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After Math: The golden age of streaming
We're winding down a freaky week of bad omens, unconvincing congressional testimony and sterling new streaming services. While most eyes were fixated on Mark Zuckerberg doing his best real boy impression, GTA IV lost most of its Russian tunes, ESPN debuted a new mobile app and vinyl got a high tech upgrade that nobody asked for. Numbers, because how else are you going to stretch your entertainment dollar?
'GTA IV' will lose some of its in-game music over licensing issues
Grand Theft Auto IV, the game that keeps on giving for Rockstar Games, hits its tenth anniversary this month. That's quite a feat, but as Kotaku UK reported, it also means that it's losing the rights for a bunch of in-game songs. The developer told the site that "due to music licensing restrictions, we are required to remove certain songs from the in-game soundtrack ... in particular, a large portion of the Russian pop station, Vladivostok FM."
Humble is selling Rockstar Games on the cheap to save the rainforest
Want a way to pick up a bulk of Rockstar Games' back catalog and help a good cause? Then head over to Humble where donating $1 or more will get you Grand Theft Auto III, GTA: Vice City and the grisly stealth game Manhunt. Bumping up your pledge to $8.13 adds Bully: Scholarship Edition, GTA IV, GTA: San Andreas, L.A. Noire and Max Payne 3 to your haul.
GTA modding tool quietly reappears after legal threats
The popular Grand Theft Auto V modding tool OpenIV now looks to be back in action, just weeks after its creators found themselves in a whole heap of legal trouble. Last month GTA publisher Take Two Interactive sent the creators of the modding software a cease and desist letter, claiming that the tool allowed users to bypass the game's security features and violated the publisher's rights. Unsurprisingly, this forced OpenIV to remove the mod's download link from its site on June 14th, resulting in a huge community backlash. Now, that link is back up and fans can once again download the modding tool directly from OpenIV's website.
Rockstar Games, Take Two seem to back off of PC game modders
Earlier this month, Grand Theft Auto publisher Take-Two angered the PC gaming community after sending a cease and desist letter to the developers of the OpenIV modding tool. OpenIV allowed people to create modifications for GTA IV and GTA V single player, but according to its creators, the letter said their tool could "allow third parties to defeat security features of its software and modify that software in violation Take-Two's rights." Facing the threat of legal action, they announced on June 14th that they would stop distributing OpenIV.
Head back to Liberty City in 'GTA IV' on Xbox One
Grand Theft Auto V recently shipped 75 million copies, but if you wanted to play what came before it on Xbox One you were out of luck. Until now. Starting today, Grand Theft Auto IV and its $50 million expansion packs will be playable on Microsoft's latest console. The base game and "The Ballad of Gay Tony" will run you $20 each, while the biker-focused expansion "The Lost and Damned" is $10.
GTA IV mod has R2-D2 destroying Liberty City
A new Grand Theft Auto IV mod has surfaced, and features quite an angry little robot. Created by YouTube user jmoorfoot4, the mod gives players the ability to roam the streets of Liberty City as R2-D2.As the video above demonstrates, R2-D2 is just as pushy and capable of destruction as Niko Bellic ever was. Watch it for a good laugh, though we're not sure it tops the removal of wheel friction in the game.
GTA's Liberty City recreated in Google Street View, reveals your nearest Ammu-Nation
Type "Liberty City" into Google Maps and it whisks you to some place east of Wichita, Kansas. Yup, Wichita, for Pete's sake. No self-respecting Grand Theft Auto fan can stand for an omission like that, and thankfully now they don't have to. Those hardcore Niko-lovers at gta4.net have not only recreated the real fictional Liberty City using the Google Maps API, they've even cobbled together 80,000 screenshots to provide full-blown Street View too. Man, we haven't seen this much Gay Tony passion since the Trashmaster. Oh, wait a minute -- apparently this so-called Street View leaves out a couple of ramps that gta4.net considered to be "not very interesting." Hush, and you call yourselves fans?
