Why GTA 4's Niko Bellic is One of My Favorite Characters | Extra Punctuation

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[@theescapist]

This video is #sponsored by Raycon. Go to buyraycon.com/escapist to get 15% off your Raycon purchase!

[@Grumpini]

Raycons are rebranded Chinese Nillkin earbuds sold at a premium.

[@RangerOfTheOrder]

Idk if you guys actually tried the Raycons or if they just paid you so much money you don't care, but the earbuds are absolute garbage. I hope you think twice about your sponsors before peddling crap to your viewers in the future.

[@theescapist]

@@squantohaze5562 We don't have Yahtz do the ads because he's reviewing a game every week, doing an extra punctuation every other week, etc. No need to put these on his plate, we've got a team to handle this stuff so he can just do his thing.

[@BruteFM]

Raycons suck. Save your money.

[@This-Was-Sparta]

@@squantohaze5562 Maybe don't lecture a publication on how to do its job when you have no idea about its inner workings. Just a thought.

[@boarfaceswinejaw4516]

"arent you worried about your soul?" "After you walk into a village and you see 50 children, all sitting neatly in a row, against a church wall, each with their throats cut and their hands chopped off, you realize that the creature that could do this doesn't have a soul." -Niko Bellic, professional bowler.

[@racermario1881]

maybe those times in the war trained him for his true call in in life a professional bowler

[@vision_is_augmented1213]

It just occurred to me that it would be fun if all those random friend-activities would have been pseudo story lines in themselves. Like, wouldn't it be great if Niko and his cousin entered into the regionals bowling tournament? A kind of Big Lebowski deroute every in-game sunday, lol.

[@Sp1fyr3]

@@vision_is_augmented1213 honestly. take the Yakuza approach for some of these side missions and have it spiral into a completely different game lol

[@boarfaceswinejaw4516]

@@vision_is_augmented1213 you mean having optional side-quests with side-characters that actually evolve the relationship making those side-characters and the mini-games actually worth a damn? GET OUT OF HERE, HERETIC! CONSUME COLLECTIBLES!

[@boarfaceswinejaw4516]

@@racermario1881 He always had a knack for rolling hand grenades into bunkers.

[@lardyman2]

I always feel Niko is a GTA Protagonist who dosn't realise he's a GTA Protagonist. He seems as bewildered by the world around him as we would be if we were in his shoes.

[@aprofondir]

A satire of America is obviously made better by an outsider character

[@NixodCreations]

@@aprofondir makes sense why it works well here, considering the people who make GTA aren't American either

[@Aota1740]

like a character from one of the STALKER games put into GTA

[@markusa5293]

@@Aota1740 and Roman is Sidorovich

[@b4byj3susm4n]

Perfect for someone new GTA as a whole, right? He’s flabbergasted by America, you can be flabbergasted by GTA America, it works!

[@addi543]

For me, what made Niko interesting is ultimately the futility of his quest. He finally confronts Darko at the end and learns that Darko only sold him out just because of his heroin addiction. There wasn’t some big reveal, nor was Darko some mastermind, he was just a junkie that needed his fix. And then you finally get the opportunity to end him and no matter what, Niko felt like he wasted his life when you take off

[@PSYMEDIC]

The line that killed the conversation was "How much do you charge to kill someone?". Just showing that Darko didn't even consider them as friends and that at the end of the day none of them were really better than the other.

[@DoesNotInhale]

the whole theme of the story was Niko, living with his regrets of those children being butchered at the hands of his unit. his empathy for what amounted to evil, very flawed people while being a killer himself, was in no way a possible balancing act. in the new world however that wasn't so much the case as anyone that Niko interacted with, seeing their story to their conclusions, would always be a net positive on so many that had never been given the time of day by their family let alone by some stranger war criminal from Serbia. Niko is full of contradictions but the fact he was a steadfast, stoic, often contrarian only lended to his convictions and values that people may not be able to completely redeem what they've done but trying to help others redeem themselves was a better outcome than becoming the same monsters you despise. Niko could see the irony of his own tragedy given every story of every person he had seen in Liberty City prior, but in the end Liberty City is better off with Niko in it nothing can take that away.

[@DeepestDankest]

Ilyena Faustin's scene is great but I think the more revealing conversations Niko has with his outing with friends paints his past even in a more shitty and sympathetic light. Hanging out with Dwayne reveals to you that his family didn't have electricity until he was 12, and Dwayne who had been complaining about how shit his upbringing was goes "oh shit" and quiets down. Hanging out with some of the potential dating choices reveal lines such as "the war, what can I say? It ruined me" And then you also learn that Niko has kept the fact that Roman's mother, his aunt, was raped and murdered in the war and he's hiding this fact from Roman to save him from suffering. There's this one date where he flat out tells a girl that he's a hitman for the mob who is tortured by his past and is already dead inside after watching his friends die. The girl doesn't believe him for a second and Niko just says he works in construction.

[@Komnen0s]

as maligned as the "hanging out with your friends" missions are, they reveal lots of neat backstory about Niko and other characters. I particularly liked the conversations with Dwayne and Packie, where Niko bonds with them over the horrible life stories they all have. It's unfortunate that the mechanic wasn't implemented very well.

[@jamesdulak3108]

Christ I don't think I ever saw that Roman's mom part, fucking hell.

[@Matt_STS]

@@jamesdulak3108 yeah, I remember that dialogue. Absolutely brutal. I fkn love GTA IV

[@afaqahmad2806]

@@jamesdulak3108 iirc, its mentioned in one of the emails we get from Niko's mum.

[@TheBroManChu]

@@jamesdulak3108 It's one of the "date" conversations with Kate.

