If you're a GTA fan like myself, you need to buy it, I have bought every GTA that has come out since III except for Chinatown Wars and the episodes, both of which I will eventually get. I would rank my games like this:

GTA SA> GTA: VC > GTA IV > GTA 3 > GTA LCS > GTA VCS

Love them all though.

hell yeah! red dead redemption = win!

I have a question. Does it matter if you finish the whole original campaign, and then only later install the expansions? Or does it enhance the experience of the original campaign to install both expansions right from the start?

What do the epxnsions do, they open completely new areas or they just put new guys in the existing world to get missions from?

Well from my experience, the DLC / disc version of episodes doesn't enhance the original game in any way. Weapons, exclusive vehicles and minigames are each exclusive to their given "game". It's a shame, that not even the disc version of both episodes doesn't communicate with each other, that atleast bikes or guns from TLoD could be used in TBoGT and vice versa (or atleast friggin TV shows). The only thing they share as far as I know are the radio stations.

But both episodes are gameplay varied, both focus on different areas that weren't as explored in original GTA, be it gameplay or city geographic. For the price it's one of the best choices you can make (disc version that is).

They're like standalone games, just shorter than GTA IV.

GTAIV is a good game - probably not deserving of 98 metacritic but it is still fun, large and deep. It leans more on the realism side rather than the wacky side and personally I do not mind it. I also loved the main character in the game - Niko.

At the same time, if you hated Episodes not sure you'll like the main one.