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Video: 15 days in GTA IV's Liberty City

by David Hinkle { Nov 6th 2009 at 1:00AM }

Time lapse videos were all the rage back in -- actually, we don't think they were ever rage caliber stuff, but in the case of this GTA IV video that shows 15 days go by Liberty City, it's at least reached "oh, that's neat!" territory. The video comes courtesy of DigitalFoundry (you can watch it over at Eurogamer) and reminds us just how much life there is in the virtual sand box, as cars drive along to their respective destinations, pedestrians shuffle about doing their own thing and, in the case of that one lady around the 32-second mark, loaf around the riverside all day and night. We just hope she's not doing what we think she's doing. It'd be such an unbecoming thing of the purest city in all of gaming, amirite?

AO-rated PC version of Manhunt 2 releasing next week

by Griffin McElroy { Oct 31st 2009 at 1:30PM }

If you thought Manhunt 2 had reached the pinnacle of mature content in video games, you better guess again. The controversy-garnering title will be re-released on Direct2Drive next week for $29.99 -- only this time around, it's packing an AO rating. As those who lived through Mahuntgate surely remember, that was planned to be the original rating for the game, before the ESRB rolled up, and was all like "what? You want to stick shards of glass into another man's ear? No. No, sir."

Rockstar has remained mum about what the new rating will entail, but our guess is that it will incorporate more graphic forms of violence, and perhaps a few extra dirty words. We've contacted Rockstar to get more specific details on the mature-r content, and to find out when we can expect the Early Childhood version of the game to hit store shelves.

[Via Big Download]

Grow a moustache for charity, end up in Red Dead Redemption

by Griffin McElroy { Oct 31st 2009 at 11:30AM }

A classy gentleman never needs a reason to grow some over-lip facial hair -- however, Rockstar and the Movember Foundation are offering a pretty good incentive for you to grow a glorious moustache. While the latter is asking all applicable males to grow sweet handlebars to raise awareness and donations for men's health issues (primarily prostate cancer), Rockstar is offering the charity's mouthbrow-growing participants a rare prize: They can end as a character in Red Dead Redemption.

The charity event and contest kicks off tomorrow, so if you're interested in helping out, sign up on the Movember Foundation page, and on Rockstar's contest site. Oh, also, you're going to need to shave that sweet Fu Manchu you're already sporting, and start over from scratch. C'mon, you haven't seen your philtrum in like, three years. It misses you.

Rockstar revamps Social Club's online leaderboards and stat tracking for Gay Tony

by Ben Gilbert { Oct 29th 2009 at 3:45PM }

With the release of this week's second Grand Theft Auto IV expansion The Ballad of Gay Tony, the game's developer has decided to update the online multiplayer statistics tracking in order to reflect the new multiplayer game types. The addition of "BASE Jump" to the mulitplayer as well as "new, tighter Deathmatch arenas" helped spur the leaderboard overhaul, according to the developer blog. The various new additions being made due to the DLC will even get their own section on the Rockstar Social Club, presumably for the four of you tracking your new GTAIV DLC stats after Modern Warfare 2 releases in a couple weeks.

Metareview: The Ballad of Gay Tony

by David Hinkle { Oct 28th 2009 at 10:50PM }

The second and final "Episode from Liberty City," The Ballad of Gay Tony, has arrived. As the tale of Liberty City comes to a close, does The Ballad of Gay Tony present an exciting final act or an anti-climactic letdown? We'll let the critics at large weigh in on this one:

Game Informer (93/100): "While I preferred the tight-knit story of brotherhood and betrayal in The Lost and Damned, The Ballad of Gay Tony delivers more explosive weapons, death-defying missions, and off-the-wall characters. Don't miss your chance to close out the GTA IV experience in style."
IGN (92/100): "The Ballad of Gay Tony is the perfect way to close out the GTA IV saga. Finally, we know what happened to the diamonds stolen in the main story a year-and-a-half ago. Though Luis Lopez doesn't have much of a story at all (this is the ballad of his boss, after all), the supporting cast is phenomenal. There are a lot of hilarious moments and ludicrous missions that will please GTA fans. Sure, a few of the missions fall flat compared to the wild nature of others, but all-in-all this is a fine package and worth 20 bucks. "
1UP (A-): "This has been one hell of a ride. I'm going to miss seeing something new in Liberty City, as I've probably been to every available nook and cranny. I suppose I could still go hunting for those damn pigeons, but with so many other games coming out in the coming months, I don't know where I'll find the time... at least until Rockstar gives me a ticket to their next world of crime, violence, and vice."
Eurogamer (80/100): "Perhaps Tony Prince does nothing to drag the series forward -- somewhat fittingly for a man with his head stuck in the eighties -- but the episode Rockstar has named in his honour is a colourful and pleasingly unpredictable adventure that gets better throughout and ends on a high."

