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Fun for fans of "Snatch", not for fans of "GTA."

3 Rating: 3, Useful: 5 / 5
Date: March 18, 2003
Author: Amazon User

And then there were three...

Reflections entertainment was the first to pioneer this video game genre of free roaming, realistic city driving games with "Driver" and "Driver 2". Rockstar games was the first to perfect the genre with "Grand Theft Auto III" and "Grand Theft Auto: Vice City", the best selling games in platform gaming history. Now Sony Computer Entertainment America (SCEA) wants to get in on the fun with "The Getaway".

I say "The Getaway" is fun for fans of U.K. gangster cinema with such movies as "Snatch" because the game is treated as such, a feature film. The opening credits are spectacular and the cut scenes are voice acted very well, as well as the animator's figure actions are very convincing. The storyline is very amusing and satirical, just as the movie "Snatch" is.

However, as someone who is very use to the gameplay of "Grand Theft Auto" and "Driver", I find the gameplay of "The Getaway" to be somewhat lacking in parts. The controls are somewhat sluggish, both in the car and on foot. With only one driving viewing angle, it somewhat limits the gamer's perspective on the London streets. The camera is rigidly fixed behind the car so that you never see the doors, which makes it hard to maneuver a power slide around the sharp corners of the London streets. Also, there is no way to look behind the car or have a rear view mirror to see what or who is chasing behind. The car physics are somewhat lacking as well, the shocks very hard and the tires very sticky. I have yet been able to flip the car upside down, as the majority of the London landscape is very flat and has no fun ramps or bumps as in "GTA" or "Driver" games. The car models are very accurate though, with nameplates such as Lexus, Jaguar, and Peugeot. The damage engine is unique in "The Getaway." Safety glass shatters as it would in real life and civilian cars react to the slightest of collisions.

The main thing that hurts the driving aspect of the game is the navigation system. There is no map of the streets to refer to anything in the game world. The gamer must rely on their car's turn signal. If it is signaling left, the driver must trust that somewhere in the short or distant future there will be a left turn that needs to be taken. If it blinks fast left that means the gamer passed up the left turn. And if the emergency blinkers turn on that means you are basically lost and should just give up and buy "Grand Theft Auto." The blinkers are very sporadic, sometimes changing directions in mid drive or signaling a turn that is going to happen 5 miles down the road. As I have heard, the developers have created the London streets as exact as they are in real life. For a Mid-West American gamer like me, who has never even seen a map of London, it is very easy to get lost. Especially since everybody seems to drive on the "wrong" side of the road! What do those zigzag median lines mean anyways?

As for the on-foot gameplay, "The Getaway" gets a thumbs up. Once you figure out the controls, it can be very fun. Sneaking around corners, firing your weapon blindly over obstacles, and taking hostages as human shields is pure fun all around. The character only moves at one speed, a strong jog, and no way to sprint or jump. Unless you have been wounded, at what point you will limp and gasp for air. The healing process is unique to this game: find an area away from the action and lean up against a wall and catch your breath. Magically your wounds disappear and the blood evaporates off your suit! Weapon selection is however limited as well. It's either one or a pair of HK P8 pistols or any gun that a villain drops, at which point you sacrifice the current weapon you are holding to pick up the other gun. Auto aiming helps, there is a manual aim but you must be standing still and there is no targeting reticule.

In the end, I would suggest this game to anyone who can find it somewhat cheap (under $40) and who is a fan of both British cinema and games of this genre. I filled both requirements. However, if you have to choose between buying "The Getaway" or "Grand Theft Auto," for Pete's sake go with "Grand Theft Auto." I would even suggest the Playstation One games "Driver" and "Driver 2" over "The Getaway." Or, if you are totally strapped for cash, wait until Reflections releases "Driver 3" for PS2, which I feel (based on their test release of "Stuntman") will blow everything out of the water.

