COMMENTARY - "Grand Theft Auto IV" is everything it promised to be and more.

It's an action-shooter game inside a criminal thriller inside a vast, almost lifelike three-dimensional world.

"GTA" is a jack of many trades, and unlike other games that attempt the same, it performs well in every aspect.

Veterans of the series will find familiar turf with "GTA," with the added bonus of numerous technical improvements. The undesirable graphics "pop-in" effects still exist, but have s...