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Sony, Microsoft put spin on GTA IV sales

As expected, Grand Theft Auto IV is selling very well to both Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 gamers. The latest chapter in the series has enticed both Microsoft and Sony to stand up on their soap boxes to proclaim the success of GTA IV on their respective platforms.

SCEA SVP of marketing Peter Dille said, “Grand Theft Auto fans who love the game grew up on PlayStation and we believe that rich heritage will be a deciding factor for many gamers at retail.”

Although the exact breakdown over the two platforms is still unknown, GTA IV definitely helps sell PlayStation 3 consoles.

“From our position, the launch of GTA IV has been tremendous in driving traffic to our stores, as well as providing a vigorous lift in PS3 console sales over this time last week,” said Bob McKenzie, SVP merchandising at GameStop Corp. “We attribute the growth to a huge fan base of PS2 owners who see this title as the trigger for the PS3 upgrade they've been planning.”

Wedbush Morgan industry analyst Michael Pachter agreed, saying, “There is a huge installed base of loyal PlayStation 2 owners who have been looking for a reason to upgrade, and they have strong previous ties to the Grand Theft Auto franchise on PlayStation platforms.”

Sony may be happy to report that GTA IV is pushing sales of its console, Microsoft still has the leg up on install base and attach rate. Aaron Greenberg, director of product management for Xbox 360 and Xbox Live, told Next-Gen, “What we've heard anecdotally from our retail partners is that the Xbox 360 version of the game is outselling the PS3 version by a margin of two-to-one.... That mirrors what we saw with pre-orders, but it continues to hold true at retail, at least for the first couple of days. It's a great sign.”

Sony commented that its own findings run contrary to Microsoft’s claims, but didn’t offer any hard numbers.

Greenberg also refrained from giving figures, opting to wait for NPD Group’s findings, though added that GTA IV should also have a positive effect on Xbox 360 sales as well. “The fact that we know that we're outselling [the PS3 version] two-to-one on the game is a pretty good sign that a lot of those games are going with a new console out the door,” he said.

Across the pond, UK industry monitor ChartTrack has the Xbox 360 version selling 335,000 copies and the PS3 274,000 units in the first 24 hours of GTA IV’s launch, according to MCV. The combined sale of 609,000 copies on day one make GTA IV now the fastest-selling game its first day in the UK.

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Must be missing something...
By Blight AC on 5/5/2008 8:48:54 AM , Rating: 2
I'm really surprised at the amount of draw this game series has. I dunno.. after GTA2 I pretty much felt I had squeezed every bit of playability I could out of blowing stuff up, stealing cars and just the general wickedness you could do (running over hookers and getting you money back is only fun for so long).

I liked Crackdown though, as it added an element to this type of gameplay with the Superpowers that added a nice twist to the gameplay.

I'm not here to rain on the GTA parade though, there are a lot of folks who love the game, so I wonder, what was the main draw for you to get GTA4? What am I missing?




RE: Must be missing something...
By xsilver on 5/5/2008 9:04:08 AM , Rating: 2
I think a key element to this game is how at any time you can just do what you want. I know a few people that love this game but never got around to clocking it. This just leads me to believe that people like to just load up the game and roam around shooting stuff, carjacking etc while moving the story very slowly. Totally opposite idea to a heavily directed 6-8 hour fps.

Plus I think the demographic it caters to (late teens) were not late teens when the last game was released so it always appears "fresh"


RE: Must be missing something...
By bearxor on 5/5/08, Rating: -1
RE: Must be missing something...
By FITCamaro on 5/5/2008 9:29:40 AM , Rating: 3
Well theres a ton to do. In addition to the main plot line theres cop missions, jobs you can do for friends, and the dating stuff which reveals more about the main character.

Then the multiplayer is fantastic. Do you know how awesome it is to shoot your best friend with a rocket as he's driving straight at you in a car full speed, only to blow him up seconds before his car runs you down? Me and my friend were rolling laughing on the floor. I forgot that you can drive through telephones....


RE: Must be missing something...
By Locutus465 on 5/5/2008 9:38:18 AM , Rating: 2
How do you get the MP going on this? Was going to give that a whirl with a buddy last night but it dumped us straight into the SP mode and we couldn't figure out how to make it go MP. We even had him sign on to the X-Box before loading the game.


RE: Must be missing something...
By Drew327 on 5/5/2008 9:59:00 AM , Rating: 2
It is accessed from within the single player game. Pull up your cell phone in the game and the main menu on the phone has a Multiplayer option.


By Locutus465 on 5/5/2008 10:06:50 AM , Rating: 2
That's intuitive... Ok, well at least now I know how it's done. Thanks a lot!


RE: Must be missing something...
By xsilver on 5/5/2008 9:38:57 AM , Rating: 2
well, the wierd thing is that if you hear a conversation about this game rather than it be something like:
"you know on mission 5, the one where you have to protect that guy.... that was cool"

instead it will be:
"hey you know, if you stack up a blockade of cars on xx road and then shoot 8 guys wearing red in a row, a helicopter tries to come and shoot you... and then if you shoot the heli with an AK, a tank will come... and then..."

it has nothing to do with the story of the game but for some reason that kind of stuff is all the buzz they can generate. I guess that way what they do is try to feed as much stuff like that into it as possible and let people think they've found an "easter egg" because I too think the story is a bit bland and repetitive.


