Gamers in India will finally be able to grab a copy of Grand Theft Auto IV without having to import one, as the game will launch here on Friday. (finally phew!)

Rockstar had earlier sited shortage of game copies world over for the delay in launch. Rockstar on its behalf appeared to be quite rude in its reply to a query on reason for the delay.

The game will be released accordingly to the government. It is not our choice to create release dates,” Rockstar had said.

The game launch has been confirmed by sources in Microsoft India who also confirmed that extra downloads for the game will be available only by the end of this year.

So will you be waiting in queue tomorrow?

Image via Wikipedia

Gaming surely is getting bigger in the country; why else would somebody give up figures like Rs 50 lakh to winners in gaming tournament? I am referring to Vixture, a tournament being organised across India starting May 26.

Games like NFS Pro Street, Crysis, Fifa 08, Cricket 07 and Fight Night Round 3 will feature in the competition. Now if you are puzzled by the abscense of Counter Strike and D.O.T.A, don’t be as only EA games are featured in the tournament! From EA’s point of view — a good way to create some publiciy for their games and with amounts like 20 lakh being offered to winners of team events.. people are definitely going to flock in.. at least thats the plan.
The national level finals will be held in Mumbai from June 13-15 at World Trade centre. The event is being organised by zfriction who organised Hong Kong Super Sixes in 2007.
For tournament updates check event blog.

Prize money
Crysis (winners) - Rs 20 lakh
Crysis (runners up) - Rs 10 lakh
Need for Speed Pro Street - Rs 4 lakh
Fight Night Round 3 - Rs 4 lakh
Fifa 08 - Rs 4 lakh
Cricket 07 - Rs 4 lakh

Elimination rounds dates
May 26 — Delhi
May 28 — Kolkotta
May 30 — Hyderabad
Jun 1 — Bangalore
Jun 3 — Pune
Jun 5 — Mumbai

Teen rating

What aspects of a game make it a classic? Is it the graphics, the gameplay or simply the storyline? It is the combination of all the three, with the element of controversy added in certain cases.
Mortal Kombat is one such classic, for it boasts of all the criteria. It did not have graphics ahead of its time, but it sure had some interesting characters, each with an individual storyline and special set of moves. It also ran into trouble with courts of law around the world for excessive display of blood and violence.
The game inspired a series of copycat magic-action fighter games.
The developers, Midway, did not sit idle and, instead, churned out 7 different versions of the game in 17 years of its existence. The latest installment, which is under creation, will be nothing like its past versions.
In the upcoming title, the characters get in touch with those from DC comics like Batman and Superman and well, all hell will break loose. The game will see Rayden pitted against Batman and Superman against Sub-Zero. So, will Superman’s weakness against magic destroy him or will his strength conquer all?
We cannot say for sure. But what we know for sure is that the game will be exciting, thanks to its multi-dimensional storyline. The gamer can select from whose perspective the story will be narrated.

I am not referring to the lighting or beauty of the players here, but to the heavy graphics — excess blood and excess muscle twisting that made Mortal Kombat so famous. According to Midway, the game will try to avoid an M (mature) rating and try for a T (teen) rating instead. Well, Mortal Kombat without excessive
violence is unlikely to be the same game, considering that it’s a fighting game. Many gamers have already threatened to give this game a pass, if developers decide to tone down violence for a T rating.

Characters not released

Midway has not yet revealed the roster of characters for the new title. The sole teaser wallpaper released till now shows Batman face-to-face with Sub-Zero. Gamers are demanding at least 10 characters from DC comics to be included in the game, apart from 10 Mortal Kombat characters.

Some are even vouching for a few special characters that can be unlocked as the game progresses. Fans of DC comics are the most active participants in the official forum of Mortal Kombat. Till date, there has not been a single high quality game featuring any of the DC comics characters, barring Spiderman. With sky-high demands, it remains to be seen how the game will look like when it is unveiled by the end of next
year. Being developed using the Unreal 3 Engine, this title will also have an improved combat system.

I had mentioned earlier about the upcoming sequel to Mafia.

2K, the developers of the game seems to be working at a break-neck speed on the game. A new screenshot and wallpaper of the game found its way into the Mafia II community website.

Like all screens released earlier, this one too has what makes Mafia, what it is now. Guns, cars, and a world right out of the 50’s.

Mafia II wallpaper can be found at the bottom of this page