According to The Wall Street Journal, total videogame spending dropped below $1 billion for the first time since August 2007. The most significant drops were in console sales, with the sales leading Nintendo Wii dropping 55%.

But it’s not all bad news. Since the sales figures for this month largely met the expectations of industry analysts, there is speculation that the recent contraction in the industry should end by August. Also driving these predictions is the fact that there are a number of high-profile games coming to retail release dates, starting with the Sims 3 this month. We can still look forward to games like Batman: Arkham Asylum, Left 4 Dead 2, Dragon Age, and Brutal Legend to drive sales up later this year.

In all honesty, no one should be surprised by these numbers. After all, last May saw the release of one of the most highly anticipated titles of the year, Grand Theft Auto 4. That title alone drove more sales than the top two sellers for this May combined. Nevermind that had it hit its intended release date, it would have already been on store shelves for months at that time. 2008 was a phenomenal year for videogame sales, but in today’s economy, every industry is taking hits. Videogames may recover faster, because they allow consumers to stay home, and are one of the more cost efficient methods of personal entertainment.

I don’t think it’s time to panic yet, but if there isn’t a turnaround by August, then you may have to worry a little bit.

Max Payne 3 was announced by Rockstar a few months back with a target release date of winter 2009 on PC, Xbox 360 and PS3. Thanks go to VG247 and the ever insightful Stephany Nunneley for the tip. (It’s almost like old times except now I can link to her stuff on another website!)

Episodes from Liberty City is a standalone exclusively for the Xbox 360. If you haven’t pick up GTA IV yet, $39.99 for the game and two episodes is a good deal. If you’ve got the game and already downloaded The Lost and the Damned, The Ballad of Gay Tony will be up on Xbox Live for $19.99 or 1600 MS points this fall. More details on The Ballad of Gay Tony from the press release follow the break.

Grand Theft Auto IV’s second downloadable episode, The Ballad of Gay Tony injects Liberty City with an overdose of guns, glitz, and grime. As Luis Lopez, part-time hoodlum and full-time assistant to legendary nightclub impresario Tony Prince (aka “Gay Tony”), players will struggle with the competing loyalties of family and friends, and with the uncertainty about who is real and who is fake in a world in which everyone has a price.

Just a minute, I’ve got to adjust my soapbox before I talk about comparing playing violent videogames with accepting torture.

As the battle over torture rages through the media, Huffington Post columnist Kari Henley has taken the opportunity to  blame the acceptance of torture by some US citizens on violent videogames and other media. She insinuates that you can’t have both videogames and morals in her post “America Doesn’t Torture… We just play Grand Theft Auto “.

“I believe if we are going to truly come to terms with abiding by moral codes against extreme acts of violence, we first have to start in our own living rooms to explore the increased levels of violence we witness on a daily basis that serves as news or entertainment. We say we “don’t f**#$ torture,” yet Grand Theft Auto is our favorite video game.”

After raging on about the depravity of popular adult television series and movies, Henley once again lashes out at mature rated videogames labeling them trainers designed to turn children into killers.

“And what about these modern X-Box and online video games? While I happen to enjoy the “G” rated Wii, over 11 million people are spending their time engrossed in the World of Warcraft or Grand Theft Auto where the point is to go around and kill people in a calculated way. Tell me again why this is supposed to be fun and relaxing?

According to the research oriented Warrior Science Group, watching violence is a technique used in the military to train soldiers to become killers, and video games do the same thing: “Every time a child plays an interactive video game, he is learning the exact same conditioned reflex skills as a soldier or police officer in training.”

The games Ms. Henley mentions are for adults who should be able to separate reality from role-play. The games industry has worked hard to uphold a ratings system to encourage this. Miss Henley is clearly using the torture debate as a platform to promote her agenda as President of the Board of Directors at the Women & Family Life Center. She’s also showing how woefully ignorant of videogames she is. Thanks Kari for removing any lingering doubts.

To be fair the article does mention that “those most in favor of torture are churchgoers.” We all know how often that group plays GTA. Doesn’t quite hold up her argument does it.

What is this new vehicle, you may ask. Well, it’s the coveted ‘Bulletproof Hellenbach.’ Chinatown Wars has been all the rage for DS owners this year, and with the addition of a bulletproof vehicle, I feel certain that the pedestrian populations of those virtual streets are in dire peril.

