By Kieron Gillen on August 6th, 2008 at 4:46 pm.
Yes, it’s actually coming out, on November 18th (or 21st in Europe). On one hand, it’s a shame, as it kills a good conspiracy theory in the head – though now does make me wonder why they haven’t given us Bully yet. On the other hand, it’s awesome, as it’s GTA4… on the PC. It’s genuinely a lovely game and it makes me a tad depressed I bought a year’s worth of Gold Membership for the 360 so I could play it multiplayer, and now I’m just going to play it on the PC instead.
That’ll teach me, eh?
06/08/2008 at 16:51 cqdemal says:
*insert one million smileys here*
06/08/2008 at 16:52 THX-1138 says:
Wonder if there will be a Multi Theft Auto for this one, I mean, the existing multiplayer is good, but MTA:SA had a level editor and some of the most fun races I’ve ever played.
06/08/2008 at 17:00 Rob Lang says:
I’ve just written off December and booked a divorce for January. Expect to see stories of ‘Man found dead in front of PC’.
06/08/2008 at 17:01 Diogo Ribeiro says:
I was hoping for Bully but I guess I can’t be disappointed GTAIV is coming to the PC :)
06/08/2008 at 17:01 Abe says:
I suspect they didn’t port Bully because Bully didn’t make enough money.
The PC has become the trade paperback of the games industry.
06/08/2008 at 17:02 caramelcarrot says:
So how are they going to do the new analog driving on keyboard?
06/08/2008 at 17:03 Zâv says:
I’ll be disappointed if Left 4 Dead doesn’t hold my interest for more than two weeks. Not that this isn’t good news; I just have priorities.
06/08/2008 at 17:06 Adam Hepton says:
Bully was ace, but noone bought it. Except me, who bought it on PS2 first and then on Wii just for the extra bits. /me is a loser.
06/08/2008 at 17:07 Irish Al says:
@caramelcarrot
Not to mention the new cover system with WASD – mouse …
06/08/2008 at 17:08 Nero says:
Good to finally have a date on this one.
06/08/2008 at 17:08 lukasz says:
Wonder whether it will be released via steam? All GTA games are on it so *fingers crossed*
06/08/2008 at 17:11 CrashT says:
I have to ask because it’s been bugging me recently, but am I possibly the only person who simply gets bored of the GTA games very quickly?
06/08/2008 at 17:17 mooey poo says:
It won’t be as good as Trackmania.
06/08/2008 at 17:19 Dexton says:
Finally the PC games 2008 draught looks like it is going to end. WAR next month, Fallout 3 after that then GTA4 after that. Like buses.
@CrashT I got bored of GTA3 and San Andreas very quickly but I still remember Vice City as one of my favourite PC games. Lets see how the missions and the story hold up in GTA4, the sandbox stuff I get bored of pretty quickly.
06/08/2008 at 17:22 RichPowers says:
Wowowow Vice City is on Steam for $9.99! Why the hell didn’t I know this sooner!? *throws more money Valve’s way* Washed-out colors and 80s music, here I come!
06/08/2008 at 17:23 Irish Al says:
@Crash T
Not at all, they are very much a love ‘em/hate ‘em thing I think. What I love most about them is the modelling of a real, working city environments, which is unsurpassed in gaming. GTA even more so since it finally, finally has a modern graphics engine. The missions are pretty much the same old same old, I just do them to unlock cars and new areas and then I go sandboxing.
06/08/2008 at 17:29 CrashT says:
Irish AI:
The sandbox element generally never holds much appeal for me, at least not in terms of just going off and doing what I want. I played Crackdown and that seemed to do the whole thing better, if only because each time I went off and caused chaos I was actually gaining something as a character, so that the next time I could cause even more chaos.
I enjoyed GTA3 because there was often several different ways to complete each mission but the more story-centric subsequent GTA games have become, the more restricted the mission requirements are and the less interesting they become.
06/08/2008 at 17:31 Leeks! says:
Personally, I really liked the missions in IV. They had the emotional coherence of a modern epic crime film like Heat or the Departed. It’s the first GTA I can remember playing because I wanted to see what happened next, and not just to unlock new areas.
06/08/2008 at 17:52 Jim says:
I’m a total sucker for physics and realistic damage models, so GTA4 is my favourite so far, sure it’s not as fun when doing the missions, but smashing in to a sidewalk full of bins, boxes and phone booths in slow motion is amazing. I am hoping the PC version will offer more camera control as well as replays like the other 3D GTA’s.
06/08/2008 at 17:56 Nimic says:
The second half of 2008 could be a fantastic, erm, second half of a year, for PC gaming. GTA4, Spore, L4D, etc.
