Two friends were sitting down, playin' some GTA IV on their 360. The owner of the 360 kept taunting his buddy that a PC version of GTA IV isn't coming out, so he decided to pull a little prank on Rockstar. They sent an e-mail giving problems about trying to play GTA IV on the PC, using an all-in-one TV/Computer so Rockstar would pay some attention to it. They got an e-mail saying that "The PC version of GTA IV has not even been announced for release and is still in development so is not about...

"In May, both Activision and Vivendi Games also withdrew their membership of the Entertainment Software Association, which organises the show.

Bobby Kotick, chief executive of the new company, which describes itself as "the world's most profitable pure-play online and console game publisher", told Variety the company was now too big for its needs to be met by the ESA and suggested it would be appointing its own lobbyist in Washington in place of the association.

E3 was deliberately downs..."

"Anyone who’s played GTA IV remembers that infamous rape scene in the game, which allowed to accumulate points and…what’s that? You…you don’t remember that? Oooooh, that’s right, because there wasn’t one. Well, try explaining that to Connecticut Senator, Gayle Slossberg (D). She’s apparently convinced that the rape scene is there, she just has to get far enough along in the game to access it. At a press conference last week, she stated a law requiring clearer warning labels was needed to curb ..."

"So does media imitate society, or does society imitate media? Since both are extensions of human nature, the answer can only be both. But as a video game, GTA is just a simulation - a make-believe world where you have no consequences for shooting peoples' heads off or cutting up cops with chainsaws while stoned off your ass.

These troubled teens have learned the hard way that reality doesn't translate well from video games and that they can't get away with everything.

Interestingly, ..."

"I think it’s safe to say that the era of next-gen gaming as a driving force is over. Why? As of the week ending June 7th (the most recent tally available), just over 9 million copies of the highly touted Grand Theft Auto IV had been sold worldwide for the Xbox 360 and Sony PS3 combined, according to VGChartz.

That may seem impressive, until you start looking closer — which Microsoft, Sony, and the many publishers who develop for their respective consoles are surely doing now. For one thin..."

"1. Fixed an issue where players were unable to enter or exit vehicles in GTA Race.

2. Fixed an issue where scripted vehicles were causing games to unexpectedly crash.

3. Improved reliability and frequency of PS3 online leaderboard updates.

4. Fixed a rare hang some players encountered when moving from a Race or GTA Race lobby into gameplay.

5. Fixed a hang that would occur when players were switching teams during the countdown in the lobby."

"It took just 10 days for video game maker Funcom Inc. to sell 400,000 copies of its newest title, Age of Conan, last month, making it one of the year's most successful debuts.

But for now, you can't play it on popular living-room consoles like Sony's PlayStation 3, Microsoft's Xbox 360, or Nintendo Wii. Age of Conan is available only on desktop computers that use Microsoft's Windows operating system. PC gamers say its success helps debunk a popular belief: That console games have crushed t..."

"On Monday, chip maker Advanced Micro Devices, which already supplies the graphics power for the Nintendo Wii and the Xbox 360, showed the "SNL" skit at an event in San Francisco. Then AMD gave a taste of what it says a game maker can do with its new microprocessor: A 30-second clip of what appeared to be a real scorpion skittering around a terrarium, presumably hunted by another equally terrifying bug. The scorpion demo was made by the film director David Fincher (director of "Fight Club") on..."

"As expected Metal Gear Solid 4 has rocketed to the top of the All Formats All Prices video game chart, knocking Activision's LEGO Indiana Jones down to No.2 and GTA 4 down to No.3

1: METAL GEAR SOLID 4: GUNS OF THE PATRIOTS
2: LEGO INDIANA JONES: ORIGINAL ADVENTURES
3: GRAND THEFT AUTO IV
4: MARIO & SONIC AT THE OLYMPIC GAMES
5: DR KAWASHIMA'S BRAIN TRAINING"

"Metal Gear Solid 4 will drive more PS3 hardware sales than the mighty GTA IV did, say industry analysts, despite GTA IV having been the biggest-selling entertainment launch in the history of the universe.

