GTA To Appear On Xbox and Gamecube In 2004

AvantLegion writes "According to this IGN article (which, in turn, is cited from Yahoo! via the Investor's Business Daily), the Grand Theft Auto series will debut on Xbox and GameCube in 2004. A month after the next GTA game is released on PS2 (thus completing Rockstar's exclusive contract with Sony), the Xbox and Gamecube versions of Grand Theft Auto III and Grand Theft Auto: Vice City are supposed to hit the streets. No one is safe."

Comments

Progress?

[ChaoticChaos]

I love gaming, but the GTA line of games go wayyyyyyyyyy too far for me.

Taking a Golfer's club and beating him to death with it? Using a prostitute for health?

It's sad that gaming has descended into the most degrading human activities possible. Kids play these games by the boatload. Sad.

When I was growing up, I was playing Donkey Kong and maneuvering around some barrels. Now kids are getting their knob shined from some $5 slut.

This is progress?

Will GTA4 include realistically rendered STDs?????

Re:Progress?

[quandrum]

Actually, the funny thing about the prostitution in the game, I never knew about it till the news media told me. It's not required and, honestly, not very obvious.

As for the violence, that's the norm in games, movies, tv, books, music.... our culture.

Re:Progress?

[mapmaker]

Back when you were playing Donkey Kong, adults were playing Leisure Suit Larry. There have always been games targeted to adults that are not suitable for children. This is not new.

The GTA series of games (3 and up, anyway) is for adults. They have an M rating. They are not for children. When my nephews visit me, they are not permitted to play my GTA games. We rent a Spyro the Dragon game or something like that if they want to play a video game.

If more kids are playing adult-oriented games today than they did in the past, that represents a deterioration of our society's parenting skills. It is not a deterioration of the gaming industry.

Re:Progress?

[PD]

Most gamers are men in their 30's who actually make a decent amount of money at their job.

The pimply faced gamer is something of a myth. They can't afford games and the computers to play them for the most part.

When you looked at the game, it was probably obvious to you that it wasn't meant for girls to play. So then, why is it not just as obvious that it's not something for a child to play? Seems like if you noticed one thing, you would have noticed the other, right?

Re:Progress?

[ChaoticChaos]

1) This is not a computer game. This is a console game. In other words, it is much more accessable to everyone.

2) I saw a study on one of the major gaming sites, and kids *are* playing this game by the ton. You're kidding yourself if you think otherwise.

Re:Progress?

[PD]

Well then, that's completely fine with me. Obviously, their parents WANT their children to play these games and who am I tell tell another parent that they can't let their kids play these games? I mean, this is parent's rights! Right?

Parents have the right to watch their own little monsters. They do not have the right to tell others that certain games are evil just because they can't control their kids.

Re:Progress?

[NanoGator]

"Actually, the funny thing about the prostitution in the game, I never knew about it till the news media told me. It's not required and, honestly, not very obvious."

Another thing that's amusing this is that if you don't know what prostitution is, this game won't teach you.

Here's what happens:

- Pull up to a prostitute (who, btw, only looks like a prostitute because we're aware of what they are and how they stereotypically dress. To a child, she's just woman dressing up slightly fancier than other women.)

- She gets in the car.

- When you get into a secluded area, the car will shake. However, there's no movement inside the car. Turn the camera around, switch to 'cockpit view', do anything you can to peek inside and you see two people sitting in the car on their own side.

I find the media's attention to the prostitute aspect of that game ridiculous. It's okay to show 'Girls Gone Wild' commercials on TV, but we need to pick on GTA3 because we can sensationalize it and scare those parents out there who have no idea what the game is really like.

Re:Progress?

[misfit13b]

This is progress?

This is insightful? Don't like it? Don't play it and don't let your kids play it. The rest of us will make up our own minds. The game didn't sell millions of copies cuz people hate it you know.

Go figure that /. is the one place where a user named "ChaoticChaos" could be so stuck-up.

Now instead of replying, go ahead and mod me down.

Re:Progress?

[incubusnb]

something you people don't understand, there is way more to the GTA series than killing people and raping Hookers. there is a Storyline to these games, and they have great storylines that are meant for Adults.

now think about this, if your a Parent and your kid comes home, just having bought "Debbie Does Dallas", are you gonna stand for it?
now, what if your Kid comes home with GTA3 or GTA Vice City? games that are clearly labeled as Mature. it is the Parents job to know what their children are watching/playing/etc., thats why they are Parents.

as for the Topic at hand, i love my PS2, but i'm glad the GTA series will be reaching a wider user-base, provided that the Parents of the kids in this userbase know what their getting into.

Re:Progress?

[NanoGator]

"2) I saw a study on one of the major gaming sites, and kids *are* playing this game by the ton. You're kidding yourself if you think otherwise."

What exactly is the harm in that? I've played GTA3 from beginning to end. I think it's fine for ages 13 and up. Despite what the media's made it out to be, it's really not that bad.

One of the chief complaints about the game is prostitution. They fail to mention, though, that if you don't know what a prostitute is when you play the game, you won't suddenly find out. The peak of it's graphic depiction is a rocking car. Look in the window and you see two people sitting there staring into space.

Another complaint is about being able to kill innocent people, and then making money for it. Fair point, almost. You can kill people if you like, but that's really your choice. It's not the goal of the game. (besides, wouldn'it be MORE twisted if the game didn't respond to people getting run over or hit with a bat at all? What kind of message would that send to children?) It doesn't help you in any way. If anything, this aspect of the game game teaches you a sense of right and wrong. If you beat somebody up, the cops will come get you. If you resist the cops, more of them will come. Before you know it, the entire city is against you. There's something to be said for reality here. If I kill somebody, my freedom is over. The 'money' you recieve from killing somebody is probably more a reward for taking the risk, rather than a reward for killing somebody. You have to kill a LOT of people before you can actually do anything with the money. It's kinda like getting paid 50 cents to piss off the cops. There's no benefit to murder, it only makes the game harder.

