Kotaku has posted a very detailed overview of EA's bid to takeover, and it has some information that I didn't even know about. The problem is that it shows EA in a nicer light then it seems, but maybe that's what's going on, Riccitiello wants to help Take-Two, and maybe Strauss is being hostel in all of this.
Personally, I think EA just wants to takeover the GTA franchise and all the profits from this, but it doesn't matter what I think, read about it here.
Remember that irish ad from last night? Well Microsoft has released an extended version of the ad on Xbox.com. Unfortunately, the video is behind an ASX file. Never the less, We have managed to extract the video and upload it to YouTube. Enjoy!
Kotaku AU recently tracked down this quote posted on an Australian telecommunications news site.
Okay guys, I have some news for you regarding what was edited from the AU release. I just gave Take2 a call (a friggin expensive 1902 number!) and this is exactly what I was told:
"Well in regards to what Rockstar have removed for the Australian release, as far as we're aware there was only one sexually violent cut-scene which Rockstar felt would cause the game to be Refused Classification. Unfortunately we're not able to go into specifics until after the game has been released but I can tell you that the scene involves a weapon being inserted into an enemies private area during a mission where Niko is taking revenge after one of his close friends was forced into sexual intercourse during his stay in prison."
Seriously I thought he was joking ....I was like LOL you're joking right? He says "No. This is what Rockstar felt needed to be removed from the game for it's Australian release. We were recently given permission to release this information because as we understand, Rockstar originally made a press release stating that the game would be released uncut world wide. We felt it would be misleading not to release the information".
Interesting, reminds me of the 'manipulation of testicals using a weapon' scene that got Manhunt 2 in a lot of trouble originally. Please note that until Rockstar or Take-Two confirms something officially, this is still just a rumor.
Source: Kotaku AU
Media Morgue is saying that Rockstar and Take-Two are predicting to make $400 million in the opening week of Grand Theft Auto IV. They base this on what retail stores have ordered, and if it does reach $400 million it will be the largest revenue for any entertainment product (thats movie, game or otherwise) ever before. Which is in one word, "spectacular".
Microsoft's Halo 3 is the current record holder at $300 million in revenue in the first week from over 5 million sales of the game. However it's important to note that Halo 3 was on available on Xbox 360, where as Grand Theft Auto IV is available on both Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 giving it a larger audience.
We should have some sales stats at the end of the first week to see how it went.
The Official PlayStation Magazine in the UK has made it way to subscribers, and is now the second magazine to full review the game. Similar to Official Xbox Magazine, the final score is 10 out of 10. So far, so good!
Below are the best details from the new review:
- One of the reasons Niko goes to Liberty City is to track down the man who betrayed his old army unit.
- Cars no longer catch fire at the slightest provocation.
- There are several points at which you make life or death decisions between key cast members.
- Comedy clubs feature real comedians.
- "Michelle" is the first girl that Niko hooks up with.
- Dimitiri Rascalov is Mikhail Faustin's right hand man.
- "Other uses of the phone on missions include calling a target to make him come to the window and into Niko's sniper sight."
- There is a museum called the Libertonian museum, which features dinosaur fossils and exploding vases. Environments such as these have been created specifically for shootouts, so there's plenty of cover.
- The names of every radio station in the game was included (19 in total, a new record for any GTA game):
- WKTT - We Know The Truth (right wing talk radio)
- San Juan Sounds (latin)
- Integrity 2.0 (speech, hosted by Lazlow)
- Liberty City Hardcore (punk/hardcore)
- Liberty Rock Radio 97.8 (classic rock)
- The Vibe 98.8 (soul/R'n'B)
- PLR - Public Liberty Radio (call-in speech)
- The Classics 104.1 (old-skool hip-hop)
- Jazz Nation Radio 108.5 (jazz)
- Vladivostok FM (eastern european)
- Radio Broker (alt rock)
- Tuff Gong Radio (reggae/dub)
- Electro Choc (dance)
- Massive B Soundsystem 96.9 (dance hall)
- IF99 - International Funk (funk)
- The Beat 102.7 (contemporary hip-hop)
- K109 The Studio (disco)
- Fusion FM
- The Journey (ambient/chillout)
Also included was 4 new screenshots, we have them below, however, note they are not the best quality:
Thanks to raidenraider2006 from GTAForums for the information.
Something to be expected really, New Zealand has similar, in some cases stricter, rating laws than Australia. PALGN was sent an email from Gameplanet.co.nz stating that the New Zealand version will also be edited, the same as the Australian version we presume:
Hi xxxx,
We have been informed today that New Zealand will be receiving the same version of Grand Theft Auto IV as Australia.
As you have placed your order after Rockstar announced that the Australian version was edited, we are assuming that you will no longer require the game to be shipped from us, as we can't supply you with an uncut version.
The last thing we want to do is supply you with a product that does not meet your needs and we've therefore taken the liberty of removing your GTA4 order from our web site.
We certainly hope we can be more helpful to you in the future!
Kind Regards,
xxxx
Customer Service
Gameplanet Store
With our buddies in New Zealand also in the dark, if your an Australia and wanting to get your hands on an uncut version, you'll have to try importing from Europe. Keep in mind that in New Zealand, imports are completely illegal, where as in Australia it all depends on the game and your age. Manhunt for example can not be imported at all, it could land you in a dangerous court case. GTA IV at the moment is not illegal to import, however as with all things it's your choice to take the risk or not.
Interesting article we found after reading about Kotaku's swag score was about the giant foam "Shocker" being a United States Patent violation. Confused? Well the story goes that the blog writer, Ricky Van Veen, invented the giant foam shocker hand in 2004 and got a legitimate US Patent for it. Which in itself is quiet surprising, anyway this basically means that in creating a foam hand of their own for the swag Kotaku and many webmasters received they are in violation of the United States Patent #D495749S.
However Ricky is one of the high-ranking staff members of CollegeHumor.com, and Rockstar just happen to be one of their largest advertising clients. So he's not that worried really, he doesn't plan on taking it to court or anything like that. However his final sentence in his blog entry sums it up really:
Though I must admit a high drama court case over “the shocker” would be a funny thing to see.
Source; Ricky!
Picture this; your sitting in your lounge room flicking through TV channels, bored and feeling like you could do a lot more with your life. Then comes a knock at the door. You answer it and get handed a huge box, you sign for it and wonder "what could this be?". It tattles like there is more than one thing in the box, your excited! You rip it open to find:
- A Swingers baseball cap
- A Swingers baseball T
- Two GTA IV stickers
- A foam GTA IV four-finger
- A mousepad from in-game cybercafe tw@
- An I <3 LC lapel pin
- A N1KO license plate
That boring day has just become the best day of your life, no? A Kotaku staff member was lucky enough to receive this package yesterday, it sure is a great collection of items. Wouldn't mind answering a knock at your door to find this now would you?
The staff member in mention is contemplating giving away items on Kotaku. So naturally I would like to let the record state that, I could really do with a new mouse pad, and my cap is rather ragged, or hell I do have space on my computer for a sticker or two.
A user on YouTube named bros132, has uploaded a new TV ad shown in Ireland for Grand Theft Auto IV. The video quality is not the best, but it gets the job done.
Update: A much more high-quality version is also now available via YouTube:
Source: bros132 and crystalvalley on YouTube