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| Old
News - October 2001 |
Contents
10-30-01
10-29-01
10-26-01
10-25-01
10-24-01
10-23-01
10-19-01
10-17-01
10-16-01
10-15-01
10-12-01
10-11-01
10-10-01
10-08-01
10-05-01
10-02-01
10-01-01 |
| Tuesday
- October 30, 2001 <11:40
PM CST> |
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GTA3
Cheats Are Here!
<11:40 PM CST - schu>
For all you people out there just itching to cheat, go to Gamewinners.com
for a partial GTA3 cheat list. Now then, I don't think they
have uncovered all the cheats yet, but according to a friend at
Rockstar, the forthcoming editions of Liberty Tree will have cheats
hidden in them.
***Possible
Spoiler***
Furthermore,
Insane2757 says that the following URLs are hidden in the game...
www.dma-design.com/GTA3/bonus.htm and www.dma-design.com/GTA3/secret.htm
According
to Insane2757, one is by Capital Auto sales and the other is somewhere
in Portland. Those pages are not up yet, but the current
rumor is that they will go live on tomorrow. Yes I know
this is hard to read, I did it purposely to avoid having anyone
who doesn't want to know this stuff from reading it on accident.
Highlight it with your mouse to make it easier to read.
Thanks
to Insane2757, Andy H, OutForBlood, Dave Walsh, LeX, FiReStArTeRo0o,
Richard S, James15, and MrKnifey for sending in codes and URLs.
Upcoming
Strategy Guide
<11:40 PM CST - schu>
I wrote the good people at Rockstar to see what the current status
the cheats is. I wasn't given any, of course :) , but they
did tell me that IGN will be posting a GTA3 strategy guide on November
1st and it will be updated all month long.
|
| Monday
- October 29, 2001 <8:00
PM CST> |
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GTA3
Is #2?
<8:00 PM CST - schu>
Yeah yeah, well at least it beat DMC... I guess I'm going
to have to go and rent GT3 and see what everyone it talking about,
I'm not much into straight racing games where you can't get out
of the car and fu*k sh*t up. Sure it's pretty, but can you
run down a senior citizen at 80 MPH and then jump out of your car
and gun down all of the witnesses? Anyway, if you're wondering
what I'm talking about, check out the results of the IGN Hottest
Games of 2001 poll thing... Apparnetly, GameSpot
thinks differently, based on site traffic, GTA3 is currntly at the
top of the charts. Thanks to Insane2757, BigRed, and Whes007
(GTA3
World).
GameSpot
UK Reviews GTA3
<8:00 PM CST - schu>
GameSpot UK posted their review
for GTA3, giving it a score of 9.7. I think this quote pretty
much sums it up:
"As
of now Grand Theft Auto III is the best game available for the
PS2 and if you have copies of Driver, Crazy Taxi, Silent Scope
or Syphon Filter to trade in we guarantee you won't miss them
once you arrive in Liberty City."
GTA3 Release Dates & Locations
<8:00 PM CST - schu>
So far it looks like GTA3 is out just about everywhere. Check
the list for locations confirmed by other fans.
Roisin
sent in another update from her EB location in Australia, here is
her report:
We've
fufilled about 75% of the orders by 1:30pm Monday. We 'should'
have some more coming in tommorrow and I'm getting phone calls
every second hour asking when its coming out. Most people have
removed their orders from 'Metal Gear Solid II' and 'Twisted Metal
Black' to get a hold of the game. You maybe want to make a web
site about MGS II and ease my misery? At the moment I'm picking
up the phone saying 'we'll have GTA3 some time this week' to every
caller. Not to mention every irate second customer yelling at
me since its out everywhere else too :P
I didn't
post all the reports because it seemed rather redundant, regardless,
I'd like that thank Roisin, dElAvA, Nicholas, Steven, and KANE79
for all of their contributions.
Liberty
City Inquirer
<8:00 PM CST - schu>
ZMän posted the first issue of his online Liberty City newspaper,
The Liberty
City Inquirer.
GTA3
Tips & Tricks
<8:00 PM CST - schu>
If I can ever rip myself away from this game I'll start adding these
to the appropriate section, this is a pretty busy week for me, so
it might not happen until next week. If you have any spoiler
reservations, please don't read these, I wouldn't call them spoilers,
but the more I play the game the harder it gets for me to spot a
true spoiler :). Here are today's tips:
- If
you listen to GameRadio in GTA3 you'll occasionally hear them
annouce the URL, www.hiphophoneys.com. Striderhiryu2557
went to take a look and the site does exist. It is not a
site created by Rockstar Games, but it does exist and it is of
an adult nature.
- It
turns out that you can pick up a hooker in the game. Someone
mentioned that a strategy guide mentioned it so I thought I'd
give it a try. They didn't say how so I just figured it
out based on my past experience picking up hookers (yes, I'm kidding...
no really). I'm not sure if it requires a specific car,
but I used the Esperanto since it looked like a pimp-mobile to
me. Just pull up next to the hooker of your choice and honk
the horn, they should then walk up to your passenger side door.
If you wait a few seconds she will get in. Then drive
somewhere secluded, and well, use your imagination from there.
No I haven't tried this in first person view but I don't
think there is really anything to see. You then get an extra
25 health (so you can get up to 125 health total) but it costs
you money.
- cHOAS
sent this in but I haven't checked it out yet. "Hey,
this is a little something I've noticed while playing GTA3! First
you go to Staunton Island, then you go to that internet cafe (the
place where you can smash through the glass to get in), after
you do that you gotta go to the two comps by the stairs, then
look through first person mode at the comps! You'll see something
very familiar ;)."
- Here
are a few tips from illspirit on melee combat, "I think hits
and kicks might have to do with how hard you hit the button. Also,
you can creep at slow speeds in car by holding down the x button
very lightly."
- If
you don't mind spoilers, Terran Redneck XII found a message board
for you, click
here for the GameFAQ's GTA3
message board. Whes007 (GTA3
World) also mentioned GameFAQs.com, apparently they have posted
a stategy guide you can view here.
- Tanks
got you down? Here is a GTA2 tip from LoneWolf that works
in GTA3, "If you actually manage to live long enough so you
have the Army after you, you've probably found that the Tanks
are pretty much invulnerable to bullets. Try and find a tight
alleyway, where the Tank has to fight to get at you. While it's
trying to get into the alley, pelt it with molotov cocktails (pretty
much the exact same way to beat the Tanks in GTA2). Pretty soon,
the Tank will be set on fire, and will eventually explode."
- inv
noticed that if you tap the L3 button while driving an emergency
vehicle it will turn the sirens on. I think I may have mentioned
that before actually. Anyway, after you have the sirens
on you can hold the L3 button to emit different siren sounds.
The sirens should make the cars in your path move out of
your way.
- stuntwill
found a way to pack more cars in the ShoreSide Vale garage, here
is his tip. "To [fit more cars in the ShoreSide Vale
garage] do this, you can either park the 3rd car in front of the
garage door (which isn't opening because you already have 2 cars
in there), then get out really fast, which causes the door to
open because you're near it. After it starts opening, you get
back in your car quickly and drive through the door before it
closes again. Another way to do it is to block the door
with a car you already have in the garage, then drive your 3rd
car inside while the door shakes around trying to close. However,
this doesn't work as well because the car jamming the door will
disappear if it leaves your field of vision, closing the door
in the process."
- Here
are a few from Insane2757:
"Kill Frenzys/Rampages can be passed more easily if you jump
on a car that is not moving. This way, the people with baseball
bats cannot hit you, and peds cannot punch you. (That is, until
you jump off the car.)"
"Taxi
missions can be MUCH MUCH easier if you do them in a row, because
the extra time accumulates after each drop-off. Also, the green
blip isn't the one YOU HAVE TO GET, you can drive past them,
and someone else will want a ride."
"Missions
that deal with taking out a certain person is very easy with the
Sniper Rifle. It can be bought in the Ammunation in Stuation Island
for $10,000. You get 20 or 25 shells, AND IT'S WORTH EVERY CENT."
- This
is a definite spoiler from Stom4571. "OK......after
you beat the game (all the required missions), go to Phil Cassedy's
army surplus. When you get there, there should be a tank
next to all the sand bags! When I went there to buy a rocket
launcher, it was there, and even after I (accidendtally) rolled
it over (dont ask). I went back to the surplus store and
it was there again......cool huh?
- This
might be a spoiler if don't know of all the power-ups in
the game. BadBoys1987 sent this in. "Hey
i found this cool combo. OK, first get the pill power-up,
then get the Uzi out the run up to a ped and punch him. He
should go flying in the air, and while he is in the air hold R1
and blast away."
New GTA Sites
<8:00 PM CST - schu>
Site Updates
<8:00 PM CST - schu>
- Roisin,
the EB employee in Australia is actually a She, not a He... Sorry
about the earlier update Roisin. I've made the appropriate
changes.