SCEA is new to this genre of video games so it is expected that they don't have all the tricks and bugs figured out. Hopefully, if they make a sequel to "The Getaway" they will have learned some lessons and may become an equal competitor to the "Driver" series and the "Grand Theft Auto" series. I'm not holding my breath.

I would give 3.5 stars if there was such a thing.

Good game

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 6 / 7
Date: December 28, 2002
Author: Amazon User

Well, I finally got to play Getaway(U.K version) and for the most part, am quite pleased. I only played it for about 1 hour, and then took it 'round a friend's house, where we induldged in some serious playing tme with the game. General census after a few hours was that at first it's a bit hard to like, but it does start to grow on you eventually (we played into the very early hours, which is kind of testament to the game's charm). It's neither a GTA clone and doesn't try to be, but it mixes aspects of GTA and SC with driving and stealth.
In the game, you're Mark. Mark's wife goes outside their house with son intact and out of nowhere some Landan (which is how it's pronounced in Cockney rhyming-slang) gang try to kidnap the kid. Wife interferes - gets shot). Mark hears the shot and out he goes. The kid's kidnapped and the cars burning off. He stupidly handles the gun used to shoot his wife and hence he is the number one suspect and accused of kidnapping his own kid. Mark tends to his wife, and then jumps in a car and the chace begins. The whole game then revolves around you getting your kid back by working for this gang and doing everything they tell you.
The cars actually control quite nice. Framerate's pretty good, but studders in spots. It runs 60fps mostly but dips to 30fps on occasion. Especially when there's too much on screen/or you crash into someone and multiple cars catch fire. The streets are much more populated than the barren streets of GTA Vice for instance, there is alot of traffic, just as there always is in London. There's also a nice little touch where your indicators blink when you need to turn (in relation to your mission) and both flash when you've got to your destination. The city is also rendered very well. If you live in London, you'd be amazed that a game could be designed so cloesly to it's real life structure. The cars are modeled extremely well, with enviroment mapping and impressive physics. All the cars are licensed from real manufactures, unlike GTA. Draw distance is also quite good. In comparison to GTA3/Vice, the Getaway looks ten times better, it really does.

Controlling Mark on foot is gonna be where the game gets its criticism by some. Aiming is a bit ropey, along with controlling the camera. Control of Mark on foot is akward at first, but get's a bit easier as you play. For example, the shooting sections of the game, I discovered I'd been using the wrong button to enter shooting mode - I'd been using manual aim rather than auto-aim. With that minor correction, I was silently flitting through the warehouse MGS style, popping up over benches with a shotgun, or firing two guns round doorways. You can only carry one [set of] weapons, and walking over another one will automatically result in Mark picking it up. Whether or not you intented for him to is another matter. Though it must be said there is a nice variety of weapons in the game.

The basics of what Mark can do is back up to a wall (peer around). You can point your gun around the corner and take random blasts in hope of hitting someone with the benefit of them not being able to hit you. This usually leads to mass ammo being wasted. You can crouch under small walls (waist height) and strafe around them. Also a nice little tactic is to line yourself up with someone behind the wall and press shoot to point your gun over and fire off a few rounds. Like GTA, you can take any car you want, stealing or otherwise. You can also hold people hostage at gunpoint, if the cops get too close for your liking. Also, you get to play as two different characters in the game, one is Mark, I'll keep the other as a secret. The AI is standard stuff. The cops (when in a vehicle) are lethal in trying to run you off the road when you're wanted, and makes for some pretty exiting police chases, espescially in the crowded London streets. The vehicles do take damage so if you bang up your ride too much, you'll need to ditch it and steal another one. All in all, the missions are fun and are quite varied. They take place both outdoors and indoors. You're probably asking if there is a non linear free rome mode, ala GTA, and the answer is yes, and it's a blast to play. It will definitely take you awhile to completely finish the game, and offers fairly good replay value.

