GTA IV Tips: Difference between revisions

==General==

* To move up/down stairs more quickly, jump up/down them. You'll go much faster. Just be careful not to jump in the direction of the stair's edge, as you might vault over the side and fall.

* As soon as you receive a gun, try to master headshots. First auto aim, then move the right stick up a little bit; Niko will aim for the upper body/head instead of the stomach. Headshots are instant kills, so you'll save ammo (money) and kill enemies faster (keeping you alive) by learning to adjust your aim and go for headshots. Especially after you use receive the Assault Rifle and Carbine Rifle; holding the trigger for even a second will cause a spray of bullets that will guarantee a kill if aimed at the head.

* This is very useful when delivering cars to either Stevie or to Brucie and also when having your own car. To do this, go to Niko's in-game cellphone go onto the cheat menu and activate the "DOC - Health" cheat. This is entered into the phone by dialing the number (362-555-0100) and from there on, it can be accessed through the phone's menu. This cheat will heal Niko to full health and also give him a new set of body armour. The health cheat will also repair a car which is where it comes in handy for doing the car delivery jobs and means you don't have to spend your hard-earned cash at a Pay 'n' Spray shop. Use this cheat at your own risk, as it will disable some trophies/achievements.

* Use the "Sleep Mode" on your phone. If you just want to cruise around [[Liberty City]] without being nagged by mission-givers, go the Options menu in your phone and choose to turn Sleep Mode ON. This will halt the story's progress so you can call up your friends to hang out with them or just do whatever.

* Clean your clothes. Did you just get your new suit all bloody and you have an interview in thirty minutes? Go to a [[safehouse]] and either sleep (Bear in mind this does cause game time to increase by six hours) or change your clothes & back again. Good as new. However, by saving (and therefore sleeping), time advances six hours. Another way to clean your clothes is just to replenish your health: get a soda or some food, call an [[ambulance]], or be creative! Replenishing your health does the trick.

* How to deal with blind firing enemies: If an enemy is blind firing like his life depended on it, aim for his arm/hand, as it is exposed when blind firing. If you hit it, he'll likely stumble out into the open, where you can hopefully kill him.

* Need good [[weapons]] at the beginning of the game? Go to any weapons shop and kill the guy inside. Make sure he takes out his weapon first, then take it once he's dead. After about 20 seconds, his friends will show up for vengeance. Kill them too to get good weapons early in the game, but watch out! You'll get 1 or 2 stars for the murders and escaping the small shop and narrow alley with cops can be tricky.

* At the beginning of the game, right after leaving your apartment for the first time, take a car from the street (preferably a fast, good handling one, like a Chavos or a Sentinel) and take it to the airport. There is a guard tower in the middle and the end, run the guards over and take their carbine rifles. Kill SWAT members in the vans to gain SMG ammo and kill cops for pistol ammo. Don't worry about dying because you keep the weapons. There is armor near the parking lot at the end and a Sentinel in the guard tower parking lot.

* Take your cousin [[Roman Bellic]] out once or twice early on in the game to get his friendship level up. [[Burger Shot]] and The Triangle Club are good places as they don't need to be unlocked. After you get his friendship level high enough, you'll be able to call him for a free taxi ride anywhere. This is good for a ride to a mission when you can't hail a [[taxi]]. And listening to the driver [[Mohammad]] is a laugh.

* You can park more than one car in your [[safehouse]] parking spot by making sure that at least one tire of vehicle is within the yellow box. Technically, you can save as many cars as you can fit into the box, but Xbox 360 users might face the infamous car eating glitch.

* To nick a car without too much conflict in [[Grand Theft Auto IV]], bring up your gun, point it at the driver of the car you want from the side of the road, the driver will then get scared and let you have the car. Doing this right in front of a police, or a police car will not attract any attention (likely design flaw). Most of the time, the driver will step out, running away. As a note, you will get wanted level for pointing your gun at members of law enforcement, and will also recieve a 1-star wanted level when you actually enter the car.

* Keep the meter running, cabbie! If you just need to buy some ammo or food real quickly, when the cabbie drops you off, wait a second or two and whistle for the cab again. Then run and buy your stuff. Come back out and he'll be waiting for you right where he left you, if not, then he's around the corner.

* Look around. Many players think that the car they were in is gone if the player enters a cutscene. But, usually, the car is parked somewhere nearby. Look around the corner or down the street and you'll usually find it.