Feature-length film, The Trashmaster, made entirely in Grand Theft Auto IV
If you're familiar with The Sims-style gaming, where actual life, art, and the game can easily blur, this little story may not come as a huge surprise to you. Grand Theft Auto IV player / enthusiast Mathieu Weschler spent two years making The Trashmaster, a feature-length 'film' made entirely in the game, about a garbage man who has another gig on the side. Now, we'll freely admit that we did not watch the entire thing (yet), but from what we have seen, it actually looks fairly engaging! The film is embedded after the break.
Red Dead Redemption surpasses 5 million units shipped
More than 5 million copies of Red Dead Redemption have been shrink-wrapped and shipped to retailers across North America and Europe since the game's May 18 release -- and, presumably, folks are buying 'em. Publisher Take-Two announced the mailing milestone today, amidst its quarterly earnings, celebrating the commercial and critical success of Rockstar's little Western that could. Just five months ago Red Dead Redemption appeared doomed. At that time, an anonymous Rockstar source told us, "It will take 4 million sales at full price to recoup the development costs of Red Dead. The good news is they are not expecting to make money with Red Dead Redemption." The accuracy of that estimate notwithstanding, today's shipment announcement suggests that Take-Two and Rockstar now expect to enjoy strong, continued sales of Red Dead. Of course, let's not get too celebratory over a measly 5 million shipped. As if to put the upstart Western in its place, Take-Two also revealed today Grand Theft Auto IV's lifetime global numbers: 17 million sold.
Xbox Live Deal of the Week: Ballad of Gay Tony for $15
If you've been waiting for an excuse to sink your felonious teeth into the Grand Theft Auto IV expansion The Ballad of Gay Tony, listen up. This week's Xbox Live Deal of the Week, you see, knocks the usual 1600 ($20) price of Gay Tony down to a more palatable 1200 ($15). Not bad for a night of virtual clubbing in Liberty City. That said, if you haven't picked up The Lost and Damned (the other GTA IV expansion) either, you can grab the full Episodes from Liberty City package for $30 from GameStop or Amazon. [Via Major Nelson] Xbox.com: Add The Ballad of Gay Tony to your Xbox 360 download queue ($15)
Go clubbing with new GTAIV Gay Tony tees
Rockstar has unleashed some brand new Grand Theft Auto IV T-shirts, giving fans of The Ballad of Gay Tony a reason to hit the floor show off their best moves. Available for $20 each, the shirts depict the logos of two of the DLC's nightclubs, Hercules and Bahama Mamas. If you've been looking to make a super hip fashion statement ... well, you probably shouldn't be buying video game T-shirts. If, however, you're looking for some inoffensive gaming apparel -- which can be hard to find -- go ahead and take a look.
Lost and Damned Achievements spotted on GTAIV PC
According to a post on GTA4.net, a new update for the Games for Windows version of Grand Theft Auto IV has added Achievements from the Xbox DLC, The Lost and Damned. If the details of the update are accurate -- and users on the GFW forums indicate they are -- it looks like the DLC's long touted Xbox 360 exclusivity may be drawing to a close. Of course, as Games for Windows is also a Microsoft platform, it doesn't necessarily mean that PS3 owners will be joining in anytime soon. We've contacted Microsoft for clarification on the update and will update this post when we receive new information. [Via CVG]
New Gay Tony in-game anime is all too familiar
Grand Theft Auto has always been heavy on satire, making exaggerated observations about the world for the sake of a few cheap yuks. It's readily apparent on the in-game radio programs, which poke fun at both extremes of political talk radio. The in-game TV programming does much the same (if you haven't, we suggest you make time to watch "Republican Space Rangers"). It looks like The Ballad of Gay Tony will continue the tradition with "Princess Robot Bubblegum," an anime parody to be featured on the in-game CNT channel. The show will serve as part of the new TV lineup in the upcoming expansion. In Rockstar's own words, "Princess Robot Bubblegum" features the hallmarks of more than a few animes: "Incomprehensible narrative, wretched dialogue and creepy, misogynistic sexuality." See it all in the trailer above.