[@FlymanMS]

Another great thing about Niko as a GTA protagonist is that he is the only one so far who was not raised in the system (US society) and is an outsider with his fresh take on things he encounter. His dialogue with Roman about burgers and advertisement is very memorable in that way.

[@JD-fb5ps]

Claude Speed was raised in a yurt in Kazakhstan, this is canon

[@agbrenv]

@@JD-fb5ps Claude is barely a character

[@JD-fb5ps]

@@agbrenv You're right, all we know about him canonically is his name and his country of birth, which was Kazakhstan

[@ICantSplel]

@@JD-fb5ps and when did that come out?

[@GamerRMT]

The big thing I appreciate about Niko vs other GTA protagonists is that he legitimately seems to hate that he's violent. Most of the others either strive to be the biggest badass they can be, are callously casual about murder, or actually enjoy killing. Niko always gives the impression he hates what he's doing and hates himself for doing it, which I think is what makes him feel so much more human and relatable.

[@Blazcowitz1943]

Exactly. Most GTA protagonists actively seek out and enjoy the life of crime. Niko would not hesitate to give it up for a second if he could, but life keeps forcing him back into it. One line that sticks out for me is when he says “It’s not that I hate cops, I just do what I have to survive. Cops are just regular guys trying to survive.”

[@kebshot]

I agree, I'm glad you made that point. I'm not sure if you've played rdr2, but that same reason is why I loved Arthur Morgan as a character as well. He also hated who he was, and what he was doing. He was a complex "human" character, in the same way Niko was.

[@JOELNICOLAJWZ]

I like your point but is it fair? Arthur in rdr2 is very similar in his POV. While in gta5 Michael is constantly haunted by the consequences of his crazy part and Franklin just wants to be more successful, in contrast to his pal Lamar, who, is all you described above

[@JamesTobiasStewart]

Very good point, Niko possesses a great capacity for violence and is clearly skilled in inflicting violence, but that doesn't mean he actually enjoys it. He doesn't miss his time in the army, he misses the friends who died in it. If Roman hadn't been caught up in a problem when Niko arrived, I think Niko would have mostly just lived quietly, only showing his violent aspect while trying to find Bernie and/or Darko. Hell a good indicator of how he feels about all this is the sequence where all the GTA protagonists are in one place during the botched diamond sale. Everyone else, including both his fellow protagonists are trying to get out of there with the money, the diamonds or both; but Niko just focuses on getting out of there alive, because he has no personal investment in any side in this conflict. He's only doing this at all because Ray can supposedly help him with what HE cares about and this is what Ray wants from him in return. Niko doesn't mind the nice things money buys him, but he didn't come to America looking to get rich or get Made. It's why I buy GTA 5 going with the idea that no one's heard of him since 4's ending. I can absolutely believe that after he'd laid his past to rest and gotten his revenge, that he'd want to put this whole chapter of his life behind him.

[@GamerRMT]

@@kebshot 100% with you on that one as well, Kebshot, depending on how you play him. But for sure, the more honorable Arthur is definitely a man trying to be better thrust into unfortunate circumstances.

[@princeofarabia5896]

A series of short character dives like this would be fun!

[@boarfaceswinejaw4516]

especially with games where good characters are somewhat unexpected.

[@foldionepapyrus3441]

Especially the ones that really work, that actually have some elements of real interest to their personality. Like Niko, the ones that could actually be characters from a good book or TV show. Doing the more usual video game characters you probably only need to make perhaps a handful videos in total and just insert the alternative name and setting...

[@darkjanggo]

to be fair, even yahtzee commentating paint drying would be fun

[@vagrantvienna]

Can't wait for the one about Jaaaaaames Sunderland

[@Epicmonk117]

If I wasn’t like 90% sure he never finished the games, I’d ask him to dissect my favorite villain in gaming: Handsome Jack.

[@MichaelSmith-ij2ut]

The ending where Niko finally gets ahold of Darko and yells in his face "You ruined me, you fuck!" has stuck with me since 2008

[@stainedglassed4638]

Nothing has humanized Yahtzee more to me than knowing he too tries his hardest for One Trip Grocery runs.

[@adamsbja]

One trip? Bah, I load everything up on one arm so I can handle the keys. Back issues build character.

[@j.j.maverick9252]

relatable!

[@Liwet.]

I do my laundry on grocery days so that there's a period of time where I have an empty laundry basket. As I load the groceries into my car, I put them inside my laundry basket so that when I get home, I can just carry the laundry basket inside my house.

[@MrChessboxing]

@@Liwet. galaxy braining life over here damn

[@Chaosrain112]

After turning 32 I no longer gave a shit and also had the epiphany that more trips means more cardio which doesn't hurt

[@Nerdznewznow]

Honestly, Yahtzee breaking down what makes him like a character and kinda this entire series as a whole gives depth and understanding to the man behind the crass sweary Internet animation on a yellow background I’ve watched for over a decade now

[@CommanderLink]

if you watch the livestreams "slightly something else" he talks about a lot of interesting things and usually spoils his next zero punctuation. he reminds me of a comedian in that he cant help but repeat the material hes been practicing in conversation with others because he is genuinely passionate about what he works on

[@landrylongacre6391]

@@CommanderLink honestly makes me just love him more

[@hackcubit9663]

I'd argue that while the bulk of Zero Punctuation is "what makes a game bad," or, bad designs to avoid, a lot of Extra Punctuation seems to put the spotlight instead on a combination of broader ideas both regarding what makes a game bad, and in-depth reasons a particular game or part of a game is good. I especially love his effort in going beyond establishing that something is good, to the point that he can actually tell us why something is good.

[@KarolMarcjan]

TFW we are all the mob boss's wife to him. (Not really, but I hoped it'd be funny. I'll show myself out.)

