Grand Theft Auto IV

[KieranMurphy]

One thing I expect in this game is for Rockstar to boast about their new, improved aiming system, and for it to suck as bad as the new improved aiming systems did in Vice City and San Andreas, as your character locks in on dead bodies, passers-by, someone 50 yards away, etc. while someone is pumping bullets into you from 10 feet away.

Goddamn Rockstar, fix your lousy aiming system in this game once and for all!

edit: Am I missing something in the above picture? How does it show "excellent AI driving skills"? You could easily find a screenshot from GTAIII, Vice City and San Andreas showing 4 cars in a straight line and not crashed on top of each other, but what would that prove? You need to find video footage not hand-picked by Rockstar to show how good or bad the driver AI will be.


KM.

 

[Jimmy Enslashay]

So you're asking them to fix it, but saying they can't?

Wait, an in-car view? With first person?

Flippin' sweet! Man, this game is going to freakin' blow the competition away.

It's not first-person, it's apparantly on the hood of the car, but it's as close as it's going to come to first-person, apparantly.

 

[KieranMurphy]

So you're asking them to fix it, but saying they can't?

I'm saying they possibly will claim to have fixed it, but I wouldn't be surprised if it was as wonky as ever. They promised that they'd fixed the targetting system before both Vice City and San Andreas, saying it was more intelligent, it would identify threats and target, etc. But when things get crazy it has a tendency to target silly things like dead bodies and pedestrians, when you're being assaulted by cops or gang members.

And they should do something about the camera in tight areas. A few missions in both Vice City and San Andreas were made much harder by a camera that was all over the place.


KM.

 

[Small_Fryz]

I just want a kick arse damage model so i can have awseome cop chases.

 

[Jimmy Enslashay]

I'm saying they possibly will claim to have fixed it, but I wouldn't be surprised if it was as wonky as ever. They promised that they'd fixed the targetting system before both Vice City and San Andreas, saying it was more intelligent, it would identify threats and target, etc. But when things get crazy it has a tendency to target silly things like dead bodies and pedestrians, when you're being assaulted by cops or gang members.

That was, in part, because the PS2 had limited capabilities, and in games like San Andreas, they more or less maxed out the limit of the PS2 anyway.

I'm confident that it will be a hundred times better, at least, on the PS3, since it's hugely superior.

 

[KieranMurphy]

That was, in part, because the PS2 had limited capabilities, and in games like San Andreas, they more or less maxed out the limit of the PS2 anyway.

I'm confident that it will be a hundred times better, at least, on the PS3, since it's hugely superior.

Possibly, I'm just being cynical. I love the GTA games, but I'm sick of Rockstar coming out with BS in pre-game interviews.

If it ain't gonna be in the game, then I wish they'd stop telling us it'll be in the game. Superior targetting systems, the ability to purchase and develop casinos, a game that can't be completed in less than 100 hours etc.

This is why I'm very skeptical of any claims made far in advance of the release, even if it comes straight from Sam Houser's mouth. Sneak previews possibly have features that might not make the finished cut or will be radically altered by the time it's release or replaced by something different. I've no doubt it'll be a great game, I'm just taking any claims with a large pinch of salt.

And I do hope they do something about the crazy driver AI. Nothing like getting rammed off the highway by a forklift truck taking 90 degree corners at 80mph.


KM.

 

[dylansan]

I'm pretty sure ND4SPD was being sarcastic...

 

[Jimmy Enslashay]

New artwork.

There also might be delays of up to a few weeks, according to some financial analysts, who are saying that due to the release of Halo 3 in September, releasing GTA IV so soon after will damage sales..

Finally for a bit of fun, Electronic Gaming Monthly (US magazine) have posted some real-life New York comparisons to some GTA IV screenshots.

 

[donbenni]

There also might be delays of up to a few weeks, according to some financial analysts, who are saying that due to the release of Halo 3 in September, releasing GTA IV so soon after will damage sales..

What's wrong with developers releasing games early for a change. Surprise everyone and make some friends in the process..

 

[Jimmy Enslashay]

Because the build up and excitement generally explodes into massive sales when the game is just released, and that's what they will thrive off. Though it seems it may not be delayed by too much, after all.

Something taken from GTA4.net:

IGN and GameSpot are the most visited games websites on the internet, so when various websites posted GTA IV previews a couple of weeks ago, naturally theirs recieved most attention. ComputersAndVideoGames.com is another site who were lucky enough to see the game in action, and they managed to provide something which no other site could: street names. We recently learned that Liberty City will have every one of its streets named, and CVG were able to note down a few of these during their short tour of Liberty City. These were Masterson Street, Oakley Street, Tulsa Street, Cisco Street, Delaware Avenue, East Hook, and Rotterdam Hill.

