AfterDawn: News

GTA IV delayed until early 2008

Take-Two Interactive, the company behind the much hyped upcoming game Grand Theft Auto: IV has announced that the game will not be hitting stores in late 2007 as planned but instead in early 2008 due to a few delays.

The company said it needed more time to "perfect the game" and the chairman of Take-Two said in a statement that "certain elements of development proved to be more time-intensive than expected," and also admitted that its dual development, for both the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360, added largely to the delays.



"We owe it to the game's millions of fans, to our dedicated development team, and to our shareholders to make sure that Grand Theft Auto IV is a groundbreaking gaming experience that takes maximum advantage of next generation technology," chairman Strauss Zelnick said in a statement.

Because of the move, Take-Two said they would now post a loss on revenues of about $1 billion instead of breaking even on revenue of about $1.25 billion.

Source:
BetaNews

Written by: Andre Yoskowitz @ 3 Aug 2007 14:18

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• 32 comments

• vinny13

  Those SOBs! I want it now lol!

  3.8.2007 15:03 #1

• SamNz

  they should like make a small dl'able version for say like $10-$20 which is like a good demo say i a whole island. ppl will still buy the whole game when it comes out. does any1 remember gt 4 prologue sure it didn't sell well but its some quick cash :)

  3.8.2007 15:14 #2

• fgamer

  Thanks to Sony's Crapstation 3 us 360 owners have to wait even longer for GTA IV...thank you Sony you always pull through!! How am I gonna break this info to my little cousin who was really excited about playing it this October:(

  3.8.2007 16:47 #3

• sukhvail

  ^^ ur little cousin shouldn't be playing the game as its rated M. And why do you presume it has to do with a ps3 prob?

  3.8.2007 17:53 #4

• maxsixer

  Maby its not sony fgamer, maby the game was to big for the weeney coxbox and made those little red lights appear. FLAME! :D
  
  im glad its delayed, if they say theyre perfecting it, i think theyre perfecting it, and it gives me more time to decide which console to buy

  3.8.2007 18:08 #5

• 26r0cK

  Maybe they just need to make sure the game is clean enough to be playable unlike the Manhunt 2 issue?

  3.8.2007 18:35 #6

• vinny13

  LMFAO
  
  Let's keep this rolin'

  3.8.2007 18:53 #7

• BIGnewb

  i dont get why people are talking shit about ps3 when xbox 360 is alot worse performance wise.may i point out the lights,failed wireless controllers,%30 failure rate :) and gta4 wont flop hopefully.san andreas was good but after a while i didnt give a shit about that GANGSTA SHIT lol peace
  
  and also thank you 4 that hilarious coxbox comment aka suxbox.while all of your xbox360's are failing,bill gates is playing his xbox 720 laughing at how many stupid loyal fans he has =P

  3.8.2007 20:48 #8

• SilvaJDS

  Y this always happens why make a release date if ur not going to stick to it!

  3.8.2007 22:56 #9

• SilvaJDS

  Y this always happens why make a release date if ur not going to stick to it!

  3.8.2007 22:57 #10

• nobrainer

  Michael Pachter thinks the delays have been caused because of the complications in coding for the ps3 so xbots have to w8.
  
  http://www.gamepro.com/news.cfm?article_id=127388
  
  Quote:Analyst blames PS3 for Grand Theft Auto 4 delay
  by GamePro Staff | 08/03/2007 | 10:28:16 AM PST
  
  Analyst Michael Pachter believes development difficulties on PS3 forced Take-Two to delay the highly Grand Theft Auto IV for both PS3 and Xbox 360.
  Sony involved in GTA4 delay?
  
  "We think it is likely that the Rockstar team had difficulty in building an exceptionally complicated game for the PS3, and failed to recognize how far away from completion the game truly was until recently," Pachter said in a statement.
  
  "We think it is also likely that Take-Two had a contractual commitment to Sony that it would not favor competitor Microsoft by launching the Xbox 360 version of GTA IV prior to launching the PS3 version, and believe that any delay of the PS3 version necessitated a delay of the Xbox 360 version," he added.
  
