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GTA: Chinatown Wars - the lowdown on 2009's biggest DS game

Prepare for big trouble in not-so-little Chinatown

GTA: Chinatown Wars - the lowdown on 2009's biggest DS game
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DS
| GTA: Chinatown Wars

The delay that hit GTA: Chinatown Wars at the end of 2008 meant we've had to wait several months longer than we hoped for Rockstar's DS debut.

However, there's been no let up in the game information leaking from Rockstar's HQ which, when put together, adds up to a pretty comprehensive run down of what we can expect come its European release on March the 20th.

That being the case, we've sought to compile it in plenty of time to pimp you into a frenzy. Unless you're under the age of 18, of course, in which case you should probably head off and check out games about Ponyz...

On the mean streets of Liberty City

If you've been paying attention to previous Pocket Gamer news, you'll already know the game is a cel-shaded, 3D, top-down experience set in a city that's just as alive as previous GTA games and with as much crime and bloodshed too.

First up then, your character. This guy goes by the name Huang and is less of a hardened criminal than previous GTA protagonists, such as Niko Bellic of GTA IV. He's described as both a spoiled brat and a bit hapless. In fact, the only reason the low-level Chinese Triad gang member is dabbling in criminal world is to avenge the death of his father and return a stolen sword.

The game begins with Huang arriving in Liberty City from Hong Kong with the sword. It's stolen from him, and he's dumped in the back seat of a car that's then driven into the ocean. Cue an adrenaline-charged opening sequence where you're left tapping a virtual car windscreen with the DS stylus in order to smash him out of a watery death.

During the course of the game, Huang's hub is a safehouse - this is where you access missions - but you can roam around the whole of Liberty City. Its neighbourhoods of Broker, Dukes, Bohan and Algonquin are similar to those of GTA IV, but not street-for-street identical.

Overall, the area you have to explore is larger than seen in PSP games Liberty City Stories and Vice City Stories - quite an admirable feat for the little DS.

Huang also has access to a whole lot of vehicles. You'll be able to drive cars, motorbikes, trucks and boats, and there'll be missions that take place in an on-the-rails helicopter (you control the guns).

And now for something that will change your mind

All very interesting, but you might be wondering what Chinatown Wars is going to deliver that's new compared to the games that have gone before it.

First up are the class A drugs.

The drug dealing mini-game was one of the first controversial bits of information to emerge about the game (almost as if Rockstar was deliberately trying to cause a stir) but it's since been revealed this aspect of the game is more integrated into the main flow than simply being a mini-game.

It plays out as an ongoing strategy element where you can buy six different types of drugs in one part of Liberty City, then sell them in another for profit.

Push drugs in front of one of the city's security cameras and you risk attracting police attention but - here's the clever bit - you can use this to your advantage. Shooting out security cameras lowers the price of drugs in that area, whereas selling them in full view of cameras makes the risk, and thus cost, that much higher.

There are also subtle changes to the existing GTA formula in Chinatown Wars. For instance, you still notch up a wanted rating (shown in stars on the screen) for committing crimes, such as running over innocent people. But you can't simply outrun the cops and wait for the heat to die down as in previous games.

Instead you have to take out a certain number of police cars by nudging them off the road or causing them to explode.

Missions have also been designed with replayability and a timed scoring system in mind. Finishing a mission within a certain time limit or meeting other criteria rewards you with a gold, silver or bronze medal, and any unlocked mission can be quickly revisited at any time from the safehouse.

Designed especially for Nintendo

Of course, DS-only features such as the touchscreen, microphone and wi-fi are incorporated too. You can whistle into the mic to call a taxi and, while the action is displayed on the DS top screen, the touchscreen is used for all sorts of other interaction.

These include options such as rummaging through bins to find weapons, assembling a sniper rifle, car jacking, flicking change into a toll booth, safe cracking, and Molotov-cocktail making.

You also tune in your radio on the touchscreen - a radio which plays a licensed selection of funk, soul and jazz (instrumental versions only though - the DS cart has limited space after all).

The DS's wi-fi option will enable access to leaderboards at the Rockstar Social Club, adding more incentive to replay previous levels and improve on your times. There will be other multiplayer options, but they haven't been revealed yet.

So at this stage - mere days from release - it's clear Chinatown Wars has the potential to really show what the DS is capable of (as well as attract a whole new grown up audience to the kiddy-centric console).

After all, Rockstar has never taken short-cuts or lacked ambition with the GTA series. Could this be the game to rival Nintendo's own The Legend of Zelda: Phantom Hourglass? Quite possibly, provided you don't mind swapping your sword for some smack.

Kath Brice
Kath Brice
Kath gave up a job working with animals five years ago to join the world of video game journalism, which now sees her running our DS section. With so many male work colleagues, many have asked if she notices any difference.