Carney Island Pharmacy - this is quite an old discovery, but a great one nevertheless, and one which I don't think many people noticed. In one screenshot, you can see that the pharmacy is called Carney Island Pharmacy, which suggests that Carney Island is the GTA 4 equivalent of Coney Island. Carnies, for those who aren't aware, are carnival workers who are generally disrespected. It makes sense for the Coney Island equivalent to be called Carney Island, since Coney Island is famous for its amusement park.

But the biggest thing I've come across - I seriously urge everyone to read through this. You owe yourself as a GTA fan to read it!

 

[KieranMurphy]

What's wrong with developers releasing games early for a change. Surprise everyone and make some friends in the process..

Probably because releasing the game early is actually at a disadvantage to everyone involved in it's production.

If the game is finished earlier, then the game developer can use the extra time to make sure it's really perfected and bug free, and maybe even use the time to include stuff that was cancelled or abandoned earlier in development.

Also, deadlines mean that the companies printing the artwork, pressing the discs, releasing the TV ads, etc. are expecting work on a certain date. They don't want anything too early and eating into their other work and stuff. I don't think that Rockstar's marketing, advertising, video production, etc. teams want stuff shoved onto them earlier than necessary.

I'm sure that no company involved in producing GTAIV wants unnecessary work to produce something earlier than the date they have set on their schedules. Apart from us fans who might get their game a bit earlier than advertised, I don't think that anyone involved in producing the game wants more work than they expected.

I don't think it's gonna help sales positively anyway. Is an early release gonna make more sales than the game was going to sell anyway?


KM.

 

[donbenni]

I don't think it's gonna help sales positively anyway. Is an early release gonna make more sales than the game was going to sell anyway?


KM.

No not at all. I'm just complaining that everything in the gaming/tech industry is released on time or late. It's just a comment suggesting it'd be nice to get something early for a change: that'd certainly make the community happier

 

[Jimmy Enslashay]

Trailer 2 is coming! June 28th is the date, and the title of the trailer is "Looking for that Special Someone".

New artwork accompanies this news, as well.

 

[Mark T]

Just got the E-mail this morning. I really hope it shows us some action. A couple of car jackings would be good.

 

[donbenni]

👍 I was surprised to find a piece of "junk" mail actually interesting when this came through!

And yes am hoping for some action too, perhaps a short montage* of cool things shown to the magazines recently.

* You've gotta have a montage. Even Rocky had a montage..

 

[TS]

I got the email too, the 28th can't come soon enough!

 

[Dead_Poetic]

Actually, October 16th can't come soon enough.

 

[Jay]

Actually, October 16th can't come soon enough.

October 19 for me, but yes it can't come soon enough.

 

[DuckRacer]

Just some news that PS3 owners might be interested in:

http://www.gaming-age.com/news/2007/6/12-11

Take-Two’s line up announced to date for fiscal 2008 includes the following titles:
Title Platform
Beaterator PSP
College Hoops 2K8 Xbox 360, PS3, PS2
Grand Theft Auto IV – Episodic Content Xbox 360
L.A. Noire PS3
Midnight Club: Los Angeles Multiple Platforms
NBA 2K9 Multiple Platforms
NHL 2K9 Multiple Platforms

http://www.gamesindustry.biz/content_page.php?aid=25852

Now a company representative has told GI.biz, "The Grand Theft Auto IV episodic content is exclusive to Xbox 360."

I wonder if the PS3 version will get DLC after all...

 

[Jimmy Enslashay]

I'm still confused as to what this episodic content is? Is it much the same as the San Andreas backstory thing that they released?

 

[McLaren]

I'm still confused as to what this episodic content is? Is it much the same as the San Andreas backstory thing that they released?

From what I've been reading, it portrays as more missions, and content towards it.

 

[Digital-Nitrate]

Just some news that PS3 owners might be interested in:

I wonder if the PS3 version will get DLC after all...

I'm still wondering how, if the PS3 edition ends up being +20GB, how will they fit it all onto one disc for the X360 version which can only store up to 7GB of actual game data... maybe thats why they need the downloadable content?

 

[DuckRacer]

I'm still wondering how the X360 version is going to fit +20 GB of game data on one disc... maybe thats why they need the downloadable content?

Well, since Rockstar is demonstrating GTA4 on the 360 at press events, it's safe to say they're developing on that, and thus don't need to worry about a 20GB that the PS3 may have if it were lead platform.

 

[Jay]

They (Rockstar) said the demos were running on Xbox360 as they have had more development time on it, due to having the hardware for longer, but the PS3 version is catching up. They also said the storage limitations of the 360 is a problem that they are trying to work around (disk size limitations and the fact not all 360's have HDD's).

