{"id":1651,"date":"2012-11-07T12:36:28","date_gmt":"2012-11-07T12:36:28","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.controlpadblues.com\/?p=1651"},"modified":"2012-11-07T12:36:28","modified_gmt":"2012-11-07T12:36:28","slug":"my-top-100-52-grand-theft-auto-san-andreas","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/www.controlpadblues.com\/?p=1651","title":{"rendered":"My Top 100: #52 – Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"\"<\/a>

2004 – Rockstar Games (PC, PlayStation 2, Xbox, Mac)<\/p><\/div>\n

 <\/p>\n

It seems a bit clich\u00e9 to me, including this game on my list.\u00a0 After all, it seemed like it was the “cool thing to do” to like it at the time, and everyone just went crazy over it.<\/p>\n

A good game is\u00a0a good game, though, no matter how you slice it.<\/p>\n

The hype surrounding the release of Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas <\/em>was monumental.\u00a0 Rockstar started\u00a0a trend that continues today,\u00a0slowly teasing information for upcoming GTA<\/em> games\u00a0by releasing\u00a0nothing but simple character art or nondescript screenshots.\u00a0 They end up releasing footage in due time, but for the most part, people are told so little about it before it’s released\u00a0that they’re just dying to learn more.\u00a0 I’m no marketing guy, but that seems like an ingenious way to stir the pot without actually doing all that much work.<\/p>\n

It was released to\u00a0critical acclaim in 2004, but as usual, I bided my time.\u00a0 I knew it would eventually make its way to the Xbox, and when it did, I’d be\u00a0kickin’ ass\u00a0to whatever custom soundtrack I felt like on that given day.\u00a0\u00a0All the screenshots I saw indicated the\u00a0Xbox version’s graphics would be\u00a0superior anyway, so why not just wait a year?<\/p>\n

I did, and I’m glad.\u00a0 The game was rad, and I was not sad.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n