Old News - January 2003 Contents

01-27-03
01-18-03
01-13-03
01-11-03
01-07-03

Monday - January 27, 2003   <4:30 PM CST>

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IGN's Game of the Year   <4:30 PM CST - schu>
IGN has a double winner on their hands for PS2 Game of the Year.  Vice City not only took the editors' choice for game of the year, but also the readers' choice for game of the year :).  If you think that's impressive, just take a look at the result for their PS2 Adventure Game competition, yet another double win for VC.  Thanks to everyone who voted and to Insane2757 for the links.

Vice Tops The Charts   <4:30 PM CST - schu>
Despite stiff competition, Vice City has topped the sales charts at #1 for three months straight.  Check the latest chart details at Gamespot. Thanks to Insane2757.

GTA: Next   <4:30 PM CST - schu>
Speculation about the next GTA is going strong and of course IGN isn't immune.  Their latest "Off the record" column restates a rumor about the next GTA being based in Los Angeles during the LA riots.  Personally I think their rumor is more than a little far fetched, I'm sticking with GTA: San Andreas until I hear something official :) ...  On the same topic I got a few links sent in about further speculation on the GTA: San Andreas rumor, but all the articles are based on stuff we already know (I.E. Rockstar has registered a domain for GTA San Andreas and San Andreas is the last of the original GTA cities).  Thanks to Thresh and gta_player2001.

DTeam's Latest Video Barrage   <4:30 PM CST - schu>
DTeam's VC video contest is entering the home stretch, so make sure you get your submissions in by March 1st.  If you don't intend on participating you can still check out some new VC captures they released.  Here is the update straight from DTeam to you:

"We've turned up the heat a little because Dteam's GTA Vice City Video
Capture contest ends March 1st, 2003.

We have released two new DIVX videos for your amusement. These ones are
faster and harder than the first and they run best on the DIVX Player or
Windows Media Player. They have been compressed better for faster
downloads, but are still high quality (just with mp3 audio).

There is a 30meg 5min video (Crime Spree 2) or a 97meg 15min video (Crime
Spree 3) to choose from.

Come & get 'em! : http://dynamic3.gamespy.com/~dteam

PS: You *can* get these files, but the rest of the site is temporarily
closed for database repairs and will reopen soon."

  
MAD VC   <4:30 PM CST - schu>
The MAD Magazine site has been updated so you can check out one of the VC features from their last issue.  Take a look.  Thanks to Forelli_Boy for the link.

More VC Foxtrot   <4:30 PM CST - schu>
Here is the full list of the Foxtrot cartoon panels on Nice City.  Thanks to Insane2757:

  
Curmudgeon Gamer's VC Review   <4:30 PM CST - schu>
The Curmudgeon Gamer has posted the final VC review contributed by jvm.

Mac Payback   <4:30 PM CST - schu>
The GTA clone, Payback has been released for Mac.  You can check out a Payback preview at Inside Mac Games, you can find ordering information on the Virtual Programming LTD site, and if you're looking for more information on all the versions of Payback, get over to Apex Designs.  Thanks to S3KT0R and Matt.

New GTA Sites   <4:30 PM CST - schu>

  
Announcements   <4:30 PM CST - schu>

  • Email is back up and running as some of you have noticed.  We are still on the old server, and at this point I'm just awaiting some final configuration details before the move can take place.
  • IdeoPraxist sent a link to an "intelligent blog of comparing GTA Vice City with Pulp Fiction and the moral understanding between the two."  Just click here and scroll down to the November 11th update.
  • IGN has released their Getaway review from it's Insider lock down. Thanks to Insane2757.
  • IGN have a VC save posted on their site, but you'll need a Sharkport to use it.  Thanks to Insane2757.
  • Here are a few more VC review links:

 

Saturday - January 18, 2003   <11:55 AM CST>

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Announcements   <11:55 AM CST - schu>
The server that houses G! isn't doing so well lately, in fact I haven't been able to check my email since the last update.  The tech guys are working on the email problem but that is just part of a larger problem that will be rectified soon when G! moves to a new server.  The new server will be ready very soon, and I'm really just waiting for them to get my email fixed on this one so I can clear everything off and contact all of the other webmasters on the server.  I also wanted to notify everyone of possible downtimes when they repair this server and when we transition to the new server.  I will post something else when I get all of this worked out.  Until then, feel free to send any email here.

  

Monday - January 13, 2003   <11:59 PM CST>

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New VC WinAmp skin   <11:59 PM CST - schu>
IGN is reporting that Rockstar and Winamp.com have released a new ViceCity skin for Winamp3.  The skin is pretty damn cool and even features a day to night transition based on your local time.  You can download the skin at Winamp.com.  Thanks to Insane2757.

