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New Gay Tony in-game anime is all too familiar

by Richard Mitchell { Oct 26th 2009 at 6:23PM }

Grand Theft Auto has always been heavy on satire, making exaggerated observations about the world for the sake of a few cheap yuks. It's readily apparent on the in-game radio programs, which poke fun at both extremes of political talk radio. The in-game TV programming does much the same (if you haven't, we suggest you make time to watch "Republican Space Rangers"). It looks like The Ballad of Gay Tony will continue the tradition with "Princess Robot Bubblegum," an anime parody to be featured on the in-game CNT channel. The show will serve as part of the new TV lineup in the upcoming expansion.

In Rockstar's own words, "Princess Robot Bubblegum" features the hallmarks of more than a few animes: "Incomprehensible narrative, wretched dialogue and creepy, misogynistic sexuality." See it all in the trailer above.

New 'Ballad of Gay Tony' trailer's got the (action movie) look

by Randy Nelson { Oct 7th 2009 at 4:00PM }

We can look back and laugh at the funny dialogue and guys-in-underpants of previous Grand Theft Auto IV: The Ballad of Gay Tony trailers, but in the latest one, things get real. It's titled "There's Always a Girl" (after a featured line of dialogue) but could more accurately be dubbed, "There's Always Jumping from Motorcycles onto Moving Jets and Tearing Through Liberty City in an Armored Personnel Carrier."

Oh, it has more of Luis parachuting into Liberty City and even confronting (then riding with) members of The Lost motorcycle club -- you know, from the previous DLC, The Lost and Damned. All of this paired with Roxette's "She's Got the Look." You've got to look!

Rainbow-licious Gay Tony Tees from Rockstar

by Richard Mitchell { Oct 7th 2009 at 2:15PM }

Are you excited for the release of The Ballad of Gay Tony? Would you like to display that excitement for the whole world to see? Wait ... no ... pull up your pants, we were talking about T-shirts. Rockstar is now selling T-shirts celebrating the release of the upcoming GTAIV expansion. Up for grabs are several Gay Tony logo tees -- available in white, black and pink -- as well as the Episodes from Liberty City tee and, our favorite, the Rockstar rainbow logo tee.

At twenty bucks each, you can get enough for the whole family. That, or you could just save the scratch and buy the actual game. It's up to you, really.

Dance the night away with Gay Tony Achievements

by Richard Mitchell { Oct 6th 2009 at 1:50PM }

Ahead of the impending release of The Ballad of Gay Tony -- as DLC or as a part of the Episodes from Liberty City retail disc -- Grand Theft Auto IV has been updated with new Achievements on Xbox.com. Ten new Achievements have been added for The Ballad of Gay Tony, totaling 250 points and bringing the grand total for GTAIV to 1500 points. Players are rewarded for various tasks in the expansion, including base jumping, cage fighting and -- Joystiq's favorite -- dancing flawlessly.

Head over to Xbox 360 Achievements for the full list.

Left 4 Dead, GTAIV, SFIV join Xbox Platinum Hits

by Richard Mitchell { Oct 5th 2009 at 6:30PM }

Microsoft has announced that several new titles will soon be joining the ranks of the Xbox 360's budget priced Platinum Hits line. The new additions include some seriously heavy hitters, namely Grand Theft Auto IV, Street Fighter IV, Left 4 Dead, Star Wars: The Force Unleashed and Saints Row 2. Microsoft's announcement (oh so conveniently) neglected to mention prices for any of the titles, but a quick check around the ol' internet points to a price of $29.99 for most of the new additions (though SFIV curiously seems pegged around $40 for the moment).

We should also point out that while these are some legitimately great games, both SFIV and Force Unleashed are receiving upgraded, budget versions in the near future -- Ultimate Sith Edition later this year and Super Street Fighter IV in early 2010. It's also worth noting Left 4 Dead is receiving a full-blown sequel only a month from now.

Microsoft has also announced that retailers will be offering a "Buy 2, Get 1 Free" promotion for Xbox 360 Platinum Hits through October 31, though the release makes no mention of which retailers are doing so. We've contacted Microsoft for more information on the promotion.

See the Tony of GTA: Ballad of Gay Tony

by Andrew Yoon { Sep 8th 2009 at 9:30PM }

If you haven't heard by now, there's another Grand Theft Auto coming out. The Ballad of Gay Tony, the second Xbox-exclusive expansion pack to Grand Theft Auto IV promises to pack in more explosions, helicopters, sky dives ... and disco dances than ever before. In this short new character vignette released by Rockstar, we see the titular Tony Prince. The reason for his apparent ballad? "The mob are on my case, I'm massively in debt, silly f*cking me."

