Grand Theft Auto IV takes players to a much more serious Liberty City than what players are use to. The game takes players to the criminal world of the city, where they play as Niko Bellic. Niko's past is revealed, from his life as a child to what causes him to come to Liberty City.
As the player progresses through the game, Niko's past can be revealed through missions or through friend activities. Some of the information is offered directly to the player, while other facts about Niko requires the player to do a little digging. Through digging, some interesting information about the character can be found.
10 Fought In Yugoslav Wars
Niko was born in Serbia and took part in the Yugoslav Wars during his teenage years. It is alluded during gameplay that Niko was a helicopter pilot and infantryman, revealing how he has the skills to fly and shoot guns. It was also revealed Niko's brother and aunt were killed during the war.
During the war, Niko's squad was ambushed and most of the soldiers were killed. Only Niko and two others survived, making Niko sure it was a setup. Niko was right, and got his revenge on the squad member, Darko Brevic, during his time in Liberty City.
9 Hunted By Ray Bulgarin
Niko worked for Ray Bulgarin in Europe until Bulgarin's ship sank in the Adriatic Sea. Niko swam to safety, and Ray was convinced Niko planned this and stole from him. Niko plans to escape Ray by coming to Liberty City. Unlucky for Niko, Ray comes to the city, too.
As the story progresses, it is revealed the antagonist, Dimitri Rascalov, is working alongside Bulgarin. Niko gets involved with trading diamonds later in the story, which is also revealed to be Bulgarin's. This angers Bulgarin even further towards Niko, but luckily Bulgarin is killed before anything can happen.
8 Police Record Can Be Found
Police records can be searched if the player is inside of a police car. It should be expected criminals like Patrick McReary would have a police record, but recent arrival Niko has a record already. Reading his file will reveal some interesting information about him.
It shows his only criminal activity as grand theft auto, while noting he is a recent immigrant. No matter how far the player progresses through the game's story, nothing new will be added to the record.
7 Can Wear Claude's Outfit
By killing Playboy X and taking his penthouse, players can find a familiar outfit in the closet. The outfit looks like the same black leather jacket and green pants worn by Claude in Grand Theft Auto III. Longtime fans of the series will appreciate this throwback.
Both games take place in Liberty City, and this outfit lets players dress up as an earlier protagonist. It should be noted, players can only acquire this outfit if they kill Playboy X instead of Dwayne Forge.
6 Cannot Reply Negatively To His Mother
Grand Theft Auto IV introduced emails, allowing the player to talk to other characters as the game progresses. With characters such as Roman or Brucie, the player can choose to respond negatively. This leads to Niko insulting the character or declining to speak to them on a subject.
Niko's mother emails him throughout the game, and trying to respond negatively still causes Niko to reply with something positive. It is good to know that despite the crime, Niko still loves and cares about his mother.
5 Has Highest Kill Count Of All Protagonist
Niko has an impressive kill count when compared to the other Grand Theft Auto protagonists, having 47 non-optional kills. Depending on the player's play style, they can kill over 80 named characters in Grand Theft Auto IV. Main missions and side jobs can raise the kill count.
Niko can take part in assassination contracts, hunting down criminals across Liberty City, and helping out random citizens. With the amount of missions the player can do in the game, it is no wonder Niko has accrued such a high amount of kills.
4 Most Likely In America Illegally
While in shootouts, Niko can yell to the police about how he has his papers. Despite this claim, Roman can say Niko does not have a visa and an online article about the Platypus, the ship Niko arrives on, mentions how none of the crew had visas. This could reveal Niko is an illegal immigrant.
After Niko helps the government later in the game, his illegal status could be overlooked. Maybe after the game is finished, Niko goes through the process to become a legal American citizen.
3 Indirectly Caused Lost - Angels of Death War
Without meaning to, Niko caused the war between The Lost MC and the Angels of Death. Niko was tasked with killing a member of The Lost, Jason Michaels, by Mikhail Faustin. In The Lost and Damned, it is revealed The Lost president Billy Grey used this as an excuse to attack the enemy gang.
Billy Grey says it was the Angels of Death who killed Jason Michaels, despite being told it was an Eastern European man. This doesn't stop The Lost from burning the enemy's club house and killing many of their members.
2 Has LifeInvader
In Grand Theft Auto V, players can find Jimmy de Santa looking at Niko's LifeInvader page. While being an Easter egg, it shows that Niko is alive by 2013. Familiar faces such as Little Jacob and Roman can be seen on Niko's friends list.
Posts on his account can be seen, such as wishing Roman a happy birthday and a picture of Chinatown. It seems as though social media has captured the attention of Niko.
1 May Have Given Up Life Of Crime
It is known that throughout Grand Theft Auto IV, Niko wanted to give up his life of crime and live peacefully. He may have gotten his wish after the events of the game. Lester Crest in Grand Theft Auto V mentions Niko indirectly as the man who robbed the bank in Liberty City, but mentioned he had gone quiet.
After losing either his girlfriend or his cousin in a shootout, it would make sense Niko would give up that life for good. With people close to him dying or getting hurt and his quest for vengeance over, Niko had no reason to keep committing crimes.