One of the other complaints about GTA3 is giving kids the urge to steal a car and try to outrun the cops in it. There might sort of be a point here. GTA3 lets you steal a car and then you can take a run at outrunning the cops, all while pulling off stunts etc. The level of physics of this game makes it seem easier than it'd really be, i.e. if you jump over a hill with your car and land on the roof, it doesn't collapse the car and kill you. Instead, if it rolls onto it's tires it can keep going. Yeah, on the surface, I can see that bothering people. However, when you play the game, you find out just how scary a police chase can be. You see, as mentioned before, this is a simulation of a city. There's all kinds of random elements that you just cannot always account for. No matter how good you are at this game, getting away from the cops is a flip of the coin that usually doesn't land in your favor. You ever see those police chases videos that Fox used to run? This game is very much like that. All it takes is for somebody to pull out in front of you to wipe you out. If this game teaches you anything, it's not that it's fun to outrun cops. It's that if you value your life at all, you're much better off being a good citizen. You'll live longer.

My biggest complaint about the media's attention on this game is that it's plain as day that they haven't actually spent any time playing the game. The news would have a much more detremental affect on your child than GTA3 would. They don't really understand what it's about, instead they take screengrabs and sensationalize it. As a result, people who have no interest in the game see these screengrabs and develop strange ideas about what it's about. You know that old saying "The camera never lies?" It's completely untrue. Cameras always lie. The entire point of a camera (or in this case, a screenshot) is to tell a story. Take a screngrab of the character from GTA3 clubbing a little old lady to death, and the story that gets told is that the game is about a guy running around killing innocent people.

I would advise anybody to not get their parenting tips from places like CNN or Donahue, especially when it comes to video games. Instead, seek the opinion of somebody who's actually played the game and can tell you what it's really about.

Re:Progress?

[weeboo0104]

Back when you were playing Donkey Kong, adults were playing Leisure Suit Larry

I was playing Leisure Suit Larry too. Adult content aside, that game really improved my typing skills!

Re:Progress?

[Hadlock]

and it's not even that popular of an option. i don't even own the game, and i've showed that health trick to at least 3 of my friends who own the game and they didn't even know it existed. it's one of those things you'd have to read about in the news to find out about it. one thing the news doesn't point out (often, at least) is that after your romp in the woods, you can kill the hooker and reclaim all of your $$$ and then some. either way, it's not somthing i'd be worried about my kids learning about; if they do learn about it, it'll be by word of mouth in school, somthing you can't control regardless, and if they do hear about it in school, they're probably nearing the age when they should start to learn about the realities of the world around them. I learned about sex on the playground in 3rd grade, two years before sex ed. I found my dad's "nudie mags" between the matresses in 5th grade, and I like to consider myself well adjusted. people don't give kids enought credit for taking what they learn with a grain of salt. ok i'm done ranting.

Re:Progress?

[Anonymous Coward]

You can't take a golf club from someone. There's one available just inside the gate. You also have to leave all your weapons when going through the gate.

I don't think you actually have any idea what the demographic of this game is. I assure you that "kids" aren't interested in this kind of stuff. Teenagers, yes. But they're not allowed to buy them anyway. Once stronger legislation is passed with more heavy penalties towards retailers who ignore ESRB ratings, this will become less of an issue.

As far as having sex with a prostitute, she gets in the car and it bounces around. You can't see anything. That's it. That's all that happens. Just a bouncing car.

As games become more complex, they appeal to an older demographic. More complexity, more realism, more escapism. The average gamer is 30 years old. They are not interested in Donkey Kong. The spectrum widens and you will see a much greater range of game styles and approaches over time. Consoles are not strictly for "kids."

Try to have at least some passing experience with a game before you bash it, instead of becoming outraged by second-hand shock journalism.

Instead, you should be outraged that violent video clips have been spread throughout daytime talkshows, when children are home from school and watching TV.

Re:Progress?

[AvantLegion]

The ever-present flaw in this line of thinking is defining a game by the subject matter instead of the gameplay.

Re:Progress?

[Anonymous Coward]

Gameplay? It's the same old shit.

Give me a game that has some sort of quality story line, not some ultraviolent game played by immature 30 year old geeks.

Re:Progress?

[HunterWare]

Well argued, but it's a _game_ folks.....

Re:Progress?

[angle_slam]

Another complaint is about being able to kill innocent people, and then making money for it. Fair point, almost. You can kill people if you like, but that's really your choice. It's not the goal of the game. (besides, wouldn'it be MORE twisted if the game didn't respond to people getting run over or hit with a bat at all? What kind of message would that send to children?) It doesn't help you in any way. If anything, this aspect of the game game teaches you a sense of right and wrong. If you beat somebody up, the cops will come get you. If you resist the cops, more of them will come. Before you know it, the entire city is against you. There's something to be said for reality here. If I kill somebody, my freedom is over. The 'money' you recieve from killing somebody is probably more a reward for taking the risk, rather than a reward for killing somebody. You have to kill a LOT of people before you can actually do anything with the money. It's kinda like getting paid 50 cents to piss off the cops. There's no benefit to murder, it only makes the game harder.

And you get a wanted level, you either bribe the police or get your car painted. It's not hard to get rid of wanted levels. (That's a good thing to teach people, how to bribe police)

Plus the goal of many missions is to kill people. They may not be innocent in the sense that they are merely pedestrians, but you do end up killing alot of people in the game, even if you are very careful not to kill "innocent bystanders".