That would certainly explain Tony's need to pick up a gun and go on a rampage, GTA-style. "Man, therapy has a lot to answer for, huh?"

Rockstar's Agent sneaks into 2010 release window

by Ben Gilbert { Sep 6th 2009 at 11:30AM }

Aside from the game's exclusivity to the PlayStation 3 and the logo you see above, we've seen little else about upcoming '70s espionage game Agent. But while answering some fan questions about next month's GTA IV expansion, The Ballad of Gay Tony, on its forums, Rockstar North mentions that it's "working hard on a lineup of PlayStation 3 releases for 2010 ... including Red Dead Redemption, Max Payne 3, and the PlayStation 3 exclusive AGENT."

The statement goes on to tease "yet to be announced" titles, possibly lending some credence to Michael Pachter's statements on another GTA game in the not- so-distant future. Considering Rockstar's statements were made in response to queries about GTA IV DLC coming to PS3, we wouldn't be surprised if those "yet to be announced" titles are the result of Microsoft's timed-exclusivity expiring.

[Via Superannuation]

First screens for The Ballad of Gay Tony go airborne

by Ben Gilbert { Aug 29th 2009 at 5:30PM }

Earlier today, Rockstar Games released its first volley of screens for upcoming GTA IV expansion, The Ballad of Gay Tony. From what we can see in the four images -- handed "exclusively to fan sites," according to the Rockstar Games website -- it appears as though air-based warfare will be the focus this time around.

Eagle-eyed fans will also notice that the protagonist is wearing the same letterman jacket found in the teaser image Rockstar released last week for the game's second DLC, still scheduled to arrive this Winter, further confirming his main characteriness. All will be revealed this Tuesday we hope, with the arrival of the first trailer (and hopefully some new media alongside that). For the time being, peep all four images right here.

Gallery: GTA IV: The Ballad of Gay Tony

[Thanks, Adriaan!]

PSA: Lost and Damned is Deal of the Week for $15

by Ben Gilbert { Aug 24th 2009 at 12:00PM }

In case you'd forgotten, Major Nelson reminded us this morning that this week's Xbox Live Deal of the Week is the Grand Theft Auto IV expansion, The Lost and Damned. Rather than running you the standard price of 1600

($20), the motorcycle gang-themed DLC will only cost 1200

($15) this week.

Considering how many games have already headed into the "early 2010" release window, we wouldn't be surprised to see the retail compilation of The Lost and Damned with The Ballad of Gay Tony slip to next year. Hopefully this week's discount on the former is a precursor to the latter getting a release date or, well, any info at all since it was announced back in May. In the meantime, at lease we're getting a discount!

Gallery: Grand Theft Auto IV: The Lost and Damned DLC

GTA IV: The Ballad of Gay Tony, Episodes from Liberty City hitting Oct. 29

by Randy Nelson { Jul 22nd 2009 at 7:30PM }

Rockstar has dated the second Xbox 360-exclusive DLC expansion for Grand Theft Auto IV, The Ballad of Gay Tony, for October 29. A disc-based retail compilation of the new episode and the game's first add-on, The Lost and Damned, titled Episodes From Liberty City, will be available the same day for 360. The news comes via a tweet on the company's Twitter feed and two official site updates.

The new DLC will be priced at 1600

($20) while Episodes will run $39.99 and will not require a copy of GTA IV in order to play. To coincide with the announcement, Rockstar has updated the official Ballad of Gay Tony site with a new desktop background -- there's even an iPhone-formatted version for you mobile mobstas.

Baking news: GTA IV meth recipe flawed

by James Ransom-Wiley { Jun 22nd 2009 at 5:15PM }

From the obscure annals of May 2008 comes the testimony of BBFC head David Cooke, who confirmed that the now irrelevant UK ratings board had investigated the authenticity of "instructional information about how to make the drug crystal meth" in Grand Theft Auto IV. The incident was brought to light today in a Times Online article examining PEGI's recent appointment as the sole UK video games classification authority and allegations that the organization might not be as thorough as the BBFC had been in its review process; for example: testing out GTA IV's so-called meth recipe.

