Grand Theft Auto IV
| Grand Theft Auto IV | |||
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| Studio | Rockstar North | ||
| Publisher | Rockstar Games | ||
| Senior Developer | Leslie Benzies (Producer) Aaron Garbut (Art Director) Dan Houser , Rupert Humphries (Authors) |
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| composer | Michael Hunter | ||
| Erstveröffent- lichung |
Xbox 360 / PlayStation 3: April 29, 2008 Windows: December 2, 2008 December 3, 2008 Xbox One: February 9, 2017 |
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| platform | PlayStation 3 , Xbox 360 , Xbox One , Windows | ||
| Game engine | RAGE | ||
| genre | Action , third-person shooter , open world | ||
| Game mode | Single and multiplayer (online) | ||
| control | Gamepad , mouse , keyboard | ||
| system advantages preconditions |
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| medium | Xbox 360: 1 DVD-ROM PS3: 1 Blu-ray Disc PC: 2 DVDs Xbox One: DVD-ROM from Xbox 360 (backwards compatible) |
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| language | Audio: English Subtitles: German, English, French, Italian, Spanish |
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| copy protection | SecuROM , online activation | ||
| Age rating |
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Grand Theft Auto IV ( GTA IV or GTA 4 for short) is the ninth game in the Grand Theft Auto series. The game was developed by the Scottish manufacturer Rockstar North and was released on April 29, 2008 for the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 . The PC version was released on December 3, 2008.
The game is about the protagonist Niko Bellic and his search for a traitor from the war . The location of the plot is mainly the city of Liberty City, which depicts a satirical New York , and the city of Alderney, which is based on New Jersey . Like its predecessors, GTA IV is a third-person shooter with racing game elements that follows the open world principle .
Six million units of the game were sold in the first week, generating sales of approximately $ 500 million. In addition, GTA IV is one of the top rated video games according to the Internet rankings GameRankings.com and Metacritic.com . GTA IV was sold over 25 million times through 2013.
action
The game is set in 2008. For the first time in GTA IV, the player is given the choice in several situations to decide the fate of other characters. The action is not significantly affected by this. The most important points are contained in the following description of the course of action.
At the request of his cousin Roman, the Serbian- speaking Eastern European Nikolai "Niko" Bellic comes as an immigrant to the fictional city of Liberty City, which is modeled on the real New York City . Roman had always explained in emails and letters how far he had come in America and how wealthy and successful he was now. After Niko got into trouble in Europe, he decided to emigrate to America in the hope of a better life. There Roman wants to live the “ American Dream ” with him . In addition, Niko is looking for a man who betrayed him and his friends in the war and is now supposed to be in Liberty City.
When Niko arrives in Liberty City, he quickly discovers that Roman is really not rich and successful. Roman is in debt and runs a small taxi company with his girlfriend Mallorie. He lives in Hove Beach, a neighborhood mainly inhabited by Eastern European immigrants, in a small apartment that he shares with Niko. The first time after his arrival, Niko does orders for Roman and his creditor "Vlad", who has connections to the Russian mafia. During this time Niko met his first girlfriend Michelle, his loyal sidekick Little Jacob, a Jamaican drug dealer, and the steroid-using fitness enthusiast Brucie Kibbutz. Finally it turns out that Vlad, who is constantly threatening and blackmailing the two cousins, also has a relationship with Mallorie, Roman's girlfriend. When the two cousins confront Vlad, an argument ensues, as a result of which Vlad is killed.
Vlad's business partners, two Russian mafia members named Mikhail Faustin and Dimitri Rascalov, are not particularly sad about his death. However, they ask Niko to replace them with some jobs. Since the two do not always agree, this leads to Dimitri demanding that Faustin be murdered by Niko. As a reward, Niko is supposed to receive money from Dimitri, but is betrayed by Dimitri when he is handed over to an old Russian creditor named Bulgarin. Niko manages to escape with the help of his friend Little Jacob, but in the meantime Dimitri lets Roman's apartment and his taxi company burn down, which is why they both have to go into hiding in the Bohan district.
