Grand Theft Auto IV is being questioned as whether or not it is too big for its DLC to be successful. A game that clocks in at 20+ hours is a rarity when most games pull in the six to eight hour mark. GTA IV is one of the rare time consuming games left on the market. There was a lot to do in Liberty City, not to mention all of the mindless roaming, side missions, and the main story line to tackle. Was it really all too much for gamers to handle?
I never finished GTA IV. I didn’t finish it because I never really got into the game. The story never really grabbed my attention. It certainly was not due to the games size. However, prognosticator extraordinaire Michael Pachter believes that the size of the game is to blame for the less than stellar sales of the downloadable expansions:
“Ben’s right that the DLC disappointed, but I suspect that the reason is that GTA games are so massive that a substantial majority of the GTA audience hasn’t finished the core game, so they don’t feel especially compelled to buy the DLC,” Pachter said.” — VG247
Review scores for The Ballad of Gay Tony were high. Everything I read on this DLC was positive and pointing to a must own DLC pack. Was it advertising that just didn’t work? Was it the fact that gamers really didn’t finish the core game and saw no point for the DLC?
I just have a hard time swallowing the fact that the game was so big that people just didn’t finish it. Perhaps it was due to GTA IV losing its shock factor that caused gamers to not finish this game.
What say you reader? Did you finish GTA IV? Did you get the DLC packs that have come out?
I bought GTA4 and sold it back after a week or so. The game was just boring. I've played well over 100 hours of Demon Souls and would happily pay for DLC. I'm really not sure how GTA4 received such high review scores. It just wasn't fun.
This is the stupidest thing I have ever read seriuosly gta4 was the best game I have played since the xbox 360 and playstation 3 launched it deserved 10/10 which dosent mean it’s perfect it means it’s a very very good game in it’s genre
The way the dlc packs where made was for the core fans of the game they pumped up the difficulty level and added 40 hours of gameplay with interweiveing storylines
Have people got so impatiant with games they would rather go drop $120 on mw2 which played out for 4 hours of storylines and some pretty average online over 20+ hours of new gta for $30
I know what I would prefer I advise everyone to go pickup
tbogt and see how much fun rockstar has injected into the game
I know I’ll deffinetly pick up a rockstar game tittle any day of the week because it garuntees me 20 plus hours of high qualtiy gameplay story and graphics rage looks awesome for a engine and how would a 6 hour gta play out that’s a terrible idea games need to be longer
I totally agree,very true!!
Well no offense but i must disagree with micheal patcher, TLAD sold very well and correct me if im wrong but all of fallout 3's dlc sold well as well(and fallout is arguably far bigger than gta 4). I think the reason BOGT didnt sell was the time it was released, it was competing with forza 3 and odst and modern warfare 2 was right around the corner. So no i dont think gta 4 was to big for its dlc.
xbox exclusives was the reason… here r some points:
first of all, gta IV for ps3 outsold 360-version in PAL-regions.
second and more important; gta IV was a very mature game, not only cos of violence, but it had a deep stroy and was more realistic than previous games. and therefor more appealing to older gamers, and not so much to 11 year olds. and the ps3 consumer average age is much higher than 360.
im not saying it shouldve been ps3 exclusives, but i think it would sell the same, or maybe more, even with a smaller install base, on the ps3. ofcourse MS couldnt know how gtaIV was gonna be, so they were dead on, but because of the mature game R* made, it didnt went home in the way it could. now the answer is not make a more childish dumb game. the answer is: dont go exclusive.
Several reasons why GTA DLC wasn't a huge smash…
It was only available on the XBox 360
GTA IV storyline was boring. Why pay more money for another boring storyline?
The DLC offered nothing new. Sure, new weapons, cars, story and characters, but in reality, that is nothing new. Same weapons/cars as before, just slightly tweaked and who cares about story and characters?
Offer up some substantial DLC and I'll pay for it…
New functions such as ability to ride in subway and move around inside it.
Add friction to the game so I can stand on a car and have a NPC drive me around in the back of his pickup.
