In Play

Grand Theft Auto IV

Rockstar Games, $59.99

Video games might be the ruin of us all, but Rockstar Games' newest triumph, Grand Theft Auto IV, is the future. This is why box-office numbers are crashing beneath the weight of L. Ron's mother ship, and no, it has nothing to do with zombified teens glued to the small screen, surrounded by shag carpet and Mountain Dew, and refusing to leave the house. In the last decade, video games have told the story of humanity without shoving chiseled jaws and Botox shots down the gullets of the willful masses. GTA IV is just as much an artistic expression as the last dozen superhero movies. Or the last three Woody Allen films, for that matter.

When the camera zooms in on the permanent 5 o'clock shadow of main character Niko Bellic, there's no doubting that his lifetime spent in some anonymous impoverished village in Eastern Europe made this literally fresh-off-the-boat immigrant to Liberty City much more than just some lowly, psychotic madman on a killing spree. Sure there are hits to commence, and there is loyalty to prove. There's masochism and blasphemy and corruption, just like all the right-wing brainwashers corralled under Tipper Gore's wing would have you believe, but in addition to all that good stuff, there is an immersive storyline driving the game. Bellic hasn't come to this country just to try his luck at his cousin's perceived success; he's a man on a mission, and if it takes him five tries to snuff out Kenny Petrovic between trips to the slammer and the hospital in order to find closure, he's not afraid to try. And dammit if running from the cops at full speed down a winding street with an engine on fire isn't fun as all get out.

That said, GTA IV's entertainment factor, surreal graphics, addictive storyline, and ginormous landscape aren't its crowning glory. Under all of the stuff we've come to know and love from the Rockstar franchise are layers of pop-culture references (Ricky Gervais personified in motion capture, Femi Kuti and Iggy Pop deejaying) and social commentary beyond the violence (Weazel News, "Your source for the War on Terror, weather, and sports!") that further engorge the game in reality. Sharp jabs toward the current administration are embedded within the myriad sounds of Liberty City. There's been a crackdown on crime, the government has suspended habeas corpus and saved freedom, and Hummers have overrun the streets.

GTA IV has accomplished what every film, TV serial, and news broadcast has attempted since the beginning of the Digital Age: The game has turned reality on its ear, poured a little sugar and grease on the wheels, and sped it up to 100 mph. It's the Godfather of the 21st century.