Rockstar also rolled out a new lineup of downloadable papercraft models exclusively for Social Club members to print and assemble, and they’ve enhanced the popular ‘Rampage Tracker.’ I expect that if this type of promotion pans out, we’ll see a lot more online tie-ins for games, both handheld and console.

So, what do you need to do to grab your very own near-invincible set of wheels? All the detailed instructions can be found after the break.

Follow these instructions, and you’ll be rolling in your brand new bulletproof wheels in no time.

(1) Become a registered Social Club member before 11:59 PM ET on May 7th 2009 (Thursday).

(2) Link your Grand Theft Auto: Chinatown Wars Nintendo DS Friend Code to your Social Club account before 11:59 PM ET on May 7th 2009 (Thursday).

(3) Sync your stats anytime after your Friend Code is linked.

The car will then be available at the Auto Merchant in BOABO. It will be the last car on the dealer’s list but you can skip to it directly by hitting left on the d-pad. (Note that the Auto Merchant opens for business in one of the early missions, “The Wheelman.”)

For more details on this weeklong promotion, you can head over to the Social Club at http://socialclub.rockstargames.com/

Game stop is offering cold hard Liberty City cash to gamers pre-ordering Grand Theft Auto: Chinatown Wars. All takers will get $10,000 in-game Liberty City cash as well as access to the entire arsenal from the start of the game.

Grand Theft Auto: Chinatown Wars will be hitting shelves March 17th but pre-orders have already begun. The Chinatown Wars upgrade is a GameStop exclusive offer.

After months of very little information on their upcoming DS title, GTA: Chinatown Wars, Rockstar has finally pinned down a release date for the game. It is now set to be released on March 17th in North America, followed by a March 20th release in Europe. Then we’ll get to see just how well the franchise translates over to the DS, though early previews have indicated that it actually translates over quite well. Besides which, it’s Rockstar doing a GTA game. Give me an uzi, a car, and some innocent bystanders, and my needs are met already.

Rockstar has released three new screens for the upcoming downloadable content The Lost and the Damned for Grand Theft Auto 4. In case you have been living under a rock or have just not been paying much attention, the DLC is set in Liberty City and features a new main character, Johnny Klebitz. While the plot intersects with the storyline of the game, new missions that offer a new way to explore the city along with new multiplayer modes, weapons and vehicles. They have even added addition music to the soundtrack to help freshen things up a bit.

The Lost and the Damned is expected to be released on February 17, 2009. Check back with us as more information is expected to be released between now and then.

After releasing the strange, but amusing “Get Sprunk” video, Rockstar has now released a couple more videos that show off the capabilities of the upcoming video editor in GTA IV for the PC. The one above is titled “Exploder,” and is basically a fake trailer for one crazy action movie. There’s also a second video after the break called “The Amazing Conrad” that’s just kind of strange. From the looks of things though, that video editor is certainly going to allow people to create a wide range of videos. Unfortunately, knowing the internet, I’m sure you’ll have to wade through a lot of hastily thrown together Linkin Park music videos before you can find anything actually worth watching.

Second video after the break.

Rockstar has released this video for two reason: 1) to demonstrate the new video editing tool in the PC version of GTA IV and 2) to show the hazards of littering. The video shows Niko walking up to a soda machine, drinking a can of “Sprunk,” and then tossing the can aside (cause nothing say “badass” like a blatant disregard for the cleanliness of your city). And then he gets blown up for it in what can only be described as “karma finally just loses it.” But the point of the whole thing is that it was made using only the video editing tools that will be included in the PC version of GTA IV. In other words, expect to see a whole lot of videos of Niko doing the “Soulja Boy” in the near future.

It’s about time we heard something about the upcoming GTA IV DLC. Now Rockstar has finally revealed a few screens along with a release date of February 17, 2009 for it. Judging from the screens — and the title of this first episode — I’d wager the new content will bring up a storyline involving two rival biker gangs called “The Lost” and “The Damned.” Either that, or Hell has a different “Lost and Found” counter from what we’re used to.

More screens below.

