GTA4.TV staff have discovered a possible new teaser site for GTA IV. Honestly it was a very good guess since there were no actual blatent clues in the game. They have discovered the domain name www.beanmachinecoffee.com. When they checked the DNS setting in comparison to the confirmed www.weazelnews.com DNS info, both matched up so we believe Rockstar has also parked this domain until the site comes on stream. Here is a quote of the news post from GTA4.TV: "While staring at a few of the screen shots at GTA4.com, the official GTA4 website, I stumbled across a screen shot which was taken in front of a coffee shop called "Bean Machine Coffee" and decided to enter it into my URL bar. Sure enough, it appears that we have stumbled across another yet-to-be released GTA 4 teaser site, www.beanmachinecoffee.com Here is a brief summary of the evidence: In the following screen shot you can see a sign which reads "Bean Machine Coffee" While there is no URL listed in the site, a quick visit to http://beanmachinecoffee.com/ reveals a place holder site which says that a site is coming. After doing some research, both this website and the previously confirmed Weazelnews.com teaser site were registered on January 24th 2007, well before any GTA4 media was released, leading me to believe that BeanMachineCoffee.com is another yet-to-be released teaser site!" Here is the DNS Info for both www.beanmachinecoffee.com and www.weazelnews.com www.beanmachinecoffee.com Registrant: Private Registration ATTN: BEANMACHINECOFFEE.COM c/o Network Solutions P.O. Box 447 Herndon, VA. 20172-0447 Domain Name: BEANMACHINECOFFEE.COM Administrative Contact, Technical Contact: Private Registration ATTN: BEANMACHINECOFFEE.COM c/o Network Solutions P.O. Box 447 Herndon, VA 20172-0447 570-708-8780 Record expires on 24-Jan-2010. Record created on 24-Jan-2007. Database last updated on 12-Jan-2008 00:06:59 EST. Domain servers in listed order: NS5.WORLDNIC.COM 205.178.190.3 NS6.WORLDNIC.COM 205.178.189.3 ================================================ www.weazelnews.com Registrant: Private Registration ATTN: WEAZELNEWS.COM c/o Network Solutions P.O. Box 447 Herndon, VA. 20172-0447 Domain Name: WEAZELNEWS.COM Administrative Contact, Technical Contact: Private Registration ATTN: WEAZELNEWS.COM c/o Network Solutions P.O. Box 447 Herndon, VA 20172-0447 570-708-8780 Record expires on 24-Jan-2010. Record created on 24-Jan-2007. Database last updated on 12-Jan-2008 00:09:28 EST. Domain servers in listed order: NS33.WORLDNIC.COM 205.178.190.17 NS34.WORLDNIC.COM 205.178.189.17 Info courtesy of QDeathstar and GTA4.TV Both have the exact settings other than the titles, they were registered at the same time, on the same server, same address, etc. This obviously very convincing evidence. This is a very extraordinary find by QDeathstar.
Ok don't get your hopes up yet, just read the article below from KotakuAt today's Take2 presser, a demo of GTA IV gameplay was shown. Since Take2 wouldn't allow us to take pics of the presser (and apparently even had night vision googles to prevent it!), we don't have any snap shots of the footage. Instead, you get a photo of free t-shirts!
Here's what happened: the main character Niko stands in Liberty City's equivalent of Times Square. He trots over to a black sedan. He gets in. He drives a few blocks and gets out at the docks. He looks at the water. He gets out his cell phone and calls for guns. The end.
Exciting! In Rockstar's defense, they told us it was short on purpose, and that it was simply a taste. Or a bite. Or a morsel. The code they showed was unfinished, and the music was a placeholder. What's more, the voice track hadn't yet been dropped in. Still, it looked nice and will sell exactly one bagazillion copies. You can quote me.
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The Duo Group has done a rendition of all the trailers and they made a "TV Spot" out of it. They did a nice job on this trailer, give it a look below. YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EpD7eQGWrMoBetter Quality (DivX): http://www.theduogroup.com/GTA4.htmlCheck out more original videos at: TheDuoGroup.com
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Not to me it's not. But the UK Playstation site has the PEGI rating information posted already. The New York based, ESRB rating is still pending on GTAIV. Check out the screenshot below. 
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Originally posted over at GTA4.tv is possible proof of a confirmed release date! Although it is still rumor until we find out from Rockstar themselves. Check out the article. Rumours have been flying around for awhile now stating that GTA4 will be released on April 25th, 2008 in the UK and Europe. Many game retailers are quoting this date when pre-ordering, and although I recently emailed Rockstar and enquired, they said they don't have any information on the release date just yet.
This morning I received an email from Ryan Ogden telling me he worked in a game shop and they had received a release list stating this would be the launch date. Of course I was quite skeptical, however he has since emailed me a scan of the release list, and sure enough, there it is right near the bottom. Grand Theft Auto 4 - Take2 - 25-Apr-08.
This isn't official confirmation of the release date. Nothing is official until Rockstar update their website and you read it there with your own two eyes, however I'm almost positive that the game's release date will be on or around April 25th. I'd expect this will mean an April 22nd release date for the USA.
Click here to view the full size release list.
An analyst from Next-Gen.biz is reporting that GTAIV is expected to sell around 17 million units. "As you know, videogame sales are exceedingly lopsided in favor of the holiday season. This was again evident in late 2007 when games like Guitar Hero III, BioShock, Call of Duty 4, Halo 3, The Orange Box and Super Mario Galaxy (among others) shared shelf space and vied for consumers’ dollars.