- Really,
I'm trying to update more quickly but this game makes time disappear
like you wouldn't believe. Someone emails me a question,
and if I can't remember what the answer is I play the game to
figure it out. Four hours later I realize that I found the
answer three hours and fifty minutes ago, leaving me wondering
where all the other time went.
|
| Friday
- October 26, 2001 <7:30
PM CST> |
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New
GTA3 Videos
<7:30 PM CST - schu>
Well I said I'd get to the new GameSpot vids so here they are. The
first five are from Gamespot,
the last two are from GamesTicker.
The last two videos require the DivX
codec and the sound wasn't working, at least it wasn't on my
machine. Thanks to Whes007 (GTA3
World) for sending URLs to all the videos.
GTA3
Release Dates & Locations
<7:30 PM CST - schu>
I haven't heard from anyone from the UK lately so I assume GTA3
has been released there.
According
to S3KTOR and KANE79, GTA3 has been released in Australia. A
few of the locations they mentioned are Top
Shop, dStore,
and Tandy.
Those locations are all online stores, KANE79 says that most
local retailers are saying they will have it in stock on Monday
or Tuesday.
Andy
C. sent in an interesting conversation he had with a K-Mart employee
here in the US.
I
have a funny story to tell you, it is what a clerk told me over
the phone about GTA3. I had called all around town trying to find
stores that had it, Media Play, Wal-Mart, Target, Best Buy, and
finally K-Mart. When I had called K-Mart I asked the clerk if
they had it in. She told me to wait while she typed it in, as
she was typing she asked me again what it was called "Grand......
Theft..... Auto..... 3" I responded. She then stopped typing
and said, and I quote, "I'm sorry our computer doesn't say
that we are getting it in today.. And I highly doubt we would
ever sell a game with such a title.." *Click* I thought the
way she worded it was funny. Oh well. I ended up getting the game
at FuncoLand for $5 more than any place else."
GTA3 Cheats, Tips & Tricks
<7:30 PM CST - schu>
Once again I DO NOT KNOW ANY GTA3 CHEATS! However I know where
you can get some GameShark codes. Alfadog sent in this
URL where you can find some GameShark codes and Striderhiryu
sent in this
URL where you can find a lot of tips, some of which are spoilers.
Richard S. informed me that this
thread at GameShark is still worth checking. Apparently
someone on there is trying to come up with a GameShark code for
infinite health. Here are a few general tips:
- The
side missions in the police car, ambulance, fire truck, and taxi
are more than just a fun diversion, you can earn rewards back
at your safe house if you do enough of them.
- The
hidden packages are another way to get rewards in the game. Every
time you find ten of them, something new will appear at your safe
house. At the end of this list I posted a list of rewards
sent in by MrKnifey and zach. They are posted in grey, just
in case someone out there doesn't want to accidentally read the
list.
- Ok,
there definitely are ATMs in the game. I'm not sure if you
can use them, but I do know that peds can. Gun down people
around the ATM for a better payoff.
- If
you don't want to wait for the items at your safe house to respawn,
try going into your safe house, then when it asks you to save,
just hit cancel. When you come back out they should all be
there again.
- If
you need a police car there are a few ways to jack them successfully. The
first method is to try jacking the car from the driver's side,
then run to the passenger side and get in when the cop gets out.
You can also try jacking the cop car from the passenger
side, then run around some cars and peds to confuse the cop. Then
jump in his car before he can get back to you.
- Stand
in the street and wait for a car to come up behind you, the jump
on the hood. The car will drive around the city while you
stand on top. It's not always easy to stay on and if the
cops are looking for you they will ram the car and try to knock
you off.
- Badboys1987
mentioned that if you hit the CIRCLE button fast enough in melee
combat you can perform limited combos. Mainly a punch followed
by a kick to the face. Personally I think it is all related
to distance, because I tried this about twenty times and I could
never quite get the same combo twice, even when I did the exact
same thing over and over again.
- zach
sent in a rather complex and dangerous way to get a tank, read
on and find out how. "My second tip is how to get an
army tank, to get one max out your warning level and steel it
when the military come for you, its easier if you have at least
50 hidden packages then go to your house in the second part of
Liberty City and collect all the items, then go up and shoot pedestrians,
and cops with your Uzi’s in front of the ally that goes to
your house until you get 5 warning stars. Then jump in a car and
the FBI should be after you. You should blow up the FBI cars by
drive by shooting them, its easier that way cause if you get out
of your car they'll gun your ass down. After you blow up about
3 or 4 FBI cars you will have 6 warning starts, this is when the
military come for you. Try to lure a tank down to your garage
and try to get them to come out of the tank, then shoot them down,
and if your lucky you can get their tank then drive it into your
garage and save because it's fucking hard as hell to do, and once
you've done it you won't want to do it again. I spent several
hours trying to get one but I finally got one and its bad as hell
and was well worth all the time spent getting it."
Thanks
to Richard S., barry, MrKnifey, LoneWolf, zach, and Badboys1987.
Hidden
Packages (replenishing item in hideout):
- 10=handgun
- 20=uzi
- 30=grenades
- 40=molotovs
- 50=armor
- 60=shotgun
- 70=AK-47
- 80=sniper
rifle
- 90=M16
- 100=rocket
launcher and $1,000,000
Vehicle
Missions:
- taxi=complete
100 taxi missions and a new taxi will be
created!
- ambulance=save
50 people and health powerups will be
created at your hideout, save 100 people and
adrenaline is created at your hideouts, complete
ambulance level 16 and infinite run is awarded,
- fire
truck=complete 30 missions and the flame thrower
is created at your hideouts.
- police
car or tank=kill 40 criminals and police bribes
are created at your hideouts!
Crazy Sh*t
<7:30 PM CST - schu>
Don't ask, just
click! OK, some of the stuff on this site isn't exactly
intended for any of the younger readers out there, you have been
warned. Personally I don't know much about this site, but
the Audio section has some pretty good stuff, try the British Telecom
mp3 on there, from what I've heard, almost anyone living in the
UK should really appreciate this one. Other quality picks
are the Ebonics lesson, StopNGo, Barney, and the ThunderCats Bloopers.
|
| Thursday
- October 25, 2001 <7:30
PM CST> |
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|
GameSpot
Reviews GTA3
<7:30 PM CST - schu>
Gamespot posted their review
of GTA3, giving it a rating of 9.6 (superb). The review is
two pages long and includes seventeen new screenshots, five new
videos, and a video review. I don't have time to get to the
movies right now, but I'll work on getting some comments on them
for tomorrow's update. The new screenshots are posted here
at G! starting on the twenty-ninth
screenshot page. There are some very nice shots in there,
including shots of the new SWAT van and a nice overhead shot of
Bush Stadium. Thanks to Whes007 (GTA3
World) for the email on this.
GameSpot
UK's GTA3 Interview
<7:30 PM CST - schu>
GameSpot UK interviewed
DMA's own, Leslie Benzies (GTA3's producer). The interview
is two pages long and gives some insight into the creation of GTA3.
GTA3
Release Dates & Locations
<7:30 PM CST - schu>
I'll keep updating on the release dates and locations as I hear
new information. For actual locations and URLs, check the
update I posted yesterday, I will continue to alter that list
as I hear more.
Netherlands:
Erik wrote in from the Netherlands and said that his local Free
record shop was only getting eight copies, and he reserved their
seventh copy, leaving one left. The moral of the story, you
better reserve it or buy it early in the morning if you want to
play it on Friday. I'd imagine that this same story will stand
for all of Europe and Australia. Obviously the larger the
city you live in the better chance you stand of getting a copy.
Australia/New
Zealand:
Roisin works at an EB in Australia and she is reporting that Australia
and New Zealand should be selling GTA3 on Friday or possibly Saturday.
She also mentioned that if you don't reserve it will be very
difficult to get a copy, apparently they have five or six new orders
placed every day at his location. I've also been getting some
other conflicting reports from Australia, some say they've seen
it on the shelf at EB, while others say it won't be out until November
2nd. The November 2nd release date was sent in by troy who
saw that date on the official Australian PS2 site and also heard
the same from many retailers. I suppose it's possible that
some of the bigger software store chains will have it this Friday,
while the smaller stores and the department stores might not see
it until November 2nd.
Canada:
Sean is reporting that Toronto has a wealth of copies, his local
EB and others are apparently well stocked.
UK:
I've added some new locations to the list...
Thanks
to Erik, Roisin, BUStED, troy, Alfadog, Sean Daniels, JCronic, Andy,
and Nicholas.
GTA3 Strategy Guide
<7:30 PM CST - schu>
Insane2757 wrote in saying that the Brady Games strategy
guide doesn't have any cheats, but it does have some other good
stuff. It's mainly a big book of spoilers, so if you want
to find everything out for yourself, you'll want to avoid it. If
you want a road map through the game and don't want to experience
any of the excitement of finding new things, then by all means,
buy it...
GTA3
Cheats & Tips!
<7:30 PM CST - schu>
None have been released, so PLEASE STOP ASKING. Trust me,
if I knew any I'd post them in the GTA3 Tips & Cheats section.