06/08/2008 at 18:00 Pavel says:
Stalker Clear Sky, Witcher EE, FarCry 2, GTA4, Left4Dead…
Yeah, PC is dead alright.
06/08/2008 at 18:00 RichPowers says:
Nimic, but PC gaming is dead! Can’t you see that!? ;)
06/08/2008 at 18:42 Simon Jones says:
Marvellous! With luck it’ll run nice and smoothly, too. The ps3 version we have at work has a woefully low framerate…
06/08/2008 at 18:46 Subject 706 says:
Can anyone who has played GTA IV tell me if it is REALLY that good? I tend to take console reviews of 10/10 with a grain of salt. A pretty huge grain.
06/08/2008 at 19:04 Jim says:
Rockstar says it will feature ‘Extended Multiplayer’ I wonder if it’s the same stuff that will be in the DLC for Xbox?
Either way, all the cash I put aside for the DLC is now going to the PC version. If people can mod this, then it’ll be amazing. I always wanted a co-op mod against zombies (That isn’t Left for Dead – I refuse to use the 4).
06/08/2008 at 19:04 spd from Russia says:
come on, are there any true gamers who havent played it already? maybe those who cant afford x360? but then they prolly wont have a good enough pc to run it anyway. Thus the sales will be unimpressive and the publisher will moan and blame piracy etc…
06/08/2008 at 19:14 Fumarole says:
I haven’t played it yet. Must not be a true gamer.
06/08/2008 at 19:15 Deuteronomy says:
Nice troll spd.
06/08/2008 at 19:21 Ed says:
I’m a member of the Multi Theft Auto team (as eAi). Regarding Multi Theft Auto for GTA IV we haven’t discussed it, but we’ll have to see. Many of us have moved on somewhat, we’ve been doing MTA since GTA 3 and it’s somewhat worn us out ;)
That said, if it looks feasible, we may, but R* have likely made IV much harder to hack after the Hot Coffee incident…
“spd”: I’d say I’m a ‘true gamer’. I know every GTA game back to front, both technically and otherwise. I probably know as much about how GTA works in a technical sense as anyone outside R*. I’ve invested most of my free time for the last 4 years in GTA hacking. With all that said, I haven’t played GTA4. I almost considered buying an xbox 360 but decided it just wasn’t worth it. I could afford one, but paying £250+ to play one game seems somewhat stupid – I dislike most of the other big xbox360 games – Halo, GoW etc.
GTA:SA is the only game I’ve ever gone to the shop on day 1 and bought.
06/08/2008 at 19:37 John P (Katsumoto) says:
True gamers are the ones who spend over 150 quid to play a single game? Exceedingly rich gamers, maybe!
06/08/2008 at 19:47 Simon Jones says:
I think we can assuredly say that anybody who uses the term ‘true gamer’ seriously can be safely ignored.
06/08/2008 at 19:55 kadayi says:
Great news. I was predicting this from the start despite the naysayers and their various wacked out conspiracies. I figured November would be the right month as well, as it will end out Take 2s financial quarter quite nicely.
06/08/2008 at 20:02 slang says:
@spd
Haha, that’s a good one. Nah, really…if you’re really from Russia you would know that the only way to bring good ol GTA to the masses is giving them a (subtitled) PC version.
Same goes for the rest of Eastern Europe btw…
06/08/2008 at 20:02 Geoff says:
I always hated GTA 3 and its sequel/expansions. The controls irritated me and I just couldn’t see the great appeal in the actual gameplay. But between the gushing reviews and a couple friends telling me “don’t worry, they fixed all that”, I gave GTA 4 a shot, and I think it’s fantastic.
It helps that I lived in NYC for four years, so I can better appreciate the amazing recreation they’ve done – seriously a work of art in itself. But the game also feels better control wise, and is more interesting and entertaining. If you can spare the time and money to give it a shot, I think it’s worth it, even if you hated GTA 3 like I did.
06/08/2008 at 20:05 Turin Turambar says:
I liked GTA3.. when it was called GTA! (1)
06/08/2008 at 20:10 Charlie says:
I found the characters and acting etc. in GTA4 a bit dull to be honest. Much preferred Vice City but thats not to say GTA4 was bad, just dissapointing.
I love a good bit of sandbox but GTA4 didn’t really have anything interesting to discover or do in it. I found this with San Andreas aswell, the world was just dull. Vice City ftw!
I’m really pleased about this though! One of the worst things about GTA4 was the horrible graphics and frame rate. So gonna have to get this! Though I’m a bit pissed off coz I will be going into GAME and trading in GTA4 for GTA4 hehe!
