More Chinatown Wars Information

NintendoEverything has new details from the same Spanish magazine that brought us the Chinatown Wars map. They have released a short list of features that we can expect to see in Chinatown Wars;

• Camera can swivel 360 degrees
• Expect a similar GTA environment with cars roaming, peds on the sidewalks etc...
• We'll have access to the gps/radar on the touch screen and it will update your position as expected.
• We also have a PDA that will provide a detailed map and mission goals.
• As in GTAIV you'll be able to point a location on the map and the GPS will indicate the fastest, legal, way there with yellow or blue arrows.
• New important spots are added to the map when discovered, the magazine points out gas stations has one of them.
• You'll be seeing the live action on the top screen while you have in the lower screens elements like gps, pda, radio stations, access to the people on the map, or using Motolov cocktails and grenades.
• Drugs have a big importance in the game.
• Drug system can be compared to Drugwars.
• You will have to control your drug stock as you buy and sell them in different neighborhoods.
• We have access to a map that points out who needs what and for how much.
• You can catch a taxi, to order the driver to stop, whistle into the microphone.

 

Chinatown Wars Expected Feb - April, GTA IV DLC end of Jan

Take-Two's Strauss Zelnick (Speaking at the BMO Capital Market Conference) supplied proposed release dates for both Chinatown Wars and the ever delayed GTA IV DLC.

Chinatown Wars is expected sometime between February and April 09 pushing the release into Take-Two second fiscal quarter, whereas the long-awaited GTA IV DLC is expected in late January.

Chinatown Wars screens & EDGE Preview

A few weeks ago we posted screens from EDGE magazine's preview of Chinatown Wars. The article has now been posted online, along with higher quality digital images (Rather than the scanned images).

To check out all of the screenshots check out the Chinatown Wars media page.

Drug Dealing in Chinatown Wars

There's no doubt that people are having reservations about how true Chinatown Wars will remain to the GTA brand. Many regard Nintendo's DS as a platform for a younger audience and I think it's a fair assumption to say that the DS generally appeals to younger gamers (Despite having plenty to offer to older gamers).

Well rest assured Chinatown Wars will be no less GTA than any other game in the series, and to prove that Rockstar have included the ability to buy and sell drugs in the game. No information has been released as to how involved drug dealing will be but I'm sure Rockstar will have something up their sleeve.

Also, in an article with Edge Online Sam Houser talks about his commitment to keeping Chinatown Wars true to the GTA series and that Nintendo are in full support of making a mature, hard-core title.

First Chinatown Wars Screenshots

We have a few Chinatown Wars screenshots for you. The screenshots are scans from a magazine, however, they give a sense of what we can expect from the game and how the Nintendo DS screens will be used.

Check out the Chinatown Wars gallery for the full set of images.

First solid Chinatown Wars details

Magazine Nintendo Power have a set of fresh details on upcoming GTA title Chinatown Wars, which should be out in the near future exclusively for Nintendo DS.

The summarize the article, thanks to NeoGAF's botticus, the game is set to include the following;

• True GTA game sandbox gameplay, open-world environment, gritty crime narrative.
• M-rating
• Isometric camera angle
• Cel-shaded polygons w/ black borders
• Good touch-screen implementation "tasteful" minigames, streamlining interface
• UI based on a PDA hub for email, contacts, map, music player, GPS, stat-tracking
• Stats uploaded to Rockstar Social Club website via Wi-Fi
• Finger-sized icons
• Missions designed for shorter periods of play, arcade quality
• Aiming with control pad, auto targeting with R button
• Subtle autosteer
• If you fail a mission, you can jump back to the action sequence
• Chain gun, flamethrower
• Good portion of Liberty City is modeled in the game (different routes than console games)
• No probems with load times, draw-in or frame rate
• Lots of pedestrians, cars, etc on screen
• Wanted system objective is to disable police cars any way possible
• Real-time weather effects, 24-hour day/night cycle
• Lots of radio stations to listen to (more instrumentals than vocals)
• 800,000 lines of hand-optimized source code (hey, the people like the info, right?)
• No details yet on multiplayer/Wi-Fi features

botticus also goes on to state the following;

Chinatown Wars looks to adopt GTA IV's use of a cell phone for portions of the game's UI, with a PDA controlling your "email, contacts, map, music player, GPS, [and] stat-tracking." Those stats can be uploaded via Wi-Fi to the Rockstar Social Club, supposedly, to keep obsessive-compulsive track of your in-game progress.

