GTAIV
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New York appalled with GTA IV's setting
Every walk of political life has decided to go up against Grand Theft Auto IV already, despite implications you may actually be a "good guy" in the game. Or as good as you can get in a GTA title. The game takes place in New York, er, we mean, a New York-ish place known as Liberty City. The similarities have spawned a lot of hate from these politicians, naturally. They've always looking for a whipping boy and the GTA games usually work great.New York City councilman Peter Vallone had a pretty humorous quote on the issue: "Setting Grand Theft Auto in the safest big city in America would be like setting Halo in Disneyland." Well, we'd like to live in Liberty City, too, if it's really that safe!Police Commissioner Raymond Kelly had this to say: "It's despicable to glamorize violence in games like these, regardless of how far-fetched the setting may be." Far-fetched? But everyone else is complaining how close to home the setting is. If you guys can't unite against this, no one will ever take you seriously. Well, we won't take you seriously anyway, but we'd respect your ability to know what you're talking about.
GTAIV trailer now on Marketplace
If you're the kind of person who prefers to watch trailers on a television, then you should be pleased to know that the GTAIV trailer is now available on Xbox Live Marketplace. Whether the trailer is the most masterful or the most over-hyped thing ever created is up to you. Still, we have to say, Liberty City looks mighty pretty, especially in HD. Go download it and begin planning your domination of the Russian crime syndicate today!
GTAIV Trailer is Live 4 realz!
While the official page has worked for some of us here at Fanboy Towers, we have another alternative for you to check into. Xbox.com just added the HD trailer to the Game Detail page. After verifying your age you can check the quick teaser for Rockstar North's masterpiece. Taking place in New York Liberty City, we see a few of the more distinct locales found in Manhattan Liberty City as well as the Statue of Liberty. The narrator (whom we can only assume is the character you play) appears to have a Russian accent and is looking for a fresh start in the city that never sleeps. Graphically speaking, the lighting and character models look light years ahead of any previous GTA title and the score was very foreboding and somber, adding the perfect mood to the teaser. Simply put, we're stoked. What say you, fanboys?
Internet gets run over: GTAIV trailer goes live
The internet is dying! Why, you ask? The hotly anticipated Grand Theft Auto IV trailer has gone live. If the embedded video (above) doesn't seem to work, try downloading this HD torrent. You can also try GameTrailers, but internet gamers haven't been any kinder to that service. If you don't mind low quality, it seems like YouTube has been able to survive the assault so far. Watch, and marvel the next generation of GTA. Are you psyched?! [Via Joystiq]
The Grand Theft Auto IV trailer
Try this HD torrent. Remember to seed when you're done downloading! Xbox.com is hosting the trailer, in HD. GameVideos is embedded above. GameTrailers is back up. YouTube version has been pulled.
GTAIV Trailer today
In just under 7 hours, the Grand Theft Auto IV Trailer should be hitting the series of tubes. Hopefully you've properly prepared yourself for this. We're interested to see what kind of hype this will generate, with the logo having been showcased on FX for a half hour accompanied by the ticking count down. Also interesting to note is that the xbox.com Game Detail page showcases box art which could be placeholder, as it's just the "IV" logo slapped on the template for 360 Titles. That's not to say that it couldn't be official, but it greatly differs from all the box art since GTA III, which may actually be the point. In any case, we'll be closely watching Rockstar's game page this afternoon, will you?[Thanks, Chris G]
Grand Theft Auto IV's 30 minute infomercial
Last night the guys over at Gamertag Radio were channel surfing and ran across an interesting countdown clock on FX. It looked familiar, but was it really an ad for Grand Theft Auto IV? Yes indeed, it was an infomercial for GTA IV, but was lacking any real substance. Rockstar purchased a 30 minute spot on FX airing from 2:00AM EST to 2:30AM EST to show nothing more than a simple countdown clock (viewable above) complete with loud ticking sound. This is the same clock that appears on the official GTA IV website which is counting down to our first glimpse of the game. Let's just say this trailer better be something special Rockstar, because teasing us with a long and dull infomercial doesn't make us happy. Next week we'll see what you have to offer ... next week.
Today's most relative game video: GTA clock
While some of us are counting the seconds until the Grand Theft Auto IV release, others are so GTA-hyped that they count the seconds until the game's trailer. Rockstar apparently took its online promotion to late-night TV, featuring 30 minutes of the countdown to the ad to the game. YouTube user "nospacesinmyname" lets us all bow down to the clock.Alas, the clip only shows a few minutes of the entire 30-minute "commercial." We've watched it four times with the hope that some GTA IV magic will reveal itself, but nothing has differed. Maybe on the fifth try.Watch the TV clip after the break.[Thanks, Godfree]
Take-Two up for sale?