Re:Progress?

[NanoGator]

"Well argued, but it's a _game_ folks..... "

If the media'd leave it at that, then I wouldn't be ranting now. ;)

For the record, this topic is exactly the reason I won't vote to put Joe Liberman in office. He pulled this shit with Mortal Kombat and Night Trap back in the early nineties. I'm not convinced that his attacks on those games was anything more than an attempt to gain political power by raising an issue parents are ill-educated about. However, that's strictly my opinion.

Re:Progress?

[NanoGator]

"And you get a wanted level, you either bribe the police or get your car painted. It's not hard to get rid of wanted levels. (That's a good thing to teach people, how to bribe police)"

Yeah. Next time a pair of flashing lights appears behind me, I'm going to look for a token on the ground with a police badge on it. That'll get them off my back. Failing that, I'll pull into Maaco where they'll instantly paint my car and the cops won't recognize me. Heh.

"Plus the goal of many missions is to kill people. They may not be innocent in the sense that they are merely pedestrians, but you do end up killing alot of people in the game, even if you are very careful not to kill "innocent bystanders".

Yeah, you kill bad guys. Which sounds bad, right? Sure. It also shows why being involved in a gang is such an awful thing. And as I said before, when ya kill innocent bystanders, you get more police attention.

Re:Progress?

[angle_slam]

Yeah, you kill bad guys. Which sounds bad, right? Sure. It also shows why being involved in a gang is such an awful thing.

Bad from who's perspective. In the phone missions, you kill people because someone is willing to pay you to kill those people. Doesn't that make you bad also? In other missions, you steal tanks from the army, you intimidate jurors by threatening physical harm, and a lot of other things.

I think most people, even teens and younger can separate games from reality. But to assert that you do nothing bad in the game is just wrong. The whole thrill of the game is that you are doing bad things and getting away with it.

Plus you can usually kill one or two pedestrians before you get a wanted level. And if you only have 1 star, you drive around long enough and it will disappear. So the penalty for killing innocent people really is not there.

Re:Progress?

[razablade]

I've played GTA3 from beginning to end. I think it's fine for ages 13 and up. Despite what the media's made it out to be, it's really not that bad.

There's no benefit to murder, it only makes the game harder.

I must disagree with your logic here. You're saying that everyone plays the game to go through the missions as easily as possible. I for one, have only played GTA3 to blow up as much shit and kill as many people as possible. That's why I think the game's fun. Yes, I'm a grown man, and know that isn't reality, but does a 13 year old kid think the same thing? For 99.9% of them, sure they do, but there've been some events in recent memory that prove some kids "might not get it." Enough to make it an issue...

Re:Progress?

[NanoGator]

"I think most people, even teens and younger can separate games from reality. But to assert that you do nothing bad in the game is just wrong. "

I didn't assert that. What I said was that it was blown out of proportion. The entire point that I was making was that this game was unlikely to turn people/kids towards becoming criminals. It'd likely have the opposite effect.

"The whole thrill of the game is that you are doing bad things and getting away with it. "

Not exactly. Nobody'd bother finishing the game if it were just that. The thrill of the game is that you can break out of the conventional scripted environment of most games and actually use creativity to complete a mission. The simulation is good enough that you can be a true legend to this game. It's a very rich game even if you strip out the darker side of it.

"Plus you can usually kill one or two pedestrians before you get a wanted level. And if you only have 1 star, you drive around long enough and it will disappear. So the penalty for killing innocent people really is not there. "

Not true. If you run over somebody in plain view of a cop, they're after you. Yes, you can get away from one-star easily. When you get to two stars, then police focus on you. Then it's on. You can easily draw paralells from real life here.

Re:Progress?

[dalamcd]

The remaining 0.1% would get just as easily turned on by a million other things, including hundreds if not thousands of literary "classics", many of which are mandatory reading in schools. As an example, the main character in a Mark Twain books has another character killed for telling a bad joke (IIRC correctly, anyway--the book in question is A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court). Movies, TV, books, games... a dead bird on the sidewalk, stepping on an anthill, shooting a BB gun... Too many things are just as likely as anything else to make a certain kind of mind go "hey, I can kill/maim/hurt/steal". Blowing any one of these out of proportion is just stupid.
Basically, anything can be a trigger. Whether it's going to be tripped or not at any point is impossible to determine.

None of this is to say "why bother trying?" but merely to go after the _cause_, which is not necessarily the trigger.

dalamcd

Re:Progress?

[AceM2]

GTA/GTA2/GTA3/GTA3:Vice City are Computer Games as well.. (At least, I thought Vice City for PC was out.. but if not it will be soon)

Now that I'm done splitting hairs..
"This is a console game. In other words, it is much more accessable to everyone"

Uhm.. Howso?.. I mean sure, there's the case of older brother or dad or mom or whoever leaving the game out or something, but hey.. Maybe the adults should pay some freaking attention to what's going on in their house.
Other than that.. Have you seen the price of console/pc games lately?? From tetris like games to GTA3, you're looking at around $50 a pop.. Young children running around unsupervised with $50 to buy whatever they want is a problem itself. I mean seriously, you wouldn't let a kid buy $50 worth of candy and ice cream, so why do you let them randomly buy a game?.. I do believe that bad parenting is a huge problem in the US.. I really don't see minors indulging in GTA3 as much as you might believe.. Regardless of this "major gaming site" you speak of.

Re:Progress?

[RingPeas]

I agree that it's sad that kids play these games. They shouldn't. The games are for adults. We all (parents, retailers, game developers, publishers, reviewers) should try to control this better.

