Archive for the ‘Grand Theft Auto’ Category
- In: $500 Million | - | A | for | Grand Theft Auto | New York Times | Week
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Grand Theft Auto IV, the latest iteration of the hit video game franchise, racked up first-week sales of $500 million, Take-Two Interactive, the game’s publisher, plans to announce on Wednesday. The report exceeded the sales expectations of analysts.
The company is expected to report it sold six million copies of the graphically violent game, 3.6 million of them on the first day.
The sales exceed projections of industry analysts who were estimating that some five million consumers would purchase the game in the first two weeks.
The significance of the sales extends beyond buoying Take-Two, a company that has had its share of legal, financial and management struggles in the last few years. The company is the subject of a $2 billion hostile takeover effort by Electronic Arts, which is offering Take Two shareholders $25.74 a share for control of the company. If Take-Two can exceed sales expectations on Grand Theft Auto IV, it has the potential to drive up the share price and force Electronic Arts to raise its offer.
On Tuesday, Take Two’s shares closed at $26.35, up 29 cents.
Electronic Arts’ takeover bid turned hostile after Take-Two management said that it would not negotiate an acquisition agreement with Electronic Arts — or any suitor — until after the release of Grand Theft Auto IV. Now that the game is out, Take-Two may well have entered discussions with Electronic Arts and possibly other suitors who covet the Grand Theft Auto franchise, but Take-Two has declined to comment on whether such discussions are taking place.
- In: Grand Theft Auto | GTA | GTA IV | purchasing | simplifies | song
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(Billboard) – The emerging effort to use videogames as a channel for selling music is entering its next phase with the recent release of “Grand Theft Auto IV.”
Phase I has proved a phenomenal success, with “Rock Band” and “Guitar Hero III” selling millions of songs through their respective platforms. But it has been a limited victory.
Both are music-based rhythm games that use master recordings and cover songs to let gamers “play” along to the tunes using special controllers shaped like musical instruments. Purchased songs can be used only as elements of the game itself. They can’t be transferred to an MP3 player or stored in users’ digital music libraries.
But “Grand Theft Auto IV” includes a feature that lets players tag any song in the soundtrack in order to receive more information about the title and artist, as well as store tagged tracks in a custom playlist on the Amazon digital music store for later purchase.
“GTA IV” is not a rhythm game. It’s a story-driven interactive “film” with plenty of side missions that add up to 100 hours of gameplay and features a soundtrack of more than 200 songs — the largest in videogame history.
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- In: Announced | Australia | Bundle | Europe | Grand Theft Auto | GTA | GTA IV | PlayStation 3 | Sony
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The GTA IV bundle box art (Source: SCEE)
Sony announces PlayStation 3 packed with Grand Theft Auto IV
Along with Metal Gear Solid 4, Grand Theft Auto IV is one of the biggest titles yet for PlayStation 3 – the only difference with MGS4, of course, is that GTA IV isn’t a platform exclusive. But that’s not going to stop Sony from treating GTA IV as one of its very own, and creating a new system bundle around the highly-anticipated title.
Announced today by both Sony Computer Entertainment Europe and Australia is an official Grand Theft Auto IV bundle that will pack the game in along with the 40GB PlayStation 3 model. “We are delighted to offer the millions of PS3 and GTA fans the ultimate gaming package,” said David Reeves, president of Sony Computer Entertainment Europe.
Unfortunately for those hoping to get the latest DualShock 3 controller model with the new bundle, Sony indicated that the GTA IV bundle will include the outgoing SIXAXIS controller only. Such news may be the most disappointing for Australian gamers, who will have to purchase the DualShock 3 controller separately for a mindboggling AUD$99 (USD$92) when it releases this week. Gamers in Europe have yet to hear of an official launch date for their rumbling controllers.
The Grand Theft Auto IV PlayStation 3 bundle will retail in Europe at €439 (USD$696) and in Australia for AUD$749.95 (USD$715).
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