By omnicronx on 5/5/2008 9:40:50 AM , Rating: 2
I have to admit, I never played more than 1 or 2 missions for the first 3 GTA games(1,2,3), it was not until Vice City that I actually played the the missions. The ability to come in at anytime and play is never a bad thing, just look at the wii, from my perspective that is their main selling point beyond the controller.


RE: Must be missing something...
By Drew327 on 5/5/2008 10:02:42 AM , Rating: 3
The story in GTA4 is incredible so far. I have put maybe 12 hours into the game; the most recent mission which had myself and a few others robbing a bank, and then trying to escape was really fun. Escaping down the streets, some alleys, into the subway, running down the subway tracks and coming back up onto the street at a later point- all while involved in Matrix-like firefights...

The voice acting is unbelievable and the characters are really compelling. If anyone can understand a word that Little Jacob is saying I'll be impressed.


RE: Must be missing something...
By wempa on 5/5/2008 12:43:53 PM , Rating: 2
It's not just about loading it up to run around and cause chaos. For me, GTA 3 and Vice City were like that and they got boring pretty fast. GTA San Andreas really raised the bar with amount of things you could do. Pick up the strategy guide for GTA SA and you'll be blown away by just how much content is in the game. I was addicted to that game for a good 6 months. The big appeal of the game is that when you get frustrated with the story missions, you just go find something else to do ..... races, schools, gambling, dating, mini-games, odd jobs, challenges, etc. There is just so much to do. I was still finding new things on GTA SA even after a year or so of playing. Of course, running around creating chaos provides good stress relief as well ! :)


RE: Must be missing something...
By AlphaVirus on 5/5/2008 3:45:24 PM , Rating: 2
Thats usually the problem of why these games do not get everyones attention. They see the outer shell of "its chaos, guns, and prostitues" but they forget it is a game that causes you to think.

You cant simply run around mashing buttons and expect to win, you have to actually plan a strategy. How else do you expect to survive with military helicopters chasing you.


RE: Must be missing something...
By FITCamaro on 5/5/2008 3:46:27 PM , Rating: 3
quote:
How else do you expect to survive with military helicopters chasing you.


Blow them up with rocket launchers. :)


By AlphaVirus on 5/5/2008 4:28:17 PM , Rating: 2
Man, I havent gotten one yet! Cant purchase them in the gun shops yet. :(
I am in manhatten now, just started doing missions for that crooked cop. I mostly have been working with steroids junky, he pays way more than anyone else just to steal those cars. I had $30,000 mostly from his missions, until I kept dying on Elisabetta's mission. The one where you raid the old hospital and then have to escape, cops kept killing me and I lost about $10,000 from hospital visits and purchasing new guns and armor. So upsetting.


By AlphaVirus on 5/5/2008 3:45:25 PM , Rating: 2
Thats usually the problem of why these games do not get everyones attention. They see the outer shell of "its chaos, guns, and prostitues" but they forget it is a game that causes you to think.

You cant simply run around mashing buttons and expect to win, you have to actually plan a strategy. How else do you expect to survive with military helicopters chasing you.


RE: Must be missing something...
By jRaskell on 5/5/2008 1:28:56 PM , Rating: 2
quote:
For me, that ability is worthless. I play the game to play the game. Loading it up just to run around and do nothing seems like a large waste of time.


Are you trying to imply that time spent on other games isn't a large waste of time? Any sense of accomplishment ANY game may instill upon you is illusory at best.

Oh, and loading it up just to run around and do anything (not nothing as you incorrectly imply) is just as much playing the game to play the game, as you claim to do yourself.


By Blight AC on 5/7/2008 9:37:28 AM , Rating: 2
Yeah, I did enjoy that with the previous version of GTA that I have. But I can only do that for so long. It's the Sandbox game, that gives you a world to play in as you want.

For me though, I like progression. It's like a guided tour through a theme park, you experience everything in a specific order, and boom, cue the closing movie, credits, thanks for playing. Like the Halo series, just long enough to make it worth the purchase for the single player game alone (or even better co-op) and I'm happy.

So, it sounds like GTA4 is an improvement over the previous versions, but it is still a sandbox world, which isn't quite for me. Like Crackdown, my last experience with a sandbox game, I played the storyline part of it, and only played a few hours after that, most of it doing some multiplayer with a friend climbing buildings in the SUV.

However, considering GTA4's sales numbers, it appears I'm in the minority here. :D


RE: Must be missing something...
By therealnickdanger on 5/5/2008 9:09:29 AM , Rating: 2
I really got into GTA1, but kinda skipped GTA2 and then played GTA3 a lot. The move to 3D along with all the radio stations, secrets, spoofs, and mayhem really drew me in. Vice City was better, but it was more of the same for me. I never beat it I don't think, just lost interest. I only played San Andreas a couple times at a buddy's house, seemed to be more of the same.

GTA4 looks intriguing to me, but I probably will never play it. After playing Crackdown, I know it won't satisfy my destructive desires. After playing Mass Effect, I know it won't compete with story or depth. On top of that, I just don't have the time.

Ninja Gaiden 2 and Fable 2 will be here soon enough...


RE: Must be missing something...
By omnicronx on 5/5/2008 9:16:07 AM , Rating: 1
quote:
After playing Crackdown, I know it won't satisfy my destructive desires. After playing Mass Effect, I know it won't compete with story or depth.
Yet I would not touch crackdown again with a 10 foot pole, and Mass Effect is a game only certain people can really get into, I was not one of them. Yet I was afraid to get GTA4 because I knew there was a possibility of not going to work the next day ;) I would recommend at least renting the game, you will not be disapointed.


RE: Must be missing something...
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