The cinematics/voice acting is superb. Some real nice cinematics, and some of the dialogue is L-O-L funny. Some nice product placement going on. Cans of Stella, XXXX, Sony mobile phones and most high-street stores (Burger King, McDonalds, Odeon Cinemas, etc, etc). These is some adult words used here as well, actually alot. All in all, Sony delivered on a very ambitious game and I am quite plesaed with the results. I'd give the game a 9/10 score overall and definitely recommend fans of the genre to pick this game up when it hits the States.

3 years in development, 3 minutes in playtesting?

2 Rating: 2, Useful: 7 / 10
Date: December 22, 2002
Author: Amazon User

Well, that's what it seems like anyway. People vanish in midair and talk after you've killed them, the camera angles don't show you who you're shooting at half the time...what gives?

Apparently the game is very 'realistic', as evidenced by features like the lack of a health bar...Hammond can't even open a bleedin' door, how realistic is that?

Nice touches like leaning out to the side when crouching behind a barrier or leaning against a wall, and taking hostages, are ruined by the fact that you can't shoot at the same time, and the poor transition between these 'stealth' modes and the 'combat' mode, which will often see the camera angle change your viewpoint completely. And don't even get me started on the dodgy targeting system. How about just letting us use the right joystick Team Soho?

Although the voice-acting and cut-scenes are well done, you won't appreciate it after having to watch the same cut-scene for the fifth time as you reload a saved level...that's right, you can't skip them and they go for anything up to 5 minutes.

Unfortunately this game lives up to the common criticism of hybrid games; the driving bits aren't as good as a dedicated driving game and the shooting bits aren't as good as a dedicated third person shooter (oh for some Max Payne-like control!).

In summary a good concept poorly executed and obviously rushed out for Xmas. If you feel like shelling out your hard-earned bucks to Beta-test a game, be my guest. My copy will be getting traded in tomorrow. Not Happy Jan!

This is better than GTA 3

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 5 / 6
Date: October 01, 2003
Author: Amazon User

First off all the controls are fine. I have had this game since March because i am British and have recently moved. The oneb thing that i do find annoying is that you health yourself by leaning on a wall. This is the only unrealistic aspect of the game. People complain about the language but it is pure South London and Kent which is where i'm from. The violence is graphic but realistic, i think that GTAVC glamorises violence whilst, the Getaway portrays the nitty grity reality of gang warfare in the Eastend. The driving is better and more accurate than GTAVC. The games main strength is it's compelling storyline. It is unlike any other game out there. I would say that the game is probably not suitable for those who are easily offended, the "filth" or police and anybody under 14. the fact that you cannot skip cut scences is the games major flaw along with the leaning on the wall buisness.

BUY THIS WITHOUT DELAY THOUGH

Letting You know

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 4 / 4
Date: June 16, 2006
Author: Amazon User

After you beat all the missions, go to extras and you can do free roam mode where you can do whatever you want.

AWESOME!!!!!!!!!

4 Rating: 4, Useful: 5 / 7
Date: March 17, 2003
Author: Amazon User

Hey guys forget about GTA 3 or Vice city. Its now time to kill some english...cause this game rocks.

plus points
the graphics are excellent.
the accent is correct.
the cars are more reallistic
the story is a look into a different world unlike vice city.
more bloodshed and swearing.

minus points.
long videos ( which dont bother me)
if u fail to complete the mission u got to start all over.
theres no quick save.

overall its a good game to buy if u like gta 3 and vice city go for this one . you wont regret!!!!

Close, but no cigar!!! UPDATED!!!!!

4 Rating: 4, Useful: 3 / 3
Date: January 25, 2003
Author: Amazon User

Positives - great graphics, great sound, excellent movie elements, lots of guns and action, a mature story, real cars, and you can drive forever in London. Also, can jack a double decker bus and get killed by a bad guy wielding a meatcleaver!!! Overall, some good dialogue and I love it when the main guy gets shot up pretty bad and limps his way around.