New 'Ballad of Gay Tony' trailer's got the (action movie) look
digg_url = 'http://www.joystiq.com/2009/10/07/new-ballad-of-gay-tony-trailers-got-the-action-movie-look/'; We can look back and laugh at the funny dialogue and guys-in-underpants of previous Grand Theft Auto IV: The Ballad of Gay Tony trailers, but in the latest one, things get real. It's titled "There's Always a Girl" (after a featured line of dialogue) but could more accurately be dubbed, "There's Always Jumping from Motorcycles onto Moving Jets and Tearing Through Liberty City in an Armored Personnel Carrier." Oh, it has more of Luis parachuting into Liberty City and even confronting (then riding with) members of The Lost motorcycle club -- you know, from the previous DLC, The Lost and Damned. All of this paired with Roxette's "She's Got the Look." You've got to look!
Rainbow-licious Gay Tony Tees from Rockstar
Are you excited for the release of The Ballad of Gay Tony? Would you like to display that excitement for the whole world to see? Wait ... no ... pull up your pants, we were talking about T-shirts. Rockstar is now selling T-shirts celebrating the release of the upcoming GTAIV expansion. Up for grabs are several Gay Tony logo tees -- available in white, black and pink -- as well as the Episodes from Liberty City tee and, our favorite, the Rockstar rainbow logo tee. At twenty bucks each, you can get enough for the whole family. That, or you could just save the scratch and buy the actual game. It's up to you, really.
Dance the night away with Gay Tony Achievements
Ahead of the impending release of The Ballad of Gay Tony -- as DLC or as a part of the Episodes from Liberty City retail disc -- Grand Theft Auto IV has been updated with new Achievements on Xbox.com. Ten new Achievements have been added for The Ballad of Gay Tony, totaling 250 points and bringing the grand total for GTAIV to 1500 points. Players are rewarded for various tasks in the expansion, including base jumping, cage fighting and -- Joystiq's favorite -- dancing flawlessly. Head over to Xbox 360 Achievements for the full list.
Left 4 Dead, GTAIV, SFIV join Xbox Platinum Hits
Microsoft has announced that several new titles will soon be joining the ranks of the Xbox 360's budget priced Platinum Hits line. The new additions include some seriously heavy hitters, namely Grand Theft Auto IV, Street Fighter IV, Left 4 Dead, Star Wars: The Force Unleashed and Saints Row 2. Microsoft's announcement (oh so conveniently) neglected to mention prices for any of the titles, but a quick check around the ol' internet points to a price of $29.99 for most of the new additions (though SFIV curiously seems pegged around $40 for the moment). We should also point out that while these are some legitimately great games, both SFIV and Force Unleashed are receiving upgraded, budget versions in the near future -- Ultimate Sith Edition later this year and Super Street Fighter IV in early 2010. It's also worth noting Left 4 Dead is receiving a full-blown sequel only a month from now. Microsoft has also announced that retailers will be offering a "Buy 2, Get 1 Free" promotion for Xbox 360 Platinum Hits through October 31, though the release makes no mention of which retailers are doing so. We've contacted Microsoft for more information on the promotion.
See the Tony of GTA: Ballad of Gay Tony
If you haven't heard by now, there's another Grand Theft Auto coming out. The Ballad of Gay Tony, the second Xbox-exclusive expansion pack to Grand Theft Auto IV promises to pack in more explosions, helicopters, sky dives ... and disco dances than ever before. In this short new character vignette released by Rockstar, we see the titular Tony Prince. The reason for his apparent ballad? "The mob are on my case, I'm massively in debt, silly f*cking me."That would certainly explain Tony's need to pick up a gun and go on a rampage, GTA-style. "Man, therapy has a lot to answer for, huh?"
Rockstar's Agent sneaks into 2010 release window
Aside from the game's exclusivity to the PlayStation 3 and the logo you see above, we've seen little else about upcoming '70s espionage game Agent. But while answering some fan questions about next month's GTA IV expansion, The Ballad of Gay Tony, on its forums, Rockstar North mentions that it's "working hard on a lineup of PlayStation 3 releases for 2010 ... including Red Dead Redemption, Max Payne 3, and the PlayStation 3 exclusive AGENT." The statement goes on to tease "yet to be announced" titles, possibly lending some credence to Michael Pachter's statements on another GTA game in the not- so-distant future. Considering Rockstar's statements were made in response to queries about GTA IV DLC coming to PS3, we wouldn't be surprised if those "yet to be announced" titles are the result of Microsoft's timed-exclusivity expiring. [Via Superannuation]