Take-Two, publisher of infamously violent games such as Grand Theft Auto 3 and Manhunt, has seen better days. Gamasutra reports that a group of Take-Two shareholders -- who own a combined 46% of the company -- wish to remove the current CEO, Paul Eibeler, and shake up the company's board of directors. Take-Two has postponed it's annual meeting from March 23rd to March 29th in order to review the shareholders' requests and come up with alternative solutions. Currently, the main "alternative" is an outright "sale of the Company."Take-Two recently posted a loss for 2006 and its future has been questioned for some time. Michael Pachter of Wedbush Morgan Securities recently downgraded the company's stock and suggested that Take-Two could eventually be bought and sold in pieces, including its 2K Sports line. With the recent shareholder activity, that prediction could be coming true.Whether or not this could affect the development of GTAIV remains to be seen, though we're curious to see if Take-Two will now shy away from controversial titles, as its financial troubles began with the eruption of the Hot Coffee scandal.Take-Two stocks have already gone up as a result of the rumored sale.
Take-Two counters lawyer's 'nuisance' threat
Take-Two Interactive has filed a preemptive suit against attorney Jack Thompson. This past Saturday, Thompson hatched plans to meddle in the sales of future Take-Two and Rockstar titles Manhunt 2 and Grand Theft Auto IV. Take-Two claims that if Thompson were to succeed in having the games declared public nuisances (under Florida law), the action would violate the publisher's First Amendment rights. Take-Two hopes its petition to the US District Court for the Southern District of Florida will crush Thompson's proposed suit before it grows wings. Plan B? Drop a DDT-bomb on his dome.Last fall, Florida courts rejected a similar suit filed by Thompson that sought to restrict sales of Take-Two's "Sim Columbine" Bully.Update: Read the lawsuit.
Rumor: Halo 3 in September?
Halo 3 is slated for Fall 2007, as the poster would suggest. So, based on past experiences in 2001 and 2004, we can safely narrow that down from "Fall" to "November, duh", right? Well, in our GDC edition of the Fancast, we mentioned how Shane Kim said that Halo 3 will ship when it's finished and isn't bound to console launches or tattooed biceps. He threw out September as an example, then followed that with how it would ship next week if it was done as a means to cover his tracks. Well, we've got some more food for thought in regards to Microsoft's Fall '07 line up.We're finishing off the year with the world-wide release of Lost Odyssey in December, so that month is covered. Grand Theft Auto IV is hitting shelves for both the 360 and PS3 smack dab in the middle of October, and Microsoft has no intention of releasing anything against that behemoth. So, that leaves Project Gotham Racing 4 and Halo 3 with either September or November. Using the aforementioned logic, you'd assume that PGR4 will hit in September and Halo 3 in November. Well, Shane brought up another interesting point in that releasing a game in September doesn't necessarily hurt sales. Fable came out in September, got good initial sales, and then an additional boost in November. He went on to say that Halo 3 could do the same thing, while coming out before GTA IV and "beating it" like the 360 did the PS3.So, place your bets now, which of the two is the most likely month for Halo 3: September or November?
Rumor: GTA IV to be in New York City?
While we're going to categorize this as a rumor until we get a better insight upon the release of the trailer for Grand Theft Auto IV on the 29th, it definitely is worth consideration. Apparently, word on the street is that GTA IV will be taking place in New York City and have NYC stylized music. When we first got wind of this, the first thing that popped into our heads was, "Uh, wasn't the Liberty City from Grand Theft Auto I, GTA III, San Andreas, and Liberty City Stories supposed to be at the very least an homage to New York City (with a hint of New Jersey)?" If you look at the map for Liberty City from GTA I (pictured above), it's even more apparent. Or this could be a completely new direction for Rockstar, where instead of doing fictional places that are inspired by real world locations, they cut the middle man as it were, and just use the actual city. Either way, we could see a return to Liberty City, or Rockstar's rendition of the real life counter part. Which would you rather play in?
GTA:IV trailer coming on March 29th
Spreading across the internets faster than photos of a half-naked American Idol contestant or pictures of Britney Spears' bald head comes the news that Rockstar will be releasing a Grand Theft Auto: IV trailer on March 29th. That's about all the details we have on things for now. You can hit the site for a giant IV logo and a countdown timer, just in case you need to know when to start pounding your browser refresh button.
Grand Theft Auto IV trailer coming this month
Big news everyone, we're going to be seeing some Grand Theft Auto IV footage in an official trailer set to release on March 29th. GTA IV's official website has been updated with an iconic "IV" logo, with the word "TRAILER" below it and countdown timer. Excitement for the trailer should be high, because we've been a sheltered bunch when it comes to GTA IV goods. Rockstar has kept a lock on any GTA IV related media as we have yet to see any video, any screenshots, or any information other than an October release. As the countdown to March 29th nears, any speculation to how visually the game will compare to its predecessors, or will its success hinge on its gameplay?[Thanks, to everyone who sent this in]
GTAIV going to Unleash "euphoric" experience
Rockstar's Grand Theft Auto IV will be implementing NaturalMotion's Euphoria engine for its character AI. Hmm, where have we heard that name before? Oh, yes, it's the same engine being used by LucasArts for their Star Wars: The Force Unleashed title. So, if you want to get a grasp of what this means for your car-jacking, hit-and-running, and rampaging destruction go check out the tech demo videos we have for the engine. Although, we doubt this means you'll be able to get your hands on a R2-D2 cannon. How do you think the use of Euphoria will play into the gameplay style that is GTAIV?
