Unlike previous entries, Grand Theft Auto IV lacked a strong cinematic influence, as the team attempted an original approach to the story. The game introduced a shift to a more realistic and detailed style and tone for the series.

An online multiplayer mode is included with the game, allowing up to 32 players to engage in both cooperative and competitive gameplay in a recreation of the single-player setting. Two expansion packs were later released for the game, The Lost and Damned and The Ballad of Gay Tony, which both feature new plots that are interconnected with the main Grand Theft Auto IV storyline, and follow new protagonists.ĭevelopment began soon after the release of Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas and was shared between many of Rockstar's studios worldwide. Throughout the single-player mode, players play as Niko Bellic. The game is played from a third-person perspective and its world is navigated on foot or by vehicle.