DESCRIPTION

In Grand Theft Auto, you assume the role of a street thug working for an organized syndicate of criminals that specializes in stealing cars. Every time your pager beeps, the boss needs you to steal something for him — if you don't get to a payphone and answer the message, you'll be in hot water (or is that cold water at the bottom of the East River).

After receiving your mission, you'll have to navigate city streets that are bustling with pedestrians, cops (your worst enemies), and traffic jams. Because you're pressed for time, you can't just walk to your destination on foot — that would take too long. Instead, you'll have to go car jacking, the art of physically removing people out of their vehicles and stealing it.

This is the premise behind Grand Theft Auto, an overhead action game of thievery. There are four large cities in which you'll have to steal cars, shoot rival gang members, and complete missions for the boss. Each mission requires you to get something from point "A" to point "B". For example, the head honcho wants to pull off a bank heist — instead of using regular cars, they want you to steal a couple taxicabs for them. This way, the cops won't be able to find them as easily in traffic.

You can steal any car on the road, and there is a lot to choose from. Depending on your situation will determine your vehicle of choice — if you need to barrel through a roadblock of cops, you'll want to take a large truck or bus; if you need to get somewhere in a quick amount of time, steal a speedy roadster or a motorcycle. For the bold of heart, cop cars can be stolen as the ultimate slap in the face to law enforcement (squad cars are also good for undercover missions).

Each car is tuned to a different radio station — depending on what kind of car he or she had, the driver probably had it on a radio station of his liking. For example, pickup trucks blast away rock-a-billy country music and the sleek muscle cars are tuned to the house/electronic station. The soundtrack consists of a wide variety of styles ranging from rap, reggae and ska to head banging metal music. You can also listen to police officers banter about your actions if you steal a squad car (this also comes in handy because you'll know what the cops are planning on doing).

Grand Theft Auto's vulgar soundtrack has been included on the game CD and the package ships with maps detailing each city and its streets. Because of the violent nature of gameplay and vulgarity, player discretion is advised. ~ Clark Phelan, All Game Guide