I do have something for you GameShark owners out there though,
check this thread
at GameShark.com for some GameShark codes. Thanks to Richard
S. for finding that thread.
While
I'm on that subject of tips & cheats, feel free to send in any
tips you might have, if I have time I'll start building that section.
Please stick to general tips, I'd rather not post spoilers
in there yet, mainly because I don't want to spoil the game for
myself or others. I'm working on an alternate solution where
you can post spoilers with warnings. Here are a few tips that
have been sent in or that I've been using while playing (the last
one is a possible spoiler).
- Eric
sent in the following tip that most of us used in GTA, "you
should try out some of the old skool tricks in this new version.
i.e. like causing a traffic jam in the middle of a huge intersection
and then blowing everything up. Everything catches on fire and
blow up in succession. It's awesome! we used to do that in GTA
1 and 2 cause it was the quickest and easiest way to get money
to progress in the game. There's not much need to do this in GTA3
since much the progress is story driven but it's still cool. Plus,
the city and its drivers and pedestrians all react in mayhem anytime
there's a massive explosion like the ones you orchestrate."
- Walking
or driving around on the elevated rail tracks can give you a birds
eye view and will help you track down hidden weaponry and power-ups.
JWeb sent in a more specific tip but believe me, its more
fun to track this stuff down on your own.
- If
you played GTA, try some of the same stuff in GTA3, a lot of the
same vehicle stunts still work in the same way (L1, the handbrake
button, is your friend).
- To
perform at drive-by in GTA3 you must have an Uzi. When you
get into a car your weapon will automatically change to the Uzi,
then you just hit the R2 or L2 buttons to change to a side view,
and then hit the CIRCLE button to fire. You can only do
a driveby with the Uzi.
- Hydraulics
are only on certain cars, when you get into a car with Hydraulics
it will tell you how to use them. Basically you hold down
L3 (the horn button/left analog stick) and then adjust tire height
using the right analog stick.
- ***
Possible Spoiler *** Keep an eye on
what people drop, some of the homeless people living in the tunnel
behind 8-Ball's bomb shop drop some very useful items. Also,
some peds are richer than others, especially if they recently
visited an ATM machine (no I don't know where it is or if it even
exists, this was something the R* guys mentioned to me after I
noticed that one ped dropped a lot of cash - if you find it, let
me know)...
New GTA Sites
<7:30 PM CST - schu>
Site Updates
<7:30 PM CST - schu>
The new server move is going rather slow, apparently it's still
being built so I'm not sure how soon the forums will be reopened,
but I'll keep on them....
|
| Wednesday
- October 24, 2001 <9:00
AM CST> |
<Top> |
|
Limited
Edition GTA3 T-shirts
<9:00 AM CST - schu>
Rockstar Warehouse just started selling limited edition GTA3 T-shirts
this morning. My personal favorites are the white shirt and
the navy shirt. Get over to Rockstar
Warehouse and check them all out.
Rockstar's
GTA3 Giveaway Frenzy
<9:00 AM CST - schu>
Rockstar is holding a GTA3 contest in honor of GTA3's release. Prizes
include:
- 5
GTA3 Baseball Bats
- GTA3
T-Shirts
- GTA3
Posters
To
enter, just go to rockstargames.com/grandtheftauto3/contest
and fill out the form. Thanks to ElBazo (GTA
Scraper) for posting on this.
GTA3
Release Dates & Locations
<9:00 AM CST - schu>
According to numerous Canadians, you should be seeing copies of
GTA3 on shelves today, not on the 27th. Everyone who wrote
in from the UK said Friday is the day, both EB and Game were the
only locations mentioned so far. No word from Australia or
New Zealand but I'd suggest calling around, it might be Friday there
as well. If you'd like to compare prices, try here
or here.
They are both links to shopper.com, but one is a search for
'grand theft auto 3' and the other is for 'grand theft auto III'.
The
listing below shows what stores are reported to have GTA3, however
just because the EB in Virginia has it, doesn't mean the one in
Arizona will, nor does it mean it will be in stock, it's always
best to call first. Toys R Us here in Milwaukee sold out in
a matter of hours, the guy who worked there told me he had to sell
the copy he had reserved for himself. I'm not sure about you,
but if that was me I would have told the customer to go screw himself,
they'd have to pry that copy of GTA3 out of my cold, dead hand.
If you live in the UK, I would highly suggest that you try
and reserve a copy at your local software store to avoid getting
screwed.
US
(does not apply to all locations - other locations can be found
here
and here)
Canada
(does not apply to all locations)
- Best
Buy
- Electronics
Boutique
- MicroPlay
UK
(does not apply to all locations)
Australia
(does not apply to all locations)
Thanks
to all the following people for their contributions to this list:
dElAvA, illspirit, James15, Nicholas, Ayatollah, DennyKoo,
Richard S, Damnation, JWeb, Rich, Erik, Roisin, BUStED, troy, Alfadog,
Sean Daniels, JCronic, Andy, Andy C, S3KTOR and KANE79.
GameSpot UK PlayTest - Part Four
<9:00 AM CST - schu>
Gamespot continues their GTA3 playtest coverage with the fourth
installation of their article. This part mainly covers some
of the ambient details in GTA3, including weather and peds. This
part also includes ten new screen shots, I've posted these shots
on the twenty-ninth screen
shot page. If you haven't done so already, I also suggest
you read the other three parts of their article, there are links
to them in the headlines (above). Thanks to Phil for the email
on this.
Movies
& MP3's @ GTA Scraper
<9:00 AM CST - schu>
ElBazo has three mp3s from GTA3 and a new movie on his site, GTA
Scraper. All the mp3s and the movie were taken from Play
magazine and are online exclusively at GTA Scraper.
GTA3
Poster In PSM
<9:00 AM CST - schu>
The December issue of PSM includes a GTA3 poster showing lots of
the caricatures from the game. Thanks to Caustic for the email
on this.
GTA3
Press Quotes
<9:00 AM CST - schu>
Rockstar sent out a newsletter with some GTA3 quotes from the press:
- Stuff,
November 2001
GAME OF THE MONTH
"The Grand Theft Auto series has always let you play bad
guy across giant cityscapes. All the games feature realistic civilian
behavior, insanely violent game play and steal-anything-on-wheels
driving action. But now the living, breathing, belching city is
rendered in brilliant over-the-shoulder 3-D vision."
- MAXIM
BLENDER, November 2001
* * * * (FOUR STARS)
"As you claw your way down the lurid ladder into the car
theft underworld, bribing cops and back-stabbing gangland rivals
(sometimes literally), missions develop progressively conflicted
interests with constantly shifting alliances... Rather than creating
and peddling lame sequels, game publisher Rockstar improves each
version, and GTA3 represents the most marked advance in play and
detail..."
- IGN.com,
October 22, 2001
EDITORS' CHOICE AWARD
9.6 / 10
"Having taken advantage of PS2's new technology to expand
and develop their vision, the makers of Grand Theft Auto 3 have
created a complete videogame experience like few, if any, before
it... The game is absolutely, insanely good, and is truly one
of the best titles of the year, on PlayStation 2, or on any system...
Grand Theft Auto 3 is a massive scale operation that just gets
better and better as players dig into it."
- ROLLING
STONE: "A satisfying, sophisticated gaming experience"
- IGN.com:
"One of the most important games of the year." "Grand
Theft Auto 3 expands the very idea of what a game has traditionally
been."
- PSM:
"Frankly there aren't any other titles like it out there.
Even if there were, I have a feeling that they couldn't even begin
to compete."
- EGM:
"...People will be talking about this game for a long time
to come"
- PSE2:
"One of the PS2's must have games of this year"
- GAME
INFORMER: "One of the most explosive titles ever to grace
a home console."
New
GTA Sites
<9:00 AM CST - schu>
Site Updates
<9:00 AM CST - schu>
- Just
as I finished writing this my copy of GTA3 arrived. The
game includes a GTA3 poster with maps of the three different sections
on the back, a manual, and of course the game itself.
- About.com
has a few GTA3 tips posted right
here. I'm not sure about all the tips, but at least
some of them seem legit. There are spoilers in there so
don't go there if you want to discover everything for yourself.
- Shaggsnasty
is reporting that the strategy guide does not contain cheats,
I'm not sure if this is true or not but I thought I should mention
it, just in case someone was going to buy it mainly for the cheats.
I think Rockstar probably has some sort of deal worked out
and we'll see the cheats either in a print mag or on IGN or something.
- I
changed the "Vote GTA3" link to read the "25 hottest
games of 2001" instead of the "25 best games of 2001."
O.Krogius pointed out that IGN does a separate article later
in the year about the BEST games of 2001, this vote is for the
hottest/most anticipated games.
|
| Tuesday
- October 23, 2001 <9:00
AM CST> |
<Top> |
|
Vote
GTA3
<9:00 AM CST - schu>
IGN is holding a reader poll for the 25
best games of 2001, show your support and cast one of your votes
for GTA3. If you're still looking for something else to vote
for, why not drop in a vote for State of Emergency as well :). Thanks
to Insane2757 for the link.
