Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas

This is the best game on the PS2, bar none. Like I said, I was doubtful as to what could be improved in the series, but I was shown that Rockstar really knows what it's doing. We'll start with the graphics. The character models of the random people in town (and outside of it) are a lot more diverse then I've ever seen before. The weather effects are also a sight to behold. The best sights, however, await those who leave town and explore the outlying areas. The rolling hills, pine forests, sea shores and cliffside views were all outstanding. I was tiring of the in-town life that had been the only option in the last two games.  This ability to leave the big city and see a whole different world was brilliant. More credit to Rockstar for proving that they aren't limited to making realistic cities.

So it's pretty. Big deal, huh? There've been sweet looking games before, but some controlled like the player character had been on an all-night drinking binge and had lost all motor coordination. This is not the case with San Andreas, as the controls are fine tuned to a tee. They aren't as precise as, say, a Mario game, but they are fitted into the game play in such a way that they just feel natural. Carl Johnson (CJ, the main character) can do all of the things his predecessors could, but he's outdone them in every way. His jump is so much more useful. No more bouncing back if you jump too close to a wall. CJ will clamber over it and get into places that Mr. Vercetti could never hope to enter. Climbing fences and walls gives CJ a fun and entertaining way of eluding the police. At one point I was being tailed, so I ran up a nearby 'unique jump' ramp and lept to catch a nearby wall that was too high to get from the ground and climb over to freedom. Try to match that, pal, I laughed. I was free to let my reign of terror continue.

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