Lets be honest, the morality in the GTA is deliberately skewed. The games are amoral. They are designed that way. The "punishments" for behaving "badly" are the richest rewards in terms of the game's escapist agenda (re: shooting down police helicopters and hijacking a tank - w00t!). However IMHO, the only real value in playing in the game world is when the game player sufficiently understands the moral/physical rules, laws and conventions that are being broken or toyed with in the game. A lot of the pastiche in the dialogue and missions in the game is also aimed at adults. The dog food missions in Portland in GTA III are an example - there's an obvious (and enjoyable) reference to the Peter Greenaway film "The Cook, the Thief, His Wife and Her Lover". How many 12 year olds will understand that? How many 18 year olds will?

GTA:VC is even more in point. Unless you are old enough to have a real reference point for 80s culture you are missing a whole bundle of things in that game.

My point is that whilst kids can (and do) illegally get a hold of and play these games, they are not enjoying the game in same way that an older player would - as a lot of what is going on in the game world is simply passing them by.

The real worry is however that if the kids are young enough they will completely fail to see that these games are parodies of a criminal underworld set in a realistic environment. They may also fail to see that the games contain some strong (albeit humourous) criticism of the US led obsession with fast cars, large SUVs and gun ownership. In numerous ways the GTA franchise is about irony - modern society's obsession with glamorising and sensationalising crime, rampant consumerism, etc.

If you don't get that message, and just play the games thinking it's fun to run people over or shoot people, or be a criminal - then it's a sorry state of affairs indeed. Kids are generally more impressionable though, and that's why these games should be, and are, for adults only.

In the UK, GTA III and GTA:VC are "18" rated, which is the most resrticted category available. However, the games are still shelved alongside titles which are the software equivalent of Disney films. I know that certains stores in the US have policies on this but it seems to me generally that the whole thing could be better regulated.

As regards PC games, I fail to see why the software cannot be shipped with an age verification key prior to/on install. The key could be verified by referring to any centrally held information on you which confirms your age (in the UK an obvious one is your National Insurance number, but I expect a credit card would work just as well). Aside from the privacy concerns, which I think are minimal, I think this might help. Of course, cracks for the protection would probably be engineered in the way the ripped s/ware on the whole can be found on the internet. For console titles, age check verification could be used at the point of purchase. I have NEVER seen this being done anywhere, in any retail or game store in the UK. I have however read about it being used in the US. Again, this doesn't solve the problem, but it all helps.

For what it's worth, I don't agree with your general comment that gaming has "decended into the most degrading human activities possible". I think a quick scan over any critically acclaimed list of games will soon enough demonstrate that comment to be utterly insubstantial. I could name Mario Sunshine, Metriod Prime, Civ III, Baldur's Gate (series), Black and White, Super Monkey Ball, DDR (in all incarnations), Rez, Jak and Daxter, FIFA (series) and (most obviously) the (often hated) Sims as exmaples of games which while not to everyone's tastes, are inventive, new, exciting and enjoyable to play, and not (by any understand

Re:Progress?

[joshsisk]

If kids under 15 or so are playing the game, it's because their parents are either buying it, or not keeping tabs on their kids. If you are 10, you shouldn't be able drop $50 on something without your parents approving it.

And if they are borrowing it from a friend, the parents should be keeping up with their kids enough to notice - I mean, a PS2 is a DVD player. If a kid is borrowing GTA3 from a friend, they could just as easily borrow a XXX movie from a friend. Parents need to keep up with what their kids are up to.

Re:Progress?

[joshsisk]

Yeah, and I heard 0.01% of people shoot themselves in the face because they were listening to Judas Priest, too...

Re:Progress?

[Sj0]

Yes, they do know. Anyone who thinks that a 13 year old wouldn't know GTA is just a game is either crazy or stupid. How can I say this? Because I've grown up with violent video games. In 1989, at the tender age of 7, I was killing nazis in Wolfenstien 3d. in 1992, I was killing demons in Doom. In 1996, I was killing alien bastards and strippers in Duke Numkem. In 1997 I was killing innocent people for fun and profit in the original GTA. From the very beginning, I've known full well that it wasn't real. Nobody thought it was. The interactivity only drove the point home. These aren't real people. They're being controlled by the keyboard. Duh. If you were talking about colombine, people like to conveniently forget that those kids were extremely emotionally disturbed. It was a statistical fluke that it happened(please keep in mind that Doom was nearly 10 years old when the shooting happened). Nothing more. Destroying the world to save the children can only make things worse for the non-psychotic ones.

mmm, pointless violence.

[Joe the Lesser]

I can see this game being entertaining for the first week, but I've watched it being played and found myself quite uninterested, after having seen the various obligitory guns and stuff. I recommend renting the game before you buy it, unless you have a short attention span and are easily amused.

Gimme a RPG/strategy game with a real plot over this anyday.

Re:mmm, pointless violence.

[ChaoticChaos]

I have to concur. I started a monster FPS spree beginning with Quake 2, Quake III Arena, Unreal Tournament, Half-Life, etc., etc., etc. until I just got totally and completely burned out on FPS.

About all I can tolerate nowadays are RPGs. Really looking forward to Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic and Deus Ex: Invisible War. Those will RULE!

Re:mmm, pointless violence.

[NanoGator]

"I can see this game being entertaining for the first week, but I've watched it being played and found myself quite uninterested, after having seen the various obligitory guns and stuff. I recommend renting the game before you buy it, unless you have a short attention span and are easily amused."

I can understand you not liking it, but the 'short attention span and are easily amused' comment is not really what makes these games appealing in the longer-term sense. What makes this game unique in contrast to FPS games is that it takes place within a simulation of a city, completely with traffic and all. This is in stark contrast to modern FPS games where you run around and shoot everybody AND anybody.