Sales of PS3 are up 150 percent over last year and, according to Eedar's Jesse Divnich, this storming success will continue, and even accelerate, with the release of Konami's blockbuster.

"Sony's PlayStation 3 can claim a relative small victory as its hardware unit sales were up 150% ..."

Despite winning 2 Guinness Awards and help aiding the UK's economy for the month of April It didn't really boost Console sales. It did boost Software sales alot, but didn't exactly push meaningful increment of console sales for 360 and PS3 according to analyst Colin Sebastian.

Makes you wonder what was the cause of this, you would think getting these types of awards was going to move some meaningful sales.

"Microsoft has informed CVG that the first DLC episodes for Xbox 360 are still on track for a "fall 2008" release, following earlier reports of a delay.

In a recent statement, Take-Two CEO Ben Feder said that the first of the DLC had been shifted to Q1 of the company's fiscal year 2009.

But that doesn't mean it's out in the calendar year 2009, says MS, who tells us the plan is still to release the first downloadable episode on Xbox in 2008.

"The first of the Xbox 360 exclusive "Grand..."

Getting 100% in any GTA game is usually a long tedious task. However the Stat Tracker at Rockstars Social Club shows that somebody named jiu-jitsu_4420 beat GTA4 100% with a time of 10:50:09.
2nd place has a time of 15:01:03 by a user called mr01italia which is over 5 hours more then jiu_jitsu.
3rd Place is jgtc22 with a time of 15:01:10. Just 7 seconds shy of 2nd place.

See the image attached to this story for the Top 10 100% Achievers on the PS3.
Under 11 hours to beat GTA4 100% wou...

"Those waiting for more Grand Theft Auto IV content will have to wait a little bit longer. According to Take-Two's Fiscal Q3 2008 report, the first batch of GTA IV downloadable content will be coming in Q1 of fiscal 2009, instead of the originally planned Q4 of fiscal 2008. In real calendar terms, that means the DLC, which is rumored to include whole new cities, is due between November 1, 2008, and January 31, 2009.

The reason behind the delay, according to Take-Two, was to "provide a bette..."

"GTA IV focuses its listless energy on exemplifying the world of organized crime. The entire purpose of Grand Theft Auto was basking in the hysterics of DISorganized crime!"

"Codemasters’ Race Diver: Grid debuts at No2 in the chart, while Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Games and Wii Play both jump one place, to third and fourth respectively, following sales increases of 66 percent and 40 percent.

Soccer titles Pro Evolution Soccer 2008 and FIFA 08 both move up the rankings, the Konami title by two spots to No5 and the EA game by one place to No8.

Ubisoft’s PS3-exclusive Haze falls from No3 to No6, while Sega Superstars Tennis jumps from No15 to No7. Call of D..."

"After being evaluated by several ratings organizations worldwide, the game was assigned a “mature” rating - this is 17+ in the United States and 18 in Europe and the United Kingdom. Moreover, the ESRB has repeatedly urged consumers to use the ratings as a guide, and that the word “mature” in the ratings is equally as important as the number.

In other words, this game is not intended to be played by curious youth about to get their first look at a pair of boobs, Samhita.

Ironically, by t..."

"Target was having a deal where if you bought both an Xbox 360 Pro and a copy of Grand Theft Auto IV , you would receive a $50 Gift Card. Thinking it was a good deal, our noble protagonist goes down to his local Target and picks up the Xbox 360 Pro and GTA IV. He buys the console and game, goes home, unboxes the machine and… well, I’ll let him explain:

The X-Box was *bleep*ing gutted. All that’s in there? All the cables and whatnot, the case, and inside that, the book “A Series of Unfortuna..."

"If there's any game likely to remove GTA IV from the top of the German charts, it's a PC game, and Age of Conan has gone and done it.