We're not certain just how far the BBFC went in its drug trial, but "independent advice" was sought in order to deem that "crucial ingredients and techniques were missing" from the scrutinized game content. What does this mean for the rest of us? Well, one, if you're in the planning stages of a homebrewed meth lab, you should probably look beyond GTA IV's suggestions. And, two, if you've already got your lab up and running, you may want to contact your legal team and tell them that the "GTA made me do it" defense isn't going to work this time. That is, only if the coppers catch you before you blow yourself up.

[Via GamePolitics]

Rockstar, Media Molecule lead 2009 Develop Awards nods

by Jason Dobson { Jun 5th 2009 at 11:00AM }

Rockstar Leeds and Rockstar North, together with LittleBigPlanet dev Media Molecule have netted an impressive eleven nominations for the 2009 Develop Industry Excellence Awards, the UK's annual prize patrol for all things excellent in the industry.

The Rockstar houses pocketed six of their own for work on GTA: Chinatown Wars and GTA IV: The Lost and the Damned, including nods for visual arts, technical innovation and audio. Rockstar Leeds is also up for the award for best handheld game studio, while both are in the running for being recognized as the best in-house team. Media Molecule is up for five awards as well, including best indie studio and best new IP. The Guildford studio is also up for the technical innovation award, where it's not only up against the Rockstar folks, but the teams behind Killzone 2, PlayStation Home, Football Manager Live and Fable II.

We wish all nominees the best of luck and remind them not to forget to thanks their moms should they take the stage and accept an award during the July 15 ceremony.

Analyst casts doubt on BioShock 2, GTAIV DLC release dates

by Richard Mitchell { May 27th 2009 at 8:30PM }

According to Gamasutra, Janco Partners analyst Mike Hickey isn't buying the release dates Take Two is selling. Hickey has "concerns" about the announced release date for BioShock 2 -- October 30 in Europe and November 3 in North America -- "given the unannounced platforms and expected last-day-of-quarter release." We're not psychics or anything, but we get the feeling that the platforms just might be announced at E3.

Concerning the upcoming GTAIV expansion The Ballad of Gay Tony, Hickey is even less optimistic, saying it might not release until late 2010 or possibly even 2011, though he states that a fiscal 2010 release "seems probable." Quite a statement considering how heavily the DLC and GTA: Episodes from Liberty City factor into Take Two's plans for the rest of 2009.

Furthermore, Hickey resurrects the ghost of the EA buyout of Take Two, stating that the company is a "viable acquisition candidate" thanks to the fact that it has "some of the strongest video game development talent and IP in the world." Gamasutra adds that acquisition by another company is more feasible this year, as Take Two stock is trading for significantly less that it was at its highest point last year.

IGN analyzes the GTA IV: The Ballad of Gay Tony announcement

by David Hinkle { May 27th 2009 at 5:40PM }

IGN took a microscope to yesterday's announcement and came up with some with some ideas on what to expect from Rockstar's latest GTA IV DLC episode. We already know about Tony's fall from financial grace in the main GTA IV campaign, so IGN surmises that this latest episode will focus on Tony's attempt to reclaim his lost riches through the exploits of his assistant, Luis.

When The Lost and The Damned released, it included updates to Liberty City's LCHC and Liberty Rock stations, and IGN expects the same to happen for K109, Electrochoc and The Vibe, which hold Liberty's club-dwelling populace's interest.

There's a good chance that The Ballad of Gay Tony will mostly take place in Algonquin, IGN writes. Considering that Lopez's Dominican friends operate out of Northern Algonquin, and Gay Tony's empire spanned most of the south eastern part of the island, it's a safe bet to assume Luis will be handling business in the area when the DLC releases this fall.

Rockstar announces GTA: The Ballad of Gay Tony, coming to Xbox Live and retail compilation

by Griffin McElroy { May 26th 2009 at 4:35PM }

The second episode of Rockstar's promised downloadable expansions to Grand Theft Auto IV has been announced! The cheeky developer revealed the DLC as The Ballad of Gay Tony, which places you in the (assumed) fancy shoes of Luis Lopez, a "part-time hoodlum and full-time assistant to legendary nightclub impresario Tony Prince" (or "Gay Tony"), the titular bar mogul who made a number of appearances in GTA IV.

While we're sure to hear more about the particulars of Gay Tony during E3, the method of the game's release should prove to be interesting as well. Not only will the expansion hit Xbox Live this fall for $19.99, it'll also appear on a retail disc with The Lost and Damned. This retail disc, titled Grand Theft Auto: Episodes from Liberty City, won't contain the core GTA IV game -- nor will it require GTA IV to play. It'll hit store shelves in the fall, selling for $39.99. We'll let you know more when we know more!