Roman's friend Mallorie organizes an apartment for both of them in Bohan. It was through her that Niko met the ex-criminal and would-be TV star Manny Escuela and the dealer Elizabeta. He does jobs for both of them, until one day he is surprised by his girlfriend Michelle, who turns out to be an undercover agent for the secret service "IAA" (based on the CIA ) while handing over drugs. Meanwhile, Elizabeta shoots Manny in an argument; The contact breaks off as Elizabeta expects to be arrested for the failed drug delivery. Through Elizabeta, Niko also got to know the drug dealer Playboy X and then his former friend Dwayne, who is released from prison after a long prison sentence. However, Dwayne and Playboy X no longer trust each other and their former friendship turns more and more into enmity. The argument escalates when both Playboy and Dwayne ask Niko to kill each other. At this point the player can decide for himself which side he takes.
It was also through Elizabeta that Niko met the three brothers of the Irish McReary family and their sister Kate, with whom Niko soon developed a relationship. With the McRearys he raids, among other things, the bank of Liberty City. In the further course of the plot there is a conflict between Derrick McReary and Francis McReary, a corrupt police officer, so that Niko is again faced with the decision to kill one of the two. Michelle, who was exposed as an FIB investigator, brings Niko together with “United Liberty Paper”, a cover company of a government-affiliated organization that, in return for the murder of an unwelcome witness, helps Niko in the search for the Serbian traitor.
Through the McReary brothers, Niko comes into contact with the Italian mafia, whose masterminds are Ray Boccino, Phil Bell and Don Jimmy Pegorino. With Ray's help, Niko finds his former war comrade Florian, who is suspected by Niko of being a traitor to his former unit. It turns out that Florian, who now calls himself “Bernie” and has a homosexual affair with the deputy mayor, cannot be the traitor. Florian and Niko become friends again. Now it is clear to Niko that only Darko Brevic can be the traitor. The United-Liberty contact person puts Niko together with Jon Gravelli, the leader of the most powerful Mafia family in Liberty City. This locates Darko in Romania. After Niko has also done some jobs for Gravelli, Darko is kidnapped from Romania to Liberty City with the help of United-Liberty and delivered to Niko. At this point the player can decide again whether to kill Darko or let him live.
Then the marriage between Roman and Mallorie is due. Don Pegorino asks Niko to work with Dimitri Rascalov again. At this point the player has the opportunity to decide for or against the deal with Dimitri. If the player decides for the deal and does the job, Dimitri reveals Niko again and has Roman murdered at his wedding. In the final mission, Dimitri also cheats on Pegorino and shoots him, so that Niko has to kill Dimitri at the foot of the Statue of Happiness after a long chase .
If the player decides against Pegorino's wish and immediately kills Dimitri, the hatred of the Italian mafia is drawn on, which is why Pegorino shoots Nikos girlfriend Kate in a drive-by robbery at Roman's wedding. In the final mission, Niko has to kill the remaining Pegorino at the foot of the Statue of Happiness .
Gameplay
→ A detailed description of the typical game elements can be found in the main article Grand Theft Auto . The implementation of these game elements and the differences to their predecessors are described below.
Main and side missions
The gameplay differs from its predecessor in only a few points. There are a number of missions embedded in the main storyline, as well as a number of side missions that can be performed outside of the storyline. The main missions include, just like their predecessors, the execution of criminal tasks mostly with the help of weapons and vehicles. The missions are not linear, i.e. This means that the player can sometimes choose between several missions.
As usual in the series, road races can be driven as side missions, “Unique Stunts / Monster Stunts” can be carried out and cars can be stolen and sold. Taxi missions and a collection campaign are also available. In police cars, the police computer can be used to e.g. B. start vigilante missions or identify people. However, compared to its two predecessors, GTA: Vice City and GTA: San Andreas, there is no longer any possibility of buying buildings or shops and thereby receiving additional income and missions. Other activities without great rewards (leisure activities) such as simply watching TV, going to cabaret or games such as darts, bowling and pool are possible. There are internet cafés with over 100 websites and blogs parodied especially for the game, which the player can view.
Just like the predecessor GTA: San Andreas , the game does not contain any rampage missions (so-called rampages ). These missions, in which the player has to kill a certain number of enemies under time pressure, were included in GTA III and GTA: Vice City , but had to be removed from the German version to avoid indexing.
Compared to San Andreas , the importance of friendships has grown considerably. The player builds a network of people who provide the player with useful bonuses if he meets them regularly and pursues the leisure activities described above.
more details
The storage system was expanded in GTA IV . It is still possible to save the game status in "Safe Houses" as long as you are not in an active mission. In addition, for the first time in the series, the score is automatically saved at the end of a mission. If the mission fails, the player receives an SMS on his cell phone, which allows him to restart this mission immediately.