[@helplmchoking]

@@hackcubit9663 I'd agree with that. ZP is the humour and basically calling out the shit that makes games suck, especially when devs keep doing them year after year. Like a bit of a roast, a name and shame campaign for the lazy or the greedy corporates, and grudgingly admitting when it works. EP is discussing WHY the things he shits on in ZP don't work, WHY the devs/publishers keep making those mistakes and WHY some elements work really well. Turns out he's not just the funny sweary video game man, he really does know his shit

[@teatanks6481]

something that deepens Niko's character is that he isn't just a generic "I was in war and it was bad" kind of archetype. If you know about the Yugoslav War which he was most likely part of given the time frame, you know of the horrific war crimes and genocide that went down there. He even has lines reference the crimes such as one about children missing their hands. He is a character than you can empathise with even if you know little about the war he is referencing.

[@TheStrangeBloke]

I have a friend from kosovo who lost family members in that war. He has told me he likes Niko and thinks he's a great character. To me that is the strongest possible testament to good character writing.

[@aprofondir]

@@TheStrangeBloke if a person from Kosovo can like a Serbian character you know it's well written

[@vault13dweller15]

@@TheStrangeBloke The only bad thing about Niko is that for someone from ex Yugoslav country it is very obvious that he is not voiced by a Serbian. In the review of GTA4 from one of the magazines in my country they said "For all the money Rockstar has they couldn't afford Serbian voice actor?" Though this probably is not so noticeable for English speakers.

[@Eralen00]

@@aprofondir at least he feels bad about what he did. I'm sure there are yugoslavs out there who did the same stuff as niko did but don't feel even a little bad about it. They think "fuck those people, they deserve it" I know there are people like that out there. Just like there were probably nazis who feel the same way after WW2

[@ffffffffffffffff5840]

@@Eralen00 if you're capable of shutting that part of your brain off, it keeps you from having to feel bad. Feeling bad is good sometimes though

[@NikolaiMihailov1]

Niko felt human. Someone with flaws. He didnt want to be the monster he believed himself to be. He just wanted to settle the past and then go live on in quiet to heal.

[@Zygothdarkknight]

Niko is a bad guy same as all of other GTA protagonists , even Vic and Franklin are also a bad guys by objective. But they have admirable and redeem qualities.

[@Karthik-pn2yj]

​@@Zygothdarkknightniko technically did the worst stuff compared to other gta protagonists

[@KelleyEngineering]

Watched a long play of the game, and I have to add one more point to Niko's amazing characterization. Every time, and I mean *every* time someone treats Niko with genuine kindness, his body language becomes incredibly awkward. Like he lost a step. After everything he's been through, he cannot fathom that there are genuinely kind people in the world.

[@Spazcakes]

Yeah, I remember when Faustin's wife invites him into the house, Niko's uncomfortable, not used to the hospitality and constantly looking around in case it's some sort of trap

[@s7robin105]

I’m glad GTA 4’s story and characters are starting to get more talked about. It’s not a perfect game but it’s some of Rockstar’s best writing in a GTA game

[@lynxregions6724]

It’s personally the best gta imo

[@s7robin105]

@@lynxregions6724 I agree

[@s7robin105]

@@frankgrimes7388 For a long time it was hated by many in the GTA community for straying so far from the previous games.

[@TheRedKing247]

I think what bests encapsulates his character and why it's so well written is his most famous quote: "War is when the young and stupid are tricked by the old and bitter into killing each other." Legitimately this is something you'd think was written by like Mark Twain but instead it comes from the protagonist of a fucking GTA game. It's been the one line from any of the games that's really stuck with me too, as it's just so fundamentally true.

[@madhippy3]

Niko always stood out to me as a man who wished he wasn’t a good killer but that is just not the hand life gave him. Not a complicated take since he tells Mallery as much on their date. What was the war like? It ruined him. That was the hardest hitting moment for me. Niko is smart, empathetic, talented, and loyal. If he didn’t get dragged into a brutal war he could have been anything. But War scares people deeper than the flesh.

[@SRFriso94]

Niko is great. It's very refreshing to have a character with an immense capacity for violence, that he is very clearly aware of as a marketable skillset, but not one that he is proud of. I guess if I had to point to one thing that makes Niko stand out from other GTA protagonists it is strong theming, namely one of relative monsterhood. In conversation with the two most humane characters, Roman and Kate, it's very clear that Niko wants to move on from his dark and violent past, and they believe he has the capacity to do so. But his past does not want to let him go, which creates this interesting push and pull. What definitely helps is that while all the GTA protagonists are sarcastic to various degrees, Niko does it the best. IMO, he is by far the funniest of them all. Very much helps with likability.

[@OoJohnisbackoO]

I curse myself for not recalling where specifically this happens but theres a line where Niko, out of exasperation, puts on an american indian voice (not great but i could buy that thats something Niko would do as a sarcastic backhand) and basically uses his deep accented timbre to comedic use in a sarcastic throwaway to make a point of how outlandish and full of shit the other person was being. It was genuinely so well timed and seemed so in character in the moment i actually leaned back laughing. Another reason his absolutely atacama-dry humour probably comes off so well compared to similar characters is he was written by a bunch of scottish devs who probably find america just as overwhelming and insane as Niko does.

[@valdish9620]

One of the many things I like about Niko is, that contrary to popular belief, it's not actually out of character for him to go on a murderous killing spree, it's just a sad case of him going through a violent episode caused by his PTSD, similar to what happens in the original book of Rambo.

[@KingOfDoma]

I always went bowling with Niko's cousin. I always went on whatever dates he was asked to, if I could. Good for relationships, good for gameplay, and dangit, it was humanizing for the man. Plus, admit it, fellow introverts and spectrum dwellers - don't YOU wish you had the energy to go out with your friends every time they wanted to hang? Even just a little?