GTA3
Reviewed
<9:00 AM CST - schu>
Surprise, surprise, IGN is the first out the door with an online
GTA3
review. I bet you didn't see that one coming a mile away.
IGN gave GTA3 a score of 9.6 which is the second highest score
ever awarded on IGN, tying it with Twisted Metal: Black and Devil
May Cry, and beaten only by GT3. Personally I think it deserved
a 9.7 or 9.8, but that's just me :). Here are some quotes
that cover things the previews never covered, things that I was
never allowed to mention, or just stuff that I thought you'd all
find interesting:
"What
creates an even larger sense of scale is that nearly everything
can be explored. Adding to that, little things can be found in
the most remote places. One hundred "secret packages"
are located throughout Liberty City; and Slowdown pills, Frenzy
icons, Health icons, Cop Stars, Secret Instant Stunt Jumps, and
loads of weapons are scattered everywhere. There are hidden alleyways,
second-story rooftops, and secret locations placed in every nook
and cranny of the game. I just can't find enough words to describe
the immense, fantastic sense of freedom and size in GTA3; it's
simply mind-blowing."
"The
biggest learning curve is really in discovering where the secrets
are. Things like Cop Stars (which remove stars off the Wanted
Meter), health power-ups, weapons, and paint-and-spray garages
take some time to locate and remember. Grand Theft Auto III is
shown through nine perspectives, four while on foot (first-person,
close, far, and top-down), and five while driving (first-person,
close, far, top-down, and cinematic, which is a low, beside-the-car
side-view), and it offers a small circular map/radar with colored
icons to distinguish important areas, such as Save Places, Mission
Hubs, etc., and a Compass. "
"Players
drive cars, and have a huge list of car-related things to do (carjack,
jump out of a burning car, steer, accelerate, brake, power slide,
etc.), but they get to do lots of things on foot, too. One can
walk, run, sprint, jump, pilot a boat, handle 11 weapons, open
doors, and carjack any one of 81 (yes, 81) vehicles in the city.
It's all handled with a simple interface and an ease of use that's
instant and gratifying."
Thanks
to Insane2757, ZMän, Chad Finch, inv, and James15 for sending
in email on this.
GTA3
Out Today
<9:00 AM CST - schu>
Well since GTA3 shipped yesterday it only stands to reason that
it should be in some software stores today, if you happen to see
it anywhere, please let me know and I'll try to compile a list or
something. IGN
has also confirmed that GTA3 did indeed ship yesterday. I'd
suggest trying software specialty type stores, as opposed to huge
electronic stores or department stores, typically the first places
to get these newly shipped titles are the specialty stores. As
you may have heard, some people got
the game early, I spoke with Rockstar about this and their only
explanation is that some copies may have been swiped during delivery
or production. To their knowledge, no stores should have had
the game prior to the 22nd. Thanks to Striderhiryu for the
link to the shots.
I got
some other email from people around the world with some different
release dates. Keep in mind that these are not official release
dates, they are probably retailer estimates.
- Europe
- October 26th
- Canada
- October 27th
- New
Zealand / Australia - October 29th
Personally
I think Canada will have it earlier than the 27th, but who knows.
Thanks to marp and samir for the release dates.
Four
New Movies @ IGN
<9:00 AM CST - schu>
Yes, this is old news from Friday, but since I wasn't here most
of Friday I thought I'd give it a mention. IGN posted an article
that expands on Liberty Tree's coverage of Liberty City's more famous
denizens. I thought it was funny how the interviewee was slamming
soccer, since it was probably Rockstar's Dan Houser who gave the
fictitious interview :) (Dan Houser being from the UK and no doubt
a rabid soccer fan). Personally I prefer ThunderBall
myself. If it doesn't have a "gun circle" and a
car on the field, it's not worth watching in my opinion. Now,
on to the movies:
Thanks
to Insane2757, Pie427, GtA3GaMeR, Naked Alfonso,
New
GTA Sites
<9:00 AM CST - schu>
Crazy Sh*t
<9:00 AM CST - schu>
Grr... I was so ass tired by the time I finished the update
on Friday that I completely forgot about this, so here it is. Don't
ask, just
click! If you've ever seen the show, Upright
Citizens Brigade you'll recognize these clips. Unfortunately
half the damn things don't work. Oh well, you can also check
out the selection oz sent in, mofo.com.
Site
Updates
<9:00 AM CST - schu>
- Blame
my ISP
- I
added a link to the grandtheftauto3.com sub-site, MSX
FM. Thanks to AndyH for pointing that one out.
|
| Friday
- October 19, 2001 <2:00
AM CST> |
<Top> |
|
GTA3
Official Sites Updated
<2:00 AM CST - schu>
Both GrandTheftAuto3.com
and Liberty
Tree have been updated! Liberty Tree has four new screenshots
and some great new stories. All of the shots are of characters
in GTA3 that go along with news stories relating to them.
GrandTheftAuto3.com
has a wealth of new shots and sound clips in the ShoreSide Vale
section. For some reason I can't get the viewer in the Screens
section to work, but there are twenty new shots there (sixteen are
actually new, four of them have been posted previously). I've
posted them here on G!, starting on the twenty-seventh
screen shot page. I also found two new sub-sites, Francis
International Airport and Game
Radio. You can find the rest of the sub-sites in the Links
section. There are no new movies, but they did expand the
characters section to include a lot of new character images so be
sure to take a look at that. Thanks to SavSat, illspirit,
Big_Red, stuntwill, blunt, Jordan, QuikSilvrX, SavageSatan, and
DigitalD for sending email on this. Thanks guys...
GTA3
Hands On Part Nine
<2:00 AM CST - schu>
This is the final part in my GTA3 hands on series. Here I
will present you with all the remaining Q&A, the full GTA3 button
layout, and three exclusive screens. I was going to do this
over Thursday and Friday, but since I skipped Thursday I decided
to just dump it all on you now.
Q&A:
Q:
Are there cars with more than one person in, a driver and
a passenger?
A: Yes
Q:
When is it coming out?
A: Grand theft auto 3 will ship October
22nd
Q:
Also in one of the movies at gta3.com there is a Laundromat
in the background..is the inside fully rendered?
A: There is a full scene that takes
place inside the Laundromat
Q:
Can the boats be damaged?
A: Yes they can be damaged and will
eventually explode
Q:
Is there any verbal interaction with store clerks?
A: Yes
Q:
How long will a day be?
A: ½ hour real time is 24hrs
liberty city time
Button Layout:
| Button |
Action
- On Foot/In Vehicle |
| Square |
Jump
/ Brake |
| Circle |
Hit
/ Fire / Activate Car Bomb |
| Triangle |
Enter
/ Exit Vehicle |
| X |
Accelerate
/ Sprint |
| |
| R1 |
Target
Lock / Hand Brake |
| R2 |
Change
Weapons / Driveby View |
| R3 |
Look
Behind / Toggle Vehicle Mission |
| |
| L1 |
Change
Radio Station |
| L2 |
Change
Weapons / Driveby View |
| L3 |
Horn
/ Sirens |
| |
| Left
Stick |
Movement |
| Right
Stick |
First
Person View |
| D-Pad |
Movement |
| |
| Start |
Pause
Game / Access Options Menu |
| Select |
Change
Camera Angle |
Screenshots:
Thanks
to Rockstar for making all of these "hands on" updates
possible.
GameSpot
UK PlayTest - Part Three
<2:00 AM CST - schu>
GameSpot UK has released part
three of their GTA3 playtest article. This portion of
the article is a great read and covers the missions in GTA3. There
is a lot of good information on how the GTA3 mission system works
along with something most gaming sites don't give you, details.
Along with the article there are seven new screenshots and
a total of three movies. The first two movies on their movie
download page are smaller and larger versions of a movie previously
released on IGN. The third is the only one exclusive to GameSpot
UK, I did a write up on it on October 15th. You can find the
new screenshots on the twenty-seventh
screenshot page. Thanks to GtA3GaMeR and QuikSilvrX for the
heads up.
Four
New Movies @ IGN
<2:00 AM CST - schu>
IGN updated their GTA3
preview with four great new movies, check below for the movie
links and descriptions. All of these movies are pretty good
but the first and the third ones are my favorites.
Thanks
to Andy H, Shoopz2, James15, and Joe Taco (GTA3
Impound) for the help with this update.
Free
GTA3 Poster in PSM
<2:00 AM CST - schu>
LoneWolf sent word that issue 52 of PSM includes a free GTA3 poster,
and on the back of the GTA3 poster is a Smuggler's Run 2 poster.
I'm not sure if that issue out yet so keep an eye out for
it.
PlayZone
Movies @ GTA-3.com
<2:00 AM CST - schu>
The guys over at GTA-3.com, the excellent German GTA3 site, have
posted three new movies that were on the Playzone DVD. The
first and third movies are just so-so, the second movie is pretty
good and gives you a good idea of what it's like to play GTA3 from
the top-down perspective. To download the movies, visit GTA-3.com
and look for the three "GTA III Video Spezial" headlines.
Thanks to DigitalD and tDemaxX for the help on this one.
New
GTA Sites
<2:00 AM CST - schu>
Site Updates
<2:00 AM CST - schu>
Yeah, I know... Where's the Thursday update? Well, Thursday
didn't go as expected because my life sometimes gets in the way
of this site, or is it the other way around :) ? The good
news is that I now am the sort-of proud owner of a PS2, the bad
news is that the Thursday and Friday updates have been mashed together
into the Friday update. But wait, there's more. I'm
going out of town for the weekend and I'm leaving later today so
it's more than likely that you won't see an update from me until
Sunday or Monday. If I had to guess I'd say watch PS2.IGN.com
and watch GameSpot
UK because they will probably both update again. Until
then you can blow some time in the forums around the GTA scene,
there are links to all of these forums in the Message Board section.
|
| Wednesday
- October 17, 2001 <7:00
PM CST> |
<Top> |
|
GTA3
Hands On - Part Eight
<7:00 PM CST - schu>
I hate to keep using that same headline, but for lack of a better
one, I continue with Q&A. I had written an article that
went into detail about the vehicle based mission for the police
car, ambulance, etc. It has been axed so I won't be posting
it. No matter, you will all find out on your own in due time.
I will warn you that the rest of the questions this week are
the bottom of the barrel and will decrease in quality from here
on out. Other than Q&A the rest of this week, I will also
have three more screens for Friday's update. This will be
a hard weekend to get through, but after that you can stop reading
about GTA3 and start playing it :)...
Q:
Will we see car bomb missions?
A: These types of missions exist in
various forms, some more complicated than others.
Q:
This game is all about being a not-so-nice guy, but is there
a choice if you want to be goody two shoes? (like helping the
cops etc)
A: There are an unlimited number of
ambulance, cop, fire, and cab missions where you can lend a hand
fighting crime and aiding the community.
European
Release Date
<7:00 PM CST - schu>
The moment all Europeans have been dreading is here. It's
not bad, but it's not good. According to GTA-3.com,
GTA3 will be out in Europe on October 26th. The North American
release date remains October 22nd. I wouldn't really call
this a delay, chances are it comes down to production and distribution
throughout Europe. No word on other parts of the world.
Thanks to Whes007 (GTA3
World) for emailing me on this.
More
Press Quotes
<7:00 PM CST - schu>
GamePlay posted an extensive collection of press quotes and review
scores for GTA3. Basically, this game kicks ass and now everyone
knows it, read what all the reviewers are saying right
here. Thanks to Jordan for the link.
GameSpot
UK PlayTest - Part Two
<7:00 PM CST - schu>
GameSpot UK posted the second
installment of of their GTA3 play test article. This part
mainly covers the vehicles of GTA3 but it has some other nice pieces
of information along with a movie and nine new shots. The
movie is a repeat, it's the same movie they posted on IGN awhile
back on the Stinger. The strange thing is, the video posted
on GameSpot UK is named Banshee, and the IGN movie that is exactly
the same, is called Stinger, not sure what is going on there. Here
are some quotes that should be of interest, the new shots start
on the twenty-sixth GTA3
screenshots page:
"Occasionally
you'll come across [a car] that's locked, alarmed or is being
driven by someone who's happy to put up a fight, but for the most
part if you can see it, you can drive it without any worries."
"The
bomb shop also makes a welcome return, allowing you to rig your
vehicle to explode the next time the ignition is turned - this
tends to be used only for specific missions but if you're fed
up with having your own (previously stolen) car stolen there's
no reason why you can't use it to rid the city of another no-good
joy-rider."
"Other
optional extras from GTA2 such as machine guns and oil slicks
have been dropped for the sequel, and rightly so. Grand Theft
Auto III sees a cast of convincing characters going about their
business in a city that is wholly believable - to throw James
Bond's gadget laden Aston Martin into the mix would be no better
than giving you the keys to a flying saucer."
IGN's Pet Sounds of GTA3
<7:00 PM CST - schu>
IGN has released part
five of their Pet Sounds of GTA3 article. This part covers
the FlashBack FM radio station and the composer who created many
of the songs on that station. The composer, Giorgio Moroder,
wrote songs for lots of 80's movies including Scarface, Top Gun,
FlashDance, among others. Once again the radio sample at IGN
didn't download correctly, however I found a way around it. Right
click on the link, choose Save Target As, change the Save As Type
menu to All Files, and change the file extension from MP3 to WAV.
It should work that way, at least it did for me. If
that doesn't work, try copying the link into a download manager
like Download
Accelerator. Thanks to DigitalD, AndyH, Eric, James15,
Gamer555, Insane2757, Phyre, and Manson... whew, thanks guys :)
New
Server
<7:00 PM CST - schu>
Ok, it looks official, I think we'll be moving to a brand new, dedicated
server. This should mean no more "500" errors, and
the forums should be re-released when the site is moved in about
5-7 days. When this happens the site will go down for 3-4
hours, I'll try to let everyone know before this happens.
|
| Tuesday
- October 16, 2001 <7:00
PM CST> |
<Top> |
|
GTA3
Hands On - Part Seven
<7:00 PM CST - schu>
More Q&A today, I should have some screens for Friday's update
and possibly a larger "Hands On" article later this week.
I don't recall who asked the second question because I can't
get the forums right now, sorry:
Q:
Zack Viola asks, "Do you have to join sides with the
gangs like in GTA2 to get missions?"
A: You can perform missions for gangs
and do jobs against other gangs. There is no respect meter like
in GTA2, but there is a relationship between the gangs, some hate
each other etc and jobs you do affect this.
Q:
Are there police boats?
A: There are police boats and civilian
boats
GTA3 UK Reviews
<7:00 PM CST - schu>
It seems that a lot of UK magazines have been releasing GTA3 reviews,
here is what they have been saying:
- Play
Magazine (Biggest unofficial PSM mag in UK) - Features an eight
page review with a score of 98%. Here are some quotes from
the review:
"The best game ever made"
"A new standard has arrived by which all past and future
games must be judged"
"There is no denying GTA3 is a remarkable achievement of
proportions we never imagined possible. It has single-handedly
changed the way we see all video game entertainment and the repercussions
it should have for the industry are staggering. In one fell swoop
your entire games collection has become obsolete".
- P2
- 5/5
- Gamesmaster
- 91%
Sounds
good to me :) ... Thanks to Tom, Iain, and Johnboy for the
quotes and ratings. QuikSilvrX also wrote in to say the the
US magazine OPM put GTA3 at the top of their "most wanted"
list, ahead of such titles as Metal Gear Solid 2, Tony Hawk 3, and
many other well known games.
The
G! Forums
<7:00 PM CST - schu>
The GOURANGA.com forums will remain offline for the time being.
I am working on a new server solution that should end any
problems with the forums in the future and should put an end to
the "500" errors. I apologize for any inconvenience
this may cause, but I really can't do anything about it until the
server problem is solved. For now, ElBazo mentioned that his
forums are working just fine and he invites everyone to join him
there. You can find them at forums.sky-scraper.net.
Please make sure you read and abide by any of the terms relating
to his board also be sure to check out his great GTA3 site at gta.sky-scraper.net.
I'll go ahead and drop a GTA3 questions thread in there and
I'll try to keep up with it. Thanks ElBazo :)
|
| Monday
- October 15, 2001 <11:40
AM CST> |
<Top> |
|
GTA3
Hands On - Part Six
<11:40 AM CST - schu>
I had a request to post more on how the taxi / fire truck / police
/ ambulance missions work, so I'll try to post more on that later
this week. Today I bring you two new questions that have probably
already been answered in the forums :) and I have three new screenshots.
Q&A:
Q:
Horns 456 asks, "I really hate when you blow a lot
of %^$^$# up, walk around the corner and BOOM its like nothing
happened. Could you please find out for me if there is some sort
of memory at least for a little bit. That everything you destroy
isn't back to normal just after you walk down the street or turn
your head. I don't expect the environment to be forever altered
but just for the time you are on the block for."
A: Debris and the effects of explosions
etc. remain forever, until you leave the area (by area they mean
that section of the city, industrial, commercial, and suburban).
Q:
Zack Viola asks, "Are the gangs restricted to only
their turf or can they go anywhere?"
A: The gangs have their own turf and
generally prefer to hang out in their own neighborhoods, but at
times they do venture into other areas.
Screenshots:
GameSpot
UK PlayTest - Part One
<11:40 AM CST - schu>
GameSpot UK has a brand new GTA3 movie and eight new screenshots.
I've added the screenshots to the twenty-sixth
screenshot page. None of the shots are really spectacular,
but this one
does show the scene just after the prison escape. You can
see 8-Ball in the back seat. More on the movie below:
Download
(2.7 MB)
|
This
movie features a great police chase in a beat up yellow van.
The van is being pursued by two police cars and a helicopter.
The cops are intent on running him off the road but never
do. He only really screws up bad at the end of the movie
when he hits a jump but falls short, slamming into the overhead
rails and dropping the van on it's roof. |
Thanks
to Rev.Ted and Whes007 for the email on this.
GTA3
Reviewed?
<11:40 AM CST - schu>
According to JSA1 the UK magazine PSM2 has published a twelve page
review of GTA3, giving it the highest score they've ever given a
game, 98%. They also regarded it as the benchmark for all
games to follow. I haven't seen the mag myself so I can't
confirm it, but it sounds good to me :) ....
GamePlay
GTA3 Report
<11:40 AM CST - schu>
GamePlay recently played GTA3 and now they've posted an article
about what they saw. The article is ok except for the fact
that it mentions information that I've been told time and time again
is not true. For instance, they say you can fly the helicopter
and airplanes in GTA3. Rockstar's Dan Houser has told me about
a hundred times now that you cannot fly the helicopter or the airplanes.
They also mention something about picking up hos. I
cannot confirm or deny what they are reporting, but I did send of
an email to Rockstar, so hopefully I'll have a reply later today.
GTA3
On GBA
<11:40 AM CST - schu>
The GameBoyAdvance version was announced a while back but very little
has been said about it since. Currently most retailers are
showing a November release date, but other than that they haven't
release any details. Until then, you might want to take a
look at something dElAvA found. This preview
of Midnight Club Street Racing was recently posted on GBA Dome.
Judging by the shots it looks a lot like GTA.
Site
Updates
<11:40 AM CST - schu>
- Previously
I posted a question by Gunmen 27. The name I posted was
incorrect however. His nickname is actually Gunman, not
Gunmen 27. I went back and corrected this error.
- The
forum has been generating an inordinate amount of server errors.
I am aware of this problem and I'm working to resolve it.
If you get an error, just hit the refresh button and it
should come up eventually. Although it seems to be down
altogether right now. I'll see what I can do...
|
| Friday
- October 12, 2001 <12:01
AM CST> |
<Top> |
|
GTA3
Hands On - Part Five
<12:01 AM CST - schu>
As I was getting ready to write this I realized that a standard
hands-on article isn't what I was really going for. Most of the
people who visit this site know a lot about GTA3 and are mainly
interested in features that haven't been discussed yet, along with
some of the more interesting points of the game, so that's what
I'm going to try to give you. I've tried to make sure this doesn't
spoil anything for anyone. So, first I'll give you a list of things
I encountered while playing the game, second I'll answer a few more
questions, and lastly I have three new screenshots for you. All
of this should be considered "preview" information and
should in no way be construed as a review of any kind.
GTA3 Features & Comments:
When you read this list you should think GTA, as in the original.
A lot of the stuff in GTA, no matter how obscure, has returned in
GTA3 in one form or another. If there are any additional questions
you have, please feel free to post them in the G! message board
under the "Ask
Your GTA3 Questions Here!" thread, or send me an email.
Keep in mind that I can't answer any spoiler type questions.
- In
the original GTA when you paused the game it brought up a shot
list of statistics showing you how many secrets you found, missions
passed, and that sort of thing. When your game was over you got
even more information in the form of a criminal record showing
your list of crimes. This feature returns in GTA3, but it has
been expanded upon. When you pause the game you are given an extensive
list of options, the tab it defaults to lists lots of statistics
from everything on criminal acts to the amount of miles you've
run over the course of the game. Along with this menu you also
have the rest of the standard options, sound, video, load game,
listen to the radio stations, etc.
- At
one point I was standing in the middle the street when someone
pulled up behind me and started honking. This prompted the character
to turn around and flick the guy off :). This also happened when
I was standing on the sidewalk after a cop walked by, he just
turned around and flicked the cop off... Brilliant...
- I
can't say I really heard the peds talking to each other that much
but they all definitely have their own personalities and comments
depending where they are. Some of the people in the forums noticed
that one of the guys looks a lot like a gay construction worker.
If you're standing anywhere near him you'll hear him yell out
random lyrics from the song YMCA. Around the university the students
will talk about tests they have, business men will talk about
vacations, and all the rest of the peds all have sayings unique
to them. There are also a lot of random comments and jokes thrown
in that keep things interesting.
- All
of the radio stations are completely brilliant, but out of all
of them I found myself tuning into the talk radio station, Chatter
Box. I didn't realize how much I was listening to the stations
until after I flipped my car in the middle of the show and found
myself trying to jack another car just so I could hear the rest
of the show. I really hope Rockstar releases a separate sound
track CD for GTA3.
- As
I played the game I tried to only play only a few missions because
I didn't want to spoil the game for myself by playing too far
into it. I spent the rest of my time exploring the city and doing
random side missions. One of my favorite pastimes is to steal
a police car and do the vigilante missions. These missions generally
involve finding your target on the radar and running them off
the road until they get out of their car. When the finally make
a run for it you can either get out and gun them down or you run
them down with your car. At one point I succeeded in damaging
a criminal's car enough for him to get out, after he did I circled
back and around and squashed him between my car and a concrete
wall at around 50 mph :). You have to be careful however, because
each criminal is armed differently, if they pop out with a rocket
launcher you better watch out. If you trash your police car in
the middle of the mission you can always jack another one and
complete the mission, as long as you do it within the time required.
As you know from other previews, you can also take missions using
the ambulance and fire truck. If you successfully complete enough
of these missions in a row you'll be rewarded in one form or another.
- While
you are driving any emergency vehicle you can turn on the sirens
by taping the horn button quickly, when the lights and sirens
come on, the other drivers will pull over to the side of the road
to let you through, very convenient in a police chase.
- Not
all rooftops are accessible, but there are many choice sniping
locations that are available, it just takes a little searching
to find them.
- A
lot of people have been speculating what the different colored
halos around the weapons and power-ups mean, so far we've only
seen green and red. Actually, each weapon and power-up has a different
colored halo to identify it, so if you see a weapon with a purple
halo on the ground you know it's a flame-thrower, red halo for
a bat, and so on. This makes it easier to see what weapons
it is from a distance.
- Weapons
are acquired by finding them in secret locations, in police cars,
off of dead enemies, back at your safe house, or you can buy them
from AmmuNation. AmmuNation doesn't have every weapon available
all the time, they have different weapons at different times depending
on where you are in the game. To buy a weapon you just walk
in the AmmuNation store, find the weapon you want, and walk over
it. This will put a new weapon at your disposal and will
deduct the cost of the weapon from your cash.
- The
radar is another part of GTA3 that has had a lot of speculation.
Here is how it works. If you look at this screenshot
you'll see different letters around and on the radar, along with
a small green house and a phone. The N represents North, the other
letters represent your different contacts, T for Tony, J for Joey,
etc. The phone icon shows where you can get a phone mission and
the small green house shows where your safe house is. There are
other icons that pop up as well, they all pretty much speak for
themselves when you see them. Along with these icons you may also
see colored dots. The white tear-shaped dot represents you. Green
dots are usually mission objectives and pink dots are your final
destination or objective (I.E. Pick up character A (green
dot) and take them to their destination (pink
dot) - you will see your destination in the game as a transparent
blue cylinder
so it's easy to see where you need to go. As you play the game,
things like this will be explained to you as you encounter them
or whenever you walk over an information power-up, just like the
ones in GTA.
- You
have three safe houses, one in each area. Your first safe house
only allows you to store one car and some weapons, as you progress
through the game the safe houses improves in both usefulness and
appearance, you'll see what I mean when you play the game. The
main purpose of the safe house is to save your game. To
save the game, just walk inside and a menu pops up prompting you
to choose a save slot and a save name. You can also use
your safe house to repair your car, just drive it into the garage,
jump out, and when you come back it will be ready. Another use
of the safe house is to retrieve rewards for completing certain
missions, I can't elaborate on this, but trust me, it works very
well and makes your safe house useful for more than just saving
your game.
- There
are three spray shops in the game, one in each area. They work
just like the ones in GTA, drive in and the paint color changes,
your car is repaired, and the cops are off your ass, all for a
price. Bomb shops have returned as well, and like the spray shops
there is only one per area. It was a little more challenging with
less spray shops and bomb shops but I didn't find it terribly
inconvenient. Any time you are directed to a spray shop or bomb
shop it will appear on your radar, otherwise you'll have to find
it yourself.
Q&A
Q:
illspirit asks, "Is the guy who does 8-balls voice really
Guru from the hip-hop group Gang-Starr?"
A: Yes
Q:
Brian asks, "How about saving the game?"
A: GrandTheftAuto3 features the latest in
game saving technology! To save the game, go to your safe house.
There are multiple save slots, so you don't have to worry about
being limited to one slot or anything.
New GTA3 Movies
<12:01 AM CST - schu>
I've posted twenty-six new GTA3 movies in the GTA3 Info section.
They begin on the eleventh
movie page and go to the fifteenth
movie page. I've written a short commentary and posted a screen
shot with each movie. If you download all the new movies (4.mpg
through 29.mpg) you can use this batch
file to join them together into one 31 MB movie. Just
download them all into the same directory and run the batch file
in that directory, it will then copy them all into one larger movie
named bigmovie.mpg. As you watch these, keep in mind that
they were shot from an older copy of GTA3 and that many changes
have taken place since then. Thanks to phile for posting this
in the forums.
It
appears that all the movies have been removed from Zon.se where
they were posted... You can still read the descriptions I
posted and see the screens, but the movies are no longer available.
Crazy
Sh*t
<12:01 AM CST - schu>
Don't ask, just
click!
|
| Thursday
- October 11, 2001 <2:00
AM CST> |
<Top> |
|
GTA3
Hands On - Part Four
<2:00 AM CST - schu>
Yet more Q&A today, once again I apologize for how short this
installment is but I still haven't heard back from Rockstar about
my article:
Q:
Gunmen27 asks, "Can you sell cars or is it only the
crusher?"
A: You cant sell cars, to get rid
of it you can take it to the crusher.
Q:
Gunmen 27 asks, "What does the main menu look like?"
A: There is no menu screen, the game
goes straight into the opening intro and then straight into the
game. All choices are made in the game (the option menus pop up
when you pause the game).
New GTA3 Screenshots
<2:00 AM CST - schu>
The Italian Take-Two site, Cidverte,
recently posted eleven new GTA3 screenshots. They posted twenty-five
shots total but fourteen of those are repeats. Check the twenty-fifth
screenshot page for all the new shots. Here are a few of my
favorites:
I mainly
chose these because the first one just kicks ass, the second one
is some more proof of indoor combat and locations, and the third
is one of the few shots of Liberty City's subway system. I
also noticed that GTA-3.com
has a few of the same shots. They found their shots in an
Italian
GTA3 preview.
GTA3
Giveaway
<2:00 AM CST - schu>
FedEX delivered the prizes for the GTA3 fan site giveaway today.
The prizes include 1 GTA3 baseball bat, 2 GTA3 T-shirts, and
3 GTA3 posters. Any ideas on how I should work this giveaway?
If there are any other GTA3 webmasters out there who want
to work out some sort of inter-site giveaway to generate more interest
in the scene, I am open to that as well. I haven't quite figured
out how to work this because I'll be taking the hit on any shipping
costs and I have no idea how much it would cost me to ship a bat
to Zaire or anywhere outside of North America...
IGN
On GTA3's Cutscenes - Again
<2:00 AM CST - schu>
IGN posted the second installment of their GTA3 article The
Cinematic Touch of Grand Theft Auto III. The second part
has four new screenshots taken from a cutscene with Joey Leone.
They also posted the video footage the shots were taken from,
so you can view the whole scene.
Small
/ Medium
/ Large
|
This
movie details a meeting with Joey Leone where you're getting
a job to hit an armored
truck. Pay close attention to the car
he is working on. I can't say more than that, but that
should give you a HINT where you get it from. This movie
also gives you an idea of how a time based mission works, I.E.
the van you're hitting won't be driving around all day so you
have to look for it while it's doing its rounds. |
Thanks
to James15 for the email on this update.
Site
Updates
<2:00 AM CST - schu>
I've added all the new movies, except for today's selection, to
the ninth and tenth
GTA3 movie pages. I've also updated the GTA3
Previews/Reviews section with links to all the new IGN articles.
|
| Wednesday
- October 10, 2001 <5:00
AM CST> |
<Top> |
|
GTA3
Hands On - Part Three
<5:00 AM CST - schu>
Still no word back from Rockstar yet so I'll continue with the Q&A.
I'll probably post the next batch of screens on Friday unless
I get them earlier.
Q&A:
Q:
wsm.bernd ask, "Is it possible to drive the train
as a driver?"
A: No you can only ride on the train
as a passenger,
Q:
Gunmen27 asks, "When you run people down, do they
fly over the hood or get flattened under a car?
A: Both
IGN
On GTA3's Cutscenes
<5:00 AM CST - schu>
IGN continues their GTA3 coverage with the release of their latest
article, The
Cinematic Touch of Grand Theft Auto III. The article has
four new screen shots and a movie of a cutscene showing the main
character meeting with Salvatore Leone. The article also has
an interview with Rockstar's Lead Analyst, Adam Davidson, about
the filming and integration of the cutscenes into GTA3.
Small
/ Medium
/ Large
|
This
movie covers your initial meeting with Salvatore Leone, the
head of the Leone Cartel. |
Thanks
to Andy H, Eric, and James15 for the emails on this one.
Site
Updates
<5:00 AM CST - schu>
- Tuesday's
update was canceled because I was stranded half way between Chicago
and Milwaukee most of the day, at least my car wasn't to blame
this time. Still no final word back from Rockstar so until
then I'll continue with Q&A.
- Yesterday
I accidentally said that the IGN pet sounds article was part III,
when in fact it was part IV. Thanks to Doofey for the correction.
|
| Monday
- October 8, 2001 <11:30
PM CST> |
<Top> |
|
GTA3
Hands On - Part Two
<11:30 PM CST - schu>
Well, I had a huge dope ass article written for this update, but
after I finished it I realized it probably violated just about every
aspect of the NDA I signed. So I emailed it to Rockstar in
the hope that I could get approval on some of the more questionable
items, unfortunately it's still in limbo, so until I get some word
back I'll just post some more screens and answers to tide you over.
By the way, many of the answers to these questions were written
by the people at Rockstar, so you can credit any smart ass comments
to them :) . Today I've posted all of the answers to Sonny
Bone's questions since they were all sort of interrelated:
Q&A:
Q: Sonny
Bone asks, "Can you legally purchase cars in GTA3?"
A: No, you don't buy cars,
you steal them (the game is called Grand Theft Auto)!
Q: Sonny
Bone asks, "Are there any indoor areas in Grand Theft Auto
3?"
A: Yes quite a few
Q:
Sonny Bone asks, "Now that IGN says you can buy weapons,
there would have to be some type of indoor shop, because I cant
picture an outdoor gun stand."
A: Yes, AmmuNation is an indoor
gun shop
New
Screenshots:
IGN's
Pet Sounds of GTA3 Part IV
<11:30 PM CST - schu>
IGN has released part four of their Pet
Sounds of GTA3 article. This update mainly covers the
radio stations K-Jah and MSX FM. K-Jah is the reggae station
in Liberty City and MSX is the techno/electronica station.
There are two samples, one for each station. As expected,
neither dowloaded correctly but that is easily remedied. Just
Right click on the download link, choose Save Target As, change
the Save As Type menu to All Files, and change the file extension
from MP3 to WAV. It should work that way, at least it did
for me. If that doesn't work, try copying the link into a
download manager like Download
Accelerator. Thanks to James for the link on this one.
At
the end of this article IGN gives a listing of music credits for
some of the songs featured in GTA3, including those from the movie
Scarface.
GameSpot's
PS2 Most Anticipated List
<11:30 PM CST - schu>
GameSpot has included GTA3 in this year's list of the PS2's most
anticipated games. You can view their brief overview right
here, or start at the beginning
of the article and read the whole thing. Thanks to Crashton
for the link.
Site
Updates
<11:30 PM CST - schu>
Sorry for the long delay on this but I've been waiting for approval
on that article so that sort of delayed things a bit. Hopefully
I'll have the original article or a revised version ready to post
later this week.
|
| Friday
- October 5, 2001 <11:59
PM CST> |
<Top> |
|
GTA3
Hands On - Part One
<11:30 PM CST - schu>
The trip to NYC was great, and before I say anything else I want
to thank everyone at Rockstar Games for the chance to see Grand
Theft Auto 3 in action. I'd especially like to thank everyone
who took time out of their busy day to spend time with me while
I was there.
The
primary reason for my visit was to see the changes Rockstar &
DMA made after the terrorist attack on September 11th. The
changes are so inconsequential that they are hardly even worth mentioning.
The only real major change was the color of the police cars,
other than that some minor dialog changes were made. The violence
and the language remain unchanged. This is still very much
an adult game. The main reason for the change in release date
was because they couldn't get into their offices for a week and
the week they were back they had lots of communications problems
with their phones and Internet connection. Currently it looks
like GTA3 will be in stores on October 22nd, roughly two weeks from
today.
Ok
moving on, there are a few more things I need to get out of the
way before I answer any questions. The version of GTA3 I played
was not final, therefore the following information should be regarded
as preview material, and not as a review. I am going to post
answers to the questions rather slowly, I have 24 questions and
answers total, so I figured I'd drop a few answers on you today,
and a few answers every day I update till release. Any questions
that were spoilers have been left out. I actually got a lot
email from people requesting that I avoid posting spoilers, so I
won't post anything would ruin the game for anyone, after all, half
the fun is discovering this stuff as you play.
Q:
Slider asks, "How will you enable hydraulics on the
car (as seen on one of the vids)? Will there be a "special"
button for it, like the same button that turns on the police sirens?"
A: Yes, and yes. The horn button
is used. Also the right analog stick can be used to adjust the
height of each tire.
Q:
Limbo asks, "Cameras, Cameras, Cameras! Detailed information
about how the cameras work and how many different cameras are
available."
A: There are multiple camera angles:
Top down, First person, Side view (left and right), Front view,
Third person Close Up, Third Person Further Back, Cinematic camera.
The two side views are accessed using R2 and L2 I think,
the others are changed using the Select button. More on
this later.
Q:
Jason asks, "Will there be a replay because some of
the IGN movies look like they are from one?"
A: There is no replay - the IGN movies
make use of the cinematic camera IN GAME. It takes a lot
of skill to drive using the cinematic camera but the rewards are
endless. The two IGN movies I posted today are both shot
using the cinematic camera so you can see why it would take some
practice to use it successfully.
Now
for the screen shots. These shots were not taken by me, nor
were they taken while I was playing, but as far as I know they are
exclusive to my site. I only have four for today but I've
been promised more for Monday's update and possibly even more for
later next week.
That's
it for today. I'm working on a short hands-on article that
I will try to have posted on Monday. I'm sorry if this is
rather anticlimactic but I've agreed to spread all this out a bit
rather than hammer it all out in one day.
GTA3
Giveaway!
<11:30 PM CST - schu>
The Rockstar Webmaster is sending out prizes to some of the GTA3
webmasters so that we can all conduct our own GTA3 giveaways. According
to the email we should each be receiving one GTA3 baseball bat,
some T-shirts, and some posters. I'm not sure how this is
going to work just yet, but as soon as I know I'll update on it.
Two
New IGN Updates
<11:30 PM CST - schu>
IGN is still firing away and while I was gone they posted two new
GTA3 articles. The first article is an an interview
they conducted with DMA's Leslie Benzies. The interview mainly
covers some of the more technical aspects of how GTA3 utilizes the
PS2's hardware along with a few questions about GTA3's influences.
The
second article IGN posted is entitled, "The
Pure Action of GTA3." The main redeeming qualities
of the article are its ten new screen shots and its two great movies.
All the new shots begin on the twenty-third
screenshot page, the movie write-ups and links are below:
Small
/ Medium
/ Large
|
This
first movie is the shorter of the two. It starts out with
you running from the cops and stealing one of their cars in
the confusion. The getaway seems to be going fine until
the car flips and it ends with you running for your life. |
Small
/ Medium
/ Large |
The
second movie the best of the two by far. It starts in
a police chase with you behind the wheel of a police car, but
the ending is the best part. It ends with an Insane Stunt
Bonus where you hit the ramp, flip your car in mid air, and
land upside down sliding for a good 100 feet on the elevated
tracks. If you listen closely just before you land on
the tracks you'll hear the noise it makes when you pick up a
power-up. |
Thanks
to Insane2757, Andy H, Jared, Axer, and Whes007 for sending word
on this one.
Ten
New Screens @ GTA-3.com
<11:30 PM CST - schu>
The guys at GTA-3.com
have been hard at work. Over their past few updates they've
posted ten new screenshots they found on PlayZone and Game-On. You
can find the new shots in GTA-3's older updates or you can go straight
to PlayZone's
Preview and Game-On's
preview. I've also added these shots to my twenty-fourth
screenshot page. For some reason the gta-3.com link appears
to be dead, but you can also view their site via the gta3d.de URL.
Thanks to Andy H for the email on this one.
DVD
Movie Action
<11:30 PM CST - schu>
Whes007 over at GTA3
World sent an email saying that the next issue of the UK gaming
mag, PlayStation
World (PSW) will feature a DVD with GTA3 footage on it. He
found the information in their September issue, so hopefully the
issue with the footage should be out soon.
Crazy
Sh*t
<11:59 PM CST - schu>
Don't ask, just
click!
|
| Tuesday
- October 2, 2001 <10:30
PM CST> |
<Top> |
|
The
Pet Sounds of GTA3 - Part III
<10:30 PM CST - schu>
IGN released part three of its Pet
Sounds of GTA3 article today. The article has one sample
from the Chatter Box station. It also features a great interview
with Dan Houser and Terry Donovan on the sound in GTA3. One
interesting fact mentioned in the article is that GTA3 contains
a full 3 1/2 hours of radio in the game. Mind you that's only
DJs, commercials, music, and breakers, that doesn't even include
the sound effects and speech, so the complete audio experience should
be pretty amazing. Once again the radio sample at IGN didn't
download correctly, however I found a way around it. Right
click on the link, choose Save Target As, change the Save As Type
menu to All Files, and change the file extension from MP3 to WAV.
It should work that way, at least it did for me. If
that doesn't work, try copying the link into a download manager
like Download
Accelerator. Thanks to Crashton for the link on this one.
EGM
& OPM On GTA3
<10:30 PM CST - schu>
The guys at Ziff Davis sent word that the November issue of the
Official Playstation Magazine - US will hit news stands on October
9th. The November issue contains an extensive GTA3 preview
and a GTA3 cover. Here is a shot
of the cover they sent me.
dElAvA
picked up an issue of EGM and ran into another GTA3 preview. Here
are a few interesting quotes dElAvA sent in:
Well
I was in Brooks (a local Rx) and decided to buy a gaming mag preferably
one with GTA3 in it. Long story short I was reading the preview
and found some interesting things.
"...walk
the streets and pick the pockets of nearby citizens,..."
"You can even take part in a street race once you've got
enough street cred."
"hookers ask if you're looking for some action,"
There
are also some nice screens one is you working as a taxi driver
and it has a message saying fair collection.
New GTA Sites
<10:30 PM CST - schu>
Site Updates
<10:30 PM CST - schu>
I will be in NYC tomorrow previewing GTA3 at the Rockstar offices
and I won't be back until Thursday. Expect the next update
to appear late Thursday or on Friday.
|
| Monday
- October 1, 2001 <11:30
PM CST> |
<Top> |
|
IGN
On The Gangs & Weapons of GTA3
<11:30 PM CST - schu>
IGN yet again, did you really think it was going to stop any time
soon? This time they posted an article
on the gangs and weapons in GTA3. The article is actually
more of who's who in the Liberty City gang scene. There is
some new information in there but this was the most interesting
bit:
IGN:
What's your personal favorite weapon? And why? Adam: I'm a big
fan of the Uzi for a few reasons: It's inexpensive to pick up
from your local AmmuNation store, ammo and all; it's lightweight
design makes for speedy getaways when there are no wheels around
and you need to hoof it; and as anyone will tell you, nothing
else works quite as well when you need to buck someone down without
leaving the comfort of your own ride.
First
of all this the first time I've seen any preview mention the fact
that you can buy weapons from AmmuNation, a question that I've been
getting on a daily basis. This also opens up the possibility
that you can legally acquire wheels at Capital Auto if you really
want to. But where's the fun in that? One last thing
I noticed was that he describes the weight of the weapon. I
seem to recall that larger weapons like the rocket launcher might
slow up you more than smaller weapons like the pistol and the Uzi.
There are five new screenshots in the article as well as all the
gang logos. I've had the gang logos for quite awhile, other
than the reworked logo for The Triads, anyway, here are the screens:
Colombians |
Diablos |
Mafia |
Mafia |
|
Triads |
Thanks
to Andy H and Caustic for the emails on this.
GOURANGA.com
Forums Now Open
<11:30 PM CST - schu>
Over the weekend Azz and I, mostly Azz, got the new GOURANGA.com
forums up and running. The forums are basically Azz'z message
board with one new general forum for my site. You can access
the boards by clicking on the Message Board
link on the nav bar.
Questions
Please / Revised Update Schedule
<11:30 PM CST - schu>
If you have any GTA3 questions that haven't been answered so far
or I couldn't answer in the past, please let me know. I've
been granted the honor of seeing GTA3 in action once again. This
Wednesday I will be flying to NY to take a look at the latest, and
probably final, build of the game. Because of this there
won't be any updates on Wednesday and possibly Thursday. If
you have any questions at all, please let me know, I'll compile
them into a list and try to run as many as I can by the guys at
Rockstar. At this time I ask that you don't submit any PC
questions because I can already tell you that their answer will
be "no comment." My main reason for this visit is
to see the changes that were made after the release date was pushed
back. I started a thread on the G!
board for this or you can respond via email.
New
GTA3 Release Date
<11:30 PM CST - schu>
Jason noticed that the Rockstar
Warehouse site recently changed its release date for GTA3 to
October 22nd. Sounds official enough for me.
Server
Problems
<11:30 PM CST - schu>
Some of you may have noticed that the site keeps going off-line
and in its place a Forbidden message keeps popping up. The
first few times this happened it was related to Azz'z message board.
We solved that problem by installing a new board approved
by my host. Today, the site went down again, this time they
took the site off-line basically because my GTA3 images directory
was getting "large amounts of traffic going straight to it."
Basically they thought it was being used strictly for file
distribution. Hopefully I've cleared this up with them, why
they couldn't take five seconds to see that every file in there
was a jpg or gif file that easily opens in any image viewer, I don't
know. Hopefully they'll get off this kick of taking my site
off-line any time they feel like it, it's really starting to piss
me off.
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