It seems like we’ve officially hit the holiday video game surge, and Microsoft isn’t taking that lightly. As if next week weren’t going to burn our wallets enough with games like Fable 2 and Far Cry 2, Xbox Live will be getting one old and one semi-old favorite added to the list of games. The most interesting of these is probably Portal: Still Alive, which is essentially a standalone version of the hit title bundled in Valve’s Orange Box, but with some added bonuses. The XBLA version will include the original game, plus 14 extra challenge maps and six advanced maps for your extended enjoyment. The game will become available for download on Wednesday, Oct. 22.

Before that though, Xbox Live subscribers will be treated to an old favorite that once turned the term “hot coffee” into a dirty sexual innuendo. Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas will join the Xbox Originals to remind you what GTA was like before impressive physics and online multiplayer were introduced. It was a simpler time, when a man could get his character eat enough fast food to turn into a waddling mass of gangsta flesh; a time that Niko Bellic wouldn’t be able to replicate. Also, bicycles! GTA:SA will be hitting Xbox Live on Oct. 20.

Oh come on, video game companies! I’m still in the middle of Dead Space and Saints Row 2! At this rate, I’ll be stuck in front of my TV until next year just to play all the games getting released this month. Or I’ll probably just keep playing TF2 as usual…

Games for Windows has hardly been the de facto PC branding it once upon a time hoped to be, but Microsoft is still making strides towards achieving that goal. The GFW initiative turns two this month, cuing Microsoft to announce that Grand Theft Auto IV — releasing on PC in November as a GFW-branded game — will bring with it “a revitalized Games for Windows Live experience” including an out-of-game client and marketplace — two features that will be much-welcomed and spur more than a few questions asking, “Why wasn’t this included in the first place?”

Over the paste few years, Steam and Steam Community have managed to gobble up much of the marketplace, becoming for many the standard, go-to service for buying games and maintaining a friends list. Microsoft’s going to have its work cut out for it going up against Steam and now Stardock’s Impulse. Of course, GFW does have the benefit of being plugged into Xbox Live, Achievements and, don’t forget, it’s now free. In addition to GTA IV, several other big name games will fall under the GFW umbrella, including Fallout 3, Dawn of War II, and Quantum of Solace.

What do you think? Will the new promised features of an actual GFW Live client and marketplace be enough to bring you back or has the service truly become irrelevant to the PC gaming space?

Banner day for Take-Two and GTA IV fans. Lots of news so I will just state the facts.

• Eurogamer has reported that exclusive DLC for GTA IV should be hitting the Xbox 360 sometime in November.
• Take-Two is reporting that the DLC will hit during the Q4 of their fiscal year 2009 (Nov 08-Jan 09)- so we will keep you posted on that
• The DLC will consist of two 10-hour episodes
• GTA IV had now sold over 10 million units

All of this comes on the heals of Take-Two’s financial report which was released this morning, full of bragging rights. For example,  Q3 revenues are up from $206.4 million to $433.8 million with net income for Q3 totaling at $51.8 million or $0.67 per share. If you pull up numbers for the same time last year, you will notice that they reported a net loss of $58.5 million or $0.81per share.

For the nine months ended July 31, 2008, net revenues were $1,214.1 million, compared to $689.2 million for the same period a year ago. Net income for the first nine months of fiscal 2008 was $112.1 million or $1.48 per share, compared to a loss of ($131.3) million or ($1.83) for the 2007 period.

No wonder they are not ready to hand the reins over to EA just yet.

For the full press release which includes a slew of boring numbers, hit the jump.

Take-Two Interactive Software, Inc. – Third Quarter Fiscal 2008 Financial Results

Non-GAAP EPS is $0.93, versus ($0.62) Non-GAAP Net Loss a Year Ago – Top and Bottom Line Results Exceed High End of Guidance – Non-GAAP EPS is $0.93, versus ($0.62) Non-GAAP Net Loss a Year Ago

Top and Bottom Line Results Exceed High End of Guidance

Take-Two Interactive Software, Inc. (NASDAQ:TTWO) today announced financial results for its third quarter ended July 31, 2008, which exceeded the Company’s previously issued guidance.

Net revenue for the third fiscal quarter was $433.8 million, compared to $206.4 million for the same quarter of fiscal 2007. Third quarter sales were led by the blockbuster Grand Theft Auto IV, as well as Top Spin 3 and Sid Meier’s Civilization® Revolution™.