[@wildroses2009]

The fact that Yahtzee is bragging about how he can get lots of shopping out of the car in a surprising small number of trips shows just how much he has embraced the Dad Life.

[@BrightKnives27]

My favourite episode yet, would love to hear you talk more about other specific videogame characters you enjoy, great villains or good redemption stories or characters you'd enjoy seeing more of

[@maximillion322]

I loved it except for the fact that it was not even quite six minutes once you account for the credits and the sponsorship. Less than 5 minutes if you take out the prelude where he talks about where he got the idea for today's episode. I'd love to hear him say more on the subject.

[@mythologymaniac500]

I'd like his opinions of villains in general, especially Far Cry ones. To me, it feels like villains are becoming less like interesting characters and more like caricatures of evil the protagonist just has to fight.

[@AceRevero]

Still to this day, One of my favorite scenes in GTA 4 is finding and helping out Badman from Little Jacob's missions in the open world, the interaction between Niko and Badman always puts a smile on my face.

[@takuansoho5836]

Oh yeah, when Jacob isn't there anymore to do the translation it's awesome XD

[@AceRevero]

@@takuansoho5836 it's even better when Niko can somewhat make out what he is saying, realizing Badman needs help, and offer to help out, saying it in such a way that's, kinda hype.

[@c0mplex_Ale]

Them Jamaican bros are just too wholesome.

[@isupposeiexist]

Having just replayed San Andreas, I also feel a lot of love for CJ. He's got some stupid crap going on, mostly around "You kill people for a living, shoot this person and be done with it" but he's got a troubled past he ran from, he works to claw his way out of the crappy ghetto mentality (and it IS clawing. He hardly gets out of that mindset until more than halfway through) and his focus is squarely on his family and the people that treat him right, while cutting out (and usually killing) those who do him dirty. Seeing his evolution over the game means a lot as a player, and you're compelled to keep going. Weirdly, he also feels the LEAST likely to do the crazy rampages apart from the gang ones. Like, he's survived a rough life on the streets under the thumb of corrupt cops, but he's just trying to get out of it how he knows he can, and unfortunately his only marketable skill is violence. But more than once he questions if he's doing the right thing and if all this madness is worth it. My biggest complaint, in the end, is that he lets his brother drag him back down into the ghetto mentality after everything else, but it's always been about family for CJ and living up for what happened to his other brother, so even if I don't agree, I can be sympathetic to him.

[@XxDruidmancerxX]

Yes! I like that instead of the generic: "Do a mission for X, and never see them again", a lot of good characters join CJ's "party" haha. He makes friends and they help each other, which I find wholesome hahaha

[@simonium8123]

i love cj as well but i feel that sometimes he is a bit out of character, deconstruction being a prime example

[@TorchbearerOfReach]

"In the end, drag him back down into the ghetto mentality" It's not though, it's implied in the end that Sweet is also opening up, which is why he's going with CJ on that Mad Dogg album and the Casino (watch the end again, they have a chat with those things as they walk away) after they settled their unfinished business with Smoke.

[@Zygothdarkknight]

I sympathize with CJ and he's also one of my favorite fictional characters because of his feats and he accomplished a lot but it's wrong to consider that he wouldn't go on a violent rampage despite his personality wise is more stable , rational , logical and saner than most GTA protagonists , it's like CJ is similar to Gustavo Fring from Breaking Bad what I mean. CJ did some of the most heinous things in GTA series , he can be way more psychopathic than Trevor , Trevor wouldn't kill best friends if they betray him , for CJ he willing to kill all of those two wronged him (he also willing to kill Catalina who treated him badly when he check in at the garage where she gave him as a race prize but Cesar who is CJ's best friend and Catalina's cousin stopped him to do it) , and he killed a lot of innocents for his goals , personal gain and to seize his businesses.

[@thebacklog1458]

I officially wont be happy until we get a 5 minute video of Yahtzee explaining why Chie is his best girl in Persona 4G

[@ArsonRaboot]

Because he's wrong. Ann for life!

[@Percival917]

@@ArsonRaboot Ann is from another game entirely.

[@dragoncrashhero12]

"And the winner for Persona 5's best waifu... Is Chie again!"

[@dropkickcorpse]

I don't know about Yahtzee, but I'll give you the opinion of what Lead Game Artist Shigenori Soejima had to say about her: “The concept for Chie’s design was ‘a cute girl who could actually exist in real life.’. Trying to design a game character who seems like someone you could meet in real life meant I needed to pay close attention to her appearance. The hardest part was probably getting the right balance between her features like her creased double eyelids set over appealingly large eyes, and her slightly duck-like mouth. Another tricky balancing act was the shape of her head, as it couldn’t be too long or too round. Once I had the shape of her head the way I wanted it, I still had to figure out how to put her hair on it. I was so picky that I convinced myself that I needed to rework her design quite a few times. One of the things that defines Chie as a character is her love of cheap, retro things like pins and other accessories. In some ways, Chie was the turning point that defined the overall design flavor of the entire game. I wanted to exaggerate the fact that the story takes place in a rural town, and one of the best ways to do that is to have someone running around in a jersey jacket. Unfortunately, the colors of a school jersey just didn’t look very nice within the context of the game, so I had to think of something else. That’s when I decided to try taking a retro-style approach to Chie’s jersey. That was a real light bulb moment for me, when I realized that anytime I needed to put something ‘utterly lame’ in to bring out the rural vibe, I could add a retro flavor to it to make it cool and in sync with the game’s atmosphere. This is how Chie single-handedly set the design foundation for the rest of the game. For this reason, I think it’s quite fair to say that Chie Satonaka truly embodies the identity of ‘Persona 4’, which may be why the game’s theme color (yellow) looks so darn good on her.” -Soejima