VC Bus Ads Removed   <11:59 PM CST - schu>
The South County Journal in Seattle Washington is reporting that Vice City will no longer be advertised on busses in the Seattle / King County area.  Apparently Seattle is the only city to receive complaints about the ads which appear in cities across the US.  The ad contract expires today, so after today no advertisements for M-Rated video games will be allowed on busses in the Seattle area.  Thanks to IdeoPraxist for the link.

GTA Goes Mobile   <11:59 PM CST - schu>
WildPalm has released a GameBoy emulator for the Nokia 7650.  As you may or may not recall, GTA was released for GameBoy and is one of the games compatible with the emulator.  You can find more information at the WildPalm website.  [psycho]logical who sent this in also sent in a review link for the emulator at Midlet Review.

VC Capture Madness   <11:59 PM CST - schu>
DTeam is collecting VC video captures for a new contest.  Check out all the details at DTeam and if you've got bandwidth to kill, you might as well grab their massive 70MB capture while you're there.  The contest closes on March 1st so get capturing.

Something Awful   <11:59 PM CST - schu>
Apparently someone at Rockstar is a big SomethingAwful fan.  According to the IGN mailbag, one of the criminal rankings is SA Goon.  Read more about it at IGN.

Vote Vice City   <11:59 PM CST - schu>
Vice City is listed in yet another poll at IGN.  If you want to vote, get over to IGN and click on the VOTE NOW link :) ...

FoxTrot VC   <11:59 PM CST - schu>
Insan2757 spotted Vice City in a recent FoxTrot cartoon.  You can check it out here.

Vice City Goes MAD   <11:59 PM CST - schu>
Blake sent in a nice shot of the new MAD Magazine front cover, take a look:

 Click To View

 
New GTA Sites   <11:59 PM CST - schu>

  
Announcements   <11:59 PM CST - schu>

  • Gamers.com has announced the lineup for Take2's upcoming Celebrity Deathmatch title.  The game will be released through Take2's new Gotham Games division.  I haven't heard anything else on the game but watching MrT beat the hell out of Carrot Top should be interesting.  Thanks to Insane2757.
  • Insane2757 sent word that IGN has some new information on Driver3.  I also recently heard from Mugwum that Eurogamer has released the very first screenshots of the upcoming title.
  • Renderware is raking in the cash apparently.  The Renderware engine was used in the creation of GTA3 and Vice City, along with many other titles.  Check the full story for more information.  Once again, thanks to Insane2757 who is like a one man GTA newswire this week, and every week.
  • If for some reason you still aren't convinced, here is another review

    VideoGameCity - 9.8/10

    Thanks to IdeoPraxist and Rev Ted.

  

Saturday - January 11, 2003   <3:20 AM CST>

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R* Nominated For [CENSORED]   <3:20 AM CST - schu>
London's Designmuseum has named Rockstar Games as one of the four nominees in their annual Designer of the Year competition. An exhibition for the competition will open in March featuring works from all of the nominees.  According to The Guardian, the museum will "show an edited DVD version of Vice City, omitting most of the elements which have made it a bestseller."  I'm not complaining since I find is refreshing to see a museum considering a video game for an award like this, but I do find it odd that they are essentially censoring Rockstar's work when any other controversial exhibit by a designer in a more conventional field would probably go uncensored.

The Guardian also mentioned that the winner will be chosen by the jury but public will also be able to vote both at the exhibition and at Designmuseum.org.  Voting opens in March.  Thanks to [psycho]logical for the email on this.

Insane2757 also spotted an article on this over at Gamespot.

Vice City Makes EuroGamer's Top 10   <3:20 AM CST - schu>
EuroGamer recently counted down their 50 favorite games of 2002 finishing up today with their final Top 10.  Vice City made the list coming in at #2.  Check out the other winners at EuroGamer [ 50 to 31 - 31 to 11 - 10 to 1 ].  Now that the Top 50 is in you can make your voice heard and cast a vote your five favorite video games of 2002, simply scroll down to the bottom of the top 10 page and register to vote.

Vice City Goes MAD   <3:20 AM CST - schu>
Blake was over at Borders where he spotted Vice City on the cover of MAD Magazine.  I couldn't find the cover on the MAD site so I'm not sure which issue VC appears in, but from Blake's description it sounds pretty good.  Here is the email Blake sent in:

"Yesterday while browsing the magazine rack at Borders, I spotted Vice City on the cover of Mad magazine (I suppose that was only a matter of time) and I bought it; marking the first time I've bought one of these since I was about 11 or 12. There are two feature articles; the first is, "Heart-Stopping New Improvements Planned for the Next Grand Theft Auto" which shows Tommy acting out such features as: "Players will have the ability to draw blood mustaches on dead people", "A new dashboard Jesus gives thumbs-up after particularly gruesome play", and "In later missions, you might stumble across a series of boy bands and feed them through a wood chipper for bonus points".