More buildings to enter
Make the theme park open up and start working
Add mini games such as golf, skateboarding, bike riding, etc
Working tow truck, fork lift, tractor trailer, etc
Airplanes
New helicopter with weapons that make it fun to use
Online servers with rooms describing what they contain so I can choose where to play and under what conditions instead of matchmaking only.
Michael Patcher is an ass and knows nothing of what hes talking about. The fact that the DLC is exclusive is the reason why it hasnt sold well. I know I havent bought it myself due to the fact I own GTA4 on the Ps3 and dont want to split up the game by purchasing the DLC for 360. Rockstar should release this DLC for PS3 and the sales will skyrocket. Im not exactly sure what Rockstar was thinking that 50 mill mustve been great and now there taking a long term hit but thats what happens when you abandon half of your user base for a quick buck.
I'm sorry, but I am going to have to disagree. It was a quality made game that had alot of content. Sorry that it wasn't your cup of tea, but I think it was well worth the money spent on it. I even bought both DLC packs as well. They are on my "pile of shame" for playing over the holidays this year. ;-)
You would be correct to say it had amazing production values, but Juan is absolutely right to say it was highly over-rated. It wasn't fun at all.
the dlc was released far too long after the game came out.. gamers have the attention span of fruit flies.. gamers move on to the latest and greatest.. rockstar should have had the downloadable episodes in the pipeline and ready to go.. 3 months post release for the first bit and 6 months post release for the 2nd installment would have been great..
Just playing through TBOGT now, I have finished TLAD and GTA4 as well. I will be finishing everything! The stories are incredible, the acting and writing is better than most movies and the action and gameplay is incredibly fun. I really look forward to returning to Liberty City every few months for another DLC. The value to be gained from these game is unmatched. The mini games or even just walking around the city really draws me into the world. Pure escapism. I am also a big driving fan and love the physics. The music is great, the art style is great. BY the way, I was watching TV on TBOGT last might and was watching the Manga cartoon send-up on their. So funny! Seriously get this and enjoy them. Stop jumping on the GTA-haters bandwagon. Thats for sheep!
This is a really good point… I had never even though about this, but it is so true. To get those out so close to the release they would have probably had to pull people off of the GTA IV team to finish the game. So in the long term, I still think they made the right decision.
But there is a fine line on DLC release timelines as well. Release the DLC to close and people get upset it was not just included with the final game. Wait to long and the game pretty well drops off the radar. The DLC saga is still working itself out in my eyes.
they wont be making anymore dlc. they already stated that their going to work on another project. hopefully the next gta. im hoping for a new vice city.
The reason the DLC failed was because it was a 360 exclusive, no other reason. GTA: IV was absolute perfection, i logged 92 hours into the game and that was just for the offline mode. I completed it twice (Had to restart when the Trophy patch came out) and thoroughly enjoyed every second of it. Had the DLC been available on the PS3 it would have done much better, simple maths.
QFT. I would buy the 2 DLC content in a heartbeat if it came out for the PS3. GTA IV was the base platform for the 7th gen consoles. Just like GTA III was for the 6th. Give Sony a break guys! Who know what will happen in the future gta games, but I also have my eye on Mafia 2 and L.A. Noire.
ya if this DLC was offered maybe back in August or Early July it would of sold a hell of a lot better. since nothing good came out then until Batman Arkham Asylum.. i finished the game and got both content as well and have loved them both.
No gta 4 wasn't too big it was just not enough fun to convince me to buy any expansions. If I had known how bad the cars and helicopters were to drive I wouldn't have even bought gta 4. Frankly at this point gta is a dead franchise to me. When it comes down to saints row 3 and gta 4 its an easy choice, pick the game that's still fun to play.
I would however buy gta 4 dlc if any of it were titled: Cars drive right; helicopters don't suck; kill all main characters.
gta 5 rather
the reason why GTA 4 and its dlc did not sell well is cuz of a bunch of fat 12 year olds who have add could not sit though its great story same goes for all the adults who would rather play halo halo and cod 4 mw. gat 4 tlad and bogt are among the greatest games of all time it just lame ass people want to pay full price for 5 hours of game play just cuz its halo cod mw2 or what ever is the hottest game you all need to grow up and quit letting them screw us on games
It's very simple. You can never underestimate the "cool factor". In other words, it's not cool to say, "I love the ballad of gay Tony".