The wanted system has been revised and is similar to the system in Scarface: The World Is Yours : The police are looking for the player in a wanted group that grows the more crimes they commit. If the player manages to escape the wanted group, the search ends after a short period of time. However, if the player is seen during the manhunt, the wanted circle is again centered on the player.
As in GTA: San Andreas , the game character is able to climb roofs and over fences, swim, crouch and also shimmy along objects. However, the character is no longer able to dive. The role-playing elements introduced in the previous version have been removed so that the character's skills do not improve over time. The appearance can only be changed with new clothing.
An innovation in the aiming and combat system compared to GTA: San Andreas is the ability to seek cover at the next possible point at the push of a button.
A navigation system supplements the previous map and shows the correct route to the destination. In more valuable cars, the correct route is also indicated by voice output.
GTA IV supports different multiplayer modes. Up to 16 players can compete against each other in twelve game modes and up to four players can take part in three team missions. In the team missions, one player can act as the driver while the others shoot out of the vehicle. In addition to the usual game modes such as Deathmatch or Team Deathmatch, players can race against each other or steal vehicles and complete missions under time pressure. The player who completes the mission fastest wins.
Game world
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The map is overall smaller than that of the predecessor GTA: San Andreas , but is designed in much more detail. It consists of three large, three small and one medium-sized islands, of which only the eastern islands are readily accessible at the beginning. If the player enters a blocked island, this triggers the highest wanted level.
The map is modeled on four of the five boroughs of New York and part of New Jersey . Broker is the GTA IV counterpart to Brooklyn , Algonquin is Manhattan , Dukes is Queens , Bohan is the Bronx and Alderney is New Jersey. Staten Island , however, has been completely left out. Some landmarks and landmarks of the city have also been added to the game, including the Cyclone roller coaster on Coney Island in Brooklyn, the Domino Sugar Factory, the Grand Army Plaza Triumphal Arch , the remains of the 1964 New York World's Fair , of Central Park , the Empire State Building and Times Square . The GTA IV equivalent of the Statue of Liberty is called the Statue of Happiness and instead of a torch it holds a Starbucks- like coffee mug in its hand.
Boats, helicopters, cars, motorcycles and some special vehicles such as forklifts or garbage trucks are available to the player in GTA IV to get around. The player can also use an elevated train and a subway. Airplanes, however, cannot be used. In addition to simple weapons, assault rifles like the AK-47 and M4 as well as heavy weapons like the RPG-7 are also present in the game.
The simulation of the virtual world has been refined by incorporating more everyday processes: passers-by react to rain, police officers distribute parking tickets and garbage collectors collect rubbish. Furthermore, the modeling is more complex than in previous games. The streets are designed individually and the appearance of the passers-by is more varied.
The AI of the opponents has been improved compared to its predecessors. You look for cover independently and act in a coordinated manner.
Production details
Up to 150 developers were involved in the production of GTA IV . The producer Leslie Benzies puts the production costs roughly at 100 million dollars, and the total number of people involved in GTA IV at around 1000. In addition, more than 100,000 photos were taken of New York.
Leslie Benzies is the producer, Sam Houser executive producer, Dan Houser and Rupert Humphries designed the plot, and Dan Houser and Lazlow Jones are responsible for the radio station presentations. The main character Niko is voiced by Michael Hollick, who has received $ 100,000 for his voice and motion capture .
technology
The game uses the Rockstar Advanced Game Engine (RAGE) developed by Rockstar itself . It uses the Euphoria Engine developed by NaturalMotion for the realistic representation of human movements within the game . In contrast to the Ragdoll method, Euphoria simulates the muscles and the nervous system in order to create more realistic movement sequences. Hitting and shooting people also look more realistic. Euphoria works parallel to the game engine and offers the advantage that the movements described are no longer recorded or precalculated during the development of the game, as they were before, but rather that they are calculated individually while the game is being played.
In general, the light and shadow effects in the game have been improved compared to their predecessors. Sun rays are reflected from cars, window panes and asphalt. The representation of water surfaces is also more realistic. The damage model for vehicles has been refined and the driving physics are more realistic than in the predecessors.
The two console versions are loud IGN Entertainment technically almost identical, but the PlayStation 3 version has more sophisticated antialiasing , less "pop-ins" (suddenly appearing objects), shorter charging times (because of the installation on the hard disk) and a somewhat more stable frame rate in In contrast to the Xbox 360 version.
