New games this week: Grand Theft Auto IV edition

70 Comments by Justin McElroy Apr 28th 2008 8:30AM
Filed under: Nintendo DS, Features, PC, Sony PlayStation 2, Sony PlayStation 3, Sony PSP, Nintendo Wii, Microsoft Xbox 360

Yeah, so, big surprise, right? Grand Theft Auto IV is the biggest release of the (first half of) the year and it's our featured game this week. But if you like the digit "3" to stay far, far away from your console name, fear not: There's good stuff for you as well with Mario Kart Wii and Iron Man (which looks like it may not be terrible) also being released.

See what other non-hooker-beating-related wonders await you after the break.

Xbox 360:

Grand Theft Auto IV
Iron Man

PS3:

Grand Theft Auto IV
Iron Man

Nintendo Wii:

Mario Kart Wii
Iron Man

PS2:

SNK Arcade Classics V.1
Iron Man

PSP:

Chameleon
SNK Arcade Classics V.1
Iron Man

Nintendo DS:

River King: Mystic Valley
Brain Voyage
Toy Shop
Iron Man
Corvette Evolution GT
Let's Pilates
Let's Yoga

PC Games:

Baseball Mogul 2009
Great War Nations: The Spartans
Polar Games 2

Tags: grand-theft-auto-iv, gtaiv, newgames

Read

(Page 1) Reader Comments

Jtenma: Apr 28th 2008; 8:37AM

Tuesday will be a great day for many 360/ps3 owners everywhere!

Who's gettin the collector's?

nmezib: Apr 28th 2008; 8:52AM

finally! (I took a day off work to have some alone time with me and my baby)

oh yeah, and collector's edition ftw! See y'all online!

xFenixKnightx: Apr 28th 2008; 8:59AM

LOL, same here I took the day off work so I can play :) I didn't get the "special" edition but now I wish I would have. I'm glad I have a whole month to solely devote to this before Ninja Gaiden II comes out. Then I will ration.

ThePremierAssassin: Apr 28th 2008; 9:01AM

Not me...I didn't really see the additional value in it.

So far the only Collector's Editions I've got are

1) Gears of War
2) Mass Effect

I forget if LO had a CE...if it does I might try to find one on the cheap...I'm in love with that game I swear.

Phranctoast: Apr 28th 2008; 9:15AM

Only bought one collectors edition of a game. Unreal Tournament 2004. It came with an assortment on training to use the Unreal Engine 2.0 for map creation. oh...and a cool metal case.

Sir Fidlious Wong (Zeon Defense Force): Apr 28th 2008; 9:16AM

CE payed off and ready to pick up during lunch hour tomorrow. (Didn't take the day off, sorry)

Stridery: Apr 28th 2008; 9:27AM

Just got notified of Amazon shipping my GTAIV:SE. Its so close I can taste it...

Phranctoast: Apr 28th 2008; 9:48AM

@Stridery

Mine is shipping soon. I may have it by tomorrow after all.

TheHuntIsOn: Apr 28th 2008; 9:53AM

It should have also been a great day for PC owners too grumblegrumble

PSN: KillaKornbread (the shirt is a lie!): Apr 28th 2008; 10:25AM

you guys are lucky you can take off. i can take off work but i cant take off school unfortunately. i have a whole bunch of homework too since we are nearing the end of the semester now. im gonna pick it up at the midnight launch since ill be getting off right around then anyway and then its home to finish my paper. i probably wont get to really play it til thursday since ill probably just try it out tonight for a like a half hour or so.

Vcize: Apr 28th 2008; 11:10AM

Writing that paper while GTA4 sits next to you is going to be the hardest thing you ever do.

And if you try to take 30 minutes to try it out, you KNOW you're going to end up playing it for 5 hours and just taking the F on the paper...

Tiptup300: Apr 28th 2008; 3:21PM

Which game, I think there are two games coming out Tuesday.

goboColossus: Apr 28th 2008; 8:41AM

Let's Yoga outsells Grand Theft Auto IV, 7:1.

Let's Pilates the underdog of the season overshadowed by it's Yoga themed sibling. Critics agree, Pilates is the better game. IGN writes, "It's a shame Pilates has to come out at a time like this. Yoga is odviously going to be the bigger seller, when the two are put neck and neck. It's just that pilates is the better game, plain and simple. Good news for gamers with a deep wallet, but bad news for those of use who can only pick and chose a few games this season: Pick up Yoga and play with your friends? or Pick up Pilates and get the better experience overall, just by your lonesome. - I think I'll go with Pilates!"

FOXHOUND: Apr 28th 2008; 8:54AM

+1 ... I'm sold on both of them. 11/10. Yep.