[@KagemaruHitokiri]

While I am a Naoto man personally, I get what Yahtzee sees in Chie. Though, putting it into words without writing an overlong comment or being superficial is probably impossible

[@jonnycrash7389]

What also great about gta 4 and Niko is the intro few mission building the world and characters up. The introduction to him and his worries. The first time you kill someone in a mission it feels like it ment something were as in GTA 5 your killing thugs in the 2nd mission. GTA 4 shows you the world kinda like San Andreas did. That opening act before it all goes tits up. Niko isn't just some random psycho like Michael or Trevor, it feels like the world turned him into a psycho

[@El-Burrito]

Niko being such a fantastic protagonist really spoiled me for GTA V as well, where only one of the protagonists is just passingly likable. I actually remember being emotionally invested in Niko's story.

[@mitrovarr]

Honestly I think the sheer unbridled horribleness of one of the GTA V characters put a lot of people off trying the game at all.

[@LukeLeonettiYouTube]

@@mitrovarr LOL at the second best selling game of all time "putting a lot of people off trying the game at all"

[@Blazcowitz1943]

Victor Vance from Vice City Stories is probably the most underrated gta protagonist. Like Niko, he didn’t seek out a life as a criminal but after being framed and kicked out of the army, he has to resort to that to try and help his sick brother and broken family. He tried to be a good person when he can, but after the death of the woman he loved, he spiralled fully into drug dealing and gave up.

[@wiiseeyou]

Wow, Yahtzee truly is the Niko Bellic of videogame criticism.

[@subtlewhatssubtle]

In his ZP of GTA4, Yahtz said he enjoyed it and was going to go back to it, but it's clear what he enjoyed was being around Niko Bellic and wanting to see more of him.

[@xer0vi]

Video game character deep dives really needs to be a series.

[@Zygothdarkknight]

Deep fictional characters are fascinating.

[@vinnythewebsurfer]

CJ and Niko were always the more interesting and likeable main characters compared to what’s came before and after theme and they do it from 2 very different point of views and background. Although CJ has been put through quite the wringer with modern memes that you’d think he’s no different than Ramirez from MW2: the guy that everyone shouts at to do the thing.

[@u.dplaythroughs8486]

The mystery of who was Driving the Green Sabre was always an urban legend in San Andreas, we never saw who was driving it.

[@boarfaceswinejaw4516]

not counting red dead redemption. but yeah, gta really went too far into "lets become saints row" territory with GTA 5, which isnt nessecarily bad as the gameplay is fun, but the story is somewhat lacking as a result.

[@aprofondir]

@@boarfaceswinejaw4516 the wackiness of GTA V was definitely an overcorrection after so many complained IV was dreary and serious in comparison to SA

[@Zygothdarkknight]

What make CJ and Niko very interesting is both did some of the most heinous things in GTA series and have very high kill count but both also have sympathetic stories and show a decent side to their families and friends.

[@D1EHARDTOO]

Something I learned today wasn't so much about Yahtzee's character preference (although I'd never seen Niko presented this way) but it was the fact that Serbia uses Cyrillic as their national script, and that it used to be both Cyrillic and Latin until 2006 when the national government made their official script Cyrillic

[@sidimightbe3246]

We hate the Latin script and the eu

[@randomserb761]

We still use both scripts, Cyrillic is just constitutionally protected as the official script.

[@Dethmaster64]

Yahtzee should analyze James Sunderland for October this year

[@danielasilva69457]

I feel like he analyzed him 10 times by now over the course of ZP

[@Underestimated37]

It’d be interesting to see something like this on Kazama Kiryu too, Kiryu (and Majima too) has an interestingly complex character that made me rethink my relationship with video game protagonists

[@jw1zard606]

As far as Yakuza protagonists go I honestly feel like Kiryu is the least interesting. Most of the time he just feels like a standard stoic action hero, a good one with a human side but still just a standard stoic action hero. Everyone else you play as feels so much more well rounded and I ended up feeling so much more attached to guys like Saejima after only a few hours of gameplay compared to the entire games Kiryu gets

[@Underestimated37]

@@jw1zard606 have you played a lot of the side content? Kiryu is boring, but only if you only play the main game and none of the side quests (and some mini games too) to , in the side quests especially in 0, Kiwami 1 and 2 you get a ton of context that is otherwise missing.

[@jw1zard606]

@@Underestimated37 I usually play all the substories I can find in Yakuza games, and while Kiryu is more interesting in them, I feel that also applies to all the other characters. I just feel like I'd rather play as a laid back loan shark or a one eyed maniac than the stoic badass

[@CharlesAnjos]

Niko is one of the best characters every to grace a game and I could never put into words the reason why, so thank you for this video

[@Zygothdarkknight]

Niko Bellic , Arthur Morgan and John Marston are the most well written video game characters. Kratos , Doomguy and Master Chief are the most badass video game characters. Carl Johnson and Tommy Vercetti have the best character development in gaming because both went from a petty criminals to a kingpins , both also highly ambitious and accomplished a lot.

[@Charlieh1989]

If you want to watch the cutscene he's referring to, the mission is called "rigged to blow".

[@titlasagna2172]

Niko is in my top 5 best written protagonists list. He's exceptionally well written. In fact all gta IV characters are.

[@GTAHeavyImpact]

Niko's a legend!

[@nathanjereb9944]

"A biology of a protagonist is always superficial, unless they re well written" This!

[@AdrenAlineSK]

He said "at least compared to whether or not the character is well written". Completely diferent meaning. 2:45

[@Boryspitzanzx]

Niko is not the type of guy who will do anything for no reason. To him loyalty is beyond everything. Even questioning it infuriates him. He is literally on the hunt because of it. Edit: he is the bro that when you call will come on suicide mission with you.