The replay value here is that much like life, what's about to happen in GTA is unpredictable. I have to say also that the missions are far more interesting than most of the action games you see. Things can always go wrong, and when they do, you can find yourself on the edge of your seat trying to figure out how to get out of this sticky situation. Mix the city-simulation in this and you've got yourself a rather engaging game that never plays the same way twice.

Frankly, I'd rather play a game with this type a variety over a "click, build, click, build, click oh-shit-he's-got-twice-as-many-units-as-i-do" strategy game that hasn't significantly improved since StarCraft. The funny thing is that strategy games could learn a lot from GTA3. If a C&C type game was set in a city simulation where the goal was to minimize collateral damage, and deal with the randomness that human behaviour generates, they could find themselves on top again. In the mean time, though, strategy has turned stale.

Re:mmm, pointless violence.

[leviramsey]

Maybe Rockstar could do a strategy spinoff of the GTA series, where you're the mobster (forget his name... it's been a year since I last played), assigning missions and such. Hmmm...

Re:mmm, pointless violence.

[Anonymous Coward]

Frankly, I'd rather play a game with this type a variety over a "click, build, click, build, click oh-shit-he's-got-twice-as-many-units-as-i-do" strategy game that hasn't significantly improved since StarCraft.

I agree here, I can't stand star/warcraft. But that doesn't fall in my 'strategy' category. :)

Re:mmm, pointless violence.

[pythian]

I'm in total agreement with NanoGator here.

GTA3 is much more like an RPG than half of the RPGs that are out these days. The plot works, first of all. It may not be incredibly involved, but it's consistent and enjoyable.

The simulation aspect of the game is remarkable, and I'm eagerly awaiting Vice City on the PC to see any improvements. I've played the game most of the way through, and had a blast without the stereotypical senseless maiming and killing.

On the other hand, when I do act out in violence, I tend to do it with much gusto (; Sniping your way up to a 4 or 5 wanted level and trying to escape entertains me from time to time.

In essence, I actually play the role of the character, and that's what a role-playing game is all about. They're certainly not about stats and numbers, but most people tend to think so, heh.

Re:mmm, pointless violence.

[angle_slam]

GTA is not an FPS. There are FPS aspects (you can use a first person mode and shoot people so there you go). But the goal of the game is to finish the missions. It will take you 15+ hours to finish all the missions in the game, and the missions are not all identical.

Re:mmm, pointless violence.

[analog_line]

If you'd actually played the game instead of watching someone play it, you'd probably realize that it does actually have a plot, and a good one at that.

What most people see when they watch people play GTA3 is people running around doing all the extra things that are NOT part of the main game. The jumps. Weapon cheats giving anyone a sniper rifle, stinger, with basically unlimited ammo. Health cheats. Getting the army out after you then reducing your wanted level with a cheat, then stealing the FBI cars/tanks and going on a rampage for no reason.

The actual game itself is neither easy, nor plotless. Your ignorance of this is proof you haven't played it, and your "viewing" was pretty incomplete. I certainly recommend you rent it yourself before you give another uninformed opinion and make yourself look dumber than you likely are.

Preferring RPGs and strategy games is all fine and dandy. Making snap judgements when you haven't played the game...isn't.

Ummm didn't Rockstar sign some sort of...

[Anonymous Coward]

Didn't Rockstar sign a deal with sony last year to only develop GTA for the PS consoles for four years I thought?

Re:Ummm didn't Rockstar sign some sort of...

[Syncalot]

Im sure if they did, they prob have some clause that says we get exclusive rights for X time of the game on our console first before you can port it to another console and sell it. with the PC version coming out in May, im sure they have milked as much ps2 users as they can, buy going xbox and game cube, they are just gonna sell more and more and more and more :)

But I've already played GTA III

[Dave_B93]

I'm not all that excited about GTAIII for the Game Cube, I played it on the pc a few months ago.
Now, Vice City for the cube, that will be cool.

I dunno. I'm still more excited about SSX 3 for the GC.

Re:But I've already played GTA III

[BigBir3d]

I want Gran Tourismo 3 damnit!

I'd be excited...

[NanoGator]

... if these games didn't appear on PC well before they will on XBOX/GC.

Hopefully Rockstar won't be dumb enough to sign another exclusivity contract, unless it's with the platform I already have, then it'd be okay. ;)

Re:I'd be excited...

[Anonymous Coward]

GTA 3 has been out for the PC since last summer. Vice City is coming out next month, if I recall correctly.

Check your local EB.

Re:I'd be excited...

[fatgraham]

Dumb? I'm sure sony made it worth their while. Not to mention concentrating on working on a single platform (or do they use renderware? I forget)
Also being limited to the largest user base cant be too bad. especially when your the main reason for increasing that userbase :)

music to my ears!

[standsolid]

I'm a huge fanyboy of nintendo, so i'm stoked to hear this news. I've been a fan of the gta series since the first one, all the packs, gta2, and now gta3. my computer has linux on it and barely runs gta3 -- i refuse to buy a ps2 because i really don't like the machine. I have a cube and am so stoked to see this message. time to go to my local gamestop and get a reserve (along with duke nukem forever)

Re:music to my ears!

[PyroMosh]

Duke Nukem Forever was cancelled for the cube. (You must enable popups to hit "yes I realy realy want to see this page" to view this page).

If anyone has any info, I'd still like to know exactly why. Will Nintendo's next platform be out by the time DNF comes out? ( ;

Framerate

[numberthree]

I'm no hardware scholar, but wouldn't porting the game to GameCube and X-Box speed up the framerate? My biggest issue with GTA Vice City was the blurry tracers you got on everything. It was like being on drugs. It sounds like a lot of work to beef up the polycount in the models in the game, but would the engine need to be re-written to feature a better frame rate?