06/08/2008 at 20:17 Subject 706 says:
@spd
Was that comment aimed at me? Rest assured, I can easily afford an Xbox 360 – but I don’t want one, since there are very few games on it that interest me. Those that do, often come out for the PC, so I get them anyway.
Unlike some sad souls in the world, I have no need to instantly get every hyped game, especially since I usually end up with a rather long backlog of games I need to finish. Even though I only game on my supposedly ‘dead’ platform.
06/08/2008 at 20:21 propanol says:
GTA4 was an improvement, but degrades halfway from a semi-serious crime drama with the air of something like Heat to what you’d expect out of a GTA-title — an immature ultra-violent over-generalization.
06/08/2008 at 20:22 Charlie says:
Gah don’t mock me! I bought Mass Effect, Gears of War, AND GTA4 on 360. I really should have patience :(
06/08/2008 at 20:57 Geoff says:
Turin,
I’ll second that. I actually enjoyed the 2D overhead GTA quite a bit, though not enough to actually complete most of it.
06/08/2008 at 21:17 Real Horrorshow says:
August 29, 2008 S.T.A.L.K.E.R.: Clear Sky
August 31, 2008 Mercenaries 2: World in Flames
September 7, 2008 Spore
September 16, 2008 Crysis Warhead
September 16, 2008 Witcher: Enhanced Edition, The
September 23, 2008 Brothers in Arms: Hell’s Highway
September 30, 2008 Rise of the Argonauts
October 1, 2008 Far Cry 2
October 1, 2008 Project Origin
October 7, 2008 Fallout 3
October 14, 2008 Saints Row 2
October 21, 2008 Ghostbusters: The Video Game
October 28, 2008 Command & Conquer: Red Alert 3
November 11, 2008 Call of Duty: World at War
November 11, 2008 Mirror’s Edge
November 17, 2008 Left 4 Dead
November 18, 2008 Prince of Persia
November 18, 2008 Grand Theft Auto IV
Yeah PC is deader than a door nail.
06/08/2008 at 21:23 Ed says:
I think theres certain people who _want_ pc gaming to be dead… If the games are on Steam, I’ll buy them!
I’m getting: Spore, Crysis Warhead (maybe), Witcher (if well reviewed), Far Cry 2, Red Alert 3, Mirror’s Edge, Left 4 Dead and GTA IV.
Going to be a busy few months! Let’s hope we hear about HL2:EP3 soon, I’m guessing there’s another year till we see that.
06/08/2008 at 21:36 Putter says:
@Real Horrorshow – Damn, that’s an exhaustive list. And I would bet there are fewer than 5 of those games that I won’t have at some point.
I should mention that when GTAIV had a rating put up on the ESRB website, I hear there was a Bully: Scholarship Edition rating up aswell. I didn’t see it with my own eyes, but I heard about it a few hours after I bought Bully for PS2 last week :|.
06/08/2008 at 23:01 Alex McLarty says:
Yuss.
More hobos and fire for me.
06/08/2008 at 23:06 kadayi says:
@Real Horrorshow
GJ on this list. November is looking like it’s going to be a complete financial nightmare, with ME, L4D and GTAIV all within a week of each other. Gah.
07/08/2008 at 00:12 Deuteronomy says:
Financial fucking nightmare.
07/08/2008 at 00:16 UncleLou says:
All these games within a few months.
And what’s been out in the last 5 months, and in the next few weeks? Well, Mass Effect. Publishers will be publishers, I guess.
07/08/2008 at 01:01 Chris R says:
I better start saving for all those games I want to purchase… holy crap. The last quarter of this year is going to be amazing.
07/08/2008 at 01:14 Xyzzy says:
So many games, so little money and/or graphics power. Back to play GTA: SA on my Geforce 6150 for me!
07/08/2008 at 01:19 Charlie says:
Saints Row2 on pc? Yeah! Another game I don’t have to get on 360.
I’m quite excited bout it, now all the GTA4 hype has gone I think it actually looks like it could be more fun….
I would like to emphasise the ‘could be’….
07/08/2008 at 01:39 Cigol says:
I have it on the PS3 already. Honestly, I think its overrated – and nowhere near as good as San Andreas or as fun as Vice City. The gloss will wear off very quickly if you’re tastes are anything like mine.
That being said, someone mentioned the analog controls. I’ve personally never had issues with driving using the keyboard in the past, and using cover will not be necessary on the PC as you have full aim and WSAD control scheme. Besides, the cover system is seriously fucking annoying (despite the media glossing over its deficiencies), I can’t recount the number of times I died trying to use it or the auto-aim. Roll on mouse control is what I say.