* If you leave a crime scene in a helicopter, it is incredibly easier to lose any wanted level. They also work very nicely for any kind of chase-mission, as they are much faster than cars and you can keep better track of your target. Just be careful not to fly too high, as that counts into the maximum allowed distance to your target. That can make following targets in Algonquin a little tricky.

* Use public transportation. Taking a taxi is cheap and fast, you can even take friends with you.

* We've all been there. You look around, think that everything is clear and as you smash the window of a car the alarm comes on and a Squad Car turns around the corner. No worries. As long as they see you neither sitting in the car nor smashing the window, the alarm doesn't seem to bother them. Just interrupt your action, wait until the Police is gone and then get into the car.

* Never attempt to shoot at a car that's traveling behind you. You will end up crashing and quickly owned by police/team 2. The best idea is to either let a passenger do the shooting or brake and wait for them to fly ahead of your car and shoot forward.

* Super-easy way to get and keep 6 stars - before the other islands are open, drive your car on the metro tracks. If you drive across the river, you'll instantly get 6 wanted stars, but since the metro is underground on the other island, there are no police. When you've stayed underground for a long time, drive back to the other side, drop down to street level near your safehouse and save the game.

* When traveling back and forth between islands, use a cop vehicle to avoid paying the tolls and to avoid attracting unwanted attention.

* Cars and pedestrians respond to your horn, so if you're in a hurry and there are police around, use it.

* Want that nice vehicle you saved at one of your parking spaces but don't want to lose it? GTA IV seems to save memory by spawning a lot of the same type of car you are currently driving. Simply get in your car and drive around the block a couple of times. You should suddenly spot one parked up somewhere. Park yours back in the parking space and go and steal the other one.

* If a taxi won't stop for you, chances are that there's already a passenger inside. Simply walk up and 'hold' the button to get into the taxi as a passenger. Hey presto, you'll drag the passenger out of the cab and the taxi driver will now be happy to take you.

* To easily gain ammo, get a wanted level. The higher your wanted level the better selection of weapons. Try not to lose too much health and/or armor. When you have your wanted level where you want it, go to any one of your safehouses. Kill some cops and N.O.O.S.E. officers in front of your safehouse. Kill as many as you can before losing all your health. Once your ready, go inside your safehouse and save your game. Be sure not to die. After you save your game, your wanted level will be gone and your health will be fully restored. Walk outside and collect all the weapons and ammo lying on the ground from all the officers you killed. If you died, the weapons probably won't be there.

**Killing police officers will give you pistol and shotgun ammo.

**Killing N.O.O.S.E. officers will give you carbine rifle ammo, shotgun ammo, and/or SMG ammo.

* Need an extra parking space? Even if you can't use your first Safehouse to save you can still use the parking space outside.

* Do everything in your power to prevent yourself from getting busted, even if that means getting wasted. If the cops bust you, you lose all your weapons and ammo, whereas if they waste you, you get to keep all your weapons.

* If you think a car may have an alarm, try tapping it with your current car. This will trigger the alarm, wait for it to stop, then steal as normal, the alarm won't go off.

* Take a cab a lot but bring a gun, when you get out, go to the front, shoot the cab driver once, if he runs out keep shooting and you'll get a refund, if he drives away, keep shooting.

* If your're in a firefight, and your target is hiding and shooting at you behind a large concrete support beam, you can now blast through it with a heavy weapon and kill your target.

* If you are critically wounded and need health without risking a fatal gunshot in a stolen ambulance, paying the paramedics almost $1,000 or filling your gut with questionable food items from the street vendors, you can get an easy heal and gain the moral high ground by giving money to any one of the tramps or saxophone players that you see in Liberty City. It's $10 out of pocket which may sound a bit steep, but Niko will feel so good about himself that he will gain at least 90% health from this simple act of kindness. You can find sax players in the subway, in the park, or any public place where people conglomerate. On occasion, a sax player may accost you, calling Niko such names as "philistine" or "square." Tramps may be found more often at night, in the subway or in the seedy spots of town. When you approach a tramp who wants change, they will acknowledge your presence with a greeting like "Look who it is" or "'Sup family." Occasionally, tramps will have some amusing commentary amongst themselves. And if you are feeling frugal, after you throw your money to a tramp, you can regain your money if you move for it quick enough. The tramp will continue as if they picked up the money and didn't notice you take it back.

*Pick your friends up in a helicopter or a motorcycle to make them say something different.

*To make most cars catch fire almost instantly, shoot the rear wheel wells (where fire appears right before it explodes).

==Multiplayer==