The rumors, constant crying and internet flame wars can finally be put to rest as GTA: Episodes from Liberty City is coming to the PlayStation 3 and PC in March. Is everyone happy now? Now there’s no reason for anyone to be left out or feel like Rockstar came into their home and robbed everything or kicked their pet. PS3 and PC gamers may be getting the content a bit late but I guess that’s better than not getting it at all.
Just like on the 360 Rockstar will be offering GTA: Episodes from Liberty City to PS3 and PC owners in two ways: either download an individual episode for $20 or buy both on a disc for $39. After hearing this news I feel like an absolute ass for buying the 360 version in October since I’ll probably never play it again and will merely double dip and purchase the PS3 version to get my Trophies and to “complete” my GTA collection.
In case you were a bitter GTA fan who decided to ignore Episodes from Liberty City when it was on the 360 then I suggest you check out our reviews of Episode 1: The Lost and Damned and Episode 2:The Ballad of Gay Tony to get a taste of what you can expect from the game.
If you had to buy one I would go with The Ballad of Gay Tony. That installment really goes back to the roots of GTA in a way since most of the missions are really fun and the story is the somewhat light hearted crime fair that we know the GTA series for instead of being uber serious like GTA4.
It's actually a tough decision. I only have 19 GB's left on my PS3, so unless I make an upgrade, I should buy the disc. But I think it would be better I spend those shipping taxes on the HDD rather than on the disc, considering I will not have to longer worry about running out of space. Now this means it's time to get my first $50 PSN card. But then again, I'm not sure if I'm actually going to buy these DLC's. Yet an HDD upgrade is obligatory, and when buying this will come my decision of getting a $50 card.
Still, thanks for the recommendation, Ian.
Cool. Didn't Microsoft pay a shit ton of money for timed exclusive for these? Last I heard they didn't sell as expected either.
Yes MS paid for a timed exclusive. But the idea wasn't to sell a tone of GTA downloads it was just to give you more reason to buy a 360. Timed exclusive and exclusive deals are designed to help persuade customers to buy one over the other. It's interesting though, things like Joker in Batman Arkham Asylum on the PS3 haven't leaked over to PC or 360 yet but many of the 360 exclusive stuff has been resurfacing on PS3 etc.
Exactly as Corey said, MS got what they wanted from the deal - more folks bought GTA IV for the 360 because of the planned DLC. I'm a little disapointed to be honest. Having played both on my 360 I was hoping for something unique -oh well.
"Evan Wilson, analyst: “And as it relates to the deferred revenue chunk associated with the… episodic content on Xbox 360, [I] can see that [unintelligible, assumed to be 25] million of that moved into short term deferred. Can you give us any sense of when that’s going to hit the P and L [profit and loss statement], and will we see 25 million at one time and then the second 25 million or will[there] be a slow bleed onto the P and L?”
Lainie Goldstein, Take-Two CFO: “The first 25 is for the first episodic content… package that’s supposed to go out and that is in March of 08; and that’s why its moved into current, because its in the next 12 months. And the second 25 will be for the second episodic,
[unintelligible] the episode, and that will be later in [the] fiscal year, fiscal 08.”
Update June 18: Next Generation reports an analyst’s comments that the $50 million is an advance payment, and that Microsoft typically takes 30 percent of sales of Xbox downloadable content – indicating that Microsoft expects the exclusive episodes to generate at least $70 million in revenue to recoup the payment and generate a profit."
Basically MS didnt just give Rockstar 50 mil as a payoff rather it was an advance payment of the potential revenue to be created with the DLC. After all that MS ends up selling more consoles and makes $20 mil more on the DLC.
Exactly. The thing is that almost no gamers knew that it was only a timed exclusive, and that once that time passes the DLC was going to be multi-platform. It was a move by MS to sell more consoles or to sell more GTA games to those who had both the PS3 and 360.
Exactly. The thing is that almost no gamers knew that it was only a timed exclusive, and that once that time passes the DLC was going to be multi-platform. It was a move by MS to sell more consoles or to sell more GTA games to those who had both the PS3 and 360.
Of course, good business. If everyone knew it was going to be on PS3 eventually, it wouldn't have been worth the upfront payment.
However even if most had known that the DLC would see a PS3 release, the sheer waiting period would make most choose the 360 version. I don't mind waiting a week or two (I did so with Dragon Age:Origins) but the gap here is massive.
Nice,i will be picking these two up as ive been trying to dig back into GTA IV.Multiplat FTW.
Sounds like great news because MS paid Rockstar for nothing!
Is it worth it?