Comments on: GTA 4 Exclusive Content and 360/PS3 Versions

By: Darrin

Darrin — Thu, 03 Jan 2008 22:22:53 +0000

No idea of what trophies/achievements there will be.

No way this is coming out in two months. I say April at the *earliest* and probably later than that. This is definitely my most anticipated game though.

By: Dmcclinton

Dmcclinton — Thu, 03 Jan 2008 19:14:09 +0000

All right, this is VERY late, but seeing as how theres only 2 months till the release, here’s my debate. I have a PS3, Elite, and a 50 inch Sony Bravia, Sooo….. Hd is of HUGE importance to me… Both will be pumping around the same (if not identical) graphics, so heres the seller for me, both are said to have some kind of Online play, and I dont know about anyone here but no one I know have Ps3′s… The only thing is, Im stuck on if Id rather have achievements or trophies (HOME)…… I dont care about the DLC, but it is catching my attention. DOES ANYBODY KNOW WHAT KIND OF TROPHIES THERE COULD BE FOR THIS GAME?

By: Mike

Mike — Sun, 24 Jun 2007 14:42:52 +0000

A bit late responding, but here goes: I’m aware that if Microsoft buys Take 2 than that company can no longer make money selling games on Nintendo or Sony systems. Isn’t the point of being bought out that they don’t have to really worry about the bottom line though? Bungie could make even more money with Halo 3 on PS3 and Windows XP PCs, but they don’t really have to worry about it since Microsoft is cutting the checks for everything anyway. Microsoft doesn’t really seem to care about losing so much money on their entertainment division, which would make them a comfortable fit for a company that wants to make elaborate, big budget games. Hell, even Rare hasn’t been held to high standards in terms of making games that can sell well (Viva Pinata was a bomb) and they were bought for $400 million. Between that and $50 million for DLC (not even the game itself exclusive) I wonder if Bungie is starting to think they sold out (not using the phrase in a negative manner) too soon.

Anyway, I would not even say the DLC is what helps Microsoft win when it comes to the battle over GTA4. If I gotta pay more money for stuff that should have come with the game to begin with, I’m not that thrilled as a consumer, and I won’t be buying it.

However, they DO win in a very important area: GTA4 will be the biggest game of the year, and as of now, it sounds like it will do absolutely nothing to take advantage of what PS3 can do.

- It has to fit on a 7GB 360 disc, so it won’t take advantage of Blu-Ray unless the PS3 version has higher quality audio
- It has to work on the 360′s without a hard drive, which means some things are going to have to be compromised (can’t make caching an absolute necessity for every part of the game)
- It doesn’t sound like there are going to be as many flight vehicles, so they probably aren’t going to do much in the way of motion controls

That said, I’m still amazed at how good this game looks given the scale, and that is a pleasant surprise considering how many “next gen” games look like modest upgrades over what came out on the previous systems. It’s just hard to ignore the fact that beyond all the hoopla of the DLC, Microsoft’s best move was putting this game in a position where it will not likely take advantage of what PS3 has to offer. So if both versions end being identical, it’s going to be a lot easier for people to buy it on the less expensive system.

Oh well, could always be worse. Just imagine GTA4 being the San Andreas engine with waggle… the horror…

By: fleakitten

fleakitten — Tue, 19 Jun 2007 12:41:51 +0000

I’m glad Sony is working hard on their 1st party lineup. Microsoft is going to try to monopolyze every thing it can throw money at.

By: Sporty

Sporty — Mon, 18 Jun 2007 22:15:34 +0000

No, it can’t be on the BD since Rockstar is making GTAIV still. It probably wont even be started until the games are gold.

If you look at the financial report, you will see MS paid 25m each for 2 exclusive episodes. First should be complete around April 08 and the 2nd to be around August 08.

By: ben

ben — Mon, 18 Jun 2007 15:18:55 +0000

Just a thought but couldnt most of the new content be included already and in the price of the game on the Blu Ray ps3 disc rather then the limited Dual layer DVD? this could eliminate the need for extra content on the PS3 and would instead leave 360 users feeling left out. I dont really mind as I have both systems so will make the decision as to what one to buy nearer the time

By: John

John — Sun, 17 Jun 2007 06:50:14 +0000

50m sounds like a lot for us mere mortals, but compared to MS’s pockets, the current XBox deficit or the previous XBox advertisement campaigns, it’s chump change. And marketing-wise, it’s likely worth hours of prime-time TV commercials.

By: Sporty

Sporty — Sun, 17 Jun 2007 01:33:12 +0000

Mike, That’s less reliable then I I just said “isn’t Bungie going to dissolve after halo 3?”

Take 2 at the moment is worth more then what any developer is willing to pay. They are worth twice what Vivendi Games entire games devision which included Blizzard and Sierra, was asking for few years ago. The ‘rumor’ that Take2 were for sale was due to the shareholders trying to oust the executives, as a defensive move to prevent that. No buyers were willing to pay the amount that Take2 is worth so it didn’t happen and the executives are out already. Now they are on a restructuring plan to return to the black.

The problem with studios like Take2, is that only a fraction of the revenue comes from each console. So if MS (or Sony) bought them it would shave the majority of the companies business, lower profits and cause layoffs. Once they are streamlined into a Subsidiary it would takes over a decade to turn a profit if every game was a smashing hit. Microsoft still isn’t anywhere near breaking even on Rare’s purchase

EA is about the only one that can afford Take2 that would have the least redundancies, but even then it would be far cheaper and safer to just create new IPs.