  The analyst also criticized the timing of the delay being that the game was originally slated for release only 10 weeks from now. As reported yesterday, GTA4 is now expected in April 2008 at the earliest.
  
  Pachter's opinions come at a time when several third-party developers, benchmark tests, and even Sony's own admittance that the PS3 is harder than the Xbox 360 when it comes to developing games given the former's propriety hardware.

  4.8.2007 02:12 #11

• ChromeMud

  I think it was foolish to provide a release date so early in the first place.I prefer it when developers say it will be released when it's ready.There are plenty of games being released this year so it's no big deal.

  4.8.2007 05:06 #12

• Riotard

  Well all i say is LOL! to this, this probably means it'll be delayed even longer! This is because Mass Effect for 360 will be comign out around that time, so they will have to delay it to make sure the sales are good because when its mass effect or gta 4, i think 360 fans are gonan go for the halo killer game!
  
  They shoudl release the 360 version on time, or else this game is neevr actually gonna be released, face it, Sony screwed up, i don't understand why Take-Two wont relase the 360 version when it is ready! Persoanlly with basically everythign having to go multi plat bar the 360 exclusives which have mass fundign my M$, i don't understand why company's try and not get games out quicker for one consol then the other! If its ready get it on the sleves, isntead of just keeping it and concentrating on the game for the other console!

  4.8.2007 15:21 #13

• ZippyDSM

  BIGnewb/Vinny/fanboys in genreal
  
  ya ya ya tell that to the games that run better on the 360 becsue the PS3 has not been optimized for yet...now lets look at the Xbox state of things in order not to lsoe rep relaseing a game on 2 consoles "unevenly" they are trying to get it all nice and polished to work on both the best they can something most companies don't even TRY to do...........
  
  good god fanboy trolling is so fun....

  4.8.2007 16:15 #14

• fgamer

  Ok I don't know what those other two guys are talking about, but those Sony fanboys should stop lying to themselfs, we all know the Xbox 360 runs games wayyyyyy better than the PS3 does (it's been talked about for ages now). Why do you think majority of the developers support the 360 more than the PS3? That's because they can tap into the power of the 360 more easily than the Crapstation 3. The only thing you guys can say bad about the 360 is the hardware failure(s), but at least they now give every Xbox 360 owner a 3 Year warranty which is amazing and gives you security that your purchase is insured.
  
  
  Face the fact that GTA IV has been delayed because of the retarded PS3 development cycle, it's just a pain in the ass and expen$e to code for. This is ultimately gonna leave PS3 owners in the dark or shall I say "delay" on allot of games due to the fact that PS3 development times will be atrociously long. So while us 360 owners get game-after-game after-game, you PS3 fanboys will get delay-after-delay-after-delay! I own a Crapstation 3 too and let me tell you that it's no match to Microsoft's behemoth of a system, the Xbox 360.

  4.8.2007 21:17 #15

• Andrew691

  Originally posted by fgamer: Ok I don't know what those other two guys are talking about, but those Sony fanboys should stop lying to themselfs, we all know the Xbox 360 runs games wayyyyyy better than the PS3 does (it's been talked about for ages now). Why do you think majority of the developers support the 360 more than the PS3? That's because they can tap into the power of the 360 more easily than the Crapstation 3. The only thing you guys can say bad about the 360 is the hardware failure(s), but at least they now give every Xbox 360 owner a 3 Year warranty which is amazing and gives you security that your purchase is insured.
  
  
  Face the fact that GTA IV has been delayed because of the retarded PS3 development cycle, it's just a pain in the ass and expen$e to code for. This is ultimately gonna leave PS3 owners in the dark or shall I say "delay" on allot of games due to the fact that PS3 development times will be atrociously long. So while us 360 owners get game-after-game after-game, you PS3 fanboys will get delay-after-delay-after-delay! I own a Crapstation 3 too and let me tell you that it's no match to Microsoft's behemoth of a system, the Xbox 360.Ignorance is bliss ha?
  That was one of the biggest piles of fanboy trolling Ive seen on this site for a long time. Anyone care to pick aprt his post and tell him the very obvious reasons as to why things are how they are? or should we just let him delude himself into thinking he knows what he's talking about?
  