Re:Framerate

[Anonymous Coward]

those trailers are part of the game engine and can be turned off in visual settings. i found them annoying also and have played since the get go with them turned off!

Re:Framerate

[AvantLegion]

I'm no hardware scholar, but wouldn't porting the game to GameCube and X-Box speed up the framerate?

Things are never that simple. The GC and Xbox ARE more powerful than the PS2 pretty much across the board, but it comes down to optimization and the like.

There's no reason that Baldur's Gate: Dark Alliance should run so poorly on GC and so much better on PS2, but that's how it does.

However, let's take into account that the PC version of Vice City runs far superior to the PS2 version, given a decent PC. Since an Xbox is basically just "a decent PC", architecture-wise, and uses the same DirectX APIs as the PC version, then we can pretty safely conclude that the Xbox versions of the games will run much smoother than the PS2.

The GameCube versions hinge entirely on the amount of time put into optimizing the engine for the Cube architecture.

Re:Framerate

[DrVital]

The PC Version of the engine is out, and optimization work has already been done for that...

Coming out a few years after the game's initial release means that they're going to have to do something to pretty them up.

Your Power Pill

Re:Framerate

[Mwongozi]

The blurry tracers are an option. In the settings, turn off "trails".

The world looks much nicer if you do.

Blurry tracers

[metamatic]

To turn off the blurry tracers, go to the options page.

I have absolutely no idea why they made motion blur the default for Vice City. It gave me a headache before I managed to work out how to turn it off.

Re:Blurry tracers

[daeley]

According to one of the GTA:VC sites I read, it was to simulate the Miami swimming-in-the-bathtub humidity. :)

Re:Blurry tracers

[Babbster]

That may be the "official" excuse but I think the real reason was to cover the fact that they were using the exact same engine, heavy aliasing and all, and can't compete directly in terms of graphics with GC and Xbox games. If you turn off the blurring, you can see the big difference that hardware anti-aliasing would make in the game.

Me, I just want a good game. Some people, however, are real snobs in the graphics area - see anyone who buys a high-end graphics card on the first day it's available.

wrong topic

[falsification]

I'm trying to screen out almost all the "games" topics. Now this comes along, and it's in news. Aargh.

Huh?

[Whooter]

I don't see anywhere in either article where Rockstar specifically says they're releasing GTA for Xbox or Cube. The only thing stated in the article IGN cites is that the exclusivity contract with Sony runs out then. I see a lot of jumping to conclusions, here...

Re:Huh?

[sconest]

First paragraph of the IGN article, last paragraph of the Yahoo one.

Re:Huh?

[Whooter]

The first paragraph of the IGN article simply parrots the last paragraph of the Yahoo! article, which in turn is just some analyst-wanker's assumption, based on the fact that Sony's exclusivity contract runs out in 2004. Nothing has been announced by anyone of any importance (ie. the developer).

Re:Huh?

[PyroMosh]

Hmmm...

According to Nintendo's web site, there will be a Grand Theft Auto 3 coming out.

BUT FOR THE GBA!!!

Very interesting.

Re:Huh?

[a_peckover]

This was supposed to be out before Christmas but got canned.

Re:Huh?

[PyroMosh]

The release date says May 2003.

Re:Huh?

[a_peckover]

It's still canned. If you hunt around the net you'll probably find the news stories confirming this.

It's about damn time!

[tomthebomb]

Sony has been whoring GTA out for a long ass time, it's about time some other console got it. The PS2 is horribly underpowered compared to either the Xbox or the GameCube, and I can see that the PC version of GTA:VC will far outclass the PS2 version. Just imagine the kinds of things they can do with an Xbox, a dedicated gaming console much like a PC! Yay Rockstar!

Re:It's about damn time!

[TheChadaChicken]

I would say that the XBox is a PC that is setup much like a dedicated gaming console.

Actually, it is progress.

[pythian]

GTA3 (and Vice City, I assume) is a remarkably well done game. You can look at the adult material in it, as you are, and say it crosses the line.

As the other posters have said, you're looking at the wrong line. Regardless of the platform, this game is rated M. It's not for children. Sometimes I feel as though I'm in the minority in believing that these ratings should be meaningful and enforced.

A child cannot go and watch some rated R film without a parent/guardian, the same child should not be able to buy/rent such games either.

Of course, if the parent of said child doesn't see a problem with that game, the parent will get the game for the kid.

GTA3 is no worse than many movies, yet it is often targetted. Why? What is this imaginery distinction that games get over other forms of entertainment?

*shrug* I this argument has always gotten to me. It seems quite clear and obvious to me, but some people just fail to see it, or have various conceptions that distort the real situation at hand.

Re:Actually, it is progress.

[amuro98]

Some stores DO enforce the game ratings, such as not letting kids buy M-rated games.

Not that this has too much of an effect... Usually the kid goes and gets the parental unit who comes into the store, buys the game, and chews out the minimum-wage slave clerk for not doing his job by selling the kid the game.

Some cities/states want to make this a law, though I don't really see how it'll prevent 10-14 year olds from getting a hold of M-rated games... All they have to do is get someone to buy the game for them, or buy the game from an internet site.

Same goes with movie theaters. None of the theaters I've been to have turned away unescorted kids from buying tickets to R movies. In fact, when I went to see Matrix, I was probably one of the oldest people in the theater - and I was 28 at the time!

Of course, this isn't to say that the game ratings are 100% accurate, nor is what they list the real objectionable material - which would be pretty hard to do with an epic-length RPG.