Funcom's Hyborian Adventures went and nabbed the number one chart slot from Rockstar in both Germany and Sweden, sending GTA IV to number two in the territories.

In the UK, GTA IV still reigns supreme, with Conan sitting pretty in number two.

In Spain though, both Conan and GTA failed to reach the top spot; Wii Play took instead. Girls: stop buying it!..."

"When you got your special edition copy of Grand Theft Auto IV, did you ever think 'Hey, that would make an awesome case for a PC?' No? Well, Mark Harris did. So there.

During a quiet spot at work, Harris took a miniITX system and saw the potential in its size. "Normally I don't see the point in buying limited / special editions of computer games," he told us, "as they come with items that you will find yourself throwing away after a while."

"Voice actor Michael Hollick was paid £100,000 for his fifteen-month stint as Niko Bellic in Grand Theft Auto IV.

Hollick, who was an unknown quantity before the game's blockbuster success, has mixed opinions on whether or not he was given a reasonable amount for his role in the biggest entertainment product of all time.

"Obviously I'm incredibly thankful to Rockstar for the opportunity to be in this game when I was just a nobody, an unknown quantity," he said last week according to the ..."

"During a one-on-one interview with Itagaki in London last Friday, Team Ninja's main man offered his thoughts on Grand Theft Auto IV. "I think it's made extremely well and is a fun game," he said.

"People always use that as an example of violence in games. But I don't think there's anyone who takes their job as seriously as the guys who make that game. You only have to look at all the detail in there.""

"Take-Two rightly ignored the option of releasing for the Nintendo Wii even though the Wii is the best selling, so far, of the next generation systems. The Wii is carving out a niche market that offers it a larger sales base, but is not as popular with the demographic likely to love the new Grand Theft Auto IV. The Wii appeals to older gamers and women who appreciate its interactivity and the fitness promotion products that Nintendo is developing, but for the boys who love GTA the battle was a..."

"By 'them', of course, he is referring Sony. More specifically he's referring to David Reeves, president of Sony Computer Entertainment Europe.

When Reeves was asked, "Is it damaging to Sony and PlayStation that there is no DLC for GTA IV on PS3?", he responded, "Well I think you probably will see it, it's just that a deal obviously was struck between Microsoft and Take 2 to do that. And if that's what they want to do, I think that's the last shot they have."

Probed further, Reeves becam..."

"PlayStation 3 firmware update 2.35 is now available. According to the US PlayStation Blog, v2.35 is "a relatively minor update to improve stability of some PS3 titles." We're willing to wager a handful of stolen cars that "some PS3 titles" is a better way of saying Grand Theft Auto IV

Update: As noted in the comments of the blog by Sony's Al de Leon, this upgrade does not fix GTA IV. Said de Leon, "I just want to clarify that this upcoming firmware update isn't related to GTA IV. For those..."

"Mr. Houser denies using those words, but says he has often felt the sentiment they imply. "That's an area I've grown up in, definitely," he says."

""Grand Theft Auto would be super interesting for me, and I think I would actually be the right guy to do it, because my movies are all bloody and violent and I don't have a problem with action scenes," said Boll. "But look, they will go, in the end, with a Michael Bay or a Brett Ratner, and it will be a PG-13 movie made for $150 million. I think it would be better to make a $30 million, very hard, brutal movie without compromising, but I'm not optimistic.""

"But just how many of these consoles flying off the shelves are bought with the sole reason of playing Grand Theft Auto 4 in mind? Well, it seems in the Xbox 360 side, 40% of the green machines being sold have the game going with them.

This comes directly from Major Nelson podcast co-host e, who cited the statistics in the latest talk session with some of the industry's big celebrities. Here's his quote, verbatim: "Roughly 40 percent of consoles going out the door had a copy of GTA going wi..."