Net income for the third quarter was $51.8 million or $0.67 per share, compared to a net loss of ($58.5) million or ($0.81) per share in the third quarter of fiscal 2007.

The third quarter results include $12.6 million in stock-based compensation expense ($0.16 per share); $5.4 million in professional fees and legal expenses, primarily related to Electronic Arts’ unsolicited tender offer ($0.07 per share); and $1.8 million in business reorganization costs ($0.02 per share). Results for the third quarter of 2007 included $10.8 million of business reorganization costs, legal expenses and other professional fees ($0.15 per share); as well as $2.8 million in stock-based compensation expense ($0.04 per share).

Non-GAAP net income was $71.5 million or $0.93 per share in the third quarter, compared to a net loss of ($44.9) million or ($0.62) per share in the third quarter of 2007. (Please refer to Non-GAAP Financial Measures and reconciliation tables included later in this release for additional information and details on non-GAAP items.)

For the nine months ended July 31, 2008, net revenues were $1,214.1 million, compared to $689.2 million for the same period a year ago. Net income for the first nine months of fiscal 2008 was $112.1 million or $1.48 per share, compared to a loss of ($131.3) million or ($1.83) for the 2007 period. Results for the first nine months of fiscal 2008 include $31.1 million in stock-based compensation expense ($0.41 per share); $10.7 million in professional fees and legal expenses, primarily related to Electronic Arts’ unsolicited tender offer ($0.14 per share); and $2.9 million in business reorganization costs ($0.04 per share). Results for the first nine months of fiscal 2007 included $34.3 million of business reorganization costs, legal expenses and other professional fees ($0.48 per share); as well as $12.6 million in stock-based compensation expense ($0.18 per share).

Non-GAAP net income was $156.6 million or $2.07 per share in the first nine months of 2008, compared to a net loss of ($84.4) million or ($1.18) per share in the comparable period of 2007. (Please refer to Non-GAAP Financial Measures and reconciliation information included later in this release.)

Business Highlights

Among the significant recent business developments, Take-Two noted the following:

– Sales of Rockstar Games’ blockbuster Grand Theft Auto IV continued to exceed the Company’s expectations. Over 10 million units have been sold through to consumers as of August 16, 2008.

– Carnival Games™, a wholly owned and internally developed title for the Wii™ home video game system from Nintendo and Nintendo DS™, has shipped over 2 million units since its debut in late August 2007. 2K Play will be expanding the franchise with Carnival Games: Mini-Golf for the Wii in the fourth quarter of fiscal 2008.

– Gary Dale was named Chief Operating Officer of Take-Two, responsible for Take-Two’s publishing labels, sales activities, international expansion and business development initiatives. He had previously served as Executive Vice President of Take-Two.

“Take-Two’s exceptionally robust third quarter results reflected our continuing efforts to build a diverse roster of outstanding entertainment software brands, supported by an increasingly productive and efficient business organization,” said Strauss Zelnick, Chairman of Take-Two. “Thanks in particular to the creativity of our global development teams and their passion for producing great entertainment, we are benefiting from a portfolio that is the strongest in our Company’s history, as well as one of the most valuable in our industry.”

Ben Feder, Chief Executive Officer of Take-Two, noted, “I’m extremely pleased with our strong position heading into the holiday season. Our world-class holiday portfolio includes Grand Theft Auto IV, Top Spin 3, Sid Meier’s Civilization Revolution, and Carnival Games, as well as upcoming hits such as Midnight Club: Los Angeles, BioShock for PLAYSTATION®3, and a range of sports titles. Longer term, we’re sharply focused on bringing our popular products to new regions and new markets, as we continue to seek opportunities for profitable growth and enhanced stockholder value.”

Financial Guidance

Take-Two’s guidance for the fourth quarter and fiscal year ending October 31, 2008 is detailed below. The Company has increased its guidance for fiscal year 2008, while reducing its guidance for the fourth quarter, primarily due to the significantly better than expected third quarter results and shifts in the timing of certain product releases, the most significant of which are Midnight Club: Los Angeles and Midnight Club: LA Remix, which will now be released on October 21st and October 24th in North America and Europe, respectively.