An analysis by eurogamer.net , on the other hand, comes up with slightly different results. The results of the anti-aliasing effects and filters used are classified as a matter of taste. The hard drive installation of the PS3 would also have no decisive advantages. Only during “wild” helicopter maneuvers would the PS3 generate fewer “pop-ins”, and no differences were noticeable in the normal course of the game. Both versions do not have a stable frame rate, but the Xbox 360 is 17 to 18 percent higher than the frame rate of the PS3 and therefore a little over 30 frames per second in some situations. The TV shows that can be seen in the game have a higher resolution in the PS3 version. Overall, the Xbox 360 version is technically better, but with the creatively used optical effects, the PS3 version would look at least as good ("in many scenarios it looks as good as the 360 version, if not better.")
Like some other games (for example Halo 3 ), GTA IV offers 1080p resolution in both console versions only by scaling an output image with a lower resolution. The Xbox version calculates the image from 720p (1280 × 720) and the PS3 version from 640p (1152 × 640).
Soundtrack
The soundtrack contains 19 radio stations with some well-known presenters. The radio station "Vladivostok FM", for example, is presented by the Ukrainian singer Ruslana , who won the 2004 Eurovision Song Contest. Other moderators are Juliette Lewis , DJ Green Lantern , Karl Lagerfeld , Iggy Pop , Roy Ayers , Femi Kuti and Daddy Yankee .
Due to licensing regulations, an update was distributed on April 26, 2018 for all versions of the main game as well as for both episodes, which removed certain songs from the in-game soundtrack and partly replaced them with new ones. These changes affected a large part of the Russian pop broadcaster "Vladivostok FM".
reception
Sales figures
Worldwide, six million units of the game were sold in the first week, 3.6 million of them on the first day. This equates to approximately $ 500 million in revenue in the first week and $ 310 million in the first day. By the end of May 2008, eleven million units had been delivered to retailers worldwide, of which 8.5 million were sold. In March 2009, Take Two announced that it had hit the 13 million mark with $ 770 million in revenue. In March 2011, the message about the 20 million mark followed. According to the manufacturer, there were six million pre-orders worldwide. In addition, GTA IV accounts for 46.2 percent of total sales in 2008. In September 2011 it was announced that GTA IV had been sold over 22 million times, overtaking its predecessor, San Andreas .
In the UK, 926,000 units of the game were sold in the first week, with 631,000 units being sold on the first day. These included 514,000 units for the Xbox 360 and 413,000 units for the PS3. This surpassed the record of GTA: San Andreas with 677,000 units in the first week and 501,000 units on the first day.
The sales figures for the consoles themselves were also influenced: Compared to the previous week, PS3 sales increased by 127%, those of the Xbox 360 by 125%. There were special bundles for both, in which the game was included with the console at a reduced price (PS3) or even free of charge (Xbox 360).
The game was also at the top of the sales charts in Germany, with more units being sold for the PS3 than for the Xbox 360. In autumn 2008, the BIU awarded the console sockets platinum for 200,000 units sold. At that time, the PC version initially received gold for 100,000 units sold, the platinum award followed in April 2009. In addition, GTA IV received three other games, the multi-platform award for 500,000 units sold on multiple platforms.
Awards
GTA IV won three awards at the MTV Game Awards 2008 in the categories: Game Of The Year , Best Supporting Role and You Got The Style . The Time magazine created 50 top 10 lists for 2008. GTA IV is therefore the best computer game of 2008.
Rating in game magazines
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The game received above-average ratings from game testers worldwide, with many testers giving the highest possible rating. The website Metacritic gives the average rating of both the Xbox 360 and PS3 version with 98%, the PC version scores 90 points. The elaborately and detailed modeled city, the plot, characters and the "brilliantly staged" cutscenes and the soundtrack are named as positive features. On the negative side are the new vehicle controls that take getting used to, graphics problems such as objects that suddenly appear, the difficult shooting out of the vehicle, the monotonous mission design, and the weak enemy AI
In addition to the extremely positive review by the game testers, there was an unusually differentiated media coverage for a computer game. The ARD and ZDF admitted a few minutes for the game in their newscasts.
While some reviews rated the technical aspects as well as the gameplay, other reviews focused on the importance in the history of video games . For Spiegel Online , GTA IV is "the biggest and most important video game of the year" and "probably the best that the world has seen so far". Furthermore, the financial success "casually shows the representatives of the old media landscape that their undisputed supremacy is nearing its end". GTA IV is "more snappy, smarter, more precise and daring than anything that Hollywood has produced in recent years".