"Now on its second week out, Grand Theft Auto 4 still dominates the charts in the UK. Not only that, but it's managed to keep its place on top despite a massive 77% drop in sales.

The latest update also seems to give weight to Microsoft's claim that the Xbox 360 version is more popular than the PlayStation 3 one. According to Chart Track, the 360 version accounted for 62% of sales last week, compared to its 55% margin the previous week."

"With Grand Theft Auto IV breaking records and taking names, Rockstar has decided that before EA commits it’s hostile take over, they had better get started on GTA V. I’m sure they believe, as we all do, that if Rockstar doesn’t get going on GTA V, they could find GTA IV being re-released without an I. Nobody wants that.

The first order of business is to find a city. They’ve already done New York, LA, Vegas, San Fransisco and Miami, so it’s time to think about a change of scenery. This mont..."

"Thank you for your patience while we continue to work to resolve this hardware-related issue. We have provided your information to Sony, and they will be contacting you directly to assist in the repair and/or replacement of your PLAYSTATION 3 console.

Once again, we sincerely apologize for any inconvenience this has caused. Please provide us with your mailing address and shirt size at your earliest convenience, as we would like to send you something as a token of our appreciation for yo..."

"I was messing about with the Story Gang thing on the Social Club website. I noticed you could click and drag the things about that are under the story book. I found a plane ticket. Have a wee look and see for yourselves..."

"We are extending the 100% Club Contest for an extra two weeks to ensure that everyone has a chance to get in on the action. Stay tuned for further details and keep going for 100%!"

"Rockstar Games has released a GTA IV patch for Playstation 3 today that prevents Gamespy’s servers from being overloaded and therefore reduces the impact on those servers that were causing the game to stutter and lock up. We continue to monitor the performance of the game both on and offline and will provide further updates as necessary. We want to assure everyone that, together with our hardware partners, we continue to strive to give our fans the best possible interactive entertainment expe..."

"Rockstar parent Take-Two has splurged the news that GTA IV has topped a massive $500 million in sales in its first week of release.

It's additionally confirmed that GTA IV's sold around six million units to date, approximately 3.6 million of which went on opening day.

That means GTA IV has broken all entertainment records for day one and week one sales by dollar value, according to the publisher. Should you want some kind of comparison, Halo 3 did $300 million in its first week (althoug..."

"I know most gamers don't give a shit about ethics and the videogame press, but if you can't appreciate what's going on here then something is seriously wrong with you. Now I can't officially say what caused this change, but given Gamespot's record of pandering to videogame publishers and firing their own employees for not giving high enough scores what do you think is going on here? It's insane!

Now I love the GTA franchise. I'd go as far as saying that it's my favorite franchise ever. How..."

"Speaking to Eurogamer, a Sony source explained that the patch would help by "reducing the loads on the servers at GameSpy and hopefully the completely random hangs that some users have seen"."

"NEW YORK (Reuters) - The publisher of the controversial "Grand Theft Auto 4" video game sued the Chicago Transit Authority on Monday, accusing it of pulling ads promoting the blockbuster without explanation.

The video game's publisher Take-Two Interactive Software Inc. sued the transit authority in Manhattan federal court for violating its free speech and contractual rights, saying it pulled its posters within days of the ads first appearing on April 22.

Take Two accused the authority a..."

"Microsoft didn’t see GTAIII on the Xbox until 2003. It was bigger, better and had more features on the Xbox. It sold very well considering the lower install base of the Xbox. By this time however, it was too late. The PS2 was already dominating the console world. GTAIII was a household name and it was the game that sent the PS2 into celebrity hardware status. Even after the game finally arrived for the Xbox, it continued to sell well on the PS2. Those single console owners that had Xboxes sti..."

""What we've heard anecdotally from our retail partners is that the Xbox 360 version of the game is outselling the PS3 version by a margin of two-to-one," said Aaron Greenberg, director of product management for Xbox 360 and Xbox Live during an interview Thursday.