  I believe it was R* themselves who said that the development of the PS3 version was at most 2 weeks behind the 360 one. So how the hell does 2 weeks become over 6 months? If anything both systems are "to blame". Do you really think MS would let one of their key Holiday titles get pushed back because the PS3 copy isnt complete? thats pure crap, if anything they would give R* another $50mill and start bashing the crap out of the PS3 and you know it. Likewise for Sony if they had any evidence at all the the 360 was holding up development dont you think would be many MANY stories from them claiming "BD is necessary" or something to that effect?
  
  And IMO (thats it, an opinion) the lack of HDD and limits of DVD9 would pose more of a Dev'ing problem than the hard architecture of the Cell.
  
  Oh and @nobrainer that article is from a ANALyst who has nothing remotely to do with R*, and probably more to do with MS. He's giving his opinion, nothing more so it too is worthless info.

  4.8.2007 22:06 #16

• ZippyDSM

  Quote:Originally posted by fgamer: Ok I don't know what those other two guys are talking about, but those Sony fanboys should stop lying to themselfs, we all know the Xbox 360 runs games wayyyyyy better than the PS3 does (it's been talked about for ages now). Why do you think majority of the developers support the 360 more than the PS3? That's because they can tap into the power of the 360 more easily than the Crapstation 3. The only thing you guys can say bad about the 360 is the hardware failure(s), but at least they now give every Xbox 360 owner a 3 Year warranty which is amazing and gives you security that your purchase is insured.
  
  
  Face the fact that GTA IV has been delayed because of the retarded PS3 development cycle, it's just a pain in the ass and expen$e to code for. This is ultimately gonna leave PS3 owners in the dark or shall I say "delay" on allot of games due to the fact that PS3 development times will be atrociously long. So while us 360 owners get game-after-game after-game, you PS3 fanboys will get delay-after-delay-after-delay! I own a Crapstation 3 too and let me tell you that it's no match to Microsoft's behemoth of a system, the Xbox 360.Ignorance is bliss ha?
  That was one of the biggest piles of fanboy trolling Ive seen on this site for a long time. Anyone care to pick aprt his post and tell him the very obvious reasons as to why things are how they are? or should we just let him delude himself into thinking he knows what he's talking about?
  
  I believe it was R* themselves who said that the development of the PS3 version was at most 2 weeks behind the 360 one. So how the hell does 2 weeks become over 6 months? If anything both systems are "to blame". Do you really think MS would let one of their key Holiday titles get pushed back because the PS3 copy isnt complete? thats pure crap, if anything they would give R* another $50mill and start bashing the crap out of the PS3 and you know it. Likewise for Sony if they had any evidence at all the the 360 was holding up development dont you think would be many MANY stories from them claiming "BD is necessary" or something to that effect?
  
  And IMO (thats it, an opinion) the lack of HDD and limits of DVD9 would pose more of a Dev'ing problem than the hard architecture of the Cell.
  
  Oh and @nobrainer that article is from a ANALyst who has nothing remotely to do with R*, and probably more to do with MS. He's giving his opinion, nothing more so it too is worthless info.Theres no much MS can do about it if they did delay it over the PS3,and that could be the most reasonable explanation next too,full on polishing and optimizing for each system.
  
  It will be interesting to see if they need to use day and night light maps and other large ammoutns of data this would force the game onto 2 360 discs which is not bad wrong or evil it can make it harder to equally dev for 2 systems that are so different take PGR for example.
  