The other article is, "Who's Who in the Army of Protesters Against GTA Vice City", which shows a crowd of people ravaging a dummy of Tommy. Some of the people are Don Johnson (pissed that they asked Philip Michael Thomas to do voice work and not him) and the Jackass crew (who claims that Vice City is stealing their teenage male audience).

The cover depicts Tommy decapitating Alfred (Mad mascot) with a chainsaw, while his t-shirt reads, "I visited GTA Vice City and all I got was my head cut off!" I don't have a scanner but you might try their website at madmag.com for a cover shot (my piece-of-shit computer won't open it)."

I had a look around the MAD site but all I could turn up was this picture for Grand Theft CEO.

Make Your Own VC Vids   <3:20 AM CST - schu>
Dteam recently ran an article about capturing video from your PS2.  The article features a 20 MB Vice City mpeg, so even if you can't capture video it might be worth a look.

New Vice City Reviews   <3:20 AM CST - schu>
Rev Ted spotted two new Vice City reviews:

  
New GTA Sites   <3:20 AM CST - schu>

  

Tuesday - January 7, 2003   <9:00 PM CST>

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Vice City's Rockin New Years Eve   <9:00 PM CST - schu>
Blue was watching Dick Clark's Rockin New Years Eve, and just when he began asking himself why the hell he was watching Dick Clark's Rockin New Years Eve, Dick started listing the most popular stuff of 2002.  I did not see it myself so I'm not sure how or if they split the items into categories, but I'm guessing that they listed the most popular video games of 2002 and in the list Vice City came first and GTA3 came in third.  Not bad :)

IGN Reviews VC's Boxset   <9:00 PM CST - schu>
Insane2757 spotted a review for the Vice City soundtrack box set over at IGN.  IGN ended up giving it an 8.5, check the review behind the score right here.

DTeam on Vice City   <9:00 PM CST - schu>
Rev Ted sent in a link to a great article/review over at DTeam.  This part of the review covers the Vice City cast with pictures and in-depth bios.  Expect more additions to the article in the near future.

Vice City and Leno   <9:00 PM CST - schu>
Both PS2 Man and CHECK caught an interview with Brenden Frasier on The Tonight Show.  During the interview Brenden mentioned that he got a PS2 for Christmas which inevitably lead to a discussion about Vice City.  Apparently both Jay Leno and Brenden Frasier are GTA fans, then again, who isn't?

Vice City FAQ   <9:00 PM CST - schu>
THAguyINgta3 has compiled an extensive Vice City FAQ with information on the missions, weapons, vehicles, and just about every other aspect of the game.  You can download the FAQ right here at G!.

VC In USA Today   <9:00 PM CST - schu>
Rev Ted spotted two different articles on Vice City in USA Today.  One of the articles he sent in has disappeared from their site so I decided to post a link to the other along with a link to their review:

  
The Sunday Times Awards VC   <9:00 PM CST - schu>
The Sunday Times (UK) recently awarded Vice City the "Most irresponsible yet irresistible game of the year" award.  Jack transcribed the article and sent it in:

"Who could possibly endorse a game that rewards mowing down pedestrians, violently assaulting women and beating people until they bleed dry? Answer: hundreds of thousands of Britons, who, within weeks of its release, made Vice City the fastest-selling game ever. Whatever it says about an increasingly violent society, it also says that people know a great game when they play one. Yes, the violence is gratuitous, but no more so than in such gangster films as The Godfather series, of which Vice City is clearly a hilarious parody. Yet the game does raise questions about where we draw the line morally, and it does carry an "adult" rating (never forget the average age of gamers is 27). It sets out to offer escapism, not education."

  
Midnight Club 2   <9:00 PM CST - schu>
Rockstar updated their Midnight Club 2 site opening the Paris section of the site.  Check it out at RockstarGames.com/MidnightClub2.

Tiff's GTA Shrine   <9:00 PM CST - schu>
Tiffany has updated her GTA Shrine once again and she asked the post the following about her site:

"Well, I finally have time to devote to my site again! A couple weeks ago as you know I changed the site look. Well, since then, (that and schu advertised 4 me... could be a coincidence. *giggle*) business is finally booming again for all you GTA1 fans! Today for instance, I've added 22 cars sent in by RRC, who apparently just heard of me! Aiee... seems a tad hurtful... you know you're getting old when... well, anywayz, Hippie Tiff's GTA Shrine site is updated, so HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!"

Tiffany's site has been around almost as long as G! but she just recently started updating again.  You can find Tiffany's site at underworld.fortunecity.com/grandtheft/321.

New GTA Sites   <9:00 PM CST - schu>

  
Announcements   <9:00 PM CST - schu>

  • Finally, I have the first update of 2003... Yeah, I know, took long enough.  Hopefully all my computer and internet problems are behind me.
  • GTA3 was listed in PC Magazine's Best Products of the Year, winning under the gaming category.  Thanks to dElAvA.
  • Vice City got an interesting mention in an IGN teaser ad thing.  Thanks to Insane2757.

  
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