"That mirrors what we saw with pre-orders, but it continues to hold true at retail, at least for the first couple of days. It's a great sign."

In day-one sales in the UK, the Xbox 360 version of GTA IV outsold the PS3 version: ..."

"How many gaming consoles do you need? Could Grand Theft Auto IV put a chink in the Wii's armor? Or will the Nintendo Wii continue to stomp the Playstation 3 and XBox 360? Share your thoughts in our Reader Comments section below.

Early on, some industry analysts predicted trouble for Nintendo (other-otc: NTDOY.PK - news - people ): The Wii had a relatively pokey processor, it lacked a hard drive, its controls were unusual. Two years ago, developer Chris Hecker took those whispers into the o..."

"Given the apparent simplicity of the problem, I'm hoping Rockstar will come up with a quick and dirty patch next week, but we'll have to wait and see. For the moment, disconnecting the PS3's online capabilities seems to work just fine.

Other readers have also suggested disabling your PS3's wallpaper or, in desperate cases, deleting the game's save files and stored game content from your PS3's hard drive. Which obviously means you'll have to re-start your progress with a fresh install."

"Until then, we have a German website presenting the Grand Theft Auto IV PC version DVD case, together with a price and, what matters most for all of us: the release date. According to the website, the PC version of Rockstar's title will be made available starting the 30th of November this year. What should normally be a further proof that the date is correct (or, at least, that a PC version is in the works) is the fact that pre-order is available. It remains to see how and if Rockstar respond..."

"We all feared that if EA took over Take 2 they would destroy GTA forever just like they have done with takeovers in the past. I think that EA would have completely destroyed GTA by trying to make it ’their’ game and just lose that GTA touch altogether. It wouldn’t be GTA at all. No one can do it as good as Rockstar.

We no longer need to worry because it hasn’t happened and Take 2 has rejected all of EA’s offers.

What’s your view on this? Do you think EA had the potential to destroy the ..."

"A number of GTA4 fans, apparently exploiting a consumer loophole, have bought copies at the Dubai airport duty free shops. All 40 copies of the title at Dubai Duty Free sold on the April 29 release date, a salesman said yesterday. Another shipment of the game, for PlayStation 3 and Xbox360 consoles, has been ordered and is expected to be available in two or three months, he said.
This was treated as great news by Kris Karacinski, a PS3 owner and GTA fanatic who believed he would be forced to..."

"Those clever hackers have done it again! Hacker group VladsBoys’ analysis of the pirated copy of GTA IV for the 360 (leaked days before retail release) has reeled in a big one. The cyber-sleuths knew they were on the trail of something big and yes, you guessed it, they found another never-intended-for-retail-consumption chunk of code in a GTA game.
What the hackers found seems to be an abandoned mission that Rockstar at some point intended on including in the game. We have no idea how far in..."

"The Family Gamer and Grand Theft Auto IV don't necessarily go together. But as many of you have told me on my Twitter feed, this is just the sort of thorny subject you want to hear about. So here I reflect on my first two hours spent in Liberty City and find I am surprised by just how much health and life there is in the place."

"And so it begins: CNN reporter Glenn Beck has gone proper off on one, warning parents on television of the new 'murder celebrator' Grand Theft Auto IV, which he says is "training our kids to be killers". Ban this sick filth!

"Whatever happened to Pong?!" asks a furious Beck, going into a frenzied rant we thought only existed in GTA's own media-mocking radio shows.

"Here's what you need to know tonight; in Grand Theft Auto your son, husband or boyfriend can hire a prostitute, have sex wi..."

"Vice President of Rockstar Games and co-writer of GTA IV, Dan Houser, has given a revealing interview to the New York Magazine.

The first question was about how much the industry has changed since the last GTA was release a few years ago. "Yeah, *bleep* all this stuff about casual gaming. I think people still want games that are groundbreaking. The Wii is doing something totally different, which is fantastic. We're hopefully going to prove that there's also a very big audience for people w..."

