started this around the time when it first released and finally got around to booting it back up and playing it through to the end. remembered pretty early on why i first abandoned it years ago but this time around i was able to look past its repetition because the themes of America's deep-rooted racism and appropriation are portrayed brilliantly and it pulls zero punches in making the player feel the immense weight of every moment. the game certainly isn't without its fair share of flaws but i found this somewhat unfairly maligned. every complaint regarding the structural gameplay loop is valid and it did begin to feel grating after a while but in every other respect this checked all my boxes. the shift from its predecessors focusing on the mafia's interior while this follows a protagonist committed to tearing it down is an extremely bold direction, and the superb writing and character development really elevate this past its hiccups. would put the soundtrack up with Vice City as one of the best in gaming as well.