SAN FRANCISCO (AFP) — "Grand Theft Auto IV" is expected to blow away hot shooter "Halo 3" when fans begin sating their desires for the highly popular videogame by Rockstar Games.
"GTA IV: Liberty City Stories" goes on sale a minute into Tuesday.
Many US shops plan to be open at midnight for expected queues of die-hard fans eager to play the game in which triumph depends on acts such as carjacking, gambling and killing.
"This is the most anticipated I've seen," said Michael Cooper as he worked in the videogame department of a Best Buy electronics store in California. "People have been asking for it since January."
Cooper was fielding questions from college student Eric Levine, who was shopping for a Microsoft Xbox 360 videogame console on which to play "GTA: IV."
"My girlfriend is going to kill me," Levine said with a laugh, saying he was likely to return after the videogame goes on sale at midnight to make certain he got a copy. "I just get hooked. It's, like, addicting."
Analysts revised their predictions as the clock neared midnight, saying sales of the videogame are likely to blast past their initial expectations to some nine million copies in the first week.
Analyst Edward Woo at Wedbush Morgan Securities predicts "GTA: IV" will be "the game of the year."
The Entertainment Software Rating Board (ESRB) stamped a "Mature" label on "GTA: IV" banning US retailers from selling the game to anyone less than 17 years old.
Rockstar is owned by Take-Two Interactive, a New York City firm that is a takeover target of the world's largest videogame maker Electronic Arts.
Take-Two rejected a two-billion-dollar offer from EA and delayed talk of negotiation until after the release of "GTA: IV" on April 29.
Analysts believe EA will need to raise its offer to close a deal with Take-Two, which hopes to gain leverage with a superstar launch of "GTA: IV."
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