For sueddeutsche.de , GTA IV is “a sensation” because the game “is not only one of the most popular video game series of all time, but has long been considered a prime example of the new world of entertainment”.
For the Tagesspiegel the game serves "longings", "like crossing borders, freedom and social advancement". “Everyone [...] can do things as Niko Bellic that they would never dare in normal life: they steal limousines, motorcycles or even ships and helicopters, exchange gunfire with the Mafia or chases with the police, buy large-caliber weapons in dark cellars and collect dollars for money sharks - until the whole New York-based city knows the name Niko Bellic. "
Furthermore, GTA is a game that allows a glimpse into the future of computer games: “The history of video games is still relatively young, and the potential of the medium as a cultural asset to be taken seriously is only slowly becoming apparent. But Grand Theft Auto IV is a giant step into a promising future. "
IGN Entertainment praises the unusually deep character drawing and the Oscar-worthy plot in its review. The game is "without question the best game since The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time ". Grand Theft Auto III was a "revolutionary" game that inspired a new generation of 3D action games. GTA IV is a "big step forward" that would set a "new benchmark for open world games ". IGN justifies this with the "harmony" of the individual components (plot, game world, physics engine , AI ) of the game, which would complement each other. IGN does not want the top rating of 10 points to be understood as a “perfect” game, but rather as recognition for “expanding a genre”, for “pushing boundaries” and “surpassing the competition on many points”.
Special mention was made of the New York Times review because it appeared the day before the game was released and was placed in the Arts category. Seth Schiesel describes GTA IV as "violent, intelligent, profane, lovable, disgusting, clever" cultural satire that disguises itself as entertainment.
Reactions to the reviews
Telepolis noted a change in the basic attitude in the reviews: The current reports would show “a new differentiation and acceptance of the medium”, which “a few months ago would have been unthinkable outside of the specialized trade journals”. The previous reports are more like "fantasy-driven 'killer game' campaigns ofthe kind of ' panorama ' journalism, which by all means inculcate the dangers for children and adults in contemporaries who are less game-loving".
On the other hand, it would be a “challenge” in the future to “not only grade games […] with thin percentages, but actually criticize them”. Because in the reviews of the game testers it is difficult to distinguish between “hype, PR and enthusiasm”. GTA IV is “a good, maybe even an important and big game”, but whether it really is the perfect game can only be determined “in retrospect”, “when the next wave of hype washed away over the unhealthy game industry, which has grown together with its critics is. "
Also GameStar notes that manufacturers in the "classic games criticism" "find more allies than checkers." Like Telepolis, GameStar recognizes a system in the percentage reviews that causes a rush from “peak to peak”. Since earlier games such as The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time , Halo 3 , BioShock and Super Mario Galaxy had an average rating of 94 to 99%, "the room for improvement" would be "thin for top games". The predecessor GTA: San Andreas had already achieved an average of 96%. The effect is that this makes the game's weaknesses unimportant. Some testers recognize weaknesses in GTA IV , but the end result would still get the highest possible value, such as 10/10 points or 100%. In the case of GTA IV , 35 out of 55 reviews recorded in Metacritic are the highest possible ratings.
The "classic feature pages ", on the other hand, lack knowledge of the history of computer games. The columnists would have discovered (following the wish of game journalism to “discover traditional cultural values in video games”) in GTA IV “cultural criticism / social commentary”. The result is a "jubilant reporting" and a "jovial view from above, an avaricious astonishment" about "a gigantic new medium". The critics in the feature pages would have misunderstood it “that the primary task of a game is not necessarily the social commentary - and that satire, criticism of time and astuteness, since the days of text adventure, have been moving through games in a much more original way than in Grand Theft Auto IV . "
Criticism of the PC implementation
On December 3, 2008, the PC version of the game was officially released. As practiced by many publishers and developer studios, GTA IV is also delivered exclusively with the digital rights management (DRM) method . Apart from the fundamental criticism against DRM, according to PC Games Hardware , GTA IV raises "the nudity of honest buyers [..] to a completely new, downright terrifying level" , Golem.de calls the practice "a cheek" . In addition to the mandatory online activation , it is criticized that in addition to the actual game and the mandatory DirectX, five other programs are automatically installed. The Rockstar Games Social Club must be active as a background process to start the game , registration with the Social Club is optional, but the user will be informed each time the game is started if he is not yet registered. The "Games for Windows Live " service is theoretically only required for multiplayer mode, but if the user is not logged in to Windows Live , it is not possible to save the game . The " SecuROM " copy protection used , which remains on the computer when the game is uninstalled, often prevents the game from starting because it is said that emulation software is installed on the computer, even if this is not the case. In addition to these programs, Adobe Flash and the Microsoft .NET framework are also installed.