"Roberson feels it can have an affect on those besides children.
"Yes, they are for mature audiences but why would adults even be playing them. I have no idea."
Robertson says the games reward bad behavior, which is how you win the game.
"You get rewarded for going to the prostitute. You get more health benefits, and then if you steal her money, beat her up and steal her money, you get more."
The doctor feels it becomes more detrimental the more someone plays such games.
"Just going to ch..."

"When did a videogame release become such a big deal?

Well, the U.S. videogame industry is worth a whopping $18.8 billion a year--that's less than McDonald's makes selling burgers and fries but 2.5 times as much as all the music CDs sold last year. It's also enough money to turn even the most conservative of entertainment executives' heads. Scott Steinberg, vice president of product marketing at Sony Computer Entertainment America, predicts we're about to see the "GTA Effect"--box office sa..."

"Yes, we are aware of what the message boards and a few of the industry blogs are saying about a 'freezing' issue with GTA IV on a limited number of PS3s. Although we have seen an extremely low volume of contacts to our customer service department regarding such an issue, we want to ensure that every consumer has a great experience on our console and with GTA IV. All parties involved are working to isolate the problem for those few units and identify a solution."

"Looks like someone was hitting the local GameStop midnight launch in his best cabana wear, as that puffiness and scruffiness is clearly indicative that the self-promoting attorney was pulling an all-nighter. Jack sent the above pic into tips, I presume, to fanboy out with us. We don't know your Gamertag, Jack, but would love to Bomb Da Base with you. PM me!"

"ChartTrack data shows game is now UK’s fastest-selling title in 24 hour period

Data obtained by MCV from official UK industry monitor ChartTrack shows that Rockstar’s GTA IV has become the fastest selling game ever in a 24 hour period.

The figures – based on EPoS sales data and estimated retail transactions – show that total online and High Street sales for the game hit 609,000 in one day.

That beats the previous record of 501,000 set by another Rockstar title, GTA: San Andreas, on F..."

"These are pretty tame elements, and nothing we haven't seen before in previous GTA games. The real issue comes from the game's obvious attempted humor in regards to the touchy subject of pedophilia. If players visit a particular website described as a site for child beauty pageants (www.Littlelacysurprisepageant.com) using the game's in built fantasy Internet, they instantly become wanted by the in game police for viewing questionable material."

"The video was a collection of “GTA IV” gameplay scenes. It starts with a montage of pole-dancing and lap-dancing. That’s followed by the drive-by shooting of a woman, then a visit to a strip club.

Footage of an acrobatic lap-dance is immediately followed by a scene of the game’s protagonist, Niko Bellic, gunning down a scantily-clad woman in the middle of the street.

Etcetera.

Why would IGN make a video like that?"

"It seems the PS3 version of GTA IV is having a few online issues as hoards of PS3 gamers hit the internet to complain.

According to their rants, dialing up the multiplayer mode on Niko's usually trusty mobile phone keeps them waiting as the game attempts to connect, before giving them a text message that reads: "Cannot connect to game provider, please try again later."

Of all the games to break, it should really not be this one.

Rockstar was unavailable for comment at the time of wri..."

"Rockstar has said "no comment" in response to reports that a PC version of GTA IV will release toward the end of the year.

In January we reported that French retailers had been cited as the source for an October 2008 release for the sequel on PC, and yesterday German e-tailer City Disc had a PC version down for November.

City Disc has now amended its listing to give an October 30, 2008 release, and translated accompanying text now apparently reads: "The release date for GTA 4 for PC has..."

"Rockstar has announced that the Social Club for Grand Theft Auto IV (Sony PlayStation 3, Sony Xbox 360) has officially launched, and with the passing of Day 1, they're tempting all GTA die-hards to accept their hardcore challenge.

Some of you are no strangers to the mechanics, we know, and if the title "Grand Theft Auto IV 100% Club Competition" wasn't obvious enough, the developers dare you to finish the game in as little as seven days.


