Rockstar bit off more than it could chew
Rockstar founder Sam Houser says it all: "The game is huge and is pushing the hardware platforms to their absolute limits." And "Certain elements of development proved to be more time-intensive than expected, especially given the commitment for a simultaneous release on two very different platforms."
Was it a bit ambitious for the company to announce a release date - to the day - over a year and a half early, and before we'd even seen or heard the slightest detail about the game? It looks like developing and prepping GTA IV for a simultaneous release was trickier than Rockstar thought...
It was never going to make it
In our recent sneak peak, we couldn't overlook the significant number of graphical glitches in the GTA IV demo. Sure it was early but shadows and lighting systems weren't quite up and running and there was a small bit of pop-up in the crowded Liberty City. Rockstar warned us that this was early code we were seeing, but we can't ignore the demo's graphical state now that the game's been delayed for possibly six entire months.
Manhunt 2's to blame
Another thing we can't ignore is that little over a month ago Manhunt 2, one of the company's biggest releases, was denied release in the UK - something that despite Rockstar's continuous pushing of boundaries has never happened before. This must have caused a massive shake-up inside the company.
Is it far fetched to suggest that perhaps, looking at the ESRB and British Board of Film Classification's decision, Rockstar decided to scale back on some of the more explicit content in GTA IV? After all, we're not looking at blocky PS2 graphics anymore.
Or does Rockstar believe Manhunt 2 will be released and doesn't want it to go head-to-head with GTA IV?
Feel free to add your theories inour forums. The truth is out there. Probably...