Michael Pachter = tl;dr he is right, everyone is wrong, even if he is wrong
i finished it.. but by the time i did, i was sick of it and didnt want to play it anymore. at least not any normal missions or anything. pointless roaming and random bullshit is still fun on occasion, but i dont need expencive dlc pakcs to do that.
One of the main problems I think was the DLC was released wayyy to long after thge original game. Everyone had finished playing it and was on to something else, no one cared any more. They needed to release the DLC 4 months after the original release, to keep the hype going…
what?
TBOGT is the best part of GTAIV.
better than GTAIV and the lost and the damned put together.
certainly was not what GTAIV should of been, but it was a step in the right direction.
GTAIV should of stuck to the san andreas or vice city formula, they changed it so much it destroyed the game for me.
like i dunno about you, but i did not buy GTAIV to be a taxi driver for the first half of the game.
take the city, the environment and mission structure of GTA vice city, and add in the gameplay and weapon upgrades of san andreas and you have the perfect GTA game.
I plan to get the DLC of GTA4 and I'm glad they put it on a disc. My hard drive is the 20gb and would lost to much space. I find that many found it boring cause it was to real. And we know how real life can be boring. I thought the first dlc was to come out earlier then when it did. Rockstar wanted polish the game more giving it a later release date. I think if they would of release the lost and the damn on disc and one xbox live at the same time it might of done better.
The game was waaaaaayyyy over hyped. In the end it was, well.. boring. That’s why people didn’t finish it.
The Fact is that there are exclusivity issues. Not to argue with anyone but, GTA4 DLC could have sold more if it wasn't exclusive. It was the developers and publishers mistake. You can't blame Microsoft ( oh my god, I cant believe I said that. I hate Microsoft. ) Again don't blame the console maker. Blame the publisher and developer. When you go exclusive you take a risk and since Microsoft paid $50 million for the exclusivity, The developer and publisher can't sit back and now bitch about the sales. You stepped in it, now take it in the chin and keep it moving, learn from the lesson you have been taught. I would like to see the DLC on the PS3 but if not then its their loss.
the main reason gta eflc and its dlc counterpart didn't sold well is because the gta fans want everything that gta:sa hs ex: planes,fighter jets,the ability to buy properties,and so much more.
just driving around (while dropping grenades out the window and shooting drivers thru their windshield and making them crash in yr rearview!) is still the only fun thing about GTA. I never finished the game…
… i also have it on ps3 only :)
I bought both GTA IV and Episodes From Liberty City. I thought 4 was a disappointment, but I think the DLC outdoes the original IV in every way. I liked Johnny and Luis more than Niko, I liked the weapons more, I liked the extra activities more(TLAD Bike Races and Gang Wars/TBOGT Fight Club and Skydiving for examples) and I even liked the story more since it wasnt as drawn out and even added some more memorable characters like Mori and Terry and Clay in.
If Episodes From Liberty City or TBOGT underperformed I think it was due to stiff competition. Lots of big titles grabbing peoples attention makes a DLC pack look less appealing. It's a shame too, as I think these two DLC packs are better than the original.
"Perhaps it was due to GTA IV losing its shock factor that caused gamers to not finish this game." Are you serious? Are you talking specifically about kids, because none of the people that i know (all of them adults) play GTA for the 'shock factor'.
Is this site aimed at kids or what? Garbage article – do some research and back up your arguments, or just dont make them.
There’s no way the DLC could’ve come out a few months after GTAIV was released, the rockstar crew was so overwhelmed by meeting the GTAIV deadline they were pushing 16+ hour days. I heard the production manager state on the Opie and Anthony show that when the game came out the whole team would take a few months off.
can you play GTA IV TLAD and BOGT if you didn't end up finishing the main story line and then go back and play the main nikko story line? Or is it spoiled after you play the expansions!