Ghen: Apr 28th 2008; 8:45AM

digit "3"
...
sorry to be a buzzkill but editing is good.

josh: Apr 28th 2008; 10:11AM

playstation 3. xbox 360. they have 3s.

the wii has no 3.

get it?

Fuery: Apr 28th 2008; 10:17AM

Wrong.

Wii has three letters. They're in the same boat. >:(

baby sea tuna: Apr 28th 2008; 9:02AM

*koff koff* I'm not feeling too well...looks like I may be a little sick tomorrow...

supakoopa: Apr 28th 2008; 10:29AM

I actually have mono, want some?

Mutant: Apr 28th 2008; 1:03PM

Mono is not the way to play this game. You need Dolby 5.1 surround to get the full benefit. ;)

E.J.: Apr 28th 2008; 2:39PM

Wow, what just happened here?

Oh, I have amnesia. Can't work go in to work tomorrow...

AJ: Apr 28th 2008; 9:03AM

Grand Theft Auto? Is this the game based on the Ron Howard movie?

ThePremierAssassin: Apr 28th 2008; 9:03AM

Iron Man comes out today? I must have missed the memo...oh well it might get a rental from me.

Are there any reviews on it?

NATO_Duke: Apr 28th 2008; 10:01AM

The demo was better than I expected. The flight controls, though imperfect, were not bad.

Britton: Apr 28th 2008; 10:27AM

I don't know why people are lying to you. The demo was 10 minutes of same-y action. Fly high, avoid rockets, destroy tanks, punch slates of hardware that break into Legos, and kindly repeat. It's hysterically stupid. But hey, if you're really anticipating classic sarcasm from Robert Downey Jr. every 2.9 seconds than be my guest, they're brilliant lit'l comedic nuggets for the whole family!

NATO_Duke: Apr 28th 2008; 11:16AM

Well Britton, while the action is repetitive, a person who read my post would see that I was talking about the flight controls not being too bad. So, I don't know why you think I, the people, am lying to him.

Misfit Toy: Apr 28th 2008; 9:06AM

I preordered the regular version. Generally I'm all over special, limited, collector's Xtreme versions of games, but something about a lockbox and a duffel bag came off a little too E3 shwaggy to me. The soundtrack may have been interesting...but not for an extra $30.

Matt B: Apr 28th 2008; 9:08AM

Game of the forever

Platinum_Skeet: Apr 28th 2008; 9:09AM

Saints Row 2 = Fucked

Sir Fidlious Wong (Zeon Defense Force): Apr 28th 2008; 9:19AM

I don't see how. If anything, Saints Row 2 benefits from GTA IV's release about now. Because by the time Saint's Row 2 ships, most of the early adopters of GTAIV, of which there will be many, will be ready to move on.

xFenixKnightx: Apr 28th 2008; 9:38AM

Yea I think this might HELP SR2. Some people will want to play another sandbox game after they are burnt out on GTA and SR2 will serve those people right. Then you have the SR fanbase already out there to boot.

TheHuntIsOn: Apr 28th 2008; 11:47AM

Haha, yup. The first Saints Row was a shadow of what last gen GTA games were, I can only feel sorry for a sequel that is going up against something as highly rated as GTA IV.

Sir Fidlious Wong (Zeon Defense Force): Apr 28th 2008; 12:01PM

Well, TheHuntIsOn, for a game that was apparently tragically in the shadow of previous gen GTAs, amazing how many ideas were stolen from it for GTAIV.

Although I do have this simple question... when are they finally going to add a headset to this game? I can't get a walkman up in this bitch?

tmacairjordan87: Apr 28th 2008; 12:32PM

Saint's row is inevitably tied to the GTA series. The reason 1 looked good was because it was compared to the ps2 gtas. Now that 4 is coming out and it's looking like a near flawless masterpeice, saint's row 2 will be completely trashed when it comes out as a lifeless souless knockoff (like it deserves)

Sir Fidlious Wong (Zeon Defense Force): Apr 28th 2008; 9:23AM

I snagged Mario Kart yesterday and really must say....

