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Some GTA IV details, Rockstar claims 66% complete

Nick Doerr
Updated ·2 min read

The UK's Official Xbox Magazine uncovered some more dirt on the upcoming Rockstar flagship title, Grand Theft Auto IV. Why are we referring to an Xbox magazine? Because the details contained are going to apply to the PS3 version as well, we're certain. We'll summarize the findings, as we love to do so greatly (do you appreciate bullet point summaries as much on any other site? Didn't think so!).

  • Rockstar claims a 66% completion rate on GTAIV.

  • "Liberty City" is bigger than any city they've ever done before (taking into account the loading splits between city areas in older games). The real key is in the level of detail.

  • Expect Central Park to make an entrance, but it'll have a fictional name. Let's see ... Middle City Square Recreational Outdoor Facility?

  • Manual aiming seems to make a debut, as when Niko pulls a pistol, a little crosshair appears on screen. Let's hope it's a more refined aiming system than, say, 50 Cent Bulletproof. Also, there will be some "ridiculous" weaponry ... expect Bubble Guns and Potato Launchers.

  • Hand-to-hand combat is getting reworked to feel more natural.

  • You can climb outdoor fire escapes! Sometimes, meetings take place in high offices of skyscrapers where it's rumored you can toss people right out the window. Eccentric!

  • You might be able to change your camera view in a car to suit your needs (it's still being worked on). Controls will shift, especially control of the radio. Cops will have adjusted reactions, etc.

  • Boats are coming back with "really nice" handling.


What wasn't covered was the deal with disc storage space. While it's been said that the DVD media format and lack of hard drive in all 360s may hamper some features of the game, we're still unsure if the extra space for Blu-ray is going to be taken full advantage of on the PS3 version of the game. I've got a rant on the tip of my fingers, but I'll digress. It's shaping up to be a fine game. Let's hope it doesn't turn into just a pretty version of the last-gen GTA's.

[Thanks, Jonah!]