The publication was accompanied by numerous technical problems, which led PC Games Hardware to “only conditionally” recommend the purchase of the game . According to this report, GTA IV does not start until the fourth attempt without error messages, and on average every fifth start the DVD , which must always be inserted to start the game, is not recognized. Was one of the most serious problems that GTA IV when using an ATI Radeon - graphics card is even not playable in part. The PC version of the game is classified as "resource-hungry", so a high processor and memory load can be observed when playing , and the game tends to jerk in some sequences. GTA IV relies on a concept for the graphics settings in which the user can distribute the available resources to different aspects of the graphics, these are, according to the PC Games Hardware "incomprehensible" , limited by the VRAM of the graphics card. Due to this limitation, it is possible that owners of large screens can only play with low resolutions and correspondingly poor images. This is rated negatively in particular with regard to the fact that in GTA IV , unlike usual, the resolution for the frame rate hardly seems to play a role. According to Golem.de , “the graphics options menu [..] at the start of the game causes more trouble than necessary” , and the developers “did not do a good job” .
In view of the many problems, the online magazine Rebell.at decided to issue a general purchase warning and recommended that its readers “ buy GTA IV at the earliest when it appears as a budget version and registration is only necessary for online games . "
There were also problems with the publication via Steam . In cooperation with GFWL, activation of the CD key failed en masse. Due to the lack of updates to the registration processes for RGSC and GFWL, the game could often no longer be started without using bridging third-party software, which RGSC and GFWL skipped in order to start the game, which then only ran in single-player mode due to a lack of authentication. On November 29, 2016, Rockstar Games released a patch for Grand Theft Auto IV and Grand Theft Auto: Episodes from Liberty City, which fixes the login for all services and makes compatibility for Windows version after Windows 7 easier.
Lawsuit against advertising boycott in the USA
On the basis of a television report by Fox News Chicago that suggested there was a connection between an unusually high number of crimes in late April and the start of an advertising campaign for the game, the city of Chicago removed advertising for GTA IV from all public transport. Take 2 Interactive has filed a lawsuit in federal court in New York against this measure by the Chicago transportation company, invoking freedom of expression , among other things .
Prohibitions and regionally censored versions
In most countries, the game was released for adult use. In Australia , where there was no release from the age of 18 until 2013, the game therefore had to be published in a shortened version in order to receive a release from the age of 15. In New Zealand , the Australian version of the game was sold according to the requirements of the youth protection authorities, although it was already possible to release it there from 18. Online retailers then had to cancel pre-orders in the five-digit dollar range.
Sales of GTA IV in Thailand were stopped after an 18-year-old murdered a taxi driver in Thailand . The perpetrator stated that he wanted to try out whether stealing taxis is really as easy as it is shown in the game. When the taxi driver resisted, he picked up the knife.
Trailer
The first trailer for Grand Theft Auto IV "Things will be different" was released on March 29, 2007. The main character speaks a short monologue: “Life is complicated. I killed people, smuggled people, sold people. Perhaps here, things will be different. ”Then the trailer ends with the IV logo. The trailer uses a film style similar to Godfrey Reggio's documentary Koyaanisqatsi (1982), because the game preview contains Philip Glass ' original music from the documentary (part of the song "Pruitt-Igoe") and plays individual scenes in fast motion.
The second trailer with the title "Looking for that special someone" was released on June 28, 2007. The trailer contains a song by the New York band "The Boggs" with the title "Arm In Arm" in the version of Shy Child as background music .
On December 6, 2007, Rockstar released a new trailer with “Move up, ladies” (in Germany “Slip over, ladies”). The trailer contains the song King Ring by the Russian rapper Seryoga as background music .
On March 27, 2008, the fourth and final trailer for GTA IV followed , which was entitled “Good lord, what are you doing?” aka “Everyone's a rat” . The song for this trailer is by Mavado and is called Real McCoy .
Add-ons
The first downloadable content (episode) called The Lost and Damned was released on February 17, 2009. The protagonist is not Niko Bellic, but the biker Johnny Klebitz, member and deputy president of the motorcycle gang "Lost", which also played a role in missions in the main game.