Inconceivable: PS3 to get its own "exclusive" GTA IV episodes
Exclusive. The gaming industry keeps using that word. We do not think it means what they think it means. Or perhaps they do -- only the meaning changes from press release to press release, requiring a keen knowledge of context and PR deciphering techniques in order to obtain it. Eurogamer today reports that a source within Rockstar North (probably an exclusive source) indicates that, like the Xbox 360 version, the PS3's Grand Theft Auto IV will receive downloadable and undoubtedly "epic" episodes of an exclusive nature. Surely this renders Microsoft's previous claims to exclusivity invalid? Actually, no. At this year's X06 event, the Redmond giant touted "exclusive access to two downloadable, epic episodes of GTA IV via Xbox Live, each with hours of entirely new gameplay and available only on Xbox 360 just months after the release of the title." As we suggested before, barring the case of Rockstar releasing only two episodes in the game's lifetime, such wording does not rule out different episodes for the PS3.Exclusives and tired movie references aside, perhaps our concern should first switch over to the actual game (releasing in October 2007) before discussing the status of microtransacted add-on episodes. Is doubting GTA IV's quality ... inconceivable?[Thanks, Meh and Ethan.]
Dissecting Rockstar's formula: Joystiq previews Vice City Stories (PSP) & Bully (PS2)
The headquarters of Rockstar Games, a thin 6-story building squeezed between Best Buy and Adidas, stands just north of where Broadway cuts through Houston Street flowing downward into a mecca of trend -- or shopping for trends -- known as SoHo. A few blocks away Sony has erected one of the world's largest PSP displays (seen here), which towers over the intersection of Lafayette and Houston. But it's not just neighboring downtown-Manhattan real estate that connects Rockstar and Sony.
Splinter Cell, BioShock, GTA IV episodes exclusive for Xbox 360
Both BioShock and Splinter Cell Conviction (the suspected title for the post-Double Agent iteration) will be console-exclusive to the Xbox 360; BioShock will still be coming to the PC, while Splinter Cell can still be released for the PC and various portable console (DS, PSP). BioShock publisher Take-Two will also be providing "exclusive access to two downloadable, epic episodes of Grand Theft Auto IV via Xbox Live, each with hours of entirely new gameplay ." Ubisoft's Splinter Cell Conviction is the title found during their "accidental" leak earlier this month. The exclusivity of BioShock was predicted by GameSpot back in January after developer Irrational was bought by Take Two. The GTA IV episodes are a "complete exclusive," according to Scott Henson, Director of the Game Development Group at Microsoft, and will not showing up on the PlayStation 3 download service. The episodes will be available a few months after the release of Grand Theft Auto IV on October 17 and 19 in US and Europe, respectively. Microsoft hinted at exclusive GTA IV content as early as July. While BioShock may not affect the mass audience, the loss of Splinter Cell and some exclusive GTA IV content could hurt the PlayStation 3's image in North America and Europe. Then again, Sony does have Metal Gear Solid 4 to satiate its consumers, but what are the long-term ramifications of Microsoft's exclusive deals?
TTWO shares drop on earnings warning, stock option investigation
Take Two just warned Wall Street analysts that their estimates for Take Two earnings in upcoming quarters are "too high," and disclosed new subpoenas from the NYC district attorney's office for documents related to stock options grants. Company shares dropped over 8% to $11.20 in after-hours trading. Some gamers might be tempted to shrug off all this bad news and what it's done to Take Two's shares, figuring that what happens on Wall Street doesn't matter so long as Take Two delivers the goods next October with Grand Theft Auto IV. But Take Two's financial woes do matter because the company uses its stock as compensation. When the company's shares drop, employees take a de facto pay cut, making it more difficult for the company to motivate and retain the brains that create hit titles. In the software and creative industries, it's said that 100% of company value walks out of the door every evening. If this keeps up, Take Two's going to have a harder time convincing employees to return the next morning. [Disclosure: I own way too many shares of Take Two. My wife reminds me of this almost daily.]
Down under Saints Row playtest
Our Aussie friends at My360.com.au got a chance to playtest a near final build of Saints Row. In short, it sounds like great fun."Gamers will be pleased to know that Saints Row, from what we saw from the preview code, is far from a GTA-clone. It offers so much more in terms of customization and interaction that it really makes a run for the best GTA-type game out there, considering GTA is pretty much a genre in itself."Some of the high points:
