Saturday - December 22, 2001 <7:00 AM CST>

GTA3 PC On Pre-Order   <7:00 AM CST - schu>
Saggy found the PC version of GTA3 up for pre-order at Electronics Boutique.  Take a look :).  The strange thing is, it's going for $29.99?  I also found it listed on the UK EB site but it's not up for pre-order yet.  Currently, the EB US site shows a release date of 4/02 and the UK site shows a release date of 12/02.  I'm guessing the different release dates are due to bad information, online retailers are notorious for getting the dates wrong and I hope that's the case here.  From what I understand it will be out sometime between March and May (Spring 2002).  Thanks to Saggy for submitting the link.

Holiday Update Schedule   <7:00 AM CST - schu>
I'll be driving home for Christmas today and I'll probably return on next Sunday (December 30th).  I will try to update from my parents house, but I can't guarantee their computer will cooperate.

Tips & Tricks Page   <12:00 AM CST - schu>
I compiled all the GTA3 tips that people submitted over the past two months and I have them posted on a new page you can access in the Tips & Cheats section.  I'm still working on page formatting and I will be breaking the page up into multiple pages so it loads faster.  If you have a tip, trick, or just an interesting observation, please feel free to submit it.

Crazy Sh*t   <12:00 AM CST - schu>
Don't ask, just click!  or try the other tests here.  Got a paper due in about five minutes and no time to write it?  Your troubles are over!  

Site Updates   <12:00 AM CST - schu>
Assuming I run across something worth posting, I'll update again later today...

See You In Miami?   <12:00 AM CST - schu>
I sent in an email on the future of GTA3 and I got a response from Dan Houser.  Here is what Dan had to say:

"We haven't finalized any future plans yet, but have some thing in the pipeline.  We are focused on getting the PC version done and making it as good as possible.  We're leaving everything else until this is done.  We won't make any announcements regarding the future for quite a while yet (we've not even finished making GTA3 yet - it's a bit early to start talking about the future!) and will only reveal the info when we are sure about what we are doing.  Official Playstation Magazine do not have access to any special information.  They are just making things up for the sake of rumor."

Before I got a reply from Rockstar I had worked up the theory of sorts on what the future of GTA might be.  I wasn't going to post it since I got an official reply from Rockstar, but what the hell.  

My first thought was based on the OPM rumor, that the next title would be built on the existing GTA3 technology and would be set in a new city with new characters.  I'm guessing that it would also continue to build on GTA3's plotline.  So, what could the new location be?  San Andreas or Vice City seem like the logical places since they were the two other cities featured in the original GTA.  Those cities are also mentioned on the Francis International Airport website.  But something else there caught my eye, and after looking around I also found it in the game and on the GTA3 map, "See You In Miami."  The next bit is a very minor spoiler -- This alone was enough to spark some speculation, but then I recall something a character in the game says.  During the course of the game this character has to leave town and he pages you with the message, "See You In Miami." -- Is someone dropping us hints or am I reading too much into this?

All this talk of Miami reminded me of some news that I wrote about some time ago.  While looking up prices and availability for GTA2, another title began popping up.  You guessed it, GTA Miami.  Nothing was announced, it just sort of appeared and disappeared.  Around the same time Teknics interviewed Dan Houser, which provides my next piece of evidence:

Excerpt from Teknics interview with Dan Houser:
Tek: "There were rumo(u)rs of a GTA Miami but nothing was confirmed (during the Dundee incident at DMA it was rumo(u)red to have officially been canned). Is there any info available on what GTA Miami was/is?"

Dan: "ALL I CAN REALLY SAY IS THAT IT WILL NOT BE THE NEXT GRAND THEFT AUTO PROJECT. IT MAY APPEAR IN THE FUTURE."

I doubt we'll know for sure any time soon and I may be completely off the mark, but for now, it stands as my best guess.  My only real problem with the Miami theory is that such a game would be based on a real city, with cities like Liberty City, Vice City, and San Andreas they have a little more freedom since they are creating their own city from the ground up.  It will be interesting to see how all this turns out...

Liberty Soul & Orbit FM   <12:00 AM CST - schu>
While I was speaking with Dan I got another question out of the way.  Here is what I asked, followed by Dan's answer:

schu:  "Recently we began to notice two radio stations advertised on posters in GTA3, Orbit FM and Liberty Soul FM, but they aren't actually in the game.. Can you give me any information on these stations?  Were they replaced, renamed, or just dropped?"

Dan:  NO. THEY'RE JUST NOT IN THE GAME. KIND OF THE SAME WAY YOU CAN'T GO INTO EVERY ROOM, BUT EVERY ROOM EXISTS IN THE CITY, YOU CAN'T HEAR EVERY RADIO STATION, JUST A SELECTION WE CHOOSE."

The funny thing is, Johan came up with a pretty good theory about Orbit FM that I figure is still worth posting, even despite the new information.  Here is what Johan had to say:

I listened to the Rise FM megamix mp3 that's available at gta3warehouse and I can only come to this conclusion, Rise FM was originally named Orbit FM. If you listen to the DJ in the beginning you'll understand:

Rise FM:
Rise FM broadcasting live from the Planetarium, it's a 24/7 365, of the hook, stay up forever party radio. We make your dreams come true!

Now change the name to Orbit FM and the missing link is falling into place:

Orbit FM:
Orbit FM broadcasting live from the Planetarium, it's a 24/7 365, of the hook, stay up forever party radio. We make your dreams come true!

The Future of Grand Theft Auto   <11:40 PM CST - schu>
Philip wrote in about something he noticed in the latest issue of the Official Playstation Magazine (US).  The magazine says in the rumors section that because of GTA3's success, there may be a GTA4 or GTA3 expansion coming up with in a year or so.  The article says that the next version of GTA will move away from Liberty City and will feature a new storyline, new characters, but will use the same engine as GTA3.  I have no way to confirm these rumors yet but I'll look into it.  One thing I do find interesting is that OPM's information is very detailed, which leads me to believe that these rumors definitely have something behind them.  More on this when I hear back from Rockstar.  Thanks to Philip for sending in email on this.

GTA3 On TechTV   <11:40 PM CST - schu>
Insane2757 is reporting that GTA3 appeared on a recent showing of Extended Play, a show on the TechTV cable channel.  Apparently one of the hosts chose GTA3 as her holiday must-have, while DMC went unmentioned.  Isn't that a shame... You may also want to check out their review, they gave GTA3 five out of five stars.

Liberty Soul, Orbit FM & GTA Poster Art   <11:40 PM CST - schu>
You may recall that earlier Johan reported on Liberty Soul FM and how there are posters around Liberty City advertising the missing GTA3 station.  Insane2757 noted that Staunton Island is littered with billboards advertising for Orbit FM, another station that doesn't appear in GTA3.  I can only guess that the stations were either renamed or just got axed during development.  While looking for these posters along the subway stairs I came across another poster that I recognized as an older GTA advertisement.  It turns out it was a Japanese advertisement for the original GTA.  I did some looking around and I have a larger version of the poster art, you can view it below:

  
New GTA Sites   <11:40 PM CST - schu>

• Johan's GTA3 Mission Guide Thing (under construction)
  takeoff.to/libertycity

  
Site Updates   <11:40 PM CST - schu>
I forgot to mention in last Friday's update that Insane2757 submitted the first Crazy Sh*t link.  Thanks to Insane for the link.

More on GTA3 In Australia   <11:40 PM CST - schu>
AVault has posted an article on the GTA3 vs the OFLC debacle.  Most of it is just a rehash of what we know, however I did find the following rather interesting:

"Take-Two declined to say what parts of the game, which allows players to attack victims with a variety of weapons including guns and grenades, would be modified or how they would be changed to comply with Australian standards.

The game has been wildly popular in the United States since its late-October launch. In the week ending Dec. 1 it was the top-selling video game overall and the top game for PS2, according to market research firm The NPD Group."

In related news, Rev Ted sent off a well composed email to the OFLC and received a reply.  Here is the form letter the OFLC is sending out:

Re: Your email about the classification of the computer game Grand Theft Auto III.

"As you are aware, the game Grand Theft Auto III was classified 'RC' (Refused Classification) on 28 November 2001 by the Classification Board.

The game's Australian distributor, Take 2 Interactive Pty Ltd, applied for a review of the Classification Board's decision. A three member panel of the Classification Review Board met on 11 December 2001 and decided to confirm the Classification Board's 'RC' decision. It is an offense in all States and Territories for an 'RC' game to be sold or demonstrated.

The Review Board will provide written reasons for its decision shortly. In the meantime the Review Board has issued a press release about their decision. The Office of Film and Literature Classification has also issued a press release concerning the legal status of the Grand Theft Auto III. Both press releases are available from the 'Latest News' section of the OFLC's website: www.oflc.gov.au <http://www.oflc.gov.au>. The Review Board decision will also be posted on the website when it is available.

The Classification (Publications, Films and Computer Games) Act 1995 provides that the highest classification for a computer game is 'MA15+'. Under current law, games that exceed 'MA15+' must be classified 'RC' (Refused Classification). Both the Classification Board and the Review Board must apply the Act, the Classification Code (which is a schedule to the Act) and the Classification Guidelines when making decisions.

As you may be aware, the OFLC is conducting a review of the classification guidelines for films and computer games. Such reviews are undertaken from time to time to ensure that the guidelines continue to reflect current community standards. One of the issues under consideration in the review is whether there should be an adult, 'R' rating for computer games. However, even if there was an 'R' rating, there can be no certainty that this game would be classified 'R'.

Owing to the widely differing views held by people in our community it is not always possible to make decisions that satisfy everyone. However, both the Classification Board and the Review Board take their responsibilities seriously and try to reflect current community standards in their decision-making."

We can only hope that they "review" their standards and take them out of the bronze age.

M$ & Take2   <11:40 PM CST - schu>
I was hunting for news on xbox.ign.com and I turned up another article on the recent rumors that Micro$oft is looking to buyout Take2.  IGN did a short write-up on the rumor but came to no real conclusion, however they did say that Take2 is not very likely to comply with a buyout.  Take2 still isn't commenting on the rumor so for now we can only speculate.  Here is a quote from that article:

"Take-Two, according to our sources and after studying its business patterns, is not likely to comply with a buyout. A representative at Take-Two told IGN.com that the company does not comment on rumor, and wouldn't go past that."

Buy The Original - Part 6   <11:40 PM CST - schu>
Paul Wright sent in another location in the UK where you can pick up the original GTA and GTA London, and it's very very cheap, here is his report:

"You can get GTA and GTA London for £2.99 each in your local PC World bargain bin, naturally I bought a copy, I don't know why really but my original is pretty battered now so it was worth it :p"

  
New Version of GMan?   <11:40 PM CST - schu>
Delfi has been talking to Michael Mendelsohn and has gotten the source code for gman.  Delfi plans to update Michael's util and re-release it, here is the news from Delfi.  If it all works out, this should be of definite interest to any GTA mod makers out there:

I don't know if people still remember gman/view fxt editor and cmp, fon, gry viewer from Michael Mendelsohn last version was 1.3 alpha 1.

I have being talking with Michael Mendelsohn about it and I got permission and the source for making new version

Some features will be:

• adding area names to maps
• cops, roadblocks
• government buildings etc ...

It will be something like cops for windows."

Forums Note   <11:40 PM CST - schu>
If you register in the forums, please use a valid email address.  If you don't use a valid email address you'll never be able to reply to the confirmation message it sends you and you will never be able to post.  If you enter a false address it just bounces back to me and pisses me off to no end :).

Crazy Sh*t   <11:40 PM CST - schu>
Don't ask, just click!  Still bored?  Go play some Psycho Techno Hypno Kitten Snake.  Thanks to Insane2757 for the first link.

GTA3 - The Australian Edition   <11:40 PM CST - schu>
GameSpot is reporting that Take2, left with no other recourse, is going to release an edited edition of GTA3 in Australia.  Apparently Take2 hasn't specifically mentioned what they are going to do, but I'd guess the main thing they will remove is the whole hooker trick and they will probably tone down any other sexual references in the game.  From what I can gather, it was the whole hooker thing that led the OFLC to turn to outright censorship...  After all, the governments of the world couldn't just leave it up to the people to decide what they will and won't buy, that might be something like freedom.  We couldn't possibly have that....

Thanks to Blake for submitting this bit of news...

GTA3Mods Goes Live   <11:40 PM CST - schu>
Jevon sent word that he and Stilton have opened a GTA3 editing site.  The new site already has GXT editor, granted you can't actually mod the PS2 version, but they are starting a bit early in the hopes that the PC version won't stray too far.  You can find the new site at www.gta3mods.com.

illspirit's New Home on the Web   <11:40 PM CST - schu>
illspirit has redesigned and relaunched his website .  illspirit's site hosts some of the best mods ever created for GTA along with the his upcoming GTA2 mod, Snowball City 2.

GTA3 Banned In Australia   <11:40 PM CST - schu>
Well, it's official.  As of yesterday, the Fascist Australian Office of Film and Literature Classification has refused to classify GTA3.  It is now illegal to buy, rent, sell, or watch GTA3 in Australia.  I'm not sure how they regulate Internet sales so you might still be able to get it from another country, but in doing so you would probably be breaking the law.  AusGamers.com posted an excellent article on the situation, I would encourage Australians and non-Australians alike to read it, even if it doesn't effect you directly, you can be assured that censorship of this kind hurts us all.  If you are Australian and wish to make your voice heard you can email the OFLC, or you can contact them via postal mail here:

The Director of the Office of Film and Literature Classification
Locked Bag 3
Haymarket
NSW 1240

If you want your email or letter to be read I would suggest that you avoid using profanity and organize your thoughts in a sensible manner.  Telling them to fu*k off will just get your letter deleted and will help prove their point that we are all maniacal criminals who are driven to crime by a video game.  Well, I'm off to rob a liquor store and to pick up some hos...

  
GTA3 Tips, Tricks & Observations   <11:40 PM CST - schu>

• Johan was walking down to the subway in Portland when he noticed a sign advertising Liberty Soul FM.  Johan had a few guesses as to what it was about, mainly that either Lips FM was originally named Liberty Soul FM and was later changed, Liberty Soul FM was a station that just never made it in the game, or it's possibly a station that will be added in a later expansion or something.  I'm not really sure what it's about.  I decided to have a look for myself and I found something else rather interesting while I was having a look around.  One of the other posters down there is an old piece of GTA promotional art, it's the black poster with the red splotch in the middle, and if you look closely you'll see GTA in the lower right corner.  I can't seem to find the original piece of art but I'll keep on looking.
• Jim DiCamillo found an Easter Egg of sorts.  He noticed that a Realtor sign in Shoreside Vale reads John Homes.  According to Jim, John Holmes is a porn star.
• Tom Taylor sent in a correction on a tip he sent in previously.  
  "A week or more back I told you about the trick to respawn whatever goodies you had at your hideout?  Well, upon further review, we've found that running into and out of the car garage does NOT seem to want to work at your hide out in Shoreside Vale.  However, at all your hide outs, you can make everything respawn by stepping into the save area and hitting Cancel.  Cheap, but it gets the job done (and interrupts game play a little...)."
• Kirk sent in this observation as a follow-up to illspirit's David Lynch theory.  Kirk's email mainly compares Scarface and GTA3.  This contains spoilers, so please don't read it if you haven't finished the game yet.
  "I found that little piece in the news that illspirit wrote about David Lynch interesting... Now when I read that I was totally NOT surprised because GTA3 takes so many different characteristics from a multitude of movies and even a TV show. Now it's no surprise that Tony Cipriani is modeled after Tony Soprano. He has personal problems with his mom (Listen to the caller 'Tony' on ChatterBox) and he pretty much acts like him. The whole Mafia is pretty much a combination of The Sopranos and The Godfather. And don't forget how big of a role Scarface plays in this movie. It's a coincidence that Salvatore has a girlfriend that ends up falling for your GTA3 character? No. If you've ever seen Scarface you will know what I'm talking about. Maria is Elvira, and you are pretty much Tony Montana. Also, this is interesting... you know the Bus? Not the Coach, the bus. Well, when was the last time you saw a Bus like that on modern roads? Well, if you watch Scarface, in the scene where Tony and Manny are on the way to Freedom Town in a prison-like bus, it looks EXACTLY like the Bus you see on the roads in GTA3. Coincidence? I don't think so. Just goes to show how cool this game really is, also how cool Rockstar [and DMA] is."
  

More On GTA3 In Australia   <9:40 AM CST - schu>
Australian IT did a more in depth article on GTA3's recent banning in Australia, you can view that article right here.  If you are looking for more proof on this, look no further than the group that banned it,  Australian Office of Film and Literature Classification.  The rating of RC means it has been Refused Classification.  HinGTA recently started a new thread on the G! Board with a scan of a newspaper article, take a look.  Andrew in Brisbane says he recently saw GTA3 for sale at a Big W (sort of like a K-Mart or a Wal-Mart for us non-Australians).  I can only assume anyone selling it is doing so illegally.  Hopefully Take2 will overturn the ruling and get it back on shelves soon.  Thanks to Ryan, Andrew, and ^SMaSH^ for the links and the reports.

Buy The Original - Part 5   <9:40 AM CST - schu>
I have a another report in from the UK on where you can still buy the original GTA.  MouthFullOfDagger send in the following - check earlier reports for other locations and countries (1  2  3  4):

"As an extra to your Buy The Original news I thought you might like to know that you can buy GTA at www.ukgames.com for £7.99.and GTA2 for £9.99 in the "X-plosive range" although you have to pay £1 for a trial membership if you're not already a member. Also GTA London is just £2.99."

Random Bits of GTA News   <9:40 AM CST - schu>

• GTA2 Berlin Subway Car
  wsm.bernd has completed his Berlin Subway train for GTA2.  You can view a shot of the subway car here, for more information and to download the new train, please visit www.weltstadtmafia.de.vu.  The site is in German but it's pretty easy to get around and find what you're looking for.
• GTA3 Chat
  Insane2757 would like to invite people to his GTA3 channel on IRC.  The channel is on the irc.gamesnet.net server and is named #grandtheftauto3.  You will need mIRC or another IRC client in order to visit the channel.
• GTA3 Cheats
  A few things to note on this.  Earlier I announced that R* would be putting cheats in future editions of the Liberty Tree.  They have decided not to do this since all the cheats have already been released all over the web and hiding cheats you already know in Liberty Tree would be rather pointless.
  
  Pyriis and Johan send in this link at SuperCheats that has tips, cheats, GS codes, reviews, etc.
• GTA3 Commercial
  Hey, I finally saw the GTA3 commercial.  I saw it on TNT, but it's also been spotted on MTV and FOX.  The commercial is basically the theatrical trailer that we've all already seen numerous times, but it is kinda neat to see it broadcast on TV.
  

  
David Lynch & GTA3   <9:40 AM CST - schu>
illspirit did some thinking and came across some interesting stuff that links cinematic works of David Lynch to GTA3.  I'm not really sure if this qualifies as an Easter Egg, but any David Lynch fans should find it interesting:

"Ok, I think I figured it out.  All right, Donald Love is played by Kyle Maclachan, who also starred as agent Dale Cooper in the David Lynch movie and TV series Twin Peaks.  Agent Dale cooper disappears in the end of Twin Peaks.  In another movie by David Lynch called Mullholland Drive, there is a mysterious box that causes a character to disappear (Donald Love's package maybe?).  This box ends up with a really mysterious evil looking homeless man, who in way is similar to the Darkel character.  Now if you've seen Twin Peaks and Mullholland Drive, you might notice that it appears the two stories are interrelated, like how the backwards talking midget from Twin Peaks is in Mullholland Drive with a normal sized body, yet both times is always in an odd room surrounded by red curtains.

I know it sounds far-fetched, but maybe its not.  I mean, the game is full of little references, parodies, and tributes to other films.  For instance, the whole Flashback FM/Scarface thing.  This might just be another one of those.  But wait a minute, if it is, then that actually makes the whole thing even more confusing because it means you have to understand what exactly was going on in the David Lynch stories, and I don't think ANYBODY really understands those.  Nevermind.  My brain hurts now!"

Site Updates   <9:40 AM CST - schu>

• Sorry about the sporadic updates, real life keeps interfering. I'll do my best to try and keep on my daily update schedule.
• Still checking into the M$/T2 thing, check out the discussion on the G! Board for the latest speculation.

Micro$oft Eyeing Take2?   <10:30 PM CST - schu>
GameSpot is reporting that Micro$oft may be eyeing Take2 for a possible buyout to bolster their line of XBox exclusive titles.  This "rumor" was spotted by Gamespot in a recent issue of Business Week.  When GameSpot inquired about this, Take2 would not comment but the article seems to indicate that Take2 isn't ruling anything out.  I really hope this "rumor" never comes to pass.  Such deals generally stifle any sort of innovation and end up hurting the fans in the end.  Do we really want to see GTA under Bill's thumb?  Thanks to Josh for submitting this article.

GTA3 Banned In Australia?   <12:30 PM CST - schu>
Australian gaming site, AusGamers.com is reporting that GTA3 has been refused OFLC (Australian Office of Film and Literature Classification) Classification, which means it cannot be sold in Australia.  According to the article, Take2 is appealing the ruling and asking retailers to keep GTA3 in stock (but off the shelves) until a final ruling is made.  Ghost Recon was suffering the same fate until their ruling was reversed.  Here are some links to various stories relating to this on AusGamers.com:

• GTA3 has been refused OFLC Classification
• Virtual Violence In Games Poll
• Ghost Recon Back on Shelves

Thanks to Hingo and Ken for their emails on this.

Dan Houser In GTA3   <12:30 PM CST - schu>
Awhile back someone wrote in asking about what role Rockstar's Dan Houser played in GTA3.  I spoke with Dan and he said that he played about three different people, basically anyone with a English accent in GTA3 was played by him, that includes the guy on Chatterbox and any peds with English accents.

GTA3 On XBox   <12:30 PM CST - schu>
A long while back Rockstar and Take2 announced that they were working on an XBox version of GTA3, along with the PC and PS2 versions.  Not long after that, rumors sprouted up that GTA3 would only appear on one console (the PS2) along with the PC.  About the same time the XBox listing disappeared from the Take2 site.  So far the only comment I can get is "no comment" so it remains a mystery if an XBox version will ever see the light of day.  I can only guess that the PC version will be developed and that if time permits it might be ported to XBox after that, but until we get a comment from R*, GTA3's future on XBox remains foggy.

Buy The Original - Part 4   <12:30 PM CST - schu>
Harry from GTA Tanks sent in some information where you can find the original GTA in the UK.  Here is Harry's report:

Some info for your UK readers on where to get all the games (all prices
GBP):

• Electronics Boutique have Grand Theft Auto, and now GTa2 for 4.99 each (on
  different budget labels, though)
• gameplay (www.gameplay.com) have the cheapest price I've seen for GTA3, at
  32.99 (which seems to rival even the American prices I've seen)
• gameplay also do two PS2 bundles which may interest those who can't wait
  for the PC release:
  • PS2 + Any game (GTA3) + Pad - 229.99
  • PS2 + GTA3 + Memory Card - 239.99
    

  
GrandTheftAuto3.net Forums   <12:30 PM CST - schu>
The GrandTheftAuto3.net forums have moved to their own URL.  Apparently Tank is fed up with his host and decided to move the forums off-site until it's all cleared up.  You can find them at www.gta3forums.com

New GTA Sites   <12:30 PM CST - schu>

• Quantum Motors
  www.quantummoters.f2s.com

  
Crazy Sh*t   <12:30 PM CST - schu>
Ok, I have a few for you today.  Don't ask, just click.  Or for something for the 18+ age range out there, just click here for Thomas the Wank Engine.  And last but not least, this console RPG style Thai music video.

Site Updates   <12:30 PM CST - schu>

• Ok, email should be working now so if you had any email bounced back to you, or if you didn't receive a reply, please feel free to resend your email to schu@gouranga.com or if you were trying to contact azz, azz@gouranga.com.
• The forums should be working properly, but if you are having trouble registering, please retry, if it still doesn't work, let me know.
• The chat room is still broken
• The links to the Ram Raiding vids and to the Benzoate remix on Klamy's site have been broken for awhile now.  I uploaded the files to his site but I want to check with him before updating anything there.  Until then you can download them from here:
  
  Benzoate Remix
  Ram-Raiding Techno
  Ram-Raiding Heavy Metal
  
  For more information on them, visit sprayshop.gouranga.com.

Welcome To The New Server   <11:30 PM CST - schu>
If you can read this you've made it to the new server and all is well.   Email still isn't working correctly in some cases, at least not for me.  If you are having problems with my email address or don't get a reply, try this address.

Other than email and the chat room, everything seems to be going ok so far, a few bumps along the way but everything seems intact.  The chat room isn't working anymore, but I was thinking about moving over to a java IRC client anyway, if you have any suggestions, please let me know.  

The main problem right now is the propagation issue.  Until the DNS record propagates to everyone's ISP, portions of the site may appear to be down and email will remain buggy.  If any of the hosted sites give you a message that says, "Welcome Linda", it's because your ISP is still looking at the old server address, in time your ISP will update their records and the problem will fix itself.

Thanks to Azz, the gouranga.com forums are back online at forums.gouranga.com.  We have moved to a new message board system so you will have to reregister, please make sure you read the member agreement before registering.

The other sites hosted here at gouranga.com should be up as well.  Check azz.gouranga.com for Azz' site and sprayshop.gouranga.com for Klamy's old site.

GTA2 & WinXP/Win2k  <11:30 PM CST - schu>
Well I've been getting a mixed bag of reports back from people on this issue.  Some haven't had any problems at all running GTA2, while others have tried everything and still can't get it to run.  Here are a few things you might want to try.  If one of these suggestions fixes the problem for you, please let me know:

• Update your video and sound card drivers
• Update DirectX
• Update Windows XP/2K @ windowsupdate.microsoft.com
• Try the Program Compatibility Wizard (XP Only)
• Try the GTA2 patch (I think the patch only works with the retail/CD version of GTA2.  I don't think it works with the FreeLoader version).
• Try using a no-cd crack
  Make sure you download the correct version, 1.03 for GTA2 with the patch - 1.0 for the unpatched retail version - I highly suggest you patch the game before trying the no-CD crack.  The patch and the crack probably won't work for the Freeloader version -- (I don't condone this for anyone who hasn't legally purchased the game, but as long as you own the game it's perfectly legal and some people have reported that the crack helps in some cases.  Other files on this site could be considered illegal by some, by providing this link I do not condone the use of said files, but if the no-CD crack works and helps you play a game that you legally purchased then I don't see a problem with it.).
• If all else fails you can always dual-boot your system, using 98/ME to play games that won't work under XP.
• If you are still having problems or you think you can help out, please visit the thread I started on the help board.

Thanks to all the following people for their help, GTAThug, Jozz, Night Fire, MNowak, Joe, Elton M, Sjors, Rob, and caustic.

Site Updates   <11:30 PM CST - schu>
I will get to the remaining email and the remaining news tomorrow.