not the prettiest game in the world but that's not what you buy GTA for.  I'm interested.

Seems like GTA IV still has some dropping of the framerate.

Rob Taylor, deputy editor of Xbox World 360 magazine, is the first games writer to finish Grand Theft Auto IV. He was among a group of writers who got to play at Rockstar's offices in London, and was the first to get through it. GamesRadar UK has a talk with Rob about what he saw and learned:

Was the game everything you expected? Or are there some surprises?

That's a tricky question. It certainly exceeded my expectations, while there are so many small, chucklesome Easter Egg-style surprises that you're constantly shaking your head at just how savvy a developer Rockstar really is – light years ahead of its contemporaries. Again though, it's hard to be specific without venturing into the spoiler region... sorry!


In terms of the time it takes to finish, how does it compare with others in the series?

That's a hard question to answer really. I finished the story mode in 24 hours, without skipping cut scenes, but I literally blitzed through and hardly took on any side missions. If I was to play it again (which I will be, right on launch day!) I'd say to wrap up the story will take at least 40 hours at a normal pace, plus another – say, 25? – to wrap up the remainder of the missions. In truth though, you could be paving the streets of Liberty City in a year's time and still not have discovered everything. Plus, if you're a 360 owner, there's the promise of downloadable content to come...My advice is: just kick back, take your time and breathe every fresh sight and sound in, don't simply rush through just to finish it before your mates. I wish I'd had that option!


How many "Woooaah, Jesus that's amazing!" moments did you have?

Without giving away any spoilers; lots! I think, overall though, it'll be three overall things that entrance GTA fans like never before. The City is one, with a lighting engine that has to be seen to be believed, plus the incredible dialogue and characterisation is genuinely Oscar-worthy and Niko Bellic is absolutely the most amazing protagonist in any game I've ever played. Finally, multiplayer of course!


Are the GTA fans going to happy with the new game, do you think?

Obviously, you can't make everyone happy all of the time but if any GTA fans aren't happy with IV, they need to take a good long look at themselves. Seriously though, this game is going to make a lot of people very happy.


Did you get a chance to play much multiplayer? Did you get your ass kicked by the Rockstar guys?

Yes, Xbox World 360 actually snagged a whole day playing against Rockstar PRs and devs in a exclusive feature a month or so back. Rather than simply go with the whole Deathmatch and Capture the Flag stuff, they've genuinely taken their time creating some amazing new modes that'll do the business online. Mafiya (a chaotic, mission based affair), Cops 'n' Crooks (one team try to capture the other) and Hangman's Noose (players team up to take an army of AI SWAT troops) were our personal faves...

Oh... Well. Eh.

I want this game.

Rockstar has shed some light on a handful of the multiplayer options in Grand Theft Auto IV.

Among its offerings will be the expected Deathmatch and Team Deathmatch modes, according to GameTap, which can be tinkered with by whoever is hosting. You can change the number of fighters on each team if you like, so one person could try to hold off 15 others - or you can fiddle with things like weapon types, police numbers, traffic, and pedestrians.

Unsurprisingly, matches will be split into ranked and unranked affairs, and the reward for going competitive is cash; cash you can spend on in-game items and use to bolster your persistent ranked career.

Rockstar is also adding co-operative modes: Cops 'n' Crooks and Hangman's Noose.

The former splits you into two teams and has one side escort a boss character from A to B. The higher the difficulty the better the cash reward, and the more of you that are escorting the boss, the better the bonus. Helping your friends can be as simple as plotting way points on an on-screen map so your driver doesn't have to do it.

Hangman's Noose, on the other hand, is a collection of mini-challenges. The specifics of each mission are laid out in cut-scenes at the start. You could find yourself fending off Noose (SWAT) teams while protecting someone, then hopping into a car and trying to escape helicopters and the full wrath of the law.

Rockstar shed a little light on the GTA Race mode as well, which simply requires you get to the finish line as fast as possible. The entire world and its contents are available for use, so you can pinch a noisy moped to distract your opponents, or just pick up a bazooka and blow them up.

Those of you with a hankering for pure racing will be able to do so in a GT mode, where you can pick car classes from favourites like Infernos, Turismos, Comets and Supercars.

There will be around 15 game modes to get to grips with online in the final game, which should make for a rather compelling experience, Rockstar claims.

Currently sold out.

Due to an unprecedented demand for the standard edition of Grand Theft Auto IV we have currently sold out of this item. We are unable to guarantee delivery for release date on any orders placed on or after 9th of April.

All orders received from this date will be fulfilled on a first-come, first-served basis.

Team Mafiaya Work: (2 to 8 teams) You're a member of a crew doing contract work for the mafiya—including such plum gigs as escorting wanted men, picking up MacGuffins and stealing cars. Work as a team to complete contracts before the time period ends and get the rewards. You'll probably want to do your best to scupper the other crew's work as well. Each contract you complete gives your team cash, and the crew with the most cash at the end of the round wins.

Team Car Jack City: (2 - 8 teams) Cars spawn parked around the map and the teams must steal then and take them to a drop off point. Teh cash teams get for dropping of stolen vehicles depends on their condition—teams get less cash the more damaged they are. The exception to this are special bonus cars, stuffed with drugs, which five a set amount of cash on delivery no matter how damaged they are. Your crew has to get hold of whatever vehicles the boss wants. Whichever crew makes the most money wins. Simple.

Turf War: (2 teams only) A timed capture-the-base mode. There are a number of bases around the map that you have to take by stand on on them for a short period of time. The more players that are on a base, the faster it can be captures. The more bases that your team owns, the faster your team's cash score increases. If the rival gang is on or near a base, you won't be be able to take control of it—so do what you can to try and... displace them. The team with the most cash at the end of the round wins.

Race: Race to the finish through each checkpoint in order. If you take a wrong turn or mess up in some way, you can respawn your vehicle on the last checkpoint you passed. There is a large selection of races for cars, boats , and helicopters—you can choose laps and vehicle class/type. This mode has two sub-modes: Free Race and Cannonball Run. Free race are point-to-point races. First one to reach the end point wins. Cannonball Run are races where you have to reaverse several checkpoints any way you can.