With Sony exclusivity ending...

[Anonymous Coward]

This is important to both MSFT and Nintendo. Rockstar's GTA series has be extremely successful lately and it would prove profitable to both MSFT and Nintendo.

I know Sony was almost unwilling to let go this exclusive rights on the PS2, but to ROCKSTAR, hopeufully will open up the market for them and bring some innovation.

MSFT's XBOX can hopefully get ROCKSTAR to consider a network option with MSFT's XBOX LIVE!. On Nintendo's Gamecube it can consider the connectivity with their portable system, GameboyAdvance.

Even though this is exciting for non-PS2 owners. I'm hoping that they'd take the extra step and add something innovative (not necessarily new) thing on either system.

Re:With Sony exclusivity ending...

[Cunk]

MSFT's XBOX can hopefully get ROCKSTAR to consider a network option with MSFT's XBOX LIVE!. On Nintendo's Gamecube it can consider the connectivity with their portable system, GameboyAdvance.Well, if the PC's networking abilities didn't get Rockstar to consider adding multiplayer, I doubt that those consoles will. Besides, it would require a complete rewrite from the ground up in order to add such a feature and I doubt they'd be able to maintain the feel of the game (i.e. the enormous, open city).

Re:With Sony exclusivity ending...

[angle_slam]

Multiplayer would be pointless the only way you could make this multiplayer would be to make it an FPS-type game where you go around killing other gamers. But this is not an FPS game: there are plenty of better FPS games out there if you just want to kill other gamers.

Re:With Sony exclusivity ending...

[AvantLegion]

The only way I see multiplayer working in a GTA game is a sort of multiplayer co-op mode. Going around in some sort of kill-each-other deathmatch would NOT work well with that game engine, but a co-op mode where two people work missions together could be VERY interesting. One chucks a grenade over the wall, the other mows 'em down as they come running out. Or one guy's driving with some sort of sensitive cargo, and the other guy's running interference against cops or gangs or whathaveyou. THAT would have potential.

Re:With Sony exclusivity ending...

[smart.id]

I don't think they would have to rewrite the whole game. Actually, the code for multiplayer was left in GTA3 for PC, and some people took advantage of that and created a hack to allow for multiplayer. I don't think they'd be looking to make it an MMORPG where everyone walks around in one huge world, but rather something where 2-4 can do missions against each other or together, race each other, have a demolition dirby, a deathmatch, etc.

Re:With Sony exclusivity ending...

[Xibby]

Actually, the code for multiplayer was left in GTA3 for PC

Can't wait for multiplayer a Liberty City Surviver mod. (If you haven't listed to in game radio in GTA3, you wouldn't understand...)

Cool

[DigitalUnderground]

Ive been waiting to play GTA on something besides the PC and ill have that chance when it comes out for the xbox.

Broader Platforms

[syr]

I'm excited about the expansion of the series onto multiple platforms. I never bought a PS2 because when I was looking into next-gen systems it just seemed too "old" compared with the Xbox and Cube. So I ended up with a GameCube. But unfortunately the PS2 has the largest library of games, too.

I first heard the news about multiple platforms at GameTab News. Here are all the related GTA stories.

${ $GTA[3] }{'vice_city'}[2]

[Hnice]

Look, i'm a fan of GTA3, serioiusly, and more than that, i appreciate the object lesson that the game is in the power of a relatively undirected game to be compelling, whatever, games as something other than games bla bla bla

But honestly, doesn't a story like this leave a bad taste in anyone else's mouth? That a big gaming story is the re-release of a two-year old game that's already sold like a buzilliathon copies for the system with the 80 % marketshare?

Shouldn't this article really be entitled, "public continues to enjoy GTA3"? I don't know what the point of this post is -- i guess i just have GTA fatigue. it's this year's Sims fatigue, and it's starting to really wear on me. i'm too old to root for any console, which means i'm too old to care about this, and shouldn't we all be? 'increased poly counts in the model on xbox, ree ree ree!' 'undermining sony's dominance ra ra ra!'

Sorry, i'm in a bad mood today, but 'Game X that you already have to be released at time (now + 18 months) for system G which will by then be 80 % through its projected lifespan' stories are starting to really grate on my ability to sort through gaming news.

Re:${ $GTA[3] }{'vice_city'}[2]

[amuro98]

I don't see what the big point is, other than what happend to the "exclusive" contract Rockstar had with Sony...

Anyways, most people only buy one console. If the contract runs out on a popular game, it would only make sense to port it to other consoles in order to get additional sales - especially if the work required was negligible.

Unfortunatly, too many ports end up being inferior to their original. Grandia 2 on the PS2 looks worse than the Dreamcast version, for instance.

However, other ports tend to add extra features/levels/characters in order to entice people to buy the new version.

Exactly!

[neurostar]

...is for adults. They have an M rating. They are not for children. When my nephews visit me, they are not permitted to play my GTA games. We rent a Spyro the Dragon game or something like that if they want to play a video game.

Exactly! This is what people need to realize. It isn't the responsibility of the game devs, govnernment, or any group to censor games, movies, songs, etc. It is the responsibility of the parents/legal guardians to ensure that the children in their care aren't watching/doing/listening-to things they shouldn't.

neurostar

you must not have played it

[Ender Ryan]

In GTA -- 3 and Vice City -- there is a storyline that unfolds as you complete missions, all of which are completely different, all taking place in a simulation of a city. Throughout the game, many characters are introduced. Some become allies, some eventually become enemies that you have to kill, etc.

It's really quite a complex adventure game.