  We have already seen a start in higher data levels for consoles next year is goign to full of more surprises ^^

  4.8.2007 23:28 #17

• ChromeMud

  I would be suprised if it is on two disks on the 360.Sounds like good flame bait.Oblivion had a full dawn/day/dusk/night cycle,a weather system,a massive enviroment to explore including underground and portal levels and it fits on a DVD with room to spare.The amount of detail,spells,weapons,monsters,AI and quests and main storyline go beyond anything else in terms of game time.I never completed that game,over 200 hours spent completing side quests and generally having fun causing mayhem to the NPC's in the game.
  I've no doubt that Rockstar will have to optimize the space for textures with varying compression but if it offers even half the size and detail of Oblivion I will be impressed.As long as it's a fun game with all the freedom of previous GTA's then it will be a hit on the 360 and the PS3.

  5.8.2007 03:00 #18

• ZippyDSM

  Originally posted by ChromeMud: I would be suprised if it is on two disks on the 360.Sounds like good flame bait.Oblivion had a full dawn/day/dusk/night cycle,a weather system,a massive enviroment to explore including underground and portal levels and it fits on a DVD with room to spare.The amount of detail,spells,weapons,monsters,AI and quests and main storyline go beyond anything else in terms of game time.I never completed that game,over 200 hours spent completing side quests and generally having fun causing mayhem to the NPC's in the game.
  I've no doubt that Rockstar will have to optimize the space for textures with varying compression but if it offers even half the size and detail of Oblivion I will be impressed.As long as it's a fun game with all the freedom of previous GTA's then it will be a hit on the 360 and the PS3.To me more discs is a non issue I am more interested in the technical aspects of it.
  
  Oblivion looks like a current tech game, I do wonder if they use any tricks to help with data size.
  
  look at what they are doing with the new PGR its a level higher than the current standard most are putting into games and thus for some reasons will not use 2 discs for the 360 version and removing half the day/night areas from it in order to get it to fix,since its a online game I can see the reason to skip a 2 disc setup,its true GTA 4 is not that advanced and that GTA looking as good as oblivion is amazing in itself,I wonder what it is they are doing.
  
  I guess optimizing would be the most reasonable the PS3 is a beast tog et it to run better on it and tweaking the 360 version while you do is great I see nothing wrong with it,to many games are released early and left behind and forgotten by the publishers who force devs to work on new projects and leave the released ones "unfinished".
  
  I think its best if the PS3 games take 30% more time to finish optimizing that way by the time the 3rd generation hits more of its libary will share the basic optimizations to make the system shine, I tend not to flame unless I am ranting or pissed if I do counter my posts with reason,I will either have to counter with reason or say oops my IQ dropped again :P

  5.8.2007 03:11 #19

• ChromeMud

  @ ZIppyDSM
  
  John Carmack has said at the recent QuakeCon 2007 Conference that
  the PS3 version of Rage will take more effort to get right in comparison with the 360 version although he doesn't imagine the end product will suffer in any noticeable way.
  
  He also said:-
  "The PS3 and 360 are far closer than any two gaming platforms have ever been before," he began. "[But] there's no doubt that when you have a problem moving over it's going to be the PS3 - it's just the way it is."
  
  and...
  Right now though, the developer is "suffering through" problems relating to the way PS3 and 360 respectively deal with memory on Enemy Territory: Quake Wars, which is in development at UK-based Splash Damage. "The PS3 version is lagging quite a bit behind in terms of getting it up to the same quality and experience," he said.
  
  Seems to me that this kind of developer talk is familiar and to be expected for the CELL based platform and it's hurting release dates.
  I might buy a PS3 in a few years time when they master that CPU and use the Blu-Ray to it's full potential but until then the 360 is cheaper and technicaly just as good if not better for current games.

  5.8.2007 03:46 #20

• ZippyDSM

  Originally posted by ChromeMud: @ ZIppyDSM
  
  John Carmack has said at the recent QuakeCon 2007 Conference that
  the PS3 version of Rage will take more effort to get right in comparison with the 360 version although he doesn't imagine the end product will suffer in any noticeable way.
  
