GTA 5 Reviews: Believe the Hype! Critics Give 'Grand Theft Auto V' Near Perfect Scores, Arguably Best Game Of the Year

Both gamers and critics alike are praising "Grand Theft Auto V," giving the game near perfect ratings, making it a top contender to be one of the best games out this year.

Now, the year isn't over and we still have titles like "Assassin's Creed III: Black Flag" that will be released soon, but it's hard to ignore the hype around this game.

Though I have yet to get my hands on it (I know, shame on me for not pre-ordering! It slipped my mind), here's quick rundown of what industry professionals have to say about GTA 5:

VideoGamer.com, rating 10/10: "Unless you play it for yourself, it's near impossible to grasp how big GTA 5 is. It's not just the world. It's the gargantuan story, the sheer amount of missions and the variety introduced with them, the activities to take part in, or the secrets waiting to be unveiled. It's a highlight of the generation."

GamerInformer.com, rating 9.75/10: "Rockstar Games deserves credit for pushing the boundaries of its flagship franchise yet again with improved controls, great mission variety, and the most jam-packed open world I've ever visited. The narrative fails to match the impact of John Marston or Niko Bellic's tales, but the colorful characters kept me interested in the story nonetheless. Like the golden state it parodies, Grand Theft Auto V is filled with beautiful scenery, a wealth of activities, and the promise of fortune."

Mirror, rating 5/5: "For once, it's safe to believe the hype: as we stand on the cusp of a new era in console gaming, GTA V isn't just the greatest entry in one of its great series, it's also one of the entire medium's most accomplished and amazing achievements to date."

GiantBomb.com, rating 5/5:  "With Grand Theft Auto V, the franchise attempts to get it both ways, with another cluster of serious narrative that's told in an exciting way, but also in an occasionally more lighthearted one, as well. Sprinkle in a little bit of genuine weirdness and you've got a recipe for disaster that works in spite of itself, a well-told tale of criminals in mid-life crisis that doesn't always mesh properly with the trappings of your typical open-world crime simulator, but the individual parts are usually so good that it barely matters."