What ever the case, it will be comming for 360 and PS3 the same time in October. Sometimes I wonder though if some the of content downloadable for 360 (maybe some at launch) will be packaged with the PS3 version from the get go due to the 360 storage issues, probably not though.

 

[Digital-Nitrate]

Well, since Rockstar is demonstrating GTA4 on the 360 at press events, it's safe to say they're developing on that, and thus don't need to worry about a 20GB that the PS3 may have if it were lead platform.

That wasn't the point now was it?

Rockstar doesn't have to worry about it. On the other hand, owners of the X360 version may have to worry about what they are missing by having a game that is 1/3 the size of the PS3 version... thus a possible reason for the downloadable content?

 

[Jimmy Enslashay]

I doubt it. They've made it quite clear that both versions will be equal, and you will have the same GTA experience on both.

Quite annoying to me, seeing as they could go so much further on the PS3. I'm not sure why Rockstar is so very supportive of the Xbox 360 lately. I'm still going to buy it for PS3, anyhow, seeing as it will probably have less chance of bugs and glitches, and also on the off-chance that they crawl out of Microsoft's you-know-where and PS3 does get a better game.

But, like I said, I doubt it.

 

[Jay]

Quite annoying to me, seeing as they could go so much further on the PS3. I'm not sure why Rockstar is so very supportive of the Xbox 360 lately.

Yes it is annoying to me also.

Rockstar most likely is supportive of the Xbox as it already has had a large next gen consumer base while the PS3 consumer base was only starting to build while rockstar was well into development of GTA4. They have pretty much been building GTA4 around Xbox360 and are adapting it to the PS3, I hope in future releases they work on more of the PS3 strengths.

I also will be buying it for PS3.

 

[Digital-Nitrate]

Yes it is annoying to me also.

Rockstar most likely is supportive of the Xbox as it already has had a large next gen consumer base while the PS3 consumer base was only starting to build while rockstar was well into development of GTA4. They have pretty much been building GTA4 around Xbox360 and are adapting it to the PS3, I hope in future releases they work on more of the PS3 strengths.

Please cite your source from RockStar to back that up. Otherwise, just state you are speculating this is the case, as it sounds awfully similar to a lot of the false information spread by Xbox fans on other sites.

Here is what we actually know for sure, for the last six years, starting with GTAIII RockStar has developed the GTA series for PlayStation and only recently ported some of them to Xbox. When they first announced that GTA4 was being developed they only mentioned the PS3, and then later said that it would be released simultaneously on both platforms. In no way do I see how anyone can come to any conclusion based on these facts that GTA4 has been built around the X360 - that's pure fanboy talk.

Yes, Microsoft negotiated rights to episodic content through their Xbox Live service, but development tools for the PS3 have been around longer than that, and with the long standing relationship between RockStar and Sony, I see no evidence that would even suggest that GTA4 is simply going to be a port of the X360 version... and one thing I know for sure, not one single person at RockStar has ever said that was the case - so let's not spread more of the same misinformation found on other sites.

 

[Jay]

Please cite your source from RockStar to back that up. Otherwise, just state you are speculating this is the case, as it sounds awfully similar to a lot of the false information spread by Xbox fans on other sites.

Well no, it is not out of Rockstars 'mouth' thats why I said "pretty much", it is my own conclusions (it seems I should have made that more clear) mainly from reading a magazine interview where rockstar said they have had xbox360 hardware longer than PS3 so they have worked on the 360 version longer and is further along, though the PS3 version is catching. Also I am not saying GTA4 is/was designed for the xbox360, I have no doubt at all that rockstar had PS3 in thoughts for GTA4 probably before they even considered it for xbox, but the fact is they had the xbox hardware to work with first and for a considerable time during GTA4's early life

BTW 'my own' meaning mine, not other peoples from other forums.

When they first announced that GTA4 was being developed they only mentioned the PS3, and then later said that it would be released simultaneously on both platforms.

I thought the first mention of GTA4 to the public was a tattoo on the arm of Peter Moore (Microsoft guy) at a game show where he bragged it will feature on Xbox from day 1 of release day, then later at the same show R* announced it for both 360 and PS3.

In no way do I see how anyone can come to any conclusion based on these facts that GTA4 has been built around the X360 - that's pure fanboy talk.

Please, oh please tell me you are calling me a Xbox360 fanboy, please

It would make my day.

 

[Digital-Nitrate]

Please, oh please tell me you are calling me a Xbox360 fanboy, please

It would make my day.

No.


One thing is for sure, we will know soon enough how different these editions truly are, and like others, I will be very surprised, and certainly disappointed if it turns out RockStar dumbs down the PS3 version in order to make both versions the same. One think I really dislike is when companies lower the quality and/or cripple products in order to meet the limitations of the lowest common denominator. 👎