GTA IV website is up

[Ultra Peanut]

http://www.rockstargames.com/IV/

IT'S HERE

[Delano]

Melancholymedic11 is teh SeXZy!

[Bowser]

CheifsPlanet should have its next get together at the Steinway Beer Garden.

[Kraus]

I entered the contest for the Swingers T-shirt.

[Ultra Peanut]

Holy crap, the updates on the site are great. There's an IF99 sampler (O'Jays and Fela Kuti songs), and a Vladivostok FM preview with some extremely catchy Eastern Bloc music. The "History of Liberty Quiz" is fantastic, too, as is the LCPD video.

Bully is a great game, but sometimes I can't help but think about how close GTA IV is while I'm playing.

Also, this billboard caught my eye as a possible 24 parody:

[KcMizzou]

I don't remember who posted the link to get a free subscription to EGM, but I just got my first issue. (Thanks!)

It had a long interview and preview on GTA IV. Some highlights...

EGM previews GTA IV, exclusive interview with Sam Houser
20

EGM subscribers have received their April 2008 issues a bit earlier than expected, but found it to contain a new preview of GTA IV and exclusive interview with Rockstar Games President Sam Houser. There is also an interview with the "brewer of the Hot Coffee", PatrickW, on the 10th page of the preview.


* Rumor is that Niko Bellic is inspired by a favorite driver in Rockstar's driving service.
* If cars take on too much damage, the engine may stall, requiring you to escape on foot and find a new one.
* Tapping up on the D-Pad brings up the phone where you can access text messages, an organizer, multiplayer modes, a camera, and contacts list, which becomes updated automatically as you meet people. Tapping up a second time will bring up the keypad to make calls.
* The more advanced model of the phone, including the MP3 player (radio on the go), is not added until later in the game.
* Lazlow is confirmed to return on the radio.
* Emergency vehicles respond in real time from their stations around the city. Calling the police can be a handy trick when you need to obtain a police car for a mission - pick one up at the station when no one is around.
* Again, developing relationships with people will be a crucial part of the game. The better the relationship with someone, the more you'll benefit. If you ignore someone for too long, they will start contacting you with angry messages.
* Mission dialogue varies after any failed attempts.
* Portions of the city are closed off at the beginning of the game due to a terror alert. Though Niko can visit the unlocked islands, but that will cost as a heavy increase in the heat level.
* Niko is said to be a man with no country, in the same was as Claude had been known as a man with no name.
* Niko spent time in third world prisons.
* All the ladies love Niko Bellic. Girlfriends will again play a big role in the game as a subsidiary of building relationships - although this time it will be more incorporated into the story.
* No more invisible ramps. AKA, the new skeletal-animation system will have Niko's body and specifically his feet fall naturally onto different services. (On a set of stairs, Niko will take each step, not walk up an invisible ramp). It's a subtle feature that's explosively illustrated when Niko or any NPC is run down by a car or dragged by a bumper.
* After telling Houser how much they enjoyed cooking grenades and tossing them out windows of a car, he offered a hint about the online multiplayer "I just like running up to a bunch of players with the grenade cooking in my hands and taking them all out with me."
* You can resist arrest when getting busted by tapping A/X. This however will reward you an additional wanted star.
* If you enjoyed the San Andreas multiplayer modes, then you should be a happy with GTA IV online.
* The motion sensing in the PS3 version will work in "a way that makes sense" is all Sam Houser would reveal.
* At first, the map of Liberty City was to be enormous - roughly the size of the state of New York. It seemed logical to go bigger at first, but Rockstar decided the focus should be about making the whole GTA experience larger.

In addition to this new information, three new screenshots were revealed, which you can check out below and above.

http://www.n4g.com/News-117965.aspx

[KcMizzou]

I was glad to hear Lazlow will be back.

[Ultra Peanut]

Yeah, when I read that part of the preview I almost dropped the magazine.

[Bump]

this game is gonna be soooo sick! I cannot wait!

[BigChiefFan]

Too cool-I can't wait.

[Ultra Peanut]

I saw a really cool screenshot pop up with the screensaver, so I had to put it at the top of the thread.

[Simply Red]

THANK GOD!!! Power to the People!

[Simply Red]

Originally Posted by Ultra Peanut

I saw a really cool screenshot pop up with the screensaver, so I had to put it at the top of the thread.

Yeah that shit is definitely graphically dope.

[Simply Red]

[Ultra Peanut]

The new trailer isn't quite as awesome a trailer (from a pure entertainment standpoint) as "Move Up, Ladies," but Jesuscristo, it makes the game engine look absolutely phenomenal. Pausing it during certain scenes and realizing, "Holy shit, THIS IS WHAT IT'S GOING TO LOOK LIKE AT STREET LEVEL" is just amazing. The scene with the guy falling down the stairs is outstanding, too.

Also, here's some incredibly cool info on Rockstar's forward-thinking stat tracking:

Rockstar will launch 'Rockstars Social Club' on april 15th.

On top of the standard multiplayer ranking stuff, a press release sent out by Rockstar lists the following features.

* LCPD Police Blotter - A virtual map and tracker of single-player criminal activity logged in Liberty City from the aggregated data of millions of connected players - showing the most dangerous areas of town, most commonly used weapons and more.
* The Story Gang - This special single-player leaderboard recognizes players who complete Niko Bellic's main story arc of Grand Theft Auto IV - The leaderboard ranks players according to the total amount of playing time it's taken to complete the story, as well as a historical rank by who has completed it first. Members of this club will receive special online widgets and merit badges marking all of their in-game accomplishments.
* The 100% Club - Watch to see who will be the first to complete 100% of the game. The first ten people to be identified on the Social Club as reaching 100% will be sent an ultra-rare commemorative 'key to the city' to mark their accomplishment. In the future, the 100% Club will then carry a historical leaderboard showing rankings of who has completed 100% of a game in the shortest span of playing hours.
* The Hall of Fame -- This area will dynamically recognize those singularly elite players who have reached the top of the hill on various statistical leaderboards, and will also contain a personal awards display of special in-game landmarks and successes in Social Club competitions.
* The Liberty City Marathon -- A ranking of special physical milestones achieved in the game - from the amount of miles walked, driven, or swam - to the number of bullets fired and stunt-jumps jumped. There will be additional special marathon-based competitions in the future from this area as well.