The second add-on, entitled The Ballad of Gay Tony , was released on October 29, 2009. The hero of the game is Luis Fernando Lopez, the bodyguard of the nightclub mogul Gay Tony. In addition to new vehicles and weapons, both episodes also feature new TV shows and additional radio songs.
Also on October 29, 2009 both episodes were released on DVD under the name Episodes from Liberty City , initially only for the Xbox 360, later on April 16, 2010, then also for PlayStation 3 and the PC. The PlayStation version can be purchased on a data carrier as well as on PSN .
Web links
- Grand Theft Auto IV at Rockstargames.de
- GTA 4 at MobyGames (English)
- Grand Theft Auto IV in the Internet Movie Database (English)
- Grand Theft Auto IV on the GTA Wiki
Individual evidence
- ^ Frank Moers: System requirements for PC version . In: PC Games. October 31, 2008.
- ^ A b c Tobias Moorstedt: Of beauty and war . In: Süddeutsche Zeitung . April 26, 2008.
- ↑ mtv.com: 'Grand Theft Auto IV' Posts Record First-Week Sales (English)
- ↑ GameRankings.com: Ranking list
- ^ Metacritic.com: Metascore
- ↑ Mike Futter: Grand Theft Auto IV Has Sold 25 Million Units To-Date. In: Game Informer. July 30, 2013, accessed January 20, 2015 .
- ↑ a b c d e f g h i j k Paul Kautz: Review of Grand Theft Auto IV . In: 4players.de , April 28, 2008.
- ↑ a b c d cynamite.de Hands-on preview / Preview: Grand Theft Auto IV
- ↑ a b c gameswelt.de: GTAIV Review
- ↑ a b c IGN Entertainment Grand Theft Auto IV Review
- ↑ a b nytimes.com Grand Theft Auto Takes On New York
- ↑ Yahoo.com: Grand Theft Auto IV Truths and Rumors ( July 28, 2014 memento in the Internet Archive )
- ↑ sankaranand.com Grand Theft Auto 4 (GTA IV) - Screenshots
- ^ Gillian Bowditch: Grand Theft Auto producer is Godfather of gaming . In: Times Online. April 27, 2008. (English)
- ↑ Nicole Lange: Niko Bellic speaks about the injustice in the game industry . In: derwesten.de , May 21, 2008.
- ↑ Brandon Boyer: Product: Grand Theft Auto IV Using NaturalMotion's Euphoria. In: Gamasutra . CMP Game Group, June 29, 2007; accessed October 11, 2011 .
- ↑ heise.de: Realistic animation technology for characters
- ↑ a b eurogamer.net: Grand Theft Auto IV: PS3 vs. Xbox 360 Special
- ↑ xboxfront.de Bungie: "Halo 3 does not create HD resolution"
- ↑ Gaming Today: Bungie Weekly Update 09-28-07 - Why Halo 3 is 640p
- ↑ PCWorld.com: GTA IV on Sony PS3: Resolution, Online Issues Hamper Experience. Retrieved May 20, 2020 .
- ↑ Counting pixels: GTA IV runs at 640p
- ↑ Variety.com: 'Grand Theft' music a phone call away. Retrieved May 20, 2020 .
- ↑ gamezone.de Karl Lagerfeld is a radio host
- ↑ gamedaily.com: GTAIV Review
- ↑ Music Updates in Grand Theft Auto IV, The Lost and Damned and The Ballad of Gay Tony. Retrieved April 27, 2018 (American English).
- ↑ gamezone.de GTA IV exceeds all sales records
- ↑ heise.de Take-Two Interactive: GTA IV boosts sales vigorously
- ↑ portalit.net Grand Theft Auto IV Ships 13 Million Units
- ↑ areagames.de GTA IV made 2/3 of its income in the 1st week
- ↑ eurogamer: GTA 4: 20 million sold news
- ↑ pcgames: Take Two sales figures: GTA 4 with 20 million, Bioshock series with 8 million
- ↑ cnn.com: 'GTA IV' could keep 'Iron Man' audience at home
- ↑ GameStar: GTA accounts for almost 50% of sales
- ↑ gamesaktuell.de: GTA 4: Take-Two announces sales figures - a total of 114 million games of the GTA series sold
- ↑ a b gamesindustry.biz: GTA IV: 926,000 copies sold in five days
- ↑ Media Control sales charts April 28 to May 3, 2008
- ↑ gamezone.de: GTA IV sales success in Germany
- ↑ gamezone.de MTV Game Awards 2008
- ↑ time.com: Top 10 Video Games
- ↑ a b 1up.com: Grand Theft Auto 4 PC Review ( Memento from April 24, 2016 in the Internet Archive )
- ^ Test "GTA IV". GamePro, accessed July 1, 2014 .