But there are signs that blockbuster games could be spread out a bit more evenly throughout 2008 in order to avoid such concentrated competition, according to Jesse Divnich with the simExchange, a virtual videogame stock market.
“A broader release schedule could positively affect retailers such as GameStop and make them more attractive to the investment community as they will have more months of strong sales to hedge themselves against any negative short-term economic factors,” he said in a note Wednesday.
Before the first half of 2008 ends, we can expect the release of AAA titles such as Super Smash Bros. Brawl (expected to achieve 13.95 million units of GLS [global lifetime sales]), Wii Fit (expecting 8.7 million units of GLS), Grand Theft Auto IV (expecting 17 million units of GLS), and Metal Gear Solid 4 (expecting 4.7 million units of GLS).
Most of these big-name titles will continue the $60 price point, which has become the standard for Xbox 360 and PS3 games. Divnich said that in 2008, there will be a higher ratio of games sold for $60 to legacy games, a transition that will raise this year’s average price per game.
Wedbush Morgan’s Michael Pachter contributed to The simExchange note, saying, “I think that the $60 price point not only will hold, but I think that publishers will continue to test higher price points during the year. In 2007, we saw Halo 3 collector's editions at $100 (or more), Guitar Hero at $100, Rock Band at $170.
"This year, we'll see the Grand Theft Auto bundle at $80 or $90, and will likely see a new offering from Guitar Hero with other instruments. I think you'll see a bunch of collector's edition games, and think that PS3 and 360 premium content will all debut at $60.”Well GTA has always broken records, I'm sure they will break this record when all is said and done.
According to an article at ComputerandVideoGames.com, Trailer IV may have been revealed a bit too early or was just a complete hoax. Cynamite.de has removed their original article since it is causing a lot of controversy. Rockstar has not commented on the situation yet though. Rockstar is keeping quiet in the face of rumours that a fourth trailer from Grand Theft Auto IV is in the pipeline.
The rumour originally appeared on German website Cynamite.de, said to be taken from a recent interview with Rockstar. However, the site has since removed its article, leading to speculation among conspiracy theorists that the report was on the money. Either that or it was just plain wrong.
Rockstar's UK arm shed no light on the rumour on a new trailer when contacted earlier today, but a spokesperson reaffirmed that the sequel will be out in the company's financial Q2 - which runs from February this year to April 25, 2008.
Will the Rockstar hype machine release a fourth trailer before the game hits? We wouldn't be surprised. Could it announce a release date? Who knows, but it's good fun guessing.Source: ComputerandVideoGames.com
With all the recent talk of Take-Two being bought out by EA, nobody saw this coming, atleast I didn't. Check out what GamaSutra is reporting:
"Officials from publisher Take-Two Interactive have announced that the company has acquired Czech based developer Illusion Softworks, best known for the Hidden & Dangerous and Mafia franchises.
The developer, which will be renamed as 2K Czech, is already working on Mafia II for Take-Two. Established in 1997, Illusion Softworks has two studios in Brno and Prague in the Czech Republic, with a total of around 200 employees.
The two Hidden & Dangerous titles and the first Vietcong were published by Gathering of Developers, which was subsequently acquired by Take-Two. Since then both developer and publisher have continued to work closely, with 2K Czech CEO Petr Vochozka commenting: “We have an excellent working relationship with 2K Games and the utmost respect for them. We are pleased to become a 2K studio and are confident that this new partnership will strengthen our current and future projects”.
"The acquisition of Illusion Softworks reflects our strategic focus on owning high-value intellectual property as we continue to expand our portfolio of triple-A titles," said Ben Feder, CEO of Take-Two.
Christoph Hartmann, president of 2K, said: "Adding 2K Czech to our network of development studios demonstrates our strong commitment to creating great franchises and building world-class creative teams. The 2K Czech team is responsible for several very innovative and highly-regarded franchises and we look forward to continuing to develop new and existing IP together."
This is great news for all of us who don't want to see Take-Two get bought out, but doesn't mean that the acquisition still can't take place. Keep your fingers crossed.
According to a Rockstar speaker, a Trailer 4 for GTA IV has been announced. A Rockstar official conveyed this to Cynamite. "A speaker of Rockstar Games confirmed to Cynamite.de that a fourth Trailer of GTA IV will come. The trailer will be like the previous in the film trailer-style, and no direct game scenes. A video with live action from GTA IV will be after the fourth trailer published." Sources: English (Translated) >> http://translate.google.com/translate?u=ht...de&ie=UTF-8German (Original) >> http://www.cynamite.de/ps3/news/more/gta_i...trailer_an.html
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Jordan from Planet Grand Theft Auto just finished up his screen shot breakdown of the trailers. He did a very professional and in depth job on them, be sure and check them out! Below I have posted an example of how they do it: 
Shot Number: 1Description: Notice the light clouds at the top left of the shot, and the sun either rising or setting to the right. This is the replica of the Brooklyn Bridge. Two cranes are off to the left. Are they operable? Three characters can be seen walking along the bridge's walkway. There are two taxis as well as a red car. The front car seems to be riding up on the side of the bridge, almost as if it is falling off. The streets to the bottom right look absent, but hopefully development time has given way to vast improvements. Read More over at Planet Grand Theft Auto!
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