[@scottthewaterwarrior]

IDK, I personally loved the game play of GTA IV. The on foot was a little clunky, but the shootouts were usually pretty slow and methodical, so it still worked out. Contrast this to GTA V were the on foot controls still feel almost as clunky, but the shootouts are very fast paced with aggressive and very accurate enemies.

[@drearmouse9510]

Right on. One of the best protagonists of all time. I was like, 18 when I played GTAIV and for whatever reason, Niko's journey was such a beautiful gutpunch, especially near the end.

[@TheStrangeBloke]

Fun fact! While Niko is definitely Serbian, he has a few items in his possession (most notably a leather jacket) that bear the Albanian flag on them. Since Niko was a soldier in the Serbian Army, its likely that these items were literally looted off the corpses of Albanian men he killed. Nice bit of subtle storytelling a friend from Kosovo pointed out to me.

[@TheStrangeBloke]

@@thealariko Oh I think that's right. Still, its an interesting bit of storytelling, given the history

[@TheSpookiestSkeleton]

I had no clue that Niko had that kind of depth to his character

[@Jurgan6]

Definitely agree. That said, and as you point out early on, there’s a lot of gameplay-story segregation. An early mission has Nico say “I promised I wouldn’t kill anymore!” I’m like- game, did you not see the high speed chase I just went on?

[@maximillion322]

I love these so much but I sure wish they were longer. I understand Yahzee already puts in a ton of work for the escapist, so he doesn't have a lot of time, but I do miss the days when and episode of Dev Diary could be upwards of ten minutes without a full minute and a half sponsorship at the beginning. I really love hearing Yahzee just talk about things that interest and excite him, because I always feel like I learn something.

[@theescapist]

Yahtzee writes as much as he wants to for these, there's no time limit placed on him. And the sponsors support the team. There's a whole team of people working on these videos from Matt the editor, to the social team, to myself working with Yahtzee to create ideas. It's a small inconvenience to keep making this content.

[@sid6645]

I mean its literally under your control. I don't condone it but you could just skip the ad if you hate it so much.... Because you are watching it for free. Kinda.

[@maximillion322]

@@sid6645 I'm not complaining about the existence of the ad, I just wish there was more video to go with it.

[@maximillion322]

@@theescapist That's good to hear, I love this content, I only wish there were more of it

[@marusgoren9977]

Always liked the theory that Nico is the main antagonist from Behind enemy lines

[@katsasgeorge]

We need more character dives like this, Yahtz.

[@KingOfElectricNinjas]

I feel like a key part of Niko is that you see him 'off the clock' as it were and doing casual things. Things mentioned like the conversation with the mob boss's wife, where he has an honest conversation with and opens up to a complete stranger, he has hobbies and social activities like the infamous bowling, he makes observations and has discussions about culture, showing he's paying attention and thinking about what's around him. You get a feel for who he is and how he'd react to all kinds of situations. That's a rare and tricky thing to pull off with a character- either very complex or very simple ones that are nonetheless well developed. Kazama Kiryu coming up made me compare a bit to the Yakuza games, where the characters also engage in recreational activities in the form of minigames and sidequests with casual conversations and interactions that give them a little more depth, but they tend to lean a bit more into the wackiness and/or melodrama that makes it harder to take seriously. (And you're probably not supposed to)

[@deepfriedicecream576]

when you said that Niko being a violent murderer isnt something he wants to do but its just good at, and is more jaded to killing as killing comes easy for Niko, i begin to wonder about new vegas, as its what ive been playing recently, and a thought came across my head. i dont have to murder people in new vegas. there may not always be a non violent path, but you as the player can make the decision to either kill or not kill. running away from a fight has always, always been a choice. you arent required to pick up a gun to beat the game, you might not finish the quest, might even fail, but you have that option. you can defeat the final boss by telling him that if he does succeed in the Legion's mission to conquer the west, the Legion will not survive, and will run into the same issues as the NCR by spreading themselves too thin. with that in mind, i wondered, "why do i always fight back?" my survival is not guaranteed even if i do fight back so why do i do it anyways? the biggest and main reason is that its a video game, and shooting someone point blank with a sawed off shotgun fired in one hand and watching their body explode into a bloody paste will never not be funny, and never gets old. but another, much more small reason why is simply because i am not actively thinking about my morality in combat. i just kill, sometimes for fun. maybe thats the intended purpose, for me to reflect and feel bad about killing when the option for peace was always there, rather than having the video game yell at me for blowing a dog up with an explosive arrow (tlou2). its not my fault you gave me an exploding arrow and a group of NPCs standing just a bit too close to one another. thats like getting mad at the pig chasing the carrot dangled in front of it. its not the pigs fault, its whoever put a pig in a damn harness and dangled a fucking carrot just out of reach of its fat face. anyway i think this is an exercise you cant really practice in most video games. New Vegas is the only game i can think of off the top of my head that lets me not kill a soul despite the opening cutscene featuring a sniper killing a raider, factions scouting and training for war, and you the player being tied to a chair, robbed, shot in the head, and buried in a shallow grave. if the player in New Vegas was an established character, i doubt anyone would lets something like this roll over their shoulder and chalk it up to be another lesson life throws at you sometimes. but it very well could be. you were a failed attempt at a murder, anyone would be feeling a range of intense emotions, and i imagine a second chance at life, something nobody ever really gets, might be just enough to hang your hat, and give up that fast paced living. of course i dont imagine that players should be more mindful of how they treat pixels on a screen. not everyone is worth crying over, and not everyone is deserving of life because they take advantage of the good will of others or disliked your favorite thing. i just think that the meta commentary New Vegas brings to the table is strong, intentional or not. epilogue: as i finished writing this and reread it because im crazy and think people will judge me for being wrong about a thought i had, i remembered Dishonored and Prey. both of those games have graphic combat, and both give you superpowers to make killing more fun and easier. but both games also allow you to not kill a single thing, effectively sneaking away from any and all threats and still make it to the other side, but i think the reason i didn't think about those games is for the game being aware of its morality system and conveying the morality as black and white, while also making that choice a core part of the themes and story. kill too many people and you get the bad ending, kill nobody and you get the good ending. New Vegas doesn't comment on the players choices like that most of the time. some characters are evil, and killing them grants positive karma. thoughtless murder gives negative karma. self defense, if combat is not started by the player, gives you neither good or bad karma. maybe its a gameplay balance thing so you cant farm karma points, or supposed to be intentionally vague. either way, still a fun thought.