Gallery: GTA IV: The Ballad of Gay Tony

GTA's 'Next Stop' teased in Liberty City Episodes manual

by Griffin McElroy { Oct 28th 2009 at 5:55PM }

We'd thought the Grand Theft Auto franchise had taken us to lovingly rendered simulacra of every metropolitan city-type known to man, but apparently, we thought wrong. In the back of the GTA IV: Episodes from Liberty City manual, a fake advertisement points to the series' "Next Stop" (seen above). Of course, the destination being teased is quite obviously the lovely town of Clip Artington, Minnesota. Surely you've heard of Clip Artington! It's renowned for its apple butter festivals.

On the off chance the teaser is pointing to a different city, we've ... we've really got no idea. Looks like a desert, though, right? And a mountain? And some conical, obsidian monoliths? What? Trees? Oh, yeah, that makes a lot more sense. We'd love to hear your speculation in a well-written, thought-provoking comment! There's a place for those right after the jump, you know.

[Image credit: VGChartz]

Latest Ballad of Gay Tony trailer showcases Luis Lopez's many exploits

by Ben Gilbert { Oct 28th 2009 at 2:15PM }

Rather than offer interesting social commentary or moody atmospheric tone, the just-released Ballad of Gay Tony teaser instead teaches us that Luis Lopez is not a joking around kinda guy. He takes shots, tosses dudes off buildings – he even goes to the driving range!

In case it weren't already glaringly obvious to you, the second Grand Theft Auto IV expansion will be taking itself quite a bit less seriously than the first digital release. Thankfully, the wait is nearly over and we can find out for ourselves tomorrow just how much Rockstar Games has twisted its latest opus.

Gallery: GTA IV: The Ballad of Gay Tony

New Gay Tony in-game anime is all too familiar

by Richard Mitchell { Oct 26th 2009 at 6:23PM }

Grand Theft Auto has always been heavy on satire, making exaggerated observations about the world for the sake of a few cheap yuks. It's readily apparent on the in-game radio programs, which poke fun at both extremes of political talk radio. The in-game TV programming does much the same (if you haven't, we suggest you make time to watch "Republican Space Rangers"). It looks like The Ballad of Gay Tony will continue the tradition with "Princess Robot Bubblegum," an anime parody to be featured on the in-game CNT channel. The show will serve as part of the new TV lineup in the upcoming expansion.

In Rockstar's own words, "Princess Robot Bubblegum" features the hallmarks of more than a few animes: "Incomprehensible narrative, wretched dialogue and creepy, misogynistic sexuality." See it all in the trailer above.

LA Noire characters revealed by mocap casting call

by Andrew Yoon { Oct 26th 2009 at 11:30AM }

Rockstar's LA Noire has been shrouded in so much mystery that its very existence has been called into question. A recent casting call for actors not only confirms the game's continued development, but also reveals the many (if not all) characters to be featured in the game. The call asks for "STRONG ACTORS, able to handle LOTS OF dialog" for a cast of supporting characters, comprised mostly of detectives, police officers and the occasional crook.

The casting call is looking for a face similar to actors Gary Cooper or Gregory Peck (pictured above) for the protagonist -- Cole Phelps. Co-stars and supporting roles, such as jazz singer Elsa Lichtmann, will only be required to perform for 10 days or less. However, the actor chosen to play Cole Phelps will work for three months, from November to January, to record his performance for the game.

It's evident from the large roster of characters and the use of Hollywood actors that LA Noire is intended to be quite the cinematic game. However, with only three months of mocap, it still pales in comparison to the upcoming Heavy Rain -- which demanded nine months of motion capture work.