07/08/2008 at 02:09 L4 says:
here’s hoping it will have a good editor so the mod community is strong.
I want to see mods the scope of Desert Combat was for Battlefield 1942.
I want to see Taco Bells and Burger Kings and KFCs instead of Cluckin Bell & Burger Shot. I want real cars & real buildings, real streets mapped out the same as the real NYC.
thats how GTA4 PC could become epic.
07/08/2008 at 03:13 Real Horrorshow says:
Tell me about it. I intend on playing and beating all those games but I doubt I’ll be able to do it all before this time next year. That’s $1000 worth of games there. I actually think they’re getting way out of hand with fall 08. I thought fall 07 was crowded…
07/08/2008 at 03:17 Snook says:
That’s also how R* could end up in a whole load of legal trouble. Can you imagine a certain U.S lawyers “murder simulator” claims if GTA depicts a real city? I shudder to think.
07/08/2008 at 04:40 Joinn says:
I think I’ll have to sell my wife and kids to finance all those games, not to mention getting time to play them :)
07/08/2008 at 06:15 DSX says:
@Real Horrorshow: Awesome list, thanks very much for it. Pretty much every title on it looks to be a very decent game worth the price.
As far as GTA4 is concerned, haven’t played it yet, never had a doubt it would not make to PC somehow, even if someone had to make a decent xbox emulator.
07/08/2008 at 06:59 James says:
IV was absolutely ace in the as-is Xbox version in my opinion, so I’ll be terribly interested to see what the modding community makes of this one. This might be the first game I’ve owned on more than one platform.
Any opportunity to play the bank heist level again will do, I think. One big ripoff/homage of Heat, but damn was it ever fun.
07/08/2008 at 07:29 Alarik says:
CrashT: I find all GTA games boring, to tell the truth… Never understood why are people playing them :-)
07/08/2008 at 07:37 Free Xbox 360 Elite says:
I always thought the GTA games were good games, but nothing worth the hype that they receive now. I do buy them all, though. I think the PC edition will have pretty good showing.
07/08/2008 at 08:45 Cigol says:
The bank heist was a real let down for me. Kayne and Lynch (for all its faults) channels Michael Mann far greater than any other game I can think of and Mafia had a more immersive bank robbery scene. In GTA you drive up to the bank, watch a silly little cut scene and then run away in a linear, funnelled fashion shooting the same cops the same way every time.
This isn’t much of a spoiler I hope, but many of the missions are lazy and repetitive. I’m a huge GTA fan, and you’ll enjoy the game, but christ is it overrated. Again; San Andreas and Vice City beat it hands down.
07/08/2008 at 09:43 Subject 706 says:
@Realhorrorshow
Let me complete your list a little:
Penumbra : Requiem – August 27
Dark Horizon – September 26
If you haven’t played the earlier Penumbras, you really should. Great little horror adventures, from a very small team.
07/08/2008 at 09:43 iainl says:
I have a 360, where I do most of my games playing, and I haven’t got around to picking up GTA4 yet. I’ve just got far too many other games I’ve bought over the last 6-9 months that I haven’t finished playing to go buying one that is still full price. That, and I got bored of San Andreas and never finished it.
07/08/2008 at 10:59 DrHam says:
07/08/2008 at 12:34 Andrew Wills says:
Oh god… Left 4 Dead and GTAIV in the space of two weeks. This really will test the wifes patience!
08/08/2008 at 02:26 Robin says:
The official site suggests this is using Games for Windows Live
Gold Extra 1000 Hours Free*for online multiplayer.For fuck’s FUCKING sake.
10/08/2008 at 02:38 redrain85 says:
Can one surmise that improving GfW Live and making it free, was done in preparation for a title like GTA IV? Because you know that people would have been screaming at Microsoft, that Live completely ruined GTA IV, otherwise?
Up until now, they’ve sort of been able to get away with GfW Live being so shitty. But with a title like GTA IV – that’s sure to sell by the truckload, even on PC – there would have been a lot of people angry with Microsoft, without these desperately needed changes.
06/10/2008 at 07:49 toxic says:
since my 360 broke i wanted to play this, my 360 broke like 2 weeks after i got it. i didnt put it down since i had it, got like 25% done and played online ALL THE TIME
26/10/2008 at 08:35 quenus says:
You people understand that “driving with a keyboard is stupid” is stale and obfuscating to me. The xbox 360 controller is compatible with 98% of windows games that are released after the xbox360. No setup is required, just plug n’ play. Grid, Pure, etc.