If you haven't been concentrating on Niko Belli..."

"The man told me that the problem is apparently only effecting the 60 GB version of the Playstation 3. He said the problem is not across the board for the 60GB PS3s but rather only impacts some, so their tech folks are working around the clock to try and figure out what is causing the issue.

He ended the call by saying that they really have no idea when a fix will be coming because they can't figure out what is exactly causing the problem and then once more apologized.

"I feel terrible a..."

"The solution: Rockstar needs to release a patch that limits the strain on the RAM right out of the gate. Can they even do this? Who knows? They haven’t managed to make a game that doesn’t freeze in two years. Unless you count the mega epic “Table Tennis”."

"Me (well dressed upstanding citizen): Good day sir, I will take your finest copy of GTA IV for the 360.
Ass Clerk (yes I am almost positive this was his name): Do you have your copy reserved?
Me: Of course not.
AC: Sorry I can’t sell you a copy then.
Me: Are you kidding me?
AC: No. Try Babbages down the street.
Me: This is why this store sucks."

"The resolution itself is unsurprising since the game was ported from the Xbox 360, but the side by side comparisons carried out by numerous websites tell a more complex story. For example, in IGN’s head to head, the PS3’s Anti-Aliasing is cited as being the better of the two versions, even though the Xbox 360 has 2xAA. This could be due to the upscaling and post-processing effects smoothing the edges on the PS3."

"Yeah, you’ve probably seen people showing off their cellophaned GTA IV boxes, holding them aloft like they were proud parents or Olympic medal recipients. But this is for realz! Bonafide, even. A few of you have already gotten your sticky little fingers all over the Special Edition, so you already know the excitement currently radiating through the GR offices on this momentous day of days. Please, won’t you join us in celebrating Christmas in late-April by partaking in this visual fangasm."

"According to the news service, a 23-year-old man was attacked by a knife-wielding assailant as he passed a line outside the Gamestation. The victim was treated for several stab wounds and has since been released. The attacker, who police said appeared to be waiting in the line of about 50 to 100 people, was not apprehended.

In the mugging, an 18-year-old was robbed of his copy of the game and beaten as he walked home from the store with a friend. The victim was taken to the hospital with a..."

""Most of the young people who play these games know they’re only games," [said Smith]. "They’re smart enough to know they’re only games. It’s that small percentage that don’t realize, or that start thinking the wrong way, and end up getting themselves in trouble by thinking, ‘you know, this is cool, I can do this in real life.’

"This is all fun and games when you’re playing these games, but turn them off and forget about it, and know that that’s not real life. Because in real life you don’..."

"small number of PlayStation owners have reported problems with running Grand Theft Auto IV on their consoles, claiming the game keeps freezing.

"I got home from the midnight release with my copy of GTA IV Collectors Edition unpacked it live on the feed installed and guess what, it froze!" said Matt Griffin on his blog PlayStation Network Home. "I tried a couple more times and it even have reinstalled 3 times, it still keeps freezing.""

"The Joint Council for the Welfare of Immigrants has expressed its concern over the depiction of Niko in GTA IV, worrying the game could make life hard for Eastern Europeans.

"The figures show that East European immigrants are not proportionately responsible for any increase in crime," a spokesperson said to The Times. "This plays on untrue stereotypes."

The Grand Theft Auto series is no stranger to allegations of racism and stereotyping.

In November 2003, Cuban and Haitian groups in ..."

"What's that you say? GTA IV's only been out for a few hours, and already the internet's decided that both the PS3 and 360 versions are broken? That's what many forums - as well as many of our readers - would have you believe, with reports of the game locking up during/following the game's first cutscene, an error so severe you apparently have to unplug your console at the wall. Shades of Bully on 360, perhaps?"

