Grand Theft Auto 4 Could Eclipse Halo 3 on Xbox Live
Posted on: Friday, 2 May 2008, 11:10 CDT
Consumer reaction to the recent release of Rockstar Games’ “Grand Theft Auto 4,” may result in a change in ranks among popular games on the popular online service Xbox Live.Since Xbox Live’s premiere, it has been rare to see non-first-person shooter games at the top of the list of its most played games.
Games such as “Halo 3” and “Call of Duty 4” have maintained a strong constant following of faithful gamers, but the new inclusion of “Grand Theft Auto 4” is posing a threat to their longstanding title.
On Tuesday, the game became available to Xbox 360 and Sony Playstation 3 users. It was the first time in the game’s history that it was created with online features as well. After previously being a one-player game, now up to 16 players can join 15 different online game types, such as cops-and-robbers team matches to free-for-alls.
"The multiplayer in this game is so well implemented that I can't imagine anyone owning a copy without trying to play it on Xbox Live," said Aaron Greenberg, the director of product management for Xbox 360 and Xbox Live.
"GTA is unique because it appeals to such a large audience . It will likely be the best-selling game launched all year and we expect it will drive a lot of new members to Xbox Live."
The game is even poised to take the number one spot on Xbox Live, Greenberg said.
It is the most anticipated game of the year, and with critic acclaim, first-week sales are expected to reach about $400 million, eclipsing Xbox 360’s release of Halo 3 last year.
“This has the capabilities of being more popular online than 'Halo 3'," said IDC analyst Billy Pidgeon.
Pidgeon said on the first night of the game’s release, he went online and found most of his friends already playing online before attempting to play the single player part of the game.
"I think the console, even more so than the PC, has the potential to have lots of different types of games be popular online," Pidgeon said.
"GTA is an important piece of that. It can lead the way online for a large contingent of players who don't play first-person shooters."
Michael Pachter, an analyst with Wedbush Morgan, estimates that only 40 percent of Xbox 360 owners routinely play online.
"This one definitely has more for everybody than any previous game," Pachter said.
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ARTICLE: Critics Expect Unprecedented Sales of Grand Theft Auto
Source: redOrbit Staff and Wire Reports
Rating: 2.7 / 5 (3 votes)
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User Comments (7)
| 7. |
Posted by henry on 05/19/2008, 09:13 i agree with john |
| 6. |
Posted by john on 05/19/2008, 09:12 halo sucks xbox 360 sucks ps3s rule |
| 5. |
Posted by a hubb on 05/03/2008, 22:01 well theres no way in H*** this game will have better online play than halo3 and call of duty 4 but the story mode is pretty good |
| 4. |
Posted by G540GNC45 on 05/03/2008, 19:15 i want to marry this game omg **** i love it |
| 3. |
Posted by g54ognc45 on 05/03/2008, 19:13 dude this gME\ IS AWESOME!!!!! |
| 2. |
Posted by Dave on 05/02/2008, 13:54 I bought both COD4 and Halo, as they were both hyped pretty well. While I enjo*** the single player modes in these games, the online part wasn't THAT great. This is mostly because I am not very good at it, and when you ain't very good Deathmatch can get quite boring. I just got GTAIV the other day, and I LOVE playing it online. Even though I am not great at it, it is still a hell of a lot of fun, and I can see playing the online mode for a long time after I am done with the single player mode. I sold my copies of Halo and COD4 back to GameStop yesterday :) |
| 1. |
Posted by sean on 05/02/2008, 12:38 this game gots googd graffics |
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