  He also said:-
  "The PS3 and 360 are far closer than any two gaming platforms have ever been before," he began. "[But] there's no doubt that when you have a problem moving over it's going to be the PS3 - it's just the way it is."
  
  and...
  Right now though, the developer is "suffering through" problems relating to the way PS3 and 360 respectively deal with memory on Enemy Territory: Quake Wars, which is in development at UK-based Splash Damage. "The PS3 version is lagging quite a bit behind in terms of getting it up to the same quality and experience," he said.
  
  Seems to me that this kind of developer talk is familiar and to be expected for the CELL based platform and it's hurting release dates.
  I might buy a PS3 in a few years time when they master that CPU and use the Blu-Ray to it's full potential but until then the 360 is cheaper and technicaly just as good if not better for current games.It looks like they at least put some effort into quake wars Q4 is damn bland its not even funny,its sad when quake 2 is more advanced in terms of the over all game than Q4 is.
  
  Ya the PS3 is having optimization issues thats why every other game runs better on the 360, I don't think we will see a ton of optimizations in 08,but what will probably be more interesting is expansed development on PS3 games if devs will push hard to use the extra space, even still I find the technical aspects of it all more interesting than the "politics" of consoles or even most of the games LOL.

  5.8.2007 03:55 #21

• vinny13

  Once DEVs make one game for the PS3, the rest will be easier and faster, and better.

  5.8.2007 04:59 #22

• ZippyDSM

  Originally posted by vinny13: Once DEVs make one game for the PS3, the rest will be easier and faster, and better.
  not quite they still have to optimize it for the PS3 so its either delays to get it to run right on the PS3 or delays to get it to be equal on the 360.

  5.8.2007 11:09 #23

• vinny13

  Quote:Originally posted by vinny13: Once DEVs make one game for the PS3, the rest will be easier and faster, and better.
  not quite they still have to optimize it for the PS3 so its either delays to get it to run right on the PS3 or delays to get it to be equal on the 360.Why not make the PS3 vers. look better if it needs so much effort?

  5.8.2007 13:32 #24

• ZippyDSM

  Quote:Quote:Originally posted by vinny13: Once DEVs make one game for the PS3, the rest will be easier and faster, and better.
  not quite they still have to optimize it for the PS3 so its either delays to get it to run right on the PS3 or delays to get it to be equal on the 360.Why not make the PS3 vers. look better if it needs so much effort?From a time/cost and dev standpoint,they don't have infanate funds for spend time porting mindlessly,they need to show that their games are equal on both systems or they will lose moeny on that port because its shown time and time again its under deved for one system,you could say the industry is holding itself back to not go hog wild on the PS3,at the same time its not the best of time to go hog wild,when more optimizations are in place in 18-30 months all bets are off and devs should be fully using the PS3 as it was meant to be used but for now they play all sided to keep moeny flowing.

  5.8.2007 13:40 #25

• borhan9

  For some reason i feel when this game comes out it will have glitches and will not be so perfect as they say.

  7.8.2007 03:46 #26

• Ballpyhon

  GTA4 is delayed because of the PS3. there is no question. they only reason they wont say it is because in the past sony has had exclusive rights to the GTA series, at least for the first Six monthes.
  
  The only thing PS3 has over xbox 360 is the gyroscope in the controller. Xbox has Xbox Live, voice and the Xbox live system itself. can you chat with friends online? not without a keyboard. sure xboxes have issues with heat and the boards going bad but they still out perform PS3s. has anyone ever thought that maybe Xbox Live costs money because it features more than the PS3 online interface does? not to mention that if people really want to get online without paying for Xbox Live they can use XBconnect. not to mention that Xboxes are more affordable, and Microsoft does not have to entice its customers by adding HDDVD drives to the system when you buy it. its a addon that you can choose to get. what if HDDVD wins the format war? PS3 is stuck with BluRay. Xbox on the other hand can say "Hey, lets manufacture a Bluray add on drive. How many PS3 owners can say "I'm gonna go get a HDDVD drive for my PS3"?

  12.8.2007 03:21 #27

• ZippyDSM

  Originally posted by Ballpyhon: GTA4 is delayed because of the PS3. there is no question. they only reason they wont say it is because in the past sony has had exclusive rights to the GTA series, at least for the first Six monthes.
  