[@joshuazane3210]

Love the comparison between hauling an entire armory in your trouser pockets and bringing in the groceries. Top notch. 👌

[@jeremycards]

Man its kinda surprizing these extra punctuation didn't happen sooner, they are super interesting. Keep em up Yatz!

[@Youre-so-right]

You are the only reason i watch, by far the funniest out the bunch and on point, win win

[@MattGamesYT]

Would love to see one of these on Walker from Spec Ops, there's a strong argument to be made for him being the best written character this decade and one of the very few games that is actually a 'horror' game rather than a 'gore' one. There's bits of that shit that stick with me far more than any amount of silent hills or resident evils.

[@avramnovorra]

I second this!

[@sharrpshooter1]

This is probably the most we have learned about Yahtzee in a single video ever

[@JohnScigulinsky]

I would like to point out, that in the first portion of the game, Niko gets an email from his mother. It's in sort of broken English, she talks about missing him but understanding he needs to be in America and live his life far away from her. This one single email is heartbreaking, for some reason, every time I re-play the game, I read it all and tear up. Just goes to show that this particular protagonist and his entire family is lost to sadness and misery and Rockstar painted the whole picture so well...

[@josh8215]

This was a good one. More like this please.

[@85wutaiflea]

I really enjoyed this one. I hated playing GTA 4 myself, but I do sometimes think about some of those lovely character interactions in it and get a weird nostalgia for it (I also feel kinship with anyone who brings their groceries in using the "death or glory" model).

[@toastonline4]

I just started playing GTA 4 again last week and I’ve been singing its praises to my friends that haven’t played it since 2012 for its character work, especially in regards to Niko.

[@elililja3344]

Yesss!! i played gta iv aloooong time ago, i don't remember a whole lot but i remember really liking the scene with the mobsters wife, i hadn't seen something like that in a video game before! nice video!

[@kevinmilhim646]

Mark my words, the next Extra Punctuation is going to be about how the Merchant from Resident Evil 4 is the greatest NPC in video game history.

[@Pazuzu4All]

He just sounds so happy to see you!

[@Boooozle]

Man, I just finished playing this game for the first time in years, and while I do personally like the gameplay (after a /very/ long period of readjusting to it), Nico and his story is definitely the best part of it. Thanks for making this video!

[@TheGreatSilas]

100% nailed it Yahtzee. Niko is one of my few favorites as well.

[@HaloGunslinger77]

This is the video I didn't know I needed to see today

[@colberg94]

Awesome video! Tommy Vercetti will always have a special place in my heart, as he both embraces that he is an 80's action movie character and still shows a lot of tenderness with Kelley (printworks) and Papi Rubina (Cuban cafe). For me, one of Rockstar's greatest achievements will always be the utter trolling of both Niko and many players that is Bernie Crane. He went through the same shit as Niko and came out okay. He is the most effeminate gay character possible and a total sweat heart and I bet it threw many a 'phobe for a loop. He is also the one who can most relate to Niko's struggles and just wants to help him and be his friend. He humanises Niko to an insane degree.

[@NeapolitanApe]

I wouldn't say he came out alright he kind of has split personality disorder, when he gets mad he goes back to Florian Cravic (his original self) but became Bernie Crane after coming to America

[@GTAHeavyImpact]

4:23 Vlad, Vlady-boy!

[@BrezhdaGame]

i live in a town in northern New jersey and the guy that voiced Niko lives two houses down on my street, sometimes i shovel his driveway in the winter

[@2Scribble]

2:42 - this man GETS me

[@fjclarke3571]

I've been a fan of Yahtzee's since ZP started, but for some reason I never kept up with Extra Punctuation until they became videos. I have to say, I think it's quickly becoming my favourite of the two series - I used to like Yahtzee purely for his humour, but as he's gone along I've really come to appreciate the insight he has into the games industry and how games are made, and EP is basically that distilled down. I guess what I'm trying to say is that this is great and we need more of it!

[@i_smoke_ghosts]

well said!

[@kyleegan2830]

Oh hey! I was just marathoning Yahtzee yesterday. Glad he’s got a new upload

[@ronjohnson6916]

Car unloading is an underused skill tree. Good on you for branching out in that direction.

[@EmeralBookwise]

That part about goals personal to the character as opposed to generic save the world schtick cannot be underrated. This is not only how one crafts more believable and relatable characters, this is also how one avoids the problem of sequels having to constantly raise the stakes to ever increasingly absurd degrees. It's a lesson of value not just to video game writers either, but something EVERY media franchise could benefit from.

[@user-rk2xi7iw9k]

Niko>>>>>the protagonists of gta5

[@CinosTheHedgehog2000]

There's an idea for next month's video. Just from that crack you made about Kazuma Kiryu, I would like to see a video about understanding the character of Kiryu and the world he lives in. At least before the Yakuza series became the Like a Dragon series. Although you could just make the video that and briefly mention Kiryu and his character.

