs) to deal with, and you can form up a party (posse) and ride into combat (turf wars) or even visit a shop for better weapons and armor (machine guns and Kevlar vests). The story unfolds through quest strings, with plenty of side jobs to net you extra gold (er, dollars). And, of course, there are lots and lots of stats—strength, dexterity, etc.—tracked in obsessive detail as you build CJ from zero to hero.

Maybe this is why a game originally designed for consoles plays so well on the PC: At its heart, San Andreas treads the same territory that PC RPGs have been covering for years. It’s Baldur’s Gate with handguns…or if you prefer, Dungeons & Dragons starring a chaotic-neutral male human rogue with a predilection for carjacking—which is to say it isn’t a perfect likeness. San Andreas offers immense freedom, but the average RPG enthusiast will likely find the core of the game far too restrictive and limiting for his or her tastes. The “meat” of the game is a series of largely linear missions that gradually unlock vehicles, weapons, areas, and more missions.

GRAND THEFT CUT-SCENE

Over the course of the GTA series, Rockstar has gradually repurposed the missions to be less about gameplay or skill and more about playing out scripted story events and memorizing preset patterns. Storycentric events composed a small minority of GTA3’s missions, but in San Andreas you’ll be hard-pressed to find a single job that doesn’t feature a lengthy prologue and a healthy dose of running dialogue—frequently to the point where it interferes with the gameplay.

As a port, this PC version is a bit of a missed opportunity. The original PlayStation 2 game was great, but it suffered from shortcomings that really should have been addressed in the eight months since its debut. Unfortunately, PS2 veterans will encounter many familiar problems: unbalanced mission difficulty, vague objectives, the unreliable “trip skip” function, and lots of glitches. They’re all here, same as ever.

Even if you have problems with the presentation, you can’t fault the story itself, as it’s stupendously written and acted. CJ is no angel, though he’s hardly unlikable; it’s difficult not to sympathize with his frustration as he’s bullied around by forces far beyond his control. And while you may not approve of his more extreme methods, you have to admire his street-smart resourcefulness.

The supporting cast is top-notch as well, particularly Samuel L. Jackson’s sleazebag cop and the yin-yang pair of Peter Fonda and James Woods as an ultraradical conspiracy theorist and an ultrareactionary government conspirator, respectively. But it’s Young Maylay’s turn as CJ—crude, angry, and more than a little crafty—that makes the story so compelling and helps you forgive occasional lapses into juvenile pandering. You’ll shift uncomfortably in your seat as you gun down Army reservists and Navy pilots or kill a guy for the unthinkable crime of being gay, but for the most part Rockstar has made a sincere effort to rise above the usual childishness.

WELCOME TO MY HOOD

As professional as the voice acting is, the real star of the game is the state of San Andreas itself. It’s majestically designed, and the low poly count is offset by an amazing depth. Minigames, collectible items, and shops lurk around every corner. You can gamble at casinos, go truckin’, and even play weekend lothario by juggling half a dozen romances. You can explore the immense scenery by commandeering any one of the hundreds of cars, bikes, trucks, planes, helicopters, and boats, each with its own distinct physics. It’s the sort of open, living world that gamemakers always promise but rarely deliver. Few videogame experiences are as satisfying or liberating as simply exploring this immense, complex world.

This latest GTA is an epic, involving experience, no doubt—but when you get past the expansive world and the RPG-like elements, it’s the same epic, involving experience it was last year. Had Rockstar taken the time to polish up the rough spots, San Andreas on the PC would have been worth a look for everyone. As it is, it’s only a must-have for the handful of gamers who missed it the first time around.

What’s New in the Hood?

>Improved graphics: The most obvious upgrade—provided you have a decent graphics card. The models haven’t changed, but the PC version offers more detailed textures and a better draw distance. No more flying into unseen mountainsides!

>Do-it-yourself soundtrack: Sure, you can listen to the excellent licensed soundtrack, but maybe you’d rather do your drive-bys to your own tunes. Just drop your Britney Spears MP3s into the proper directory to create your own custom radio station.

>Better load times: That’s right, sucka—scene transitions are instantaneous. Now you can pack on the pounds at Cluckin’ Bell faster than ever.

>Mod potential: Modders have worked wonders with previous GTAs—all with Rockstar’s tacit approval. Already, San Andreas mods are floating around that supposedly unlock a sex minigame that the developers hid away to avoid an AO rating. Rockstar, for its part, claims this is a load of bunk and that the minigame is all the doing of clever hackers…but then, Rockstar would say that.

Verdict

Another brilliant entry in the GTA series, with only a few mild f#$%-ups…er, hiccups.

PUBLISHER: Rockstar Games DEVELOPER: Rockstar North GENRE: Action ESRB RATING: M REQUIRED: Pentium III 1GHz, 256MB RAM, 3.6GB install, 64MB videocard RECOMMENDED: Pentium 4, 384MB RAM, 128MB videocard, gamepad MULTIPLAYER: None

Copyright © 2005 Ziff Davis Media Inc. All Rights Reserved. Originally appearing in Computer Gaming World.