Re:you must not have played it

[angle_slam]

Agreed. There is a huge difference between watching your friends play it and playing it yourself. I'll admit that, when I first got the game, the joy of being able to just go anywhere and kill people was fun. But that gets old. That's where the missions come in.

Regress

[stefanlasiewski]

Back when you were playing Donkey Kong, adults were playing Leisure Suit Larry.

Yeah, I remember the part when Larry beat the shit out of the cop and stole his gun... use the gun to shoot the brains out of the creep who stole your drugs, and then run over the prostitute after receiving her services.

Oh wait, that wasn't in Leisure Suit Larry...

Re:Regress

[AceM2]

Hey, you mustve played GTA3 pretty extensively before you decided it was such a bad game, huh? =P

Re:Regress

[joshsisk]

So? I also remeber the part in Taxi Driver (spoiler alert) where Robert DeNiro shoots the fingers off the guy in the brothel and then himself gets shot in the neck, while he goes on a sadistic, violent rampage (which incidentally is reported by the news media as being heroic).

And that movie came out, what, in the mid-seventies?

The thing is - it wasn't intended for kids. And neither is GTA3.

Re:Collapse of the American empire

[Anonymous Coward]

Last time I read a good book it was filled with more violence, sex, etc than GTA3 or VC... how is that better?

Re:Collapse of the American empire

[stefanlasiewski]

Read Farenheit 451. Great book. Talks alot about people who don't wonder, who sit around in front of the TV all day, sucked into the ultraviolent entertainment or engaged in idle conversations all day. Forgetting how to live.

Has a fair amount of violence, but unlike GTA, violence is considered a bad thing, even if it's sometimes necessary.

In GTA, violence is about the only thing you can do.

Re:Collapse of the American empire

[Anonymous Coward]

Just leave my friends and family the fuck alone.
That's all I ask.

Funnily enough, that's generally all we ask, too. Except you can't resist trying to push your own morals on us, can you? Need to sound holier than thou, as if not playing a video game makes you some kind of frigging flawless saint.

It's a fucking GAME. How many GTA-style driving-up-the-pavement-killing-thousands-in-a-run cop chases have you seen due to this game? Approaching zero would be my guess. Just fuck off and leave us to find our entertainment where we will.

Jesus christ people, when was the last time you read a good book or had a stimulating conversation with some cute, smart girl?

Why, last night, thank you for asking. And then I played some GTA3. Not every gamer matches some uninformed stereotype you hold in your deluded head.

too late

[Anonymous Coward]

I played Vice City for the first time today(I don't have PS2) and it was ok, not very impressed with the graphics though. Unfortunately by the time it comes out for my Xbox it will be a two year old game and it's release will probably be overshadowed by whatever the newest thing is(Doom3, Halo2). It will be hard to convince me to pay $50 for a game that old. Maybe if they include both GTA3 and VC on the same disc, or if they release it as an Xbox Platinum Series for $20.

Re:Collapse of the American empire

[AceM2]

I talk to a wonderful, beautiful, smart, cute, funny girl every day ;) I have a job, a family, friends, co-workers I talk to regularly, play basketball, read slashdot, work as a coder on a few small projects, and... I play a bit of GTAIII.. My point is, just because you think that the only people that play games are losers or whatever.. It's not nearly true. Sometimes there is just an appeal to being the bad guy. I mean sure, you may still think less of me because I play games like GTA3, but so far it hasn't affected my relationship with my girlfriend, my work habits, or my health.. Oh and it hasn't made me more violent or anything either ;) I mean.. I would leave your friends and family the fuck alone even if you weren't posting as an anonymous coward, which I'm sure you are in real life too.

Speaking of IGN

[Cyclone66]

Is anyone else annoyed at how they manage to get a very high ranking in google for game related searches yet they always serve up 'teaser' pages and you have to pay for what google showed you? I'm assuming they serve different pages to the googlebot, maybe google should change the googlebot ip from time to time and not have it resolve to googlebot.google.com or whatever it is.

It says that this is a rumor.

[Omni Magnus]

The article says that this is just a rumor. I doubt that Sony wont renew this contract.

Re:It says that this is a rumor.

[JackDeth]

You think Sony will renew an exclusivity contract on what will then be a 3 year old game? I highly doubt it. Now, a contract on GTA 4 they may want, but I imagine that after the success of GTA 3, that will be mighty expensive. I for one think it would be funny if Rockstar announced that they were making GTA 4 for everything but the PS2 and see if Sony tries to pay them to release it for PS2. :)

This is still a rumor, but it's not a very surprising one. The contract ends when the next GTA game is released, and Sony bought the rights fairly late in the development cycle, so there probably isn't all that much left to finish it for XBox and GC. I'm not sure how well a 3 year old game will sell, but if it's cheap or has a significant amount of updates it may do alright. It may also help drive GTA 4 sales on those platforms if they are going to be released on them a short time after the PS2 release.

Probably not an issue

[a_peckover]

Rockstar didn't write the engine. GTA3 and GTA:VC use Criterion's Renderware, which I believe is already available on the Gamecube and the XBox (Burnout uses it). It will probably take them about 10 minutes to port them.

I have read articles suggesting that Rockstar North (then DMA Design) didn't even need the Renderware source code, they had a working test version up within a week.

FYI, you can turn off the tracers

[randomizer9]

There's an option in the display portion of the pause menu to turn this off. It got on my nerves too and helps the framerate a hair on the PC version.

More games for my SexXBox

[illumina us]

That's great, but there is just one problem, can someone give me the $$$ to buy these games. I'm poor :(

Re:More games for my SexXBox

[Arrowmaster]

heh silly russian needs money for games yet u just got a new stereo for ur car, thats great man and i know u can get the games for free too even on ur 56k