Revenue* Non-GAAP EPS (a)(b) —————— ——————— Fourth quarter ending $285 to $335 $0.01 to $0.05 10/31/2008 Fiscal year ending $1,500 to $1,550 $2.08 to $2.12 10/31/2008

* In millions

(a) The Company’s non-GAAP EPS estimates for the fourth quarter and fiscal year ending October 31, 2008 exclude approximately $0.18 and $0.59 per share, respectively, of stock-based compensation expense; and approximately $0.03 and $0.21 per share, respectively, of professional fees and legal expenses related to unusual matters, including the Electronic Arts tender offer and the Company’s related review of strategic alternatives; as well as business reorganization costs. The Company’s stock-based compensation expense for the fourth quarter and fiscal 2008 reflects the cost of approximately 2 million stock options and 1.5 million shares issued to ZelnickMedia that are subject to variable accounting. Actual expense to be recorded in connection with these options and shares is dependent upon several factors, including future changes in Take-Two’s stock price.

(b) EPS estimates reflect tax expense primarily for international operations.

Key assumptions underlying the Company’s guidance include continued consumer acceptance of the Xbox 360® video game and entertainment system from Microsoft, PLAYSTATION®3 computer entertainment system and Wii™ home video game system from Nintendo; the ability to develop and publish products that capture market share for these current generation systems while continuing to leverage opportunities on prior generation platforms; as well as the timely delivery of the titles detailed in this release.

Product Pipeline

The following titles shipped during the third quarter of fiscal 2008:

Title Platform ———————————————————————-

Carnival Games™ DS Don King Presents: Prizefighter Xbox 360 MLB® Power Pros 2008 Wii, PS2 Sid Meier’s Civilization® Revolution™ Xbox 360, PS3, DS Top Spin 3 Xbox 360, PS3, Wii, DS

The following titles are planned for release in the remainder of fiscal 2008:

Title Platform ———————————————————————-

BioShock® PS3 Carnival Games: Mini-Golf™ Wii Dora the Explorer: Dora Saves the Snow Princess Wii, PS2, DS Go, Diego, Go!: Great Dinosaur Rescue Wii, PS2, DS Grand Theft Auto IV (Japanese edition) Xbox 360, PS3 Midnight Club: Los Angeles Xbox 360, PS3 Midnight Club: LA Remix PSP NBA® 2K9 Multiple platforms NHL® 2K9 Multiple platforms Sid Meier’s Civilization IV: Colonization™ Games for Windows® The Wonder Pets!: Save the Animals DS

Take-Two’s line up announced to date for fiscal 2009 includes the following titles:

Title Platform ———————————————————————-

BioShock® 2 TBA Borderlands™ Xbox 360, PS3, Games for Windows® Champions Online™ TBA (MMOG) Grand Theft Auto: IV PC Grand Theft Auto: Chinatown Wars DS Grand Theft Auto IV episodic content Xbox 360 Mafia II Multiple platforms Major League Baseball® 2K9 Multiple platforms MLB® Superstars Wii NBA® 2K10 Multiple platforms NHL® 2K10 Multiple platforms

The latest rumor concerning GTA IV’s upcoming DLC says that the first batch of new content will add 15 hours of extra gameplay to the hit title. The news apparently stems from web comic, RPG-TV, though the author has since removed this information. This is kind of disappointing, considering initial rumors on the DLC indicated they would be adding whole new cities comparable to San Andreas. Now it sounds more like they’re just adding some extra missions. Hopefully we’ll actually hear some official news on the additional content soon.

Via ShackNews

CNet’s Digital Home asks a compelling question, “Does it matter who buys video games?” In this recent article, the author sites a survey that finds 17% of the GTAIV videogames sold were bought by or for kids ages 6-17. Given that 80% of the kids of the kids that didn’t buy it themselves got it from their parents or older siblings the author takes a stance against regulating the sale of M rated games. His point is that these kids’ parents are likely to go get it for them anyway.

The original intent of not allowing underage kids to buy video games was to stop them from picking up a violent title that their parents didn’t want them to play and bring it to a friend’s house where they wouldn’t know. And while that is an admirable idea, it simply doesn’t hold up.