Negatives - very difficult controls, just walking around in hallways is tough and gets you killed at times. Certain fight scenes, you can't quickly target people to shoot. Also, when you're doing 80 kph down the streets of London and hear sirens, you can't look behind you, or even in a rearview mirror to see the cops. Also, no looks to the sides which makes it difficult to turn corners. Also, no health power ups during longer missions so very little room for error (HALFWAY THROUGH THE GAME I ACTUALLY LOOKED AT THE DIRECTIONS AND REALIZED I COULD HEAL MYSELF BY LEANING AGAINST A WALL. OBVIOUSLY, THIS HELPED IN THE HARDER MISSIONS! I still have the same complaints about limited camera angles in driving mode and not being able to hold on to multiple guns and an ammo count. But, with that said, this game got real addictive and I raised my rating from 3 stars to 4!) Why no easy setting for the non-hardcore gamers???? No guide during missions makes it difficult to know where to go once outside of car. Walking endlessly up and down hallways being shot or just lost is not fun! No tracker for how much ammo you have left and you can't hold on to multiple weapons. Last complaint and this is because I'm spoiled from the multi angles Vice City offers, when you do a jump, you can only view from over the car, which really lowers the enjoyment.
Summary - GTA3 and Vice City have better overall game play, but you can tell the developers put more energy into the superior look for the Getaway. Now, if only the next GTA could match The Getaway's graphics, we would have a super star! Wait until this game's price drops more and then pick it up; until then, try Headhunter with it's great graphics and awesome sportbike action!

Just couldn't get into it

2 Rating: 2, Useful: 3 / 3
Date: February 03, 2003
Author: Amazon User

Okay, MAYBE my view would have been different had I not played Vice City beforehand, but I have and so the Getaway gets a poor review. The cutscenes are top-notch, almost Hollywood quality, and I hate to say this, but having the f-word just makes the game cooler. The pros stop there though!

Gamepley is awful. The main character moves slowly and awkwardly. Cars handle realistically, but that doesn't mean they handle in a playable manner. I do like how the cars run poorer and poorer as they get more and more damaged, but the damage itself is unrealistic. The camera is awful, never in the right place. Controls are bad as well, sure you have autoaim, but you basically just have to hold down R1 until everything is dead, because there is no telling what it is you are shooting at. I could go on and on, but the fact is that I don't care enough about this game to put it down, I just want to warn you gamers out there. I'm going back to Vice City!

Great Game

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 3 / 3
Date: February 07, 2003
Author: Amazon User

If you are looking for realism this game has it. It is by far one of the best games out there. I am a huge GTA fan, but GTA lacks realism, and this definately doesn't. When you play it, it is very obvious that alot of time has been put into the game, more so than other games. The cars are real, and if you are a car fan you'll love this game. For example you can get a mercedes benz S500 brabus, CL500, Lexus LS, LX, SC430, and a bentley. These are just a few great cars in the game, and the creators are liscensed to use the true names. The combat is realistic because you cannot pick up health, no health bar, no automatic bullet in the clip counter, and when you aim independently you are almost lining up the sites. To sum it up, great game, get it.

Very under rated game

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 3 / 3
Date: November 10, 2003
Author: Amazon User

I don't understand most people have never heard of this game. I think this game deserves a lot more hype than it got. It is not a GTA ripoff despite what everyone says. It is a much more story-driven game, each mission ties directly to your character and the storyline, unlike GTA where most of the missions are just random errands. The storyline in this game is great and it has some of the best cutscenes I've ever seen. The voice acting is superb. The story is pretty dark and violent, think Snatch except more serious, and there's also a scene in this game with a decidedly Quentin Tarantino-esque style. The action in this game is intense, from rediculous car chases to insane gunfights in the middle of a gang war.

Like I said, this game is not a GTA ripoff. It is however very similar to Mafia, if you've played that: you get missions one after the other, instead of when you choose to take them. There is also, like Mafia, a free ride mode available once you beat the game where you can just cruise around and get in gunfights and chases as you see fit.

All in all, this game is amazing and anyone who likes story-driven action games should definitely check it out.

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