  The only thing PS3 has over xbox 360 is the gyroscope in the controller. Xbox has Xbox Live, voice and the Xbox live system itself. can you chat with friends online? not without a keyboard. sure xboxes have issues with heat and the boards going bad but they still out perform PS3s. has anyone ever thought that maybe Xbox Live costs money because it features more than the PS3 online interface does? not to mention that if people really want to get online without paying for Xbox Live they can use XBconnect. not to mention that Xboxes are more affordable, and Microsoft does not have to entice its customers by adding HDDVD drives to the system when you buy it. its a addon that you can choose to get. what if HDDVD wins the format war? PS3 is stuck with BluRay. Xbox on the other hand can say "Hey, lets manufacture a Bluray add on drive. How many PS3 owners can say "I'm gonna go get a HDDVD drive for my PS3"?They also could have made the game bigger for the PS3 and try to get the 360 ver to amtch but whats more likely is they screwed around a lot and are just tryign to get the game playable
  
  Last I checked they are implementing voice in PSH, and some games support voice,They are taking a diffrent approach than MS but they do have it.
  
  Also one of the good features in PSH is you can easily mute non friends and friends as well as keep conversations to just your group of people,so i hear.

  12.8.2007 03:45 #28

• Ballpyhon

  Quote:They also could have made the game bigger for the PS3 and try to get the 360 ver to amtch but whats more likely is they screwed around a lot and are just tryign to get the game playable
  
  Last I checked they are implementing voice in PSH, and some games support voice,They are taking a diffrent approach than MS but they do have it.
  
  Also one of the good features in PSH is you can easily mute non friends and friends as well as keep conversations to just your group of people,so i hear.I dont personally own a PS3 so i was not aware of the voice features, but never the less, PS3 in my opinion is over priced and not worth the money compared to Xbox 360

  12.8.2007 05:19 #29

• ZippyDSM

  Quote:Quote:They also could have made the game bigger for the PS3 and try to get the 360 ver to amtch but whats more likely is they screwed around a lot and are just tryign to get the game playable
  
  Last I checked they are implementing voice in PSH, and some games support voice,They are taking a diffrent approach than MS but they do have it.
  
  Also one of the good features in PSH is you can easily mute non friends and friends as well as keep conversations to just your group of people,so i hear.I dont personally own a PS3 so i was not aware of the voice features, but never the less, PS3 in my opinion is over priced and not worth the money compared to Xbox 360Currently I totally agree,I also feel the 360 is not worth more than 300 but then I have issues LOL.
  
  The PS3 might be worth 400 if they start getting games optimized soon but even so it doesn't help the form over function rule gaming clings to nw adays, I am gettign sick of "shiny" unpolished games....

  12.8.2007 08:32 #30

• rainofire

  Did you guys know that it is actually the 360 that rockstar is having a problem with, due to the fact that they can't use the harddrive. Look it up on google and you will find rockstar executives and developers STATING that the issue is with the 360. Yes, many of us at first would believe (including me) that the cause of the delay would be the ps3, but when the company goes out and says that its the other consoles fault, then we have just bashed a console that was innocent.

  18.8.2007 05:18 #31

• ZippyDSM

  Originally posted by rainofire: Did you guys know that it is actually the 360 that rockstar is having a problem with, due to the fact that they can't use the harddrive. Look it up on google and you will find rockstar executives and developers STATING that the issue is with the 360. Yes, many of us at first would believe (including me) that the cause of the delay would be the ps3, but when the company goes out and says that its the other consoles fault, then we bashed just a console that was innocent.the 360 has its own set of troubles it might be easier to code for but the HD is a issue because of the core unit,MS should spam out 20GB HD for 50 a pop and let devs focus on expanding what the games can use,if MS dose not do this they will be hurting them self for the long run.
  

  
  
  FIGHT THE M.A.F.I.A.A.
  

  18.8.2007 09:52 #32