"Finally Grand Theft Auto IV is in the shops, and the race is on to achieve Niko's American dream and get the key to Liberty City.
We know GTA IV's missions can get very tough at times, so here's our day one, no-nonsense guide to every mission in the game. Good luck.
...
Ivan's a pretty ropey driver, so the tough bit of this mission's chasing him across the rooftops. Chase him in car, across rooftops, stamp on his hands or let him go. This might affect what happens later, though..."

"I spoke to an employee of UPS over the weekend, and he told me that a surprising amount of workers were getting busted stealing the game from the shipment boxes. In one 24-hour period, three workers were fired, and more interviews were scheduled for today that would likely end in termination.

I asked if this was common when big-name games were released, and he told me no; the situation was novel, or he wouldn't have brought it up at all. The game was enticing enough for many workers to ris..."

"We know you can't wait to get your hands on this sandbox, action-adventure game; even the Guinness World Records has announced that it is keeping an eye on GTA IV to see if it will gain more gaming milestones upon its release.

Taking around US$ 100 million to make, Grand Theft Auto 4 is easily one of the most anticipated games of today, spurring controversies here and there. This is why Guinness World Records is wise to take notice. Besides, the Grand Theft Auto franchise has been a proven..."

"When Niko Bellic steps into a New York cityscape next week, he does so with the potential to become a defining figure of our times.

This grim-faced ex-soldier will visit prostitutes and casually run down pedestrians, helping to redefine the generational divide between outraged parents and their teenagers who cannot wait to spend hours exploring Bellic’s seedy world of drugs and gangsters.

Even before his arrival there is consternation at the ethnicity of the source of the mayhem — the..."

"IGN.com just came out with its review of "Grand Theft Auto IV" and it's a perfect 10 rave.

I want to note up front that I haven't played much of "GTA IV" yet, so I have absolutely no basis to claim it's not a 10. The bits of it I have seen in previews are really good. So I'm not at all accusing IGN of being dishonest in this particular case.

HOWEVER... what the hell is with the concept of an "exclusive review?" Is anyone else as troubled by this entire concept as I am?

I just got an ..."

Firstly please for forgive me for yet ANOTHER article about GTAIV but with only a day left, it seems obvious why there's such an influx of these...

This time I'm bringing two pieces of news. Firstly that you can actually activate cheats via your Mobile Phone by phoning certain numbers... and secondly that phoning these numbers can block Achievements stopping you from getting the full Gamerscore...

Could the same be true for the Playstation 3 Entitlements?

Oh and I've added a screens...

It was bound to be made sooner or later, and well... here it is. IGN Insider have put up a video comparing the XBOX360 version of Grand Theft Auto IV to the PS3 of the game, and comments are made along the way...

To summarise those comments in short, the PS3 version has faster loading time, whilst the XBOX360 has more vibrant colours. But take a look at the video yourself and judge it yourself...

Note: Due to some mix-up at GameTrailers, you'll have to go to the source to view the video...

"A video game in which players can buy cocaine, visit strip clubs, shoot police and set people on fire has been censored for New Zealand - but thousands are still expected to queue up when the game goes on sale at midnight tomorrow.
The censorship of Grand Theft Auto IV has forced the country's largest online retailer of games to cancel $50,000 worth of advance orders.
Gameplanet Store's website was inundated with orders from Australia this month for the violent gangster epic after it was re..."

"Enter one of the following codes during game play. A small box will appear to confirm correct code entry. Note: The following codes should be considered unconfirmed until the retail version of the game is available.

Weapons tier 1 Press R1, L2, R2, L1, Up, Down, Left, Right, Up.

Weapons tier 2 Press R1, L2, R2, L1, Right, Down, Left, Up, Right, Down, Left, Up.

Weapon tier 3 Press R1, L2, R2, L1, Right, Down, Left, Up, Right, Down, Left, Up, Right(2).

Run quickly Press R1(2), Left,..."

"We already expect Rockstar North to hit it big with Grand Theft Auto