I FRICKIN HATE THE AI IN THESE GAMES. I prefer playing Online because real players are not that cheap. I believe I get hit with just one item about as many times as I get hit with 4 or more. One particular match, in 50cc no less, took me down from first place to 7th in Warios Stadium because I got hit by a blue shell, then a bobomb, then another blue shell, then a red shell, and then lightning. FIVE ITEMS IN A ROW. The game is fun and the tricks add a whole lot to the game but the AI on this franchise continues to be broken, possibly to the worst extent since it's inception.

aReEeNeN: Apr 28th 2008; 9:33AM

I hear you completely Fidlious, although it still isn't as bad as Mario Party AI, the computer that plays with Gameshark on...

baby sea tuna: Apr 28th 2008; 9:40AM

Yeah, the rubber band AI in these games has proven to be quite the dick over the years.

deaftly: Apr 28th 2008; 9:49AM

Yea It pissed me off so much in the DS version I'm skipping it for the Wii entirely

umm....hello???: Apr 28th 2008; 10:09AM

yeah, the AI is ridiculous....but the online is awesome!!!! at least when you get hit by an item online, it's a legit item being carried by human intelligence (not sure if that's saying much, though = ))....

Sir Fidlious Wong (Zeon Defense Force): Apr 28th 2008; 10:10AM

DS was a little more balanced. You had that moment of invulnerability. You don't have that here. You can be hit by items while taking damage from another item....

ARGH!

I wish you could turn off items. Because at it's core, it's very fun. The issue is with the AI itself. And the tricks add a lot of fun to the game. It's just the AI that's broken.

voodoo_craig: Apr 28th 2008; 10:34AM

Yeah, the AI sucks like hell, but to be honest I think it might be the easiest Mario Kart yet, I'm really disappointed how quickly I got through it.

Nintendo really have sold out to the 'casual' crowd.

Shmil: Apr 28th 2008; 11:43AM

Geez sheppy, you should just quit your bitching and learn how to dodge blue and red shells. its not that hard.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f2b1D5w82yU

Misfit Toy: Apr 28th 2008; 9:25AM

Honestly, this is the first GTA game I'll be playing. I was sort of interested in GTA 3, but the graphics and gameplay looked so cheap. And the other two were in the 80s or the 90s ghetto...none of that interested me either. I lived through the 80s and would rather forget it, and as for San Andreas...I'm not a 'G', nor do I want to be.

But this game looks like it finally fixes some of those clunky game mechanics, as well as easily fixes the graphics issues I had (thank you next gen). And finally, the story actually looks really intersting to me. Rockstar, you finally did it.

xFenixKnightx: Apr 28th 2008; 9:45AM

I completely agree with you. The only GTA I played and almost finished but never bought was Vice City. But now thanks to sweet graphics in HD, cover mechanics, physics engine, and online MP set in modern times this game is totally worth it.

3 other buddies of mine that also never liked GTA games and have never purchased one before have it pre-ordered as well so you know this game is about to set records.

TheHuntIsOn: Apr 28th 2008; 9:49AM

What on earth! I'm a white upper-middle class Brit living in a rural area but I love San Andreas. I don't play these games to connect to their time zones or to understand the culture, I see it like playing a film set in that era or watching some mofo bad Fresh Prince alternative universe type thing.

Entertainment, not realism.

Phranctoast: Apr 28th 2008; 9:53AM

I own GTA3 but not Vice or San Andreas. At some point I just got distracted from the missions and I went out on killing sprees. That and the unlimited ammo kind of ruined the game for me. Deterred me from the other two which isn't all that fair to them since everyone I spoke to about those two only speaks highly.

Misfit Toy: Apr 28th 2008; 10:24AM

I understand your point TheHuntIsOn, and it is a valid one. My point is these games are designed to be immersive, and those were two worlds I had no desire to be immersed in...that simple. That, and again, the game mechanics looked awkward. This latest version seems to address those issues.

Misfit Toy: Apr 28th 2008; 9:26AM

Thanks for the warning!

NATO_Duke: Apr 28th 2008; 10:04AM

I haven't been into the last few GTA games, in fact, I thought they were bloated and awkward to play for some reason. That's just me though. This one I have some faith in being good and so I pre-ordered it. I am actually pretty excited for its release now.

BTW: I am seeing GTA ads on buses and bus stops throughout Chicago - So Daley's ban didn't quite work out.

xFenixKnightx: Apr 28th 2008; 10:32AM

Lol, thats funny. You know what else Ive noticed is that I have seen NO GTAIV 360 commercials. All have been promoting the PS3 version. MS is dropping the ball IMO, guess they are just relying on bigger install base and thats fine and dandy but c'mon now...

| 1 | 2 | Most Recent | Next 50 Comments

Add your comments

Please keep your comments relevant to this blog entry. Email addresses are never displayed, but they are required to confirm your comments.

When you enter your name and email address, you'll be sent a link to confirm your comment, and a password. To leave another comment, just use that password.

To create a live link, simply type the URL (including http://) or email address and we will make it a live link for you. You can put up to 3 URLs in your comments. Line breaks and paragraphs are automatically converted — no need to use <p> or <br> tags.