 

Gameplay-wise, Chinatown Wars will feature D-pad aiming and auto targeting via the R button, as well as "tasteful" mini-games — no lap dances? The arsenal is said to include a flamethrower and chain gun, and the wanted system looks to be modified to maybe shun GTA IV's "out of sight, out of mind" mechanic for one that requires the player to "disable police cars any way possible."

Head on over to the Chinatown Wars page for a full summary of what we know so far.

Chinatown Wars in November?

TakeTwo's CEO Ben Feder states that Grand Theft Auto: Chinatown Wars is set for a fiscal Q1 '09 release. This would mean that it falls in the same fiscal quarter as the Japanese release of GTAIV, which is November 1 to January 31.

Chinatown Wars Details Leaked

UGO has an interesting post talking about Grand Theft Auto Chinatown Wars; information that was aparently leaked via a user survey. Despite Rockstar's Chinatown Wars announcement a little under a month ago we haven't heard anything "official" about the upcoming Nintendo DS exclusive. It should be noted that the below information is not from Rockstar and merely speculation.

Aparently the game is played from the perspecive of "an outsider navigating the criminal underworld of a major city". As the player you control "a young gang soldier involved in the internal power struggle for control of his gang".

There are also rumoured to be four different game modes including a racing game mode, as well as a co-operative play mode. There will be 20+ hours of gameplay spanning 70+ missions with stylus-based gameplay for assembling sniper rifles, smashing locks and hotwiring cars.

I'm sure I'm not the only one who hopes every car doesn't require some form of manual-labour with the stylus, suffice to say Rockstar do have a knack for getting the right balance of realism so I shall let them handle the playability!

The UGO article has since been removed so special thanks to Kotaku for keeping the details alive.

GTA Chinatown Wars announced for Nintendo DS

I'm sure you will be just as surprised as I am to learn that Rockstar have announced a GTA title for the Nintendo DS. GTA Chinatown Wars follows the Triad crime syndicate in a modern day Liberty City with a brand-new engine and gameplay built to work with the consoles touch-technology.

You can read the full press release below;

Rockstar Games Announces Grand Theft Auto: Chinatown Wars for the Nintendo DS™

The newest entry in the Grand Theft Auto series for Nintendo's handheld system this winter

NEW YORK—(BUSINESS WIRE)—Rockstar Games, a publishing label of Take-Two Interactive Software, Inc. (NASDAQ: TTWO), is proud to announce Grand Theft Auto: Chinatown Wars. Developed by Rockstar Leeds in conjunction with series creators Rockstar North, Grand Theft Auto: Chinatown Wars will be available on the Nintendo DS™ in North America and Europe this winter.

"This is a game that will deliver a rich, fast-paced and intense 'Grand Theft Auto' experience that will be truly unique to Nintendo's handheld platform," said Sam Houser, Founder of Rockstar Games. "Rockstar Leeds, along with the team at Rockstar North, has built upon a decade of progressive design on Grand Theft Auto, and has created something fundamentally fresh and immersive."

Grand Theft Auto: Chinatown Wars is an entirely original entry into the critically acclaimed Grand Theft Auto series, and brings a new level of interactivity to its sprawling open environments. With the use of the DS touch screen, players will navigate their way through the streets as they uncover the truth behind an epic tale of crime and corruption within the Triad crime syndicate, delivering the unprecedented amount of depth that has become a true trademark of the franchise.

For more information about Grand Theft Auto: Chinatown Wars, visit: http://www.rockstargames.com/chinatownwars

If I am being honest the DS isn't my favorite games console, however, if R* can produce something even a fraction as good as their PSP offering then I'm sure we'll be in for a treat!