[@domasavpedzivin]

*Niko Bellic is one of the best developed (GTA) characters, inspired by the fictional character of Sasha Ivanic (from the movie "Behind the enemy lines") and it also looks that He was created to some extent to resemble Boško Radonjić also known as "The Yugo" , a real life Serbian immigrant criminal that was operating in New York in the '70s ,* *He's arrival by the boat in LC kinda reminds of the arrival of Antonio Montana in the movie SCARFACE.* *One more fun fact, Grand Theft Auto Vice City stories plot is also more adult , tragic , showing that the life of a criminal can have damaging consequences* *Also let's not forget 'bout the two additional protagonists from the EFLC plots , Johnny Klebitz bears some similarities with the Protagonist of The Sons of Anarchy which is Jackson 'Jax' Teller and with the /real life/ Sonny Barger , on the other hand Luis Lopez bears similarities to Peoples Hernandez from Shaft and /real life/ Amado Carrillo Fuentes* *I've found another fun fact , it turns out that there was a Restaurant , night club and ...Cabaret in Brooklyn's Brighton Beach Ave...which was owned by a Russian Mobster, 'twas known as the Odessa*

[@riverbecomesastorm375]

Character analysis is one of my favorite aspects of game review, and there's nothing more awesome than it being made by Yahtzee.

[@Johny40Se7en]

Couldn't have said it better myself. Truly loved this, as I do GTA IV and its timeless fathomless writing depths. Dan Houser and Rupert Humphries did a magical job with GTA IV 🙂😊

[@arcengal]

100% agree. GTA4 was my first game in the series and I loved the story and characters way more than the gameplay.

[@PowerUpT]

Next ZPEP: Why Yahtzee is Able to Get That Many Shopping Bags Out at Once

[@basimaziz]

Taking notes while watching this.

[@EngieMak]

Alway disappointed that Niko doesn't get a chance for the "American dream" when he finally get his revenge, its already close to the end. Roman's debt that caused many problems solved itself by a phone call without Niko help Yea yea sad ending "This is what the dream feel like" but i prefer giving Niko ability to buy properties or invest in Roman cab business, so he can live out the American dream before it come crashing down

[@ImaginaryPerson1138]

Man, I want these episodes to last way longer than they do

[@Robwithakick]

Still love this game. It really holds up. And yes, Nico is my favorite GTA protagonist, as well.

[@sethporter3145]

This video made me realize that GTA IV told a far superior story about the lust for revenge and the negative consequences that arise far better and more nuanced than The Last of Us: Part II, a game made 12 years later with a larger budget, cast and publisher support.

[@spacejamgaming]

Playing this game right now on my low specs laptop!! I love this game already ❤️.

[@TakeMyLunch]

Damn Yahtzee is so relatable. I too can get the groceries out of the car in a surprisingly small amount of trips.

[@burstangelrules]

Is that yomarz!? I haven't seen him in years, glad to see him doing well

[@theescapist]

Yea, he's the Lead Media Producer here on The Escapist!

[@SuperCrazyfin]

4:13 ...Or Bosnia, plus if he's Catholic that would mean he's more likely to be a Croatian, something that you wouldn't always be able to tell because in some regions of either country the languages are basically the same.

[@Jolezloba]

What do you mean the languages are basically the same?!

[@i.cs.zamodits]

​@@JolezlobaIt means that they are so similar a lot of liguists consider them dialects of the same language instead of separate languages.

[@Jolezloba]

@@i.cs.zamodits I'm Serbian, that was a joke.

[@Strike86]

The series peaked with IV - I really thought they'd cracked writing interesting characters and strong storylines, not to mention world depth, detail and immersion. Then V came out and they'd seemingly thrown everything they'd perfected into the dustbin.

[@svenneumann2816]

Gta IV was a game I played like 6 years before I was allowed to(since that was the Era of "videogames cause violence") but the only thing I really took away from it were niko socializing, his tragic past and the romance. I played it with my even younger cousin and tbh it's one of my fondest memories.

[@DeanGWolf]

I was wondering if one of these weeks we could get an update on how Star Struck Vagabond has been coming along during Extra Punctuation? Kinda worried Yahtzee's not been able to keep working on it with Extra Punctuation and it will be longer until we get it.

[@theescapist]

We're workshopping ideas on Dev Diary. He hasn't had much to update for the last year because it's just been finishing up the main story. Expect updates soon though.

[@kingsleycy3450]

I like Niko Bellic better than the GTA 5 cast, but the GTA 5 cast are better suited for a GTA game.

[@shiknobi2055]

6:49 Damn dude, no need to flex on us this hard

[@napalmkitty6686]

props to whoever was playing that footage. I love using free aim mixed with complex or basic reticule. cant stand those video where they just lock on to everything YOUR MISSING OUT ON EPIC HEADSHOTS!

[@FromThe9thDimension]

Couldn’t agree more, GTA4 is by far my favourite of the series simply because of Niko, and Roman as well.

[@darcyhaze_r913]

I love hearing points Yahtzee made 9 years ago in LDO

[@Wertyber]

you just feel so connected to his character

[@Shakes-Off-Fear]

Thank you Yahtz! This is exactly what I didn’t get from GTA V’s protagonists, hell, ALL of GTA V’s characters. The characters in GTA IV felt like real people with real lives outside of just being violent criminals, with ambitions and dreams outside of that life. GTA V’s characters just feel like… well, characters in a video game. Devin Weston is a bastard. Why? Cos he’s supposed to represent a corrupt corporate executive and that makes him the villain. Dimitri Rascalov is also a bastard but because of everything he’s gone through as a character.

[@maximo34]

Keep being awesome