To think that ID’ing kids for a video game will somehow stop violence and the proliferation of violent video games is extremely foolhardy. If they’re turned down, they’ll simply go to the next place and see if they can win someone over there. And if all else fails, they can enlist the help of an older person.

Stopping underage children from buying video games may be a great PR stunt, but that’s all it is. Children are getting their hands on M-rated games and there’s no changing it. So we have one of two options: ignore it or just forget about age limits altogether. I vote for the latter.

I have to say that I’m going to have to agree to disagree. As a father, I feel it’s important to have those ratings and prohibitions in place. I reserve the right to decide which mature rated videogames… if any my children can play. I also should have the right to purchase those titles which I approve of for my children.

Many parents seem not to be as involved with their children or aware of their activities as they should be. Having an age limit in place serves as a protection to children who might not be able to handle a mature title when parents fail to do their job.

It’s a well know fact that videogames are a recent favorite scapegoat for the media and politics. Videogames are the latest bad influence on today’s youth like comic books, rock and roll and so many other controversial forms of media and art that have been targeted over the years. Unfortunately, it seems these talking heads are doing their job well.

According to a recent survey by parental advisory website What They Play, parents are more worried about their kids being exposed to Grand Theft Auto than beer or pornography.

The poll, which ran August 1-6, 2008, queried parents on what they’d be most concerned about their 17-year-old child indulging in while at a sleepover. More than 1,600 respondents revealed they’re more apprehensive about their child smoking marijuana (49 percent) and playing the video game Grand Theft Auto (19 percent), than watching pornography (16 percent) and drinking beer (14 percent).

The poll is a follow up to a survey seeking to find out whether sex or violence triggers parents’ anxieties more:

The results of the initial What They Play online poll, conducted April 4-10, 2008, found that the 1,266 participants were most offended by the following in a video game: a man and woman having sex (37 percent); two men kissing (27 percent); a graphically severed head (25 percent); and multiple use of the F-word (9 percent).

No one should really be surprised at these results. It’s pretty obvious that games including adult sexual situations will earn a mature rating more often than one featuring graphic violence. While we’ve become placidly inured to gore and violence, our nation holds true to its Puritan roots remaining squeamish over sex and nudity.

The latest Question of the Day survey in progress is based on Gears of War 2 which will offer parental controls to turn off blood and foul language. Personally I don’t understand why a mature rated game should offer these features at all. The Gears of War series and many others like it were never intended for children.

The blame game is in full swing in Thailand over a cab driver getting murdered, and with the crime having a supposed GTA IV connection thus leading to the game being pulled from retailers over there, the Thai Ministry of Health has issued a list of 10 violent video games to avoid for fear that they may spark more violent outbreaks.

This where it gets comical though: You may recall back in December 2007, that Detroit Prosecutor Kym Worthy was given the illustrious title of Gaming Today’s first ever “Idiot of the Day” for her outdated list of violent video games for parents to avoid during the Christmas shopping extravaganza. Well, dear readers, that is the list that the Thai Ministry of Heath sited as gaming titles to avoid. With a few exceptions, mainly Hitman: Blood Money being changed to just Hitman and Grand Theft Auto being abbreviated, it is the exact same list.

What this means, is that the Thai government is too ill-informed of the videogames currently on the market, therefore they surfed the internet until they found a list of games they could blame the ills of their current situation on. I don’t know whether to call that lazy or just plain out of touch with the times. Either way you look at it, the GTA games are being blamed for something any raging psychopath would do regardless if they had played the game or not.

Thanks: Game Politics

Rockstar Games has announced that Grand Theft Auto IV will be arriving on the PC on November 18 and November 21 in North America and Europe, respectively.

“We are very excited to be releasing the PC version of Grand Theft Auto IV,” said Sam Houser, Founder of Rockstar Games. “The whole team is dedicated to bringing an amazing gaming experience to the PC. The game looks and plays beautifully on PC and we can’t wait for people to play it.”

Developed by series creator Rockstar North and set in Liberty City, the latest installment in the enormously successful Grand Theft Auto series features a painstakingly detailed and life-like city for players to explore; a rich, immersive narrative experience; an original soundtrack highlighting the cultural eclecticism of Liberty City; and newly expanded multiplayer just for the PC.

via: Press Release