- ↑ a b Test "GTA IV". In: IGN Entertainment . Ziff Davis , April 29, 2008, accessed July 1, 2014 .
- ↑ Kieron Gillen: Test "GTA IV". In: Eurogamer . Gamer Network , December 1, 2008, accessed July 1, 2014 .
- ↑ Charles Onyett: Test "GTA IV". In: IGN Entertainment . Ziff Davis , December 2, 2008, accessed July 1, 2014 .
- ↑ Meta evaluation "GTA IV". (No longer available online.) In: GameRankings . CBS Corporation , archived from the original on December 9, 2019 ; accessed on July 1, 2014 .
- ↑ Meta evaluation "GTA IV". (No longer available online.) In: GameRankings . CBS Corporation , archived from the original on December 9, 2019 ; accessed on July 1, 2014 .
- ↑ Meta evaluation "GTA IV". (No longer available online.) In: GameRankings . CBS Corporation , archived from the original on December 9, 2019 ; accessed on July 1, 2014 .
- ↑ Meta evaluation "GTA IV". In: Metacritic . CBS Corporation , accessed July 1, 2014 .
- ↑ Meta evaluation "GTA IV". In: Metacritic . CBS Corporation , accessed July 1, 2014 .
- ↑ Meta evaluation "GTA IV". In: Metacritic . CBS Corporation , accessed July 1, 2014 .
- ↑ Metacritic entry for Xbox360
- ↑ Metacritic entry for PS3
- ↑ Metacritic entry for PC
- ↑ gamezone.de GTAIV Review
- ↑ eurogamer.de GTAIV Review
- ↑ a b GameStar Grand Hype Auto. An action title as an epochal work?
- ↑ GameStar The Two Faces of ZDF - GTA 4 coverage for today and new
- ↑ spiegel.de The game of games
- ↑ tagesspiegel.de The godfather in Pixelland
- ↑ a b Telepolis: GTA IV leads to a break in epochs in the features section
- ↑ a b spiegel.de: Wonderful world of shooting
- ↑ Neue-OZ.de: Beautiful, brutal world ( Memento from December 15, 2008 in the Internet Archive )
- ↑ a b c Raffael Vötter and Marc Sauter: GTA 4 (PC): Striking arguments why you shouldn't buy the game at the start. PC Games Hardware , December 3, 2008, accessed December 3, 2008 .
- ↑ a b c Game test: GTA 4 for PC - high resolution and highly dramatic. Golem.de , December 3, 2008, accessed December 5, 2008 .
- ↑ Thilo Bayer: GTA 4 PC DRM: Copy protection and activation in detail. PC Games Hardware , November 28, 2008, accessed December 3, 2008 .
- ↑ See section “ Criticism ” in the SecuROM copy protection article .
- ↑ Marc Sauter: GTA 4 (PC): Radeon graphics cards cause crashes - patch on the way? PC Games Hardware , December 2, 2008, accessed December 3, 2008 .
- ↑ GTA 4 has a problem with ATI graphics cards. Golem.de , December 4, 2008, accessed December 5, 2008 .
- ↑ Rebell.at: Dear Gothic 3 in the retail version as GTA IV. Accessed on May 20, 2020 .
- ↑ Rockstargames.com: Problems with GTA IV / EFLC Activation Keys on Steam ( Memento from February 1, 2013 in the web archive archive.today )
- ↑ GTAIV Patch 8 Notes (PC Only) . In: rockstargames.com , November 29, 2016.
- ↑ Peter-Michael Ziegler: Take-Two is suing GTA advertising stop in Chicago . In: heise.de , May 6, 2008.
- ↑ AFP / lw: Thailand forbids gangster play after murder . In: Welt Online. August 5, 2008.
- ↑ a b c All trailers on the official website http://www.rockstargames.de/IV/
- ↑ Michael Obermeyer: GTA 4: The Ballad of Gay Tony . In: Gamestar. September 2, 2009.
- ↑ Michael Sosinka: GTA: Episodes from Liberty City . In: Gamezone.de , March 19, 2010.