[Via Superannuation; Image Source]

Rockstar Social Club adds new features for Chinatown Wars PSP

by Justin McElroy { Oct 20th 2009 at 5:00PM }

Even if you're playing Grand Theft Auto on a portable system, the Rockstar Social Club is waiting to welcome you with open arms ... and flying ducks. The online hub has just added new features to mark the launch of GTA: Chinatown Wars on PSP.

Aside from some new downloadable papercrafts (joy!) the site has added a minigame called Peking Duck Hunt which you can play to earn in-game cash. Just between you and us though, you'll probably have more fun just skipping straight to the real game.

Rockstar supporting PSP digital distribution, announces PSN storefront

by Alexander Sliwinski { Oct 15th 2009 at 11:59PM }

Rockstar is throwing some support behind PSP's digital distribution initiative and has added several titles in with today's PSN update, with more soon to follow. The initial offering included Manhunt 2 ($29.99), Midnight Club L.A. Remix ($19.99) and Midnight Club 3: DUB Edition ($19.99).

1UP reports that soon the entire Grand Theft Auto PSP line-up (including Chinatown Wars at launch) will make its way to the PSN, along with The Warriors and Beaterator. The publisher also plans to launch a Rockstar storefront on October 22, just to show it's as serious about supporting PSP digital distribution as a guy sticking a gun in your face and stealing your car.

Dancing, drinking and drugs: The nightclubs of GTA Gay Tony revealed

by Andrew Yoon { Oct 15th 2009 at 1:52PM }

The Ballad of Gay Tony's Luis Lopez seems to have a pretty easy life. The main playable character of the Xbox-only GTA IV episode must simply deal with Liberty City's wealthiest clientele, ensuring their experience at Tony Prince's two nightclubs goes without a hitch. According to Rockstar PR, jobs will involve kicking out drug dealers, dealing with the paparazzi, and getting the appropriate pick-me-ups for the stars.

Maisonette 9 and Hercules are two new locations added to the Gay Tony episode. In addition to work, you'll be able to partake in a variety of sidequests and minigames: a "familiar-feeling dance minigame," and a new game that takes place in the club bathroom with a girl. We're not entirely sure what that will entail ... but thinking about the franchise's legacy, we think you can figure it out.

Rockstar drops details of new multiplayer in GTA: The Ballad of Gay Tony

by JC Fletcher { Oct 14th 2009 at 6:30PM }

Click for grander imagesYou know that iconic moment in the Ballad of Gay Tony trailer when Luis jumps out of some kind of aerial vehicle? Did you ever wonder what it would look like if, instead of one guy parachuting down into Liberty City, it was eight people? Probably not. Anyway, here's a screenshot of that from Rockstar's latest release, detailing The Ballad of Gay Tony's multiplayer modes.

Deathmatch and Team Deathmatch will see lots of new weapons, of course, but also new Kill Streaks and Assisted Kills, which provide cash bonuses. Free Mode gets a little freer with the addition of Buzzard helicopters, APCs, and, of course, parachutes. We can't wait to see what kind of ridiculous emergent competition comes from parachute-based combat.

Check our gallery for more new multiplayer screens!

Gallery: GTA: The Ballad of Gay Tony (Multiplayer)

PSA: GTA IV is now available on demand, $30 in US

by Alexander Sliwinski { Oct 13th 2009 at 1:15PM }

Crime epic Grand Theft Auto IV has arrived (as promised) on the Xbox Marketplace's Games on Demand lineup. The grand theft mega-hit costs $30 to download, which is the same price as a fresh new retail version -- a tiny bit more in some cases. We should probably note that a used copy from GameStop is about $25. By all means, if you have no way of getting to a retailer please feel free to buy the game online.

Oh, wait, that was a missed opportunity for a "steal a car" joke, wasn't it?

GTA IV, Dead Space coming to Xbox 360 Games on Demand this month

by David Hinkle { Oct 9th 2009 at 10:00AM }

The Xbox 360's Games on Demand service is getting quite the booster shot this month, as Microsoft has announced six new titles coming to the service in October. The festivities kicked off earlier this week with the release of Rainbow Six Vegas 2